The transgender community has expressed alarm over a BBC documentary examining approaches to gender dysphoria in children, claiming it gives a platform to a controversial psychologist whose methods have been likened to conversion therapy.
The film, Transgender Kids: Who Knows Best?, prominently features Kenneth Zucker, a Canadian psychologist who was dismissed from a Toronto gender identity clinic in 2015 after an external review found his practices were “not in step with the latest thinking”. Zucker disagrees with the widely favoured “gender affirmative” approach, which encourages parents to allow children to live as their chosen sex.
Susie Green, chief executive of the Mermaids Foundation, which represents transgender issues, said Zucker’s comment that “a four-year-old might say that he’s a dog – do you go out and buy dog food?” was “incredibly inflammatory”. She added: “We’ve had real concern that this is going to cause [parents] to be targeted, because it supports this idea of trans children being mentally disturbed or that they can be cured.”
The documentary has drawn criticism for focusing on “detransitioned” individuals and for presenting Zucker as an expert. Michelle Bridgeman, a psychotherapist for children with gender dysphoria, warned that giving Zucker a platform “gives further weight to those voices who say parents who let their children live as a different gender are evil or inhumane”.
The controversy comes as referrals to the UK’s main child gender clinic have increased by 1,000% over the past five years, intensifying debate over the best way to support transgender youth.
