2020 book by Abigail Shrier
Irreversible Damage: The Transgender Craze Seducing Our Daughters is a 2020 book by Abigail Shrier and published by Regnery Publishing. Abigail Shrier is a journalist for The Wall Street Journal. In the book, Shrier supports fringe treatments[example needed] for transgender youth and,[1] based on the unproven[2] and contentious[3][4] hypothesis of rapid onset gender dysphoria,[5][6][7][8]: ch 2 accuses social media of playing a driving role in girls' decision to identify as transgender.[9]
Background
Shrier is the daughter of Peter B. Krauser and Sherrie L. Krauser, both judges in the state of Maryland, United States. She has degrees from Columbia College New York (A.B. Philosophy and Kellett Fellowship), the University of Oxford (B.Phil. Philosophy), and Yale Law School where she was a Coker Fellow.[10][11][better source needed] Shrier works as a journalist and columnist for the Wall Street Journal,[12] and has published multiple opinion pieces on trans issues.[13] She has previously criticised what she considers government enforced use of gender pronouns and other vocabulary,[14] and criticised trans womens' participation in women's athletics.[15]
Reception
The book has proven controversial for its views about transgender issues.[16][17] It received a negative review from Jack Turban, a psychiatrist with specialization[clarification needed] in transgender mental health, in a Psychology Today blogpost,[1][18] a mixed review from the radical feminist Megan Mackin in Feminist Current,[19] and positive reviews from the journalist Naomi Schaefer Riley in Commentary, from the journalist Madeleine Kearns in the National Review, and from The Economist.[21][22] The book was named an Economist Book of the Year,[23] and a Times Best Book of 2021 for its UK publication.[24]
Turban wrote that Shrier had misinterpreted and omitted scientific evidence to support her book's claims. He criticised Shrier for basing her portrayals of transgender youth on interviews with their parents, and for using "crass and offensive language".[1] Mackin described the work as accessible and necessary, but criticised Shrier for affirming the identities of transgender adults. She also faulted Shrier's discussion of privilege and identity politics.[19] Riley wrote that Shrier was correct to ask "What's ailing these girls?" who appeared to have suddenly begun identifying as transgender. She endorsed Shrier's criticisms of transgender healthcare and online trans activism. Kearns reviewed Irreversible Damage alongside Debra W. Soh's The End of Gender. She stated that Shrier's book provided a "personal, inquisitive, and often moving narrative of girls in trouble".[21] The Economist called the book the "first book-length study of a fascinating phenomenon" but stated that "it has been widely ignored".[22]
Writing in Gay City News, the journalist Matt Tracy criticised the book for misgendering subjects of discussion.[25] The Daily Dot columnist Ana Valens wrote that the book contained obvious transphobia and encouraged conversion therapy.[26][27] In Them, the writer James Factora stated that almost every claim in the publisher's description of the book was a "blatant lie".[28] Some of the social media influencers discussed in the book responded to their depiction. Chase Ross, who was interviewed for the book[29] and featured prominently,[8]: ch. Intro [30] apologised for his involvement, describing the book as "transphobic".[31] Ty Turner, a trans YouTuber who also appeared in the book,[8]: ch 3.1 further condemned the book as "fearmongering"[32]: 2:59 and "hateful".[32]: 4:23
Following public criticism, Target pulled the book from their stores and later reinstated it.[33][34]
In a July 2020 interview on the Joe Rogan Experience to promote her book, Shrier made multiple comments that were seen by some as hateful towards transgender individuals[example needed]. This sparked calls for the Rogan podcast episode to be removed from Spotify,[35][36] as has happened with other content containing hate speech.[37][36] Men's Health stated that the objectionable language included comments calling gender transition a "contagion" and comparing it with autism, eating disorders, and mental disorders involving self-harm, along with accusations that media pressure youths to transition.[38]
