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 a man that is pregnant 
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I remember hearing about this last week where a transgendered is pregnant. I tried to find a story but saw this one about him/her is going to appear on the Oprah show this Thursday...... http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,344356,00.html


Tue Apr 01, 2008 3:50 pm
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Yea, I believe a couple members in my group today briefly brought this topic up. Pretty crazy, but something interesting to look at and to be aware of.


Tue Apr 01, 2008 4:52 pm
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One of the things that really stood out to me about that article was the fact that the author of the article referred to the pregnant man as a "she" throughout the entire article when this person has obviously gone to great lengths (testosterone treatments and reconstructive surgeries) to be a "he." It makes me wonder if the author was calling this person a "she" because of the two X chromosomes.. or if they just felt uncomfortable saying that "he" was pregnant.

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Tue Apr 01, 2008 7:01 pm
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I'm sure that this topic will make many people feel uncomfortable when watching the episode of Oprah.

However, I think that this is a good thing to be recognized on television. Hopefully watching this will make some people realize that this a real issue and an every day struggle for those involved, rather than something people will make a mockery out of.

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Merry Lauren Futch


Last edited by Lauren Futch on Wed Apr 09, 2008 6:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.



Thu Apr 03, 2008 11:15 pm
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Personally, I believe that Thomas is a man but I also feel like biologically he is a woman and so this brings about a lot of contradictions. I feel like technically it doesn't count that a man is pregnant because he was born as a woman. I watched the Oprah special about it and it was very complex and interesting. To me though, it is not like a man with actual male reproductive organs was able to get pregnant and carry a child. I believe that Thomas is a man but not a biological man. I feel like Thomas got pregnant because he was first biologically a woman. In my opinion, I don't consider him to be a pregnant man.

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Sarah Robinson


Fri Apr 04, 2008 1:39 pm
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I agree with you sarah. Thamas obviously had ovaries and uterous, or this could not have happened. I don't see this as a pregnant man. She may have tried to change her sex but in the end she still has female organs.

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Benjamin Hutchings


Mon Apr 07, 2008 12:58 pm
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Sarah, I agree with you as well. I would certainly consider him to be a man... but the fact that he got pregnant is not as much of a miracle to me as it might be to some people because he was born with all the necessary female reproductive parts to make that possible. The testosterone he took caused him to develop male parts (and characteristics- like facial hair and a deeper voice) as well- but the female parts were still there.

I also watched the Oprah special.. and one of the things I really liked about Thomas and his wife was what genuinely nice people they seemed to be. I'll admit I was pretty suspicious of their motives when I found out Thomas was the one who was pregnant. Since he does have a female wife, I thought Thomas decided to get pregnant in order to make a statement or just for the fame. But, his wife had some sort of medical complication that led doctors to remove her womb years ago, and the couple wanted to have a biological child. Because of this, their only option was for Thomas to be the one to carry the baby. They also said that the reason they decided to come on Oprah was not to tell the world about their situation for the sake of becoming famous, but because Thomas was now beginning to show (he's 6 months pregnant) and they knew they couldn't keep it a secret from the media any longer. They wanted to be the ones to tell the real story of Thomas's pregnancy before the news media blew it out of proportion. Thomas also stopped taking the testosterone injections well before they tried to become pregnant in order to not harm the baby.

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~Lisa Hash


Tue Apr 08, 2008 9:38 am
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as a point of respect please please please make sure that if someone idenifies themselves as transgendered or transsexual, REFER TO THEM WITH THE PRONOUN THEY PREFER.
This seems like something small to you but to people who deal with gender issues everyday, pronouns are the biggest day to day struggle to be who they see themselves as.
On another point, legally, since he had taken T (testosterone) and has had corrective surgery, in the eyes of the law, he is legally male. After a trans individual passes the point (deemed by his or her doctor) to be "irreversably male or female" then the birth certificate, drivers licence, and all legal papers can be changed. After that point, the person is both legally and physically the sex they have transitioned to. Even if the uterus and other female reproductive organs are still intact, after taking T as long as he had, Thomas was obviously irreversibly male. Not only has his body stopped producing estrogen but he also now experiances all chemical reactions and body growth associated with being male.
So basically what i'm saying is that in my opinion he is male, pregnant or not. And what a miracle to even be able to concieve a child after having taken T. That is not only dangerous for the child but very dangerous for Thomas and his transitioning. This might put into jeopardy any further medical treatment he may need related to his transition and i think that is one of the most selfless and loving things anyone could do for their family.


Tue Apr 08, 2008 1:48 pm
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I just posted something about this in another discussion. Obviously i didnt see this one before. I just dont know how i would handle the situation if i were a teacher and my student came up to me and said "my dad was the one who had me" how would you discuss that with your class when all of your life you have been repeatedly told that the woman or the "mom" is the one who is supposed to have the baby.

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Emily Nicholson


Tue Apr 08, 2008 2:16 pm
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I probably wouldn't touch on this issue if at all in my classroom. I agree with Ben's comments that obviously this is a woman and saying "a man is pregnant" and making this a national story is pointless. It just seems to me that their are more important things to talk about. I'm hear to teach History.


Tue Apr 08, 2008 7:54 pm
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I agree with Shane and Ben. Whoa to the media on this issue. I understand that this is a person that views himself as a male but technically has female organs since they were able to get pregnant. I just think that bringing this issue up in class has the potential to get a lot of people offended/hurt/confused/etc. when all I want to do is teach my kids history. The more the media plays this out to be a "freak of nature" and what not the more the people out there that are struggling with their identity are going to feel like they don't have a place in this society.

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Caitlin Troutman


Tue Apr 08, 2008 8:03 pm
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I definitely wouldn't bring this up in my classroom. First of all, I'm a history major and this pretty much has nothing to do with what I'll be teaching. Actually, I'm really not sure how this would have any relevance to most subjects.

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Merry Lauren Futch


Wed Apr 09, 2008 6:18 pm
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This story has been seen everywhere!!..and just like most of you...i agree that it is going to make people uncomfortable to talk about. I find it interesting and would like to read more about it, but have heard many who think that this is a "crazy" story and don't understand why a person would do this to their child. Although I read that they plan to sit their child down and tell him/her the truth about everything about the pregnancy. I think that the child may find this very confusing when they get older.

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Brooke Michael


Thu Apr 10, 2008 9:49 am
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I read this in People Magazine just yesterday about Thomas Beatie, the pregnant man, and thought that I would share it with all of you. This is a quote from Josephine Johnston a Bioethicist from the Hastings Center: "This child won't be born thinking, 'My parents are weird and I'm in this terrible situation.' She's not going to feel like there's anything wrong with her parents unless society tells her that there is. So in a way, it really comes down to us. Is it going to be a big deal in this child's life? It remains to be seen."

So what do you think? How do you think our society is going to react to the child when she is born? How would you, as a teacher, react if this child were in your class?

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Erin Painter


Thu Apr 10, 2008 12:13 pm
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I actually saw a few clips from the oprah show and Thomas' story is quite intriguing. Before he was a beauty pageant queen who said that he never felt quiet like a woman on the inside. He had an interesting story to share and i encourage all of you to go see it.
If his child were in my class I think that i would do all i could to make sure that he or she felt included and a part of my class. I would talk with the other students about diversity not just in people but in families and how we should respect each other's diversity. As a society I am sure that there will be coverage about his/her birth but after awhile the interest will pass as is with many other cases.

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Nadia Rubio


Thu Apr 10, 2008 12:41 pm
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[color=olive]Oooooooooooweeeeeeeeee. This one really got me thinking. Like Lisa, I read the article and found it odd that the author referred to the pregnant man as a "she" throughout the entire article. Not only did I find it odd, but I also found it offensive. If someone is having identity issues concerning their gender, it is blatantly inconsiderate to identify them in the way that you prefer, as opposed to how they want to be identified. Some people seem to think that these issues are as new as the people who have them, but they are not. Humanity has simply reached a point where gender issues receive extreme media attention and we know more about gender issues. To think that this topic is irrelevant in a Foundations of American Education class is somewhat naïve. OF COURSE there is always going to be news that is more pressing than “No April Foolin': Oprah to Interview So-Called Pregnant 'Man'â€


Thu Apr 10, 2008 1:06 pm
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Just to play devil's advocate for all of you history teachers-- isn't one of the most important parts of teaching history current events? Current events are the history of tomorrow. I definitely understand not bringing it up in a classroom of younger children, or even a middle school or high school class of students who couldn't discuss the situation seriously- but of a class of students who are mature enough and respectful enough, although it would be seemingly difficult, talking about a subject like this would be so interesting, and would maybe stop the bias and judgment that people have. Talk about race, social class, trans genders, white privilege. Use this class as an example that you can talk about things like this. Knowledge is power (and in my opinion prevents ignorance). So, why not talk about it?

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Kim Volker


Sun Apr 27, 2008 6:03 pm
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I could see this being covered as a "current event" in possibly a health education class, but I don't think I would say hey looks whats going on in the news today and bring it up. I just don't see how someone expects me to be in the middle of teaching World War II for instance, and the students come in one morning and we're talking about a "guy" who claims he's pregnant. If it fits into my topic and I can incorporate it into a lecture or discussion that's one thing, but dedicating a significant amount of time at "current events" such as this one more than likely wouldn't be fair to my all of my students. Talking about the racial problems this country has endured over its history is one thing, analyzing the struggle for equal rights for all races is something I'm looking forward to covering, but this particular event or story doesn't really capture the true nature of the history of civil rights or gender issues in our country. Now the Matthew Shepard story, that's a story I would use in my classroom, so many important lessons can be learned from that tragic story.


Sun Apr 27, 2008 8:56 pm
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At the risk of pissing some people off, I can't see someone who was born as woman being a man as a result of taking testosterone and having a surgery. If someone has female reproductive organs at birth, just because they can not revers the effects of a selective surgery that makes them more male-like, it does not change the fact that they are not functional as a "male".

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Tue Apr 29, 2008 9:54 pm
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