After she was denied medical care for a body part she didn’t even have, a transgender woman claimed she was discriminated against by a gynecologist.
The matter quickly became serious as legal action followed, and now the case has left people around the world divided in opinion.
Keep reading to learn more.
Jessica Yaniv — now known as Jessica Simpson — is a Canadian transgender activist who sparked outrage in 2018 after filing a series of human rights complaints against beauticians who refused to wax her male genitalia.
Simpson wanted a Brazilian wax, a treatment that removes all or part of the hair from a woman’s pubic region. The same procedure involving a penis or scrotum is commonly referred to as a “brozilian” or “manzilian,” and estheticians are specifically trained differently for each.
Simpson, 37, still has male genitalia, but that did not stop her from accusing five independent beauty workers of discrimination for refusing to provide the service. She demanded up to $15,000 in damages from each of them.
“None of these providers had any issue with anything until I mentioned I was transgender,” the Langley, British Columbia resident told the court, according to The Telegraph.
Simpson vs. beauticians
In 2019, the trans woman lost the country’s landmark discrimination case and was ordered to pay $2,000 in damages to each of the three respondents who testified at the hearings. The court also stated she showed “animus toward certain racial, religious and cultural groups.”
The workers who testified were home-based estheticians, minorities who worked from their own homes, spoke little English, and were reportedly forced to shut down their businesses after Simpson’s accusations.
These women provided Brazilian waxing services for female clients but were neither trained nor equipped to work with male anatomy.
When asked by a reporter from the Calgary Herald whether she felt bad that businesses had closed because of her complaints, she replied: “No, why should I feel bad? The one who was the victim here was me. The way that I see it, all women should receive the same service.”
Simpson vs. fire department
Over the following years, the activist — described by one BC Supreme Court Justice as a “prolific litigant” — filed complaints against beauty pageants, the RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police), provincial health services, and even a local news network.
Then, in February 2021, the Langley Fire Department reportedly issued Simpson a warning after responding to more than 30 non-emergency calls for help getting out of the bathtub.
“Since January 21, the Fire Department has received and responded to over 30 such calls for assistance, none of which constituted a medical emergency,” the letter stated.
It also added: “Further, we understand that during the Fire Department attendance at your home, you have engaged in inappropriate and lewd conduct toward Fire Department staff. Your conduct has created, among other things, an inappropriate and unsafe environment for Fire Department staff. This is not acceptable to the Township and will not be tolerated going forward.”
Simpson later responded in a now-deleted tweet, saying she would be “suing the township for libel and other things,” according to the Western Standard.
Simpson vs. gynecologist
Despite multiple legal issues, including charges involving possession of a prohibited weapon, mischief, assault, and using sexualized language in communication with underage girls, Simpson continued filing complaints.
Most recently, she claimed a gynecologist’s office refused to treat her and allegedly told her: “We don’t serve transgender patients.”
In a now-deleted Instagram post, Simpson said she was “shocked… and confused… and hurt.”
“Are they allowed to do that, legally? Isn’t that against the college practices,” she tweeted while tagging the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia (CPSBC), the group that regulates medicine in the province.
According to the Daily Mail, she later shared: “Gynecologists form a part of the multidisciplinary team who engage with transgender and non-binary patients, either as part of the transition stage performing surgery or managing pre- or post-transition gynecological problems.”
Although Simpson later claimed the CPSBC agreed she had been discriminated against, there have been no public updates since the complaint was first launched in 2019.
What people are saying
“Having plastic surgery and taking artificial hormones doesn’t magically turn a male into a female. Nor does it automatically mean all OBGYNs would be qualified to treat a man who imitates being a woman,” Kirralie Smith told Binary, a group that opposes gender ideology.
Smith added, “[Simpson] needs to see a transgender specialist, not a doctor who specializes in women’s health care.”
Comedian Ricky Gervais also commented on the situation, writing: “It’s disgusting that a qualified gynecologist can refuse to check a lady’s cock for ovarian cancer. What if her bollocks are pregnant? She could lose the baby. I’m outraged.”
He later added another post mocking the claims.
Trans healthcare
Medical professionals continue to stress the important clinical differences between natal female anatomy and neo-vaginas created through gender-affirming surgery.
Experts explain that anyone with a cervix, uterus, ovaries, fallopian tubes, or a vagina requires regular gynecological care, regardless of gender identity.
This means someone assigned male at birth does not require the same routine gynecological care as a biological woman — or even a trans man.
Only after a trans woman has undergone reconstructive genital surgery would she require gynecological care for her new vulva and vagina, according to experts discussing transgender gynecology. At the time of the complaint, Simpson still had male genitalia.
Many argue that this issue is not about discrimination, but rather about medical competence, anatomy, and patient safety.
Please let us know if you think the world should adjust to identity over anatomy. Share your thoughts with us and then share this story so we can keep the conversation going.
