Much needed information, thanks! You know, it seems to me that the dedicated anti-trans folks who rail against the supposed dangers of puberty blockers echo the tactics of those who deny science and expertise in other ways.

They often sound like climate-change deniers or the anti-vax crowd, cherry picking data that support their positions while simultaneously overlooking or disparaging the wider body of data. Then, at other moments, or even simultaneously, they disparage science as a knowledge-gathering institution, claiming "common sense," intuition, or other forms of addressing questions are more trustworthy than science.

On the subject of puberty blockers, scientific consensus seems to be solid. Research continues, which is always part of the scientific process, but those who strongly oppose puberty blockers almost invariably do so because they strongly oppose the existence of trans people.

Their "concerns" feel far less than genuine when you start looking at the totality of their positions, which are almost always extremist. The people claiming puberty blockers are dangerous are the same people claiming trans people are dangerous— claims that are equally unsupported by data.

I reminded of the trans boy and his mother I interviewed a year ago. They fled Florida for a New York State homeless shelter when new Florida policies effectively cut off his medical treatment.

The boy was deeply depressed and even suicidal before they left. Today, in New York, he is thriving. I just heard from his mom that he's super excited about the new school year, and he's excelling academically. He has a large, supportive friend group, and is now a generally happy teenager.

I sure wish anti-trans blowhards could look at kids like this and see them. Really see them.