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I wonder where all the transsexuals were before they got publicity, and some surgeon was willing to mutilate them..

A lot would prefer not to have any publicity about what has to be the most embarrassing congenital anomaly possible.

The first "modern" genital reconstruction was in the 1920's. Christine Jorgensen was the best known, but there had been quite a number before the 1950's. Surgery really only advanced to give functional genitalia in the late 60's and early 70's.

Before that.. surgery was performed in Ancient Rome, the cult of Cybele made a religious rite of it. They were known as "Gallae". Hebrew works dating to the Babylonian captivity describe surgery on Tum-Tums, those trans people with visibly abnormal genitalia in order to "reveal" their "hidden gender".

Transsexuality has always existed - it's just that it was either unpublicised, or accepted, as it was (and still is) in many primitive societies. The Winkte(Sioux), Nadle(Navajo), and Two-Spirits(Iroquois etc) amongst American Indians, the fa'fahine in the Pacific islands, the katooi in SE Asia, the huge number of hajira in India, thePokots of Kenya, the Xaniths of Islamic Oman, the Mahu of Tahiti, the Sekrata of Madagascar... Many of these used primitive surgical techniques for thousands of years.

I'm a researcher in Intersex conditions, though my speciality is in neurology rather than general anatomy. I'm particularly interested in those Intersexed people who are Dichogamous. Usually through 5-alpha-reductase-3 deficiency syndrome.

These people look somewhat, mostly, or completely female at birth, but masculinise to look somewhat, mostly or completely male later. You could say that they are "natural occurring Female-to-Male transsexuals".

About 2/3 of them are boys. That is, they have masculinised neuroanatomy. For them, they were transsexual before the change, and the natural change is a miraculous cure.

Unfortunately... 1 in 3 have female neurology. For them, the masculinisation is, well, it's not good. If they're not granted sex reassignment surgery, most kill themselves.

give boys Barbies and girls trucks and cars and we will all be the same...that was the mantra of the 70-80's. Until studies show that the boys would tear off barbies head and use her for a gun bang bang..

Exactly. Except that some people are born with cross-gendered brains, and for them, life is not easy. The medical problems are bad enough, but many people confuse them with Gays, or Perverts. Even many people who are obviously physically Intersexed have the same kind of problems. A lot of people think that Intersex is a myth, or that if it isn't, it's a threat to society and such people should be erased.

Oh yes, Male-to-Female natural changes happen too, but they're less than 1% of those that go the other way. So rare you can ignore them, basically. Unless you happen to be one of them, I suppose...