Turkish-Born Transgender Teacher Is Hormone Pill Student Adviser In Harlem

A Harlem teacher disguised as a woman advises his students on what kind of hormone pills they should take if they want to try to “switch” genders. But he has to endure bullying from students who call him a man.

Bahar Akyurtlu had been teaching for about four months at a high school in Harlem before several students began bullying her [sic]. When she [sic] walked down the halls, clusters of students would shout at her [sic], referring to her [sic] as “mister.” In stairwells, students would yell that her [sic] voice sounded like a man.

Despite that, Bahar persists, advising confused students to take hormones to convince themselves they are a different gender.

“Anytime I saw them I would bring them aside and be like OK, ‘Where are you getting your healthcare needs taken care of? What kinds of hormones are you taking?”

Above is a photo of Bahar. He’s quite feminine-looking, don’t you agree? I’ll bet most people would never know he is a man.

And in case you missed it, the tattoo on Bahar’s arm says, “Now it’s about living.” Now that he’s declared himself a woman, life is great! It’s a pity the word “gay” is already taken, because that would be a great word for transgendered people, too – at least, the ones who don’t kill themselves.

The article did not specifically say Bahar is a Muslim, but since he is a first-generation immigrant from Turkey, that seems pretty likely. I know there are synagogues and churches (like Neil Gorsuch’s church) that cater to gays, lesbians, and “everything elses”; assuming Bahar is Muslim, do you think he attends a mosque that is sensitive to the needs of the Islamic LGBTQ community? Can we presume that Bahar is not a fundamentalist because he does not wear a burka like this man?

What do you think about guys like Bahar advising young kids about taking hormone pills to change their appearance? Do you think that at some point, Bahar will return to Turkey to spread the word to young Muslims there?