One of the must-read resources for young people ensnared in trans communities is the anonymous blog, newthoughtcrime, which explores the ways trans communities can restrict individual freedom of thought. For my latest Genspect column, I spoke to its creator about how her own experiences in the trans community shaped her coming-of-age years and inspired her to create a resource for young women like her.
Here’s an excerpt (and please do read the whole thing—I promise it’s worth it!):
Q: Based on your own experience in these communities and your observations since leaving, how could someone determine whether they were under the influence of a manipulative group? What does that experience feel like? What distinguishes a healthy group from an unhealthy group?
A: When it comes to being in a manipulative group, I think some signs manifest as emotional responses. For me, the biggest sign that I was in a manipulative group was that I sincerely believed that I had to control my own thoughts because other people could read them. I was not allowed to think about certain things, in case other people found out. I also experienced a sort of brain fog when trying to work through a train of thought: once you encounter a ‘forbidden’ path in your mind, you can’t explore any further without shutting the whole thing down. As well, there’s the complete and total lack of trust in oneself — the belief that you will always do and say the wrong thing unless you repeat exactly what you’ve been told, because there is some kind of inherent evil inside you which will escape and hurt others the moment you even think about breaking the rules. But then, these could be extreme examples which come from being indoctrinated by a fairly extreme group.
More practically, there are some questions people can ask themselves. Things like: am I allowed to disagree with my peers, or will I be reprimanded? Is everyone in the group considered an equal, or are some people punished for behaviours which higher-ranking members get away with? If abuse — especially sexual abuse — occurs, will it be taken seriously? Would I feel safe if I decided to leave the group? Is the group requesting money beyond a reasonable amount of funding? Do I think of myself as a good person, and is that opinion influenced by how well I obey the group?
Q: One of the resources you draw on is Robert Jay Lifton's work on thought reform and the psychology of totalism. How did you come across Lifton's work and what resonated with you?
A: I first encountered Lifton’s work on gender-critical Tumblr, where another user had written a series of posts analysing Lifton’s criteria for thought reform and applying them to trans ideology. This was of course a life-changing read for me, and started me down a path of research which completely altered the way I viewed what had happened to me while I was trans-identified.
In particular, I appreciate Lifton’s coining the phrase “thought reform” — I think it stands out as somewhat more accurate than the similar terms ‘brainwashing’, ‘mind control’ and ‘undue influence.’ As well, I think it’s crucial to note that Lifton’s work was based on researching political prisoners, rather than cult members. To me, this exemplifies the simple truth that thought-reform techniques are essentially the same across the board, from Chinese prison camps to cults to abusive relationships. As well, the fact that I related so strongly to some of the psychological abuse committed against political prisoners of all people finally allowed me to acknowledge the extent of the harm that had been done to me and others.
Q: One of the (many) things I've found so useful about Lifton's work is that it provides a way to talk about coercive dynamics in online trans communities without getting stuck on the question of "is it technically a cult or not?" But it's still an interesting question and I'm curious how you think about the question of whether trans communities can be meaningfully understood as a cult or cult-like?
A: On one hand, I understand that a lot of people feel hesitant to use the word “cult” to describe anything other than a group of people who live on a compound, practise a religion, and are controlled by a singular leader. On the other hand, I think that cults have evolved alongside technology and societal norms. In particular, I think there’s a tendency to doubt that cults can recruit people primarily online, or even that interaction with a cult could be entirely online but still have a severe impact on a person’s wellbeing. But our current understanding of manipulative extremist groups shows that they often use the Internet to target vulnerable people in a way that would not be possible if limited to in-person encounters, as evidenced by the incel movement, QAnon, ISIS, and so on.
I think another reason people are reluctant to use the word “cult” is that the trans community essentially isn’t “bad enough.” I think some people are uncomfortable with the idea that a formerly trans-identified person would claim to be a cult survivor, and thus compare themselves to people who escaped horrific, violent cults like the People’s Temple or Children of God. But in my view, the reality is that you don’t have to be in the worst cult to have been in a cult. And even then, I have to question whether the trans community can really be considered so harmless, when people are being indoctrinated as children and leaving with fewer body parts than they started with.
Q: Something you've said before that's stuck with me is that people who leave cults are encouraged to distance themselves from the language, patterns of thinking, and other forms of coercive control that a manipulative group exercised over them, but that for people who desist or detransition from trans identities, it's impossible to fully leave trans behind. Would you say more about that?
A: Let me give some examples from my own life: My girlfriend and I go to Pride, and see a sign outside stating ‘No TERFS! Protect trans kids!’ I feel like playing The Sims 4, and open the game to find that top-surgery scars have been added for your characters to wear like an accessory. I go to my aunt’s bachelorette party and another guest asks me for my pronouns. Virtually everyone I know has a person in their life — usually a younger family member in their teens or 20s — who is transitioning now. The progress flag, which features the trans pride flag, is on the window of my local bank. I go to Lush and the employees wear pronoun pins. I go to Starbucks and they’re selling cookies in partnership with Mermaids. I try to research a female health condition and find an article where women are called ‘uterus owners.’ I open YouTube and am immediately shown someone’s transition-timeline video. I join a lesbian social group and some of the members are biological males.
All of these instances reinforce the ideology, and some of them, like being asked my pronouns, require me to actively participate in a ritual which serves to uphold the beliefs that harmed me. As you said, ex-cult members are encouraged to eschew cult language and thinking because they need to focus on grounding themselves in reality — but how can I do that, when declining to offer my pronouns or socialise with lesbian-identified males could lead to social ostracisation? What should I do when accessing reality is rude at best, and a hate crime at worst?
It’s so interesting and INSANE to hear her describe how the movement has changed since 2017 -- such a short time. I too also didn’t know that trans kids was even in the vocabulary or that underage transition was even a thing until early 2021 when I began hearing about detransitioners and the rise in adolescent females being trans identifying. And when I did learn about this that was enough to break the spell of my support. It just totally fell apart for me after that and since then I’ve probably learned way too much by going down this rabbit hole.... I’m also struck by how she describes it impossible to leave the cult bc that’s often exactly how I feel as I look around me and most people or institutions I know and interact with are still in some kind of support to it. It’s incredibly frustrating.
I’m really glad she brought up what it’s like to have to constantly face the language, symbols, and slogans everywhere you go after leaving the belief system. It’s especially hard for teens still in school, especially teens trying to deal with trauma from things that happened during that time. They must do the work of making sense of everything that happened to them, often alone and in silence, while walking on eggshells to make sure they don’t upset the people still involved in the thing that hurt them.