Humiliating. Dishonest. Stigmatizing. These are just some of the words I’ve heard used to describe the practice of forcing trans people to receive a diagnosis of “gender identity disorder” before they can gain access to certain trans-related medical care, procedures, and treatments, or even before they can legally transition.

That’s why I’m optimistic about the latest move by the American Psychiatric Association to drop “gender identity disorder” from the new diagnosis manual in favor of “gender dysphoria”. The new term is apparently meant to indicate “emotional distress over one’s gender” rather than confusion or disturbance. The term “Asperger’s syndrome” was also dropped.

This is an important victory for trans activists, not only symbolically but logistically. The term has long been used ...