Gender Lupa

Gender Lupa
Podcast Description
A podcast in English that takes a closer look at gender politics in Spain. Interviews with people who have insights to share about how these issues are shaping Spanish politics, life, and culture. genderlupa.substack.com
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast focuses on gender politics, feminism, and identity issues in Spain, with episodes exploring the achievements of Spanish feminism, the implications of self-ID laws, and reactions from feminist organizations. For instance, the first episode features María Reglero discussing the rise of identity politics and public response to the La Manada case.

A podcast in English that takes a closer look at gender politics in Spain. Interviews with people who have insights to share about how these issues are shaping Spanish politics, life, and culture.

In this episode of Gender Lupa, we’re focusing on schools. I’m joined by Maricruz Garrido, an English teacher with many years of experience at both primary and secondary levels in Spain, and a member of the feminist teachers’ organisation DoFemCo.
We talk about the concept of coeducación in Spain and how new ideas about gender and identity are replacing feminist principles in Spanish schools. We go through the trans protocol used in Catalan schools and question whether it actually benefits the trans-identified children it’s meant to protect—let alone other children. We also look at an example of a classroom activity promoted by trans activist organisations and find that it seems to reinforce gender stereotypes rather than challenge them (see links below).
Some of this may make for uncomfortable listening. I think we all want to believe that policies introduced in the name of protecting vulnerable groups do exactly that. But what if they don’t? What if enforcing gender identity ideology in schools is actually harming the very children it claims to help? If you disagree with me, I’d love to hear from you—feel free to leave a comment on Substack. Let’s start a conversation.
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Guest Info
Maricruz Garrido Pascual is an English teacher with decades of experience, working with children from nursery to secondary school levels. She’s a member of the feminist teachers’ organisation DoFemCo.
Watch a video of Maricruz giving a presentation on non-sexist language at the 2024 DoFemCo conference (in Spanish).
Twitter/X: @Mcruz_Garrido
Resources & Links
DoFemCo
DoFemCo – Docentes Feministas por la Coeducación (Feminist Teachers for Coeducation)
La Coeducación Secuestrada – A book about how gender identity ideology is replacing the feminist aims of coeducation (in Spanish)
Catalan Trans Protocol
* Download the original document (from the Catalan Department of Education)
* Read a Google-translated English version (as of March 2025)
Classroom Activity
We discussed the activity “En la piel de Daniel” (In Daniel’s Skin), created by Chrysalis, a trans activist group that runs workshops, lobbies politicians, and publishes teaching guides. In this activity, children are encouraged to question whether they are a boy or a girl based on which toys, clothes, and activities they prefer. Yes, really (!!!).
The activity is on page 23 of this teacher’s guide.
En la piel de Daniel also appears in storybook form (in Spanish), where Berta, a girl who likes things stereotypically associated with boys, decides she must be a boy. The teacher helps by doing the classroom activity. All the children feel uncomfortable dressing in gender non-conforming clothes and being addressed by the wrong name—except Berta. She enjoys “boy clothes” and “boy things,” so according to the story, she must really be Daniel, a boy.
If you think that sounds regressive, you’re not alone.
View a Google-translated English version of the storybook
Other Things We Mentioned
* “Run Like a Girl“ – A video campaign highlighting gender stereotypes
* Garenak Emakume Feministak report – On youth transitions in Navarra, Spain (in Spanish)Maricruz mentions very young children being transitioned by their families. According to this report, 12 children aged 5 or younger (including two 3-year-olds) were seen by transition services in Navarra from 2012–2022.
* AMANDA – A support organisation for families with kids questioning gender. We didn’t get into this in the episode, but I hope to speak with them in a future one.
More on Social Transition
Finally, I encourage you to check out this older (2021) episode of Gender: A Wider Lens, recently republished on Stella O’Malley’s Substack. It covers social transition—that is, changing a child’s name, pronouns, records, and grouping them with the opposite sex at school (toilets, changing rooms, overnight stays, sports, etc). Because it doesn’t involve medical interventions, it’s often seen as harmless. But Sasha and Stella, both therapists, argue that it’s a major psychosocial intervention in a child’s life.
In some schools, children are socially transitioned at very young ages—sometimes without parental consent or despite teacher concerns. Is it the role of schools and teachers to be doing this?
Get in Touch
Email: genderlupa@gmail.comTwitter/X:Gender Lupa
Even better, tell me what you think in the comments:
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