FIRST TRANS PM?

 When you foster a child who has a particular issue you tend to get involved in the issue yourself. 

How could you not?

If, say, your child has problems with authority you find yourself examining the authority, how it functions, and whether the child has a point.

I'll never forget being summoned to a school to discuss the behaviour of a teenager I was looking after.

The meeting was fixed for 9.00am.

On the dot I was sat, along with the girl ('K'), outside the head's office.

At about ten past nine the head showed up, went into her office and shut the door behind her. 

Another five minutes passed then she asked us in. She said that we were waiting for the head of department in charge of the girl, who'd been delayed.

Just before 9.30am the second staff member showed up and sat down.

"Now," began the head, "The first problem we must discuss is K's punctuality…"

I kid you not.

So, now that I have a child in my care who is transitioning from female to male, my learning curve is steep. My antenna are constantly twiching.

I'm not hugely political, except when it comes to fostering.

When I say "when it comes to fostering" I guess I mean that I look at the lives of the children in my care at any one time and compare their needs with what's on offer from politicians. Every little helps, and if policies and public opinion can help or hinder my children I'm interested.

I have a new child who is transitioning.

To be blunt, conservatism is hurting him, so because I'm for my boy, I'm against it.

I'm against the politics that instincively fights against any change without giving it the hard work of investigation and understanding. The type that bangs on about freedom and reducing the size of the state, but want to restrict the freedom to choose who you are, and if necessary send in the state to intervene.

I'm old enough and wise enought to have seen this conservatism over a couple of generations.

This is what my fine teenage foster son has in store;

Not long ago, women were absent from front line politics, conservatism quietly enshrined a men-only policy. Spool forward and conservatism now champions women leaders,

Not long ago sons and daughters of immigrants were sidelined by conservatives. Now they take their place on conservatism's front benches aplenty.

Not long ago the thing they called 'homosexuality' was illegal, and conservatism, standing for what they saw as 'common decency' and 'God's word' stood foresquare opposed to it. Now it has become a mere detail on the CV of many a right-minded thinker.

So.

It will be EXACTLY the same with trans folk.

Conservative thinking will abhor it as an abhorance, and rail against it, and campaign for legislation against it.

Spool forward a generation.

Britain's first trans Prime Minister is elected.

A conservative.

Go figure.

NB I'm deliberately avoiding labelling Conservatives as conservative on this issue. I'm agin the conservatism that makes my foster son despair. There are probably plenty of Conservatives who are as open minded, even more open-minded than most, after all we hear of plenty who have first hand experience of confusion over gender issues and matters of the heart too...

Meantime my boy is one of many in for a rocky ride, just like women, immigrants and gay people before them. 

Then maybe my boy'll choose a career in politics and go on to become the first...