Just in time for Father’s Day, CNN brings you the story of a biological female who refers to herself as a transgender man who, after taking testosterone to “transition,” conceived a child with a man who was “transitioning” into a transgender woman but stopped taking hormones long enough that they could conceive a son.
CNN titled the piece, “He gave birth. He breastfed. Now, he wants his son to see him as a man.”
The “he” in question is Sabastion Sparks, 24, “a transgender man who lives with his wife Angel in suburban Atlanta.”
CNN writes, “Like many new dads, Sabastion Sparks knew parenting would come with serious challenges. But most new dads didn’t give birth to their child. They didn’t breastfeed them.”
That’s certainly true.
CNN writes that Sparks “wants Jaxen, their 20-month-old son, to have as normal a childhood as possible,” suggesting that a more “comfortable” Sparks can now better provide that normal childhood.
“I’m going to be a better father being comfortable in myself and him seeing that confidence in me,” said Sparks.
Sparks wants to teach Jaxen how to pee standing up, which Sparks executes with the help of a detachable prosthetic. “The more my body resembles his, the better he’ll understand,” said Sparks.
Sparks met Angel, 33, five years ago. As CNN notes, Angel “was designated male at birth but had transitioned years earlier.”
More: “Like many transgender men and women, they had been taking medication to increase the testosterone or estrogen in their bodies. So to make a baby, they briefly stopped taking their hormone pills. The couple conceived their son the conventional way…”
Sparks miscarried the first time; the second time Jaxen was conceived. CNN writes, “After Jaxen was born, Sabastion sometimes had to breastfeed when he, Angel and their son were out in public. The three of them drew stares as they navigated the aisles of their neighborhood stores.”
“People would snicker or call us ‘f******,'” said Angel. “He’d try so hard to cover it up and hide what he was doing.”
CNN opines, “Not all transgender people choose to have surgery as part of a gender transition, and Sabastion knows looks shouldn’t matter. But he worries that the scornful way some people treat him could get passed down to Jaxen. That’s not what he wants for his son.”
After the surgery to remove her breasts, Sparks said, “My son won’t see breasts on his dad. He won’t be as different from me.”