I have been following the news story recently about the pregnant man. Thomas Beattie is a former woman who legally changed his gender from female to male but decided to keep his female sex organs in case he ever decided he wanted to conceive a child. Thomas is married to a woman and the couple decided they wanted him to become pregnant via artifical insemination. Thomas has been all over the news and was interviewed on the Oprah Winfrey show where, I believe, she asked the most important question there is - "Do you think that the world is ready for this?"
By reading Oprah's message boards, it appears that the answer is no, the world is not ready to accept Thomas and his child, which is the disgusting truth about the society we live in. One post stated that "Thomas was born a female, and genetically will always be female." Another replied by saying, "I'm pregnant so if I say I'm a cat does that mean tha I'll get to be on Oprah?" Yet another responded by saying, "Obviously this is a transgendered person who is pregnant, not a 'man'." A parent stated that "Now I'm trying to explain this to my 6 year old son who heard this on a commercial."
I am happy that Oprah decided to invite Thomas to be on her show. Not only is it an interesting story that deserves to be discussed in a respected setting, it addressed an issue that is so hushed within our society. It makes me sick that Oprah's message board filled so quickly with hate messages and that the episode did not help people to understand people like Thomas. Thomas IS a transgendered person, but he IS a man. He stated that, "being pregnant does not make me feel any more female or feminine ... I'm a man, I just happen to be a pregnant man."
If nothing else, the story of Thomas Beattie shows how far our world has to go. It proves even more how important it is for information and resourced to be available so people can become educated about the diverse society in which we live.
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I caught part of the Oprah episode with Thomas and his wife and found myself really thinking about some of the same issues you brought up. I did happen to see the part when Oprah asked, "Do you think the world is ready for this?" Later that day, I was still thinking about that very question. I was disappointed to see what you found on the message board, but unfortunately it does not surprise me. Things certainly have changed, but not enough yet. At times I feel like a lot of progress has been made, but then something happens that makes me doubt it all over again. All this controversy surrounding Thomas and his decision is a perfect example.
Even people I know personally surprise and disappoint me in unexpected ways. A few months ago a family was sitting around the table looking at vacation pictures. A teasing question was asked about one of the young women who happened to show up in many of the pictures. "Oh, no, she's gay," the male friend of this woman said. His 8 year old cousin immediately asked, "What does gay mean?" Before anyone else could reply, the mother jumped in, "Oh, he means she's just happy." A warning glare was shot across the table at the dumbfounded young man who couldn't believe what had just happened. Why didn't his cousin who is in 3rd grade know he had a gay friend? How could his aunt and uncle be that naive and ignorant to teaching their daughter about the world around her.
This past fall I read a newspaper article about the book, And Tango Makes Three by Peter Parnell and Justin Richardson. Based on the true story of two penguins at New York's Central Park Zoo, this book has faced numerous objections from the public--the parent penguins are both male. The fact there have been so many challenges and restrictions and objections to this story of a non-traditional family, indicates to me that no, the world is not yet ready.
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