Life & Style Magazine's LGBT Faux Pas

I don't turn to Life & Style magazine for much. I don't trust them with questionable celebrity rumors or lip gloss advice. I'm more of an US Weekly gal, myself. But I just can't ignore this week's cover story: "Why is Angelina Turning Shiloh into a Boy?"

Angelina being, of course, Angelina Jolie, and Shiloh, naturally, being her three-year-old daughter with that Brad fellow. Shiloh has been making headlines since the day she was born, and she is often pictured in celebrity rags and the NY Times Sunday Styles section for her personal brand of awesomeness. Last week, from what I can surmise, Shiloh got a haircut and a new wardrobe and it's not the princess get-ups we're used to seeing on other celebrity babies. "So what?," you may be asking yourself, and good for you. Life & Style, however, turned the whole thing into a piece of overtly sexist, totally transphobic and completely harmful piece of drivel.

Let the trans jokes begin: "Why do they want her to look like Chaz Bono?" quipped a commenter.  Alana Kelen, senior stylist at VH-1, offered this gem of a quote: "Shiloh is pushing the boundaries of a tomboy look and crossing over to cross-dresser territory." Celebrity stylist Gili Rashal-Niv hopes that "we won't be seeing Maddox in one of Shiloh's dresses anytime soon." Seriously? She's three years old. She likes hats and ties. Haven't any of you heard of Yves Saint Laurent? Or Diane Keaton? How about Avril Lavigne?

But the idiotic "expert" quotes don't end there. In dissecting the psychology of little Shiloh, Life & Style turns to "parenting expert" Glenn Stanton, director of Family Formation Studies at Focus on the Family. He says, "it's important to teach our children that gender distinction is very healthy." Stanton, who's psychiatric credentials are not listed in any of his online bios, believes that it's the parents duty to give "guidance of what [gender] looks like." And if the parent can't do it, a little reparative therapy should do the trick. Stanton understands Shiloh's confusion, and is an appropriate expert to speak on the subject, because, as he told Dr. Phil, when he was three he wanted to be "a horse." Congratulations, Glenn, you almost got your wish, you've grown up to be a real ass.

The article also quotes psychotherapist Jonathan Alpert, who I can only surmise hasn't spoken with anyone from the Jolie-Pitt clan in making his assessment. But he's worried for little Shiloh. "She might be made fun of and wouldn't fit in." Might be made fun of? Like on the cover of Life & Style magazine? If you people are so worried about the psychological well being of a three year old, maybe you should consider another cover article. I hear the Kardashians are available.

There is also some worry since Shiloh likes to go by the name, "John." It's important to note that she didn't pull this out of thin air. John happens to be a character in Peter Pan, reportedly one of her favorite stories. Here's my "expert" opinion: Three year olds are imagination machines. They take on different personas, they live out plotlines from their favorite books, and they role-play. It's what they do. All day long. And kudos to Angelina and Brad for recognizing that gender identity doesn't make itself known in the form of a frilly skirt or long blond locks, and for fostering a vital sense of imagination, which, by the way, is an indicator of intelligence.

The article does attempt a balanced journalistic approach, giving parenting coach Karen Deerwester nine whole lines of rebuttal space. She says, "Giving preschool-age children the freedom and flexibility to experiment with how they want to be seen in the world is a wonderful gift."

Life & Style should be ashamed -- not only of the subject matter, but of the content and the source material. Focus on the Family is not just a "conservative organization" but a monolith of anti-LGBT rhetoric, incapable of coherent, socially responsible ideas. Glenn Stanton is an expert on maintaining gender status quo, and he should be labeled as such. And why are celebrity stylists weighing in on the emotional stability of a three year old? These people are responsible for the overly thin, overly tanned, overly plasticized version of feminine now so heralded in the mainstream. We are all better off ignoring them completely.

When publications like this use fake experts and hurtful commentary to speak about a topic as sensitive as gender identity, without any regard for the truth or any sensitivity of the subject matter, they pose a real threat to those who are actually struggling with gender identity issues. Considering the high suicide rate among LGBT youth, articles that do nothing but harass and poke fun should not be tolerated.

Why not take a page, literally, from sister publication US Weekly, who reported Shiloh's "makeover" as a pixie cut and a pair of boy jeans the tiny stylista picked out herself. Then, in the quarter page blurb, the rag quoted a child psychologist who said, "Kids try on roles. How she dresses reflects what interests her now."

I can go on and on about the gender stereotypes perpetuated in the ridiculous Life & Style article. Shiloh doesn't like manicures! She shops at boy's clothing stores! She wears camo! People will think she's a boy! I could go on and on, but I have to go fit my two and a half year old son for a tutu.

Photo credit: krossbow