Being Transgender is Not a Choice For My Son | This Morning

your six-year-old has been living as a boy and yesterday watching the show you felt compelled to get in touch with us because you're a very strong opinion about what they said on yesterday's show I just felt deeply actually wasn't angry I just felt incredibly sad first of all for their children but second of all I just thought my goodness what kind of world is my son going to grow up in with I couldn't believe in this day and age that we still have this level of ignorance and you know lack of acceptance well they they seem to very strongly believe that this ideology of transgender was being somehow pushed on to the children by either the school or their peers or this acceptance in society there was something they said that that that's what they said that upset me because first of all as a parent who's living this situation and has been living in this situation since Dexter was two-and-a-half he's almost seven I don't know a human being a life that would push their child or anybody's child down this horrific life-changing Road I fully accept and understand that gender at this age is very fluid and he could turn around in next year or three years time and say well actually I am a girl and that's fine by us but to suggest that we would push our child and and force our child down this road it that's what hurt me because so so Dexter was was born Talia Dexter was born Talia yeah and so at what point did did next to make it quite clear that that was not necessarily what he thought was right I'd say the from the when I look back on it from from two-and-a-half he was not being had not happy at all about the choices of clothes I was making and very much wanted to be in you know the superhero type clothes which I just thought again oh it's a phase you know boys clothes if you like I'm more comfortable and more practical and he's not a girly girl so who's he hurting we'll go with it and a good friend of mine in the States that actually said to me when he was around three do you think he's trans gender and I said would I be silly he's just it's just a phase it's just a kid they all go through it and then sort of about half a year later I thought yeah no this is I was a tomboy he came to you in the garden didn't he he came running in from the garden and about three and a half four maybe just over four and he said mommy I've got it and I said got what darling and he said I'm Dexter and I said okay he said I'm Dexter that's me that's who I am and I said awesome that's a lovely name I love that name so would you like us to yes I want everybody to call me Dexter and I am a boy and he was happy he was so happy and it was a difference almost like a weight had been lifted because for the year and a half previously he'd known everyone had called him Dave was a nickname because he was big into minions he we all we all called him Dave and it was a bit of a fun thing because he was a boy and we just called him Dave and that's what he loved and then I said to him I tell you when it was around the time we were filling the forms in to go to school and you know how they asked you what does your child prefer to be known as and I said do you want to be known as Dave at school you know because that's what everybody calls you and he said no I'm going to beat Ali at school because that doesn't sound like a girl or a boy so he dropped the a and then a month into school had his all of his haircut and which I fully supported I took him we had his haircut it's just hair it will grow back and then six months in he said that's when he came and said you wanted to be Dexter so going to school because yesterday's conversation was how it affected other pupils how was he how was Dexter accepted into school it was a discussion you had with other parents teachers pupils we had a meeting with the headmaster the senko and the inclusion officer and his reception team the school have been amazing amazingly supportive and the headmaster said something which just ticked the box for me the first opening sentence was the most important thing is that we protect Dexter's mental health and and it's he's dead right and he's happy this all the kids were fine the parents have been really supportive apart from the odd comment I literally we have had so much support and love it's been amazing let's bring Dexter in Dexter's been sitting very very patiently and next door supers not so Dex is six Dexter six nearly seven nearly seven I was gonna say yeah this is very important when your mind exactly almost seven high tech high Dex how you doing I'm gonna have a seat take your seat come here come squeeze between us there you go so well it's very nice to meet you how you doing good good is it nice to be here if we looked after you today oh good I'm glad I'm glad and how school school good at the moment yeah working hard yeah gonna get a job soon what do you think you'll do what's what's of you thought have you thought about that what you love what what are things that you really like you help mommy at work a lot don't ya yeah yeah i run a childcare business from home I'm a child minder right so and I have a separate nursery in the garden so he's he's incredibly kind and caring with the babies aren't ya but Dexter it's lovely to meet you it really is thank you very much to see us thank you very much you

Channel: This Morning

Views: 753,076

Keywords: this morning, interview, holly willoughby, phillip schofield, ruth langsford, eamonn holmes, chat shows - topic, chat show - topic, talk shows - topic, transgender, lgbqt, real life

Id: XohOTTCG5Z8

Length: 6min 5sec (365 seconds)

Published: Tue Sep 12 2017