LGBTQ Parenting Roundup
As July rolls on, here are a few news items for and about LGBTQ parents that I haven’t yet posted about. Catch up on what’s happening!
transgender
“How We Do Family” Is a Memoir and Parenting Guide for All
Part memoir and part parenting guide, the new book by diversity educator and speaker Trystan Reese manages to tell a story that is specific to his experience as a gay, transgender dad, while offering universal advice on parenting, relationships, and more.
Non-binary and Trans Teens Pen Books for Younger Readers
Fifteen-year-old Hunter Chinn-Raicht, who is non-binary, knows that the term “non-binary” isn’t always understood. “This is a new word and it’s super confusing for a lot of people, especially people that weren’t brought up with it,” they told me in an interview. They hope to dispel some of that confusion through a new book they’ve written, one of a set of three titles by “champions” of the GenderCool Project, a youth-led movement of teens who are speaking out to show that transgender and non-binary youth can thrive.
Watch Now: Trans Dad Featured in NOVA’s “Fighting for Fertility”
In “Fighting for Fertility,” premiering today on the PBS science series NOVA, transgender dad Trystan Reese and his husband Biff Chaplow are one of several couples profiled who shed light on fertility challenges, new technologies to address them, and systemic inequities that impact fertility and fertility care.
“Born Ready: The True Story of a Boy Named Penelope”
Penelope is “no ordinary kid.” Penelope is a ninja—strong and smart, with ninja moves. It’s hard to be a ninja with a name like “Penelope,” though, when everyone calls you “cute.” And no one sees that Penelope is a boy—so he has to tell them, in an affirming new picture book that is also a true story, written by the real boy’s mother.
“Too Bright to See,” the First Middle Grade Novel from Kyle Lukoff, Is Another Winner
Kyle Lukoff, author of the Stonewall Award-winning When Aidan Became a Brother and the Max and Friends series (both about transgender boys), has just published his first middle grade novel. That in itself should be enough for you to go read it immediately. If you need more convincing, though, or just want to know a little more about it, however, here’s a review.
DOJ Affirms Protections for Transgender and Other LGBTQ Youth (+ Two Other Wins for Trans Youth)
While the current legislative season is seeing a horrifying record number of anti-transgender bills, there were three wins this week: the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) issued a memo affirming that Title IX prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation, contrary to what the Trump administration had said; the governor of Arkansas vetoed a bill that would have prevented transgender minors from receiving gender-affirming medication or surgery; and the NCAA president has spoken in support of transgender youth in sports.
25 Recent Picture Books with Transgender and Nonbinary Characters
Today is the Transgender Day of Visibility, so I’m celebrating by rounding up 25 (!) picture books with transgender and/or nonbinary characters that have been published in 2020 and 2021 alone. (I’ll also show you how to find older trans-inclusive kids’ books and ones for and about trans parents.)
Rachel Levine Becomes First Transgender Person Confirmed by Senate (and She’s a Parent, Too!)
Dr. Rachel Levine yesterday became the first openly transgender person to be confirmed by the Senate and the country’s highest-ranking transgender official. Levine, who has two grown children, will be the assistant secretary for health in the Department of Health and Human Services.
“Sam Is My Sister” Shares a Boy’s Perspective of Having a Trans Sibling
In a new picture book by the real-life mother of a transgender daughter, a young boy isn’t quite sure what’s happening when his younger sibling, whom he thought was a boy, begins to want long hair and to wear dresses. The whole family learns together in this story that adds to the small number of picture books about transgender children and their siblings.