<p>In Saturday's Financial Times, on the front page of the "Weekend" section, is an interesting article about Smith, titled as above.</p>
<p>The sub-heading reads: "Smith College is a presigious women-only institution, where students are urged to explore who they want to be. So how does it cope when some of them decide they want to be men?"</p>
<p>The article goes beyond the transgender issue, and is well worth reading.</p>
<p>The article concludes "... the transgender controversy underscores what many Smith students already know: boys are a hugh distraction."</p>
<p>There was a transgendered (M->F) student at Bryn Mawr when I was there. I believe she had sexual ambiguity at birth. At any rate, her female identity was accepted there. Moving in the other direction would have been a very different ball of wax, though...</p>
<p>I read the article and I take issue with its notion that those who oppose F->M students are the "white gloves and pearls" holdovers. </p>
<p>I haven't asked my D her thoughts but I respect the chosen identity of F->M students...and therefore don't think a women's college is the right place for them. Odd to find me on the reactionary side of an argument....</p>
<p>The article states:
[quote]
If accommodating Smith's growing number of transgender students was always that easy, life would be a lot more straightforward, both for the students and the college itself. But it rarely is.
[/quote]
If Smith can tolerate male teachers and employees (a few Federal laws certainly goes a long way to promoting tolerance), surely Smith can tolerate a few but growing number of female to male transgender students. It is not the student's fault that he was born into a woman's body. It would be nice if Smith and its students could place themselves in the position of the transgender student and ask how he would want to be treated under the circumstances.</p>
<p>BigMain, it's a question of identity: Smith is, by definition and mission, a women's college. I'm sure there are some born-male students that would like to go to Smith, too...their feelings don't and shouldn't matter.</p>
<p>A F->M transgendered student is having it both ways...wanting to be male and yet wanting to go to a women's college. I have sympathy for their excruciating position overall but this is hypocrisy, if poignantly so.</p>