Katherine Thompson says that the Bay Area culture is providing the kind of uplifting empathy and support for trans youth that others do not.
Five years ago, when she was a highschooler at St. Ignatius in San Francisco, my daughter came out as trans. I learned fast about what it takes for trans people to thrive their way through inequity, ignorance and violence. Systems of race and poverty intensify their struggles.
I also learned that being trans is an exquisite miracle of human variation.
I’ve been so awestruck that my daughter once teased, “Are you flexing on me, Mom?”
And I have a new appreciation for the exquisite miracle of the Bay Area, with its world-class health systems for gender-affirming care, advocacies like the Transgender Law Center, and the groundbreaking work of businesses, schools, governments and the faith community.