In this week's episode of Translucent, host Lee Wade and Dr. Jennifer McGuire, a researcher studying the lives of transgender young people, discuss what families can do to better support their growth and well-being.
This transcript has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
Wade: Hi, I'm Lee Wade, and you're listening to Translucent, a series that amplifies trans voices, humanizes our community, and creates space for the real, everyday conversations that don't make headlines. Dr. Jennifer McGuire is a professor at the University of Minnesota and Extension Specialist, focusing on outreach for transgender youth. For over two decades she's listened to trans kids and researched how supportive family environments impact their wellbeing. Her work began with focus groups at youth centers.
McGuire: I went to visit four different community centers on the west side of the country and did focus groups with the young people that were in the trans youth support group and then asked them "what can the community center do to support you?" And so in doing that, I really got clear that family support was a major stressor for a lot of people. My research training is in adolescent development and family relationships. And so I thought this is a place where I could be an ally and and do some work that might be supportive of enhancing the well-being of kids.
Wade: Dr. McGuire grew to understand some of the challenges that trans youth face when they're not in a supportive environment.
McGuire: I, at the time, was a parent to some young adults and other adolescents. And I thought, oh, these are all the kinds of things that I'm doing with my own kids. And so things like helping to find the right school to go to that was going be safe and comfortable for them and making sure that they had health insurance and hopefully insurance that covered their gender affirming care. Although, at that time, hardly any did. And then also housing and employment opportunities and the underlying family strains meant that this set of young people were walking through the world with less support.
Wade: Dr. McGuire began looking into what a supportive family actually looks like.
McGuire: A truly supportive family member refrains from articulating their doubts or saying negative little comments or getting in the way of the person who's trans. It's an unambiguous support: "This is your life, it's your body, I will support what you want. We talk about what you need and I'm here to support you. "
Wade: Creating an inclusive home can start with small, everyday choices, like how bringing queer books or movies into the house, for example, help show acceptance. In practice, that support can also look like using affirming language with other family members, helping pay for things when possible like clothes, haircuts or hormones, providing emotional support for mental health, and surrounding young people with an inclusive community, including LGBTQ+ friends. But McGuire says there's another piece that families often struggle with, and that's boundaries.
"This is one of the darkest times I've seen for trans kids, so what I would hope for is that the stigma and the pushback goes away. "
McGuire: I think the biggest parental guidance at this point is this is your child or your family member's process, right? It's not your process. It's a reflection of you, it's not a reflection on how good of a parent you are or aren't. It's your child's process and so being sure to have a boundary of this is what your child is going through and your job is to support your child in their own development. To the extent that you need to process or think it through or have feelings about it, you can take those to your own support network outside of the family. You can seek out support from trans family networks, PFLAG or other kinds of parent support groups.
Wade: Dr. McGuire says she hopes that awareness, understanding and acceptance can give young people the space to thrive and support their mental health so the small changes in the home can ripple out and create a safer, more inclusive world for all LGBTQ+ youth.
McGuire: This is one of the darkest times I've seen for trans kids, so what I would hope for is that the stigma and the pushback goes away. That would be my first hope, that society changes. And then my second hope — and I hope this for everyone in our country — is that we have medical care that takes care of the things that we need, that supports us. My third is just the capacity to have a fulfilling relationships with family, be that family of origin or children's family.
Wade: A huge thank you to Dr. Jennifer McGuire for helping us understand what support can look like. I'm Lee Wade, and thank you for listening to Translucent.
This story was produced at the Eichelberger Center for Community Voices at WYSO. Translucent is made possible with support from The Rubi Girls Foundation and Square One Salon.
