When I chose today’s topic and began to write, I thought I disagreed with Byron Tanner Cross. A few paragraphs in, I wasn’t so sure.
Mr. Cross is a physical education teacher at a Loudoun County, Va., elementary school who was suspended after objecting to the district’s proposed policy on “Rights of Transgender and Gender-Expansive Students.”
During the public comment segment of the school board’s May 25 meeting, Mr. Cross stated that he would not “affirm that a biological boy can be a girl, and vice versa.” Two days later he was placed on paid administrative leave.
Within days Mr. Cross had filed a lawsuit against the district. On June 8, a circuit court judge reinstated Mr. Cross to his teaching post. The district quickly appealed.
Last Monday, the Virginia Supreme Court refused the district’s appeal, leaving in place the teacher’s reinstatement.
You certainly don’t have to share Mr. Cross’ Christian faith to welcome judicial affirmation of his right to free speech. It’s outrageous that school officials would suspend a teacher for comments made in a public forum — objections to their proposed policy — not for conduct in the classroom or violations of a policy already in place.
That’s some breathtaking hubris right there. That’s a lot of animosity toward someone bold enough to simply disagree.
But when someone makes a newsworthy move and cites his Christian faith in the process, my inner alarm bells start ringing. Did we need to drag Jesus into this?
Is there an important liberty that needs to be defended? Is there a solution that provides for both liberty and dignity without religious conflict?
In news interviews Mr. Cross later said he would use a child’s preferred name but would not use pronouns that do not align with the child’s biological sex. That is, in fact, the compromise being promoted by his attorneys, who now represent other dissenting teachers as well.
“I’m not alone,” Mr. Cross said. “Many of us are concerned that proposed policies would harm students and require us to violate our beliefs by saying things that are not true.”
The question of harm is central. One of the most worrisome facts here is that this is an elementary school. These are little children we’re talking about.
How do we avoid doing harm to a child experiencing gender dysphoria? The answer probably changes with age.
Children develop by trying out various identities and ways of experiencing the world. They have imaginary friends. They experiment with toys and clothes stereotypically identified with the opposite sex. Through the years wise adults have let these things take their course.
Puberty complicates things. Young teens often feel deeply uncomfortable with their changing bodies.
As recently as 2014, the American Psychology Association’s Handbook on Sexuality and Psychology observed that by adulthood most kids who’ve experienced gender dysphoria become comfortable in their bodies and identify with their biological sex.
But a 2020 APA manifesto delves deeply into recommendations on school policies and data collection. Suffice it to say that gender identity, as both social issue and medical field, is evolving rapidly.
The journalism on it is evolving too. Reporters are sharing the stories of young adults who felt pressured to transition surgically, regret it, have transitioned back, but now cannot have children.
I find it stunningly foolish that human beings who aren’t old enough to drink alcohol or vote would be encouraged to remove their sex organs.
Similarly, if children too young to explain what a pronoun is are demanding that certain pronouns be used, it’s possible their caretakers have an agenda beyond the child’s best interests.
But respect for the individual’s dignity is key to good mental health, and teachers bear an important burden here. Respect is as much in tone of voice as in choice of words.
As for pronouns — at issue in Loudoun, Va., and coming soon to a school district near you — how about “they”? The Oxford English Dictionary traces its use as a gender-neutral singular pronoun back to 1375.
It’s pleasing to find an old solution to a seemingly modern problem. Maybe there are others.
ruthanndailey@hotmail.com
First Published: September 5, 2021, 9:00 a.m.
