“What is a Woman?” A review
Last night, my husband and I tuned in to the world premiere of the Daily Wire’s new film documentary: What is a Woman? The documentary tracks Matt Walsh’s journey in discovering the answer to the question of the title- both the progressive answer, and the true answer. The film is narrated by Walsh, guiding us through his thought process in formulating and finding the answers to his question.
My hopes and fears
Before watching the film I made a list of what I hoped the movie would be, and some things I was worried about seeing. I’ll share them with you here, and address them in the review.
I hope the film will be: educational, empathetic, facts-forward
I worry the film will be: inflammatory, unnecessarily insensitive, have an unbalanced or inaccurate representation of opinions
What is a Woman?
The first conversation Walsh has is with a “gender-affirming” therapist. This therapist was friendly, answered his questions with a smile, and was generally a kind and positive presence on screen. While unable to answer the question, I appreciated the fact that so far, the documentary had already assuaged one of my fears (disingenuous representation, painting the left in an unfair light with cherry picked individuals) in making the very first conversation someone who seems to fairly represent the majority of “gender-affirming” voices. This interview did not demonize the therapist and Matt did not antagonize her, although his questions were occasionally seasoned with significant sarcasm.
Consistently throughout the documentary, supporters of the progressive sexuality movement took offense once Walsh began to turn his questions from veiled and curious to plain and obvious. He would start out with questions about the profession, experience, or beliefs of the person being interviewed, and slowly move toward the key question: “What is a woman?”. It seemed that this question caused significant revulsion and strife in the heart of the progressive because they didn’t have an answer. Walsh talked to people on the street, as well as medical professionals and organization leaders. No one on the progressive side answered the question (without circular reasoning). The common response was “Only a woman can answer that.” or “It’s an umbrella of many different things.”, “It has to do with presentation, hormones, and identity”
Percentages seemed to be an idea that was greatly misunderstood by a particular doctor in this film. When conversing with a surgeon who specializes in vaginoplasty (more commonly referred to as “bottom surgery”), this doctor labeled anyone who was non-affirming as part of a minuscule minority and called them “dinosaurs”. People in this group appear to be under the impression that supporters of keeping human bodies intact are few and far between.
Walsh decides to visit the Women’s March. A bold and brave decision, if you want my opinion. He asked a simple question of the marchers, one you’ve heard already in this review. No one could would answer. In fact, the people marching around him began to chant “a**hole”, although Walsh had been respectful in the asking of his question. If no one at a march supposedly for women can answer this question, who can?
Why is this question so controversial?
Feelings over facts
The greatest lie being bought in our culture is that the single most important thing in a person’s life is their emotional comfort.
Whatever it takes, whomever it hurts, one must find their "true, authentic self” and hide in that comfort forever. Gone are the days of being a member of society. Society now exists to serve me, and if it doesn’t, it needs to change. This lie is slowly breaking down our country. What was once considered a mental disorder is now being indulged and promoted.
In a conversation with a “gender affirmation” specialist, Walsh asked how early a person can start to experience a sense of their sexual identity. The specialist indicated that even babies understand difference in gender on some level (An interesting observation, I thought, considering the progressive idea that gender is a social construct. Even babies can tell the difference). Walsh pushed the idea of “assigning gender at birth”. He wanted to know what that really meant, and why the specialist didn’t think it was trustworthy. The specialist explained that doctors can’t know, based on genitals, what a person will decide to be as they grow up.
TANGENT ALERT
You know what’s weird? If you’re born with XX chromosomes we call that “female”. It’s a label to indicate the kind of DNA you have. If you’re born with XY chromosomes, we call that “male”. Being male or female dictates how your body should be operating. A female body operates with a particular range of hormones, and almost always has reproductive organs that are consistent to people with XX chromosomes (except in the rare case of intersex individuals). A male body operates under a different balance of hormones, and has its own unique reproductive organs. How you dress does not change your chemical and biological makeup, and you shouldn’t let your chromosomes tell you whether you can drive a sports car, be a hair stylist, farm, or enjoy interior design. Those things are called “interests”, and in the US, you truly get to choose what you want to do in life, regardless of the cultural gendered stereotypes that might accompany your interests. This whole paragraph is controversial though, because it means people don’t get to have control over every part of their existence. I have XX chromosomes. I adore walking in nature, design, and baking. I also enjoy wearing clothing that isn’t very traditionally feminine sometimes, I like action movies, and I have more brothers than most people, so I played outside a lot as a kid. None of these things are dependent on my sex (female). Male and female are simple biological labels to help us refer to a specific kind of genetic makeup, that is all. You can wear a dress and enjoy shooting sports. You can be a man and really dislike talking about cars. That’s okay! Explore your God-given talents and interests, and embrace being a totally unique man or woman.
RANT OVER
“Why do you care so much?”
You’re going to hear this frequently, in the film and in your daily life, if you dare to stand up to the progressive worldview. I challenge you to take the time to examine yourself and truth, and figure that question out. For me, the burning in my blood comes from seeing the emotionally weak and broken preyed upon by evil. These people need to know that they are made in the image of Love, and that they are beautiful, just as God made them. Their dysphoria is a real problem, not something to be ignored by the right or literally cut off by the left. It is a sign of the fallenness of our world, and they need to know that there is hope beyond what their brain is telling them about their bodies.
Transgenderism isn’t the answer
To me, the single most powerful interview was with Scott Newgent, a biological woman who transitioned to appear as a man. Scott gave a tearful and empassioned testimony of the medical complications, emotional turmoil, and physical havoc that transitioning has caused. Scott, formerly Kellie King, was a business woman, always at the head of the pack, always leaning toward the masculine side of expression. After hearing several people express “maybe you’re in the wrong body”, Kellie/Scott decided to surgically transition to present as a man at the age of 42. This interview was steeped in empathy and tenderness. It served to open up the discussion about the dark side (arguably the only side) of transgenderism.
People on the left will likely say that Scott represents a minority among minorities, and is a misrepresentation of their beliefs and transgenderism as a whole. The truth is, Scott is not alone, and the horrors of chemically and surgically attempting to change one’s gender are devastating to an adult. “Your kids,” Scott said, “don’t stand a chance.”
By the end of the film, my heart both ached and burned. I felt anger for the movement that is promoting a sexually-saturated agenda and pushing it on the youth of America, but I also felt anger for myself and the rest of this country for allowing things to get to this point. We are seeing the effects if the fear we have allowed to keep us from standing up for truth. My worries tell me that this country is too far gone for redemption, but we know that nothing is impossible for God. Pray with me for boldness to speak truth in a world where it’s not popular, and even dangerous, to do so. Join me in choosing truth over comfort. Jesus says “If they hate you, it is because they hated me first.”
What is a Woman was a powerful testimony of the honest thoughts and beliefs behind the progressive agenda, allowing people on both sides to express their opinions. It was painfully obvious that the left side is driven by feelings, and that’s just not a safe place to be.
Lastly, what follows are my immediate thoughts following the film. I wrote this in my journal through the inspiration of this movie. I hope this inspires you to fight for truth. Thank you for reading.
The Letter
At the core of this progressive movement is one simple question: who has the authority to dictate truth? The Agenda says “me”. It says that each person has the right to create their own reality. No. The rules of the world are not changeable, and they’re not dictated by you or me. The law of gravity, the sunset, and my identity are established by the One who created them. He says His name is Yahweh. He also said that men and women, two distinct but equally wonderful creatures, are made in His image, to reflect His glory. I accept and embrace my womanhood because the God of all wisdom chose it for me. He chose to make me in a particular way, to reflect his beauty in a particular way. I have been given the power (by Him) to reject His authority and choose my own. But why would I do that? In His plan I have a purpose and identity. In mine, I have temporary vain satisfaction. This life is not about finding “my truth”, it’s about learning to live by His. Because it is good.
