Frustrating disrespect for Jenner during a difficult journey

Former Olympic gold medalist Bruce Jenner will sit down with ABC's Diane Sawyer to discuss his impending transition to present as a female on April 24.

Some people are familiar with former Olympian Bruce Jenner's athletic accomplishments. Jenner won the gold medal in the decathlon at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, turning him into a sports hero with endorsements that kept his face in front of the American public well into the 1980s.

More recently, however, Jenner became more famous as the patriarch of the Kardashians, as the former Kris Kardashian married Jenner.

If that wasn't bad enough, Jenner has borne the brunt of jokes and snide comments about his appearance as he has been seen in public with long hair, sometimes in a ponytail. Eventually, word got out that Jenner is undergoing a process to "transition" into a woman.

Both before the seeming confirmation reported by People magazine in January and in the days and weeks that followed, people poking fun at Jenner has unfortunately continued. Even questions from well-meaning people have hinted at disrespect toward the journey. On such question I've seen out there illustrates the point: "what's wrong with being a man?" in response to Jenner's transition.

For someone who isn't familiar with the journey, it's hard to imagine the emotions and the feelings involved that would lead toward the transition. I don't pretend to have all the answers. I don't even profess to have any. That said, from my limited experience, some, if not all, people who choose to take on the journey face something called gender dysphoria, also known as gender identity disorder.

Long story short: People with gender identity disorder believe they were born with the wrong gender. To use Jenner's example, TMZ is reporting that when he sits down with ABC's Diane Sawyer on April 24, he is expected to present himself as a woman for the first time. He is expected to tell Sawyer that he considered himself a female since age 5, but was not able to present himself as one.

The interview in itself may not be disrespectful, but ABC's trailer for the interview certainly is. It sensationally avoids showing Jenner's face, choosing to use a silhouette of Jenner along with the back of Jenner's head in shots in a blatant attempt to create interest in the interview.

I understand the need to drive an audience to watch a program and that ABC needs to promote the interview. I also understand that Jenner's appearance alone may cause interest in the story. However, the shadows and the back of Jenner's head bring a carnival freak level of attention to Jenner that someone going through the emotional anguish of that transition under the glare of public attention should never face.

ABC's decision to tease Jenner's interview the way it has is yet another example of far too much disrespect directed at people who deserve understanding, no matter how little we have of exactly what they're going through.