Lydia Polgreen's New York Times op-ed on August 13, "The Strange Report Fueling the War on Trans Kids," referred to a 1979 paper.
I wrote about Polgreen's op-ed here: No One Needs ‘Evidence’ That Transition Improves Trans People’s Humanity.
The old paper doesn't seem to be on JSTOR, at least not on free access. For those who want more info and have institutional access to read it on JAMA:
Abstract:
"Although medical interest in individuals adopting the dress and life-style of the opposite sex goes back to antiquity, surgical intervention is a product of the last 50 years. In the last 15 years, evaluation procedures and surgical techniques have been worked out. Extended evaluation, with a one- to two-year trial period prior to formal consideration of surgery, is accepted practice at reputable centers. Cosmetically satisfactory, and often functional, genitalia can be constructed. Less clear-cut, however, are the characteristics of the applicants for sex reassignment, the natural history of the compulsion toward surgery, and surgery's long-term effects. The characteristics of 50 applicants for sex reassignment, both operated and unoperated, are reviewed. The results of long-term follow-up are reported in terms of such indices as job, educational, marital, and domiciliary stability. Outcome data are discussed in terms of the adjustments of operated and unoperated patients." [emphasis mine]
Meyer JK, Reter DJ. Sex Reassignment: Follow-up. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1979;36(9):1010–1015. doi:10.1001/archpsyc.1979.01780090096010
Please note the part I emphasized above. Polgreen's point, with which I agree, is that your work experience, formal education, marital status, and housing stability doesn't make you a better human who needs, deserves, or benefits from transition more than someone else, nor does it mean that society benefits more from your existence than it benefits from someone else.
More info: Transgender Map discusses one of the paper's co-authors, Jon K. Meyer as "a key historical figure in anti-transgender activism...The damage Meyer caused to generations of trans people is incalculable."
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