Kinnon MacKinnon

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Kinnon Ross MacKinnon (born 1985) is a Canadian social scientist who researches detransition, gender-affirming healthcare, and gender and sexual minorities. MacKinnon is an Assistant Professor of social work at York University in Toronto. [1] [2]

Contents

MacKinnon was also the first trans man powerlifter to win a gold medal at the Gay Games.

Early life and education

MacKinnon was born in Antigonish, Nova Scotia in 1985. He was a junior national athlete from an early age, competing in skiing and snowboarding. [3]

MacKinnon earned a bachelor of arts from Saint Mary's University in 2007, a bachelor of social work from York University in 2010, and a master's degree in social work from Toronto Metropolitan University in 2011. [4] He obtained a PhD in Public Health Sciences at the Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto. [5]

In 2014, four years after beginning his transition, he became the first transgender person to win a gold medal in powerlifting at the Gay Games. [6] He competed in the male 75 kilogram weight category. [3] In 2015 MacKinnon was named a "Sport Hero" by the Inspire Awards, alongside other LGBTQ+ athletes, Fallon Fox and Mark Tewksbury. [7] His lifelong participation in sports and experiences as a transgender athlete influenced his early interests as a researcher and commitment to LGBTQ+ health promotion and social inclusion. [3]

Career and research

MacKinnon's career as a researcher has focused on understanding gender-affirming healthcare, and the emerging topic of gender detransition. [1] [8] He is an assistant professor of social work at York University in Toronto. [2]

MacKinnon's research has attempted to establish a clearer understanding of how many detransition, and their motiviation. According to MacKinnon, between 5 and 10 per cent of people detransition due to a change in their identity. [1]

In 2024, he presented this research at several academic conferences, such as the Pediatric Endocrine Society meeting and at the bi-annual conference of the World Professional Association of Transgender Health in Lisbon, Portugal. [1]

MacKinnon is a frequent media commentator and his research has been covered by major media organizations such as Reuters, [2] The New York Times , [9] Der Spiegel , [10] the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, [11] Slate , [12] PinkNews , [13] The Atlantic , [14] and The Walrus . [15] MacKinnon was interviewed about his research on detransition for a piece by CBC's The National on youth gender health care. [16] He is an active science communicator and has written about using TikTok to share research with the public. [17]

Selected publications

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Ghorayshi, Azeen (26 October 2024). "A Trans Researcher's Pursuit of Better Data on Detransition". The New York Times . Retrieved 12 November 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 Respaut, Robin; Terhune, Chad; Conlin, Michelle (22 December 2022). "Why detransitioners are crucial to the science of gender care". Reuters . Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  3. 1 2 3 Armstrong, Laura (21 July 2014). "Transgender man to represent Toronto at Gay Games". The Toronto Star . Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  4. "Kinnon MacKinnon". profiles.laps.yorku.ca. 15 January 2021. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  5. "MacKinnon, Kinnon Ross". Dalla Lana School of Public Health. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  6. Kellaway, Mitch. "PHOTOS: Meet the First Trans Man to Win a Gay Games Gold in Powerlifting". The Advocate . Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  7. "2015 Nominees and Recipients – INSPIRE Awards". inspireawards.ca. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  8. Ghorayshi, Azeen (26 September 2022). "More Trans Teens Are Choosing 'Top Surgery'". The New York Times . Retrieved 12 November 2024.
  9. Ghorayshi, Azeen (23 August 2023). "How a Small Gender Clinic Landed in a Political Storm". The New York Times . Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  10. Hackenbroch, Veronika (27 October 2023). "(S+) Transgender Medizin: Wie riskant sind Pubertätsblocker wirklich?". Der Spiegel (in German). ISSN   2195-1349 . Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  11. Dryden, Joel; Lee, Jennifer (11 March 2024). "How Alberta's proposed trans youth rules fit into a polarized international landscape". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation . Retrieved 11 November 2024.
  12. Urquhart, Evan (1 December 2023). "What It Actually Means to Listen to Detransitioners". Slate . ISSN   1091-2339 . Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  13. Hansford, Amelia (4 December 2023). "Most detransitioners don't stop HRT out of regret, study suggests". PinkNews . Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  14. Valdes, Daniela; MacKinnon, Kinnon (18 January 2023). "Take Detransitioners Seriously". The Atlantic . Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  15. Kai Cheng, Thom (20 March 2023). "Kids Deserve a New Gender Paradigm | The Walrus" . Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  16. Mauro, Ellen (August 2024). "How to care for transgender youth: the growing divide". CBC The National. Retrieved 11 September 2024.
  17. MacKinnon, Kinnon Ross; Kia, Hannah; Lacombe-Duncan, Ashley (9 December 2021). "Examining TikTok's Potential for Community-Engaged Digital Knowledge Mobilization With Equity-Seeking Groups". Journal of Medical Internet Research . 23 (12): e30315. doi: 10.2196/30315 . ISSN   1438-8871. PMC   8704107 . PMID   34889739.
  18. MacKinnon, Kinnon Ross; Kia, Hannah; Lacombe-Duncan, Ashley (9 December 2021). "Examining TikTok's Potential for Community-Engaged Digital Knowledge Mobilization With Equity-Seeking Groups". Journal of Medical Internet Research. 23 (12): e30315. doi: 10.2196/30315 . PMC   8704107 . PMID   34889739.
  19. MacKinnon, K.R.; Ashley, F.; Kia, H.; Lam, J.S.H.; Krakowsky, Y.; Ross, L.E. (December 2021). "Preventing transition "regret": An institutional ethnography of gender-affirming medical care assessment practices in Canada". Social Science & Medicine. 291: 114477. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.114477 . PMID   34666278.
  20. MacKinnon, Kinnon; Gould, W Ariel; Ashley, Florence; Enxuga, Gabriel; Kia, Hannah; Ross, Lori E. (2022). "(De)Transphobia: Examining the Socio-Politically Driven Gender Minority Stressors Experienced by People Who Detransitioned". Bulletin of Applied Transgender Studies. 1 (3–4): 235–259. doi:10.57814/8nd4-6a89.
  21. MacKinnon, Kinnon R.; Gould, Wren Ariel; Enxuga, Gabriel; Kia, Hannah; Abramovich, Alex; Lam, June S. H.; Ross, Lori E. (29 November 2023). "Exploring the gender care experiences and perspectives of individuals who discontinued their transition or detransitioned in Canada". PLOS ONE. 18 (11): e0293868. Bibcode:2023PLoSO..1893868M. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0293868 . PMC   10686467 . PMID   38019738.
  22. MacKinnon, Kinnon R.; Jeyabalan, Thiyaana; Strang, John F.; Delgado-Ron, Jorge Andrés; Lam, June S.H.; Gould, Wren A.; Cooper, Alex; Salway, Travis (June 2024). "Discontinuation of Gender-Affirming Medical Treatments: Prevalence and Associated Features in a Nonprobabilistic Sample of Transgender and Gender-Diverse Adolescents and Young Adults in Canada and the United States". Journal of Adolescent Health. 75 (4): 569–577. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2024.05.015. PMID   38944803.