No - Autism Doesn't Cause Transness

Last week, the UK Supreme Court ruled that for the purposes of the Equality Act 2010, 'woman’ is defined by biological sex, which… ahem, they described as ‘binary’ (neither gender nor sex are binary - the former because it is a construct and the latter because science tells us so!). In the wake of this decision (one that was bankrolled by JK Rowling and did not include consultation with a single Trans or Intersex person), there has been a flurry of activity. The Equality and Human Rights Commission rushed to send out guidance, guidance that contradicted itself was described by the charity TransActual as potentially unlawful and unenforceable.

Since then, and no doubt spurred on by the ruling, the NHS has shared a proposed change to the way Trans and gender non-conforming children are treated - that they may be tested for Autism and ADHD. The changes are based on recommendations from the Cass review, a study that has been widely criticised for lack of robustness in methodology, inconsistencies and lack of evidence for its conclusions. And yet, healthcare policy is being shaped by it, because it aligns with the current political agenda of transphobia.

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