Most Americans know that there are two sexes, male and female, and that sex is rooted in science. Most Americans also know that we ought to treat all people, including those who feel conflicted about their gender, with respect and dignity, without sacrificing the truth in the process. These beliefs, though, are now under attack from some of the most powerful corporations in the history of the world
The book, When Harry Became Sally by Ryan T. Anderson, was an Amazon bestseller. Its description says it provides “thoughtful answers to questions arising from our transgender moment” and “a balanced approach to public policy on gender identity, and a sober assessment of the human costs of getting human nature wrong.”
The book has been on sale for three years.
“When Harry Became Sally,” published in 2019, was written by conservative scholar Ryan T. Anderson and discusses several issues including gender identity.
“This book exposes the contrast between the media’s sunny depiction of gender fluidity and the often sad reality of living with gender dysphoria,” according to its description online. “It gives a voice to people who tried to ‘transition’ by changing their bodies, and found themselves no better off. Especially troubling are the stories told by adults who were encouraged to transition as children but later regretted subjecting themselves to those drastic procedures.”
You can get [Adolf] Hitler’s “Mein Kampf” shipped to your door with free Amazon Prime delivery. You can get the Unabomber manifesto written by a serial killer who murdered three people and maimed 23 others. You can even get “How to Blow Up a Pipeline.” I assume the title speaks for itself.
All those books are available for purchase on Amazon right now, one click away, but Amazon wants you to believe that a conservative book is somehow beyond the pale, unacceptably hateful, literally worse than Hitler, as they like to say.
Amazon has banned books in the past, the works mostly focused on conspiracy theories and debunking the Holocaust. The Amazon web services also recently banned conservative website Parler from its services, and has deplatformed other conservative websites.
The company has previously said that it reserves the right not to sell certain content based on its content guidelines for books. “All retailers make decisions about what selection they choose to offer and we do not take selection decisions lightly,” a statement read.
Can a boy be “trapped” in a girl’s body? Can modern medicine “reassign” sex? Is our sex “assigned” to us in the first place? What is the most loving response to a person experiencing a conflicted sense of gender? What should our law say on matters of “gender identity”?
When Harry Became Sally provides thoughtful answers to questions arising from our transgender moment. Drawing on the best insights from biology, psychology, and philosophy, Ryan Anderson offers a nuanced view of human embodiment, a balanced approach to public policy on gender identity, and a sober assessment of the human costs of getting human nature wrong.
This book exposes the contrast between the media’s sunny depiction of gender fluidity and the often sad reality of living with gender dysphoria. It gives a voice to people who tried to “transition” by changing their bodies, and found themselves no better off. Especially troubling are the stories told by adults who were encouraged to transition as children but later regretted subjecting themselves to those drastic procedures.
As Anderson shows, the most beneficial therapies focus on helping people accept themselves and live in harmony with their bodies. This understanding is vital for parents with children in schools where counselors may steer a child toward transitioning behind their backs.
Everyone has something at stake in the controversies over transgender ideology, when misguided “antidiscrimination” policies allow biological men into women’s restrooms and penalize Americans who hold to the truth about human nature. Anderson offers a strategy for pushing back with principle and prudence, compassion and grace.
The big issue, though, is Amazon’s scale. The company’s share of the book market is giant – it accounts for 83% of all US ebook sales, and at least 50% of all physical books. It is the world’s largest bookseller, meaning it can essentially make books disappear for all readers, and its size means some books may not even be published in the first place if Amazon won’t sell them. Normally, a conservative response to this issue is simple – go buy the book elsewhere – but Amazon has such clout, the book may never reach the publication stage at all.
At the moment, this is just about a couple of books, but if we don’t take a stand now, the list of banned material will only grow. Amazon should not have the power to decide what we can read and, as a result, which ideas should circulate in a society. The company is engaging in a form of virtual book burning, and that’s terrifying. I’m reminded of Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, and how firemen destroy literature to censor knowledge, something the author described in a 1994 interview as “thought control and freedom of speech control”. Amazon has started the fire – the question now is whether we will fight to extinguish it.
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