In our latest guest essay by a Battle of Ideas festival speaker, Dr Jenny Cunningham, a retired paediatrician, explains why the Cass Review has been invaluable – but not without some weaknesses.
I don't think the Cass Review's recommendation was a good one, to open up new regional "gender clinics" for what is a social contagion, primarily amongst girls. It is treating the symptoms and not the cause.
A Freedom of Information request [1] also reveals that the Cass Review also chose not to include lived experiences, which they solicited, regarding autogynephilia, which is a cover-up in my view.
If the Cass Review had actually candidly covered the diagnostic criteria in the DSM-5, which includes autogynephilia, then I think it would have made the recommendation for the "mismatched" "gender identity" narrative stop being taught to children, as it's an obviously misleading fairytale.
Then new "regional gender clinics" wouldn't be necessary, as girls would stop misdiagnosing themselves with a "mismatched" "gender identity".
This wouldn't have been a big ask, as the UK's Department for Education recommended banning "gender identity" from the classroom.
I don't think the Cass Review's recommendation was a good one, to open up new regional "gender clinics" for what is a social contagion, primarily amongst girls. It is treating the symptoms and not the cause.
A Freedom of Information request [1] also reveals that the Cass Review also chose not to include lived experiences, which they solicited, regarding autogynephilia, which is a cover-up in my view.
If the Cass Review had actually candidly covered the diagnostic criteria in the DSM-5, which includes autogynephilia, then I think it would have made the recommendation for the "mismatched" "gender identity" narrative stop being taught to children, as it's an obviously misleading fairytale.
Then new "regional gender clinics" wouldn't be necessary, as girls would stop misdiagnosing themselves with a "mismatched" "gender identity".
This wouldn't have been a big ask, as the UK's Department for Education recommended banning "gender identity" from the classroom.
[1] https://transpolicy.substack.com/p/why-didnt-the-cass-review-cover-all
It is good to see The Cass Review looked at from this angle.
Yes there are weaknesses, and interested parties can find more in my lighthearted verdict against a prior checklist:
https://www.buttinghill.com/p/cass-review-checklist-the-verdict
Or a more serious reaction conveying the concerns of parents:
https://ourduty.group/2024/04/10/the-cass-review-final-report-first-impressions/