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Because it's not about the science (or even The Science). We've danced this dance before with Intelligent Design. It's about "we have these pre-existing conclusions on the question, now we're just digging around for 'facts' to support it and squash our opposition".
A large part of transphobia/the trans backlash/TERF or what you want to call the reactions of ordinary people is that the question has moved very quickly from "some people suffer from dysphoria and feel absolutely convinced they are born in the wrong body, should we not help them?" and the answer to that being fought over "is this a mental illness or not, meaning should we try to treat them so they stop thinking this or should we give them drugs and surgery?", which is a whole controversy on its own, to "well what is sex and gender anyway? gender roles are socially determined, gender is a binary, now sex itself is a binary, there is no such thing as 'male' or 'female', 'man' or 'woman', let's smash cisheretonormativity, you are a woman if you feel that you are a woman" which is a much wider and deeper question and does involve undermining and overthrowing long-held traditional notions of 'this is a man' and 'this is a woman' as part of the broader revolution of attitudes around sexuality.
And then you throw six year old children into the mix of that witches' brew.
Or hey, Trust The Experts, if a two year old pulls the barrettes out of their hair, it is a very strong sign they are trans!
Ordinary people may be brought around to accept "adult person is now convinced he is she and wants to change their body to suit" with the approval of "here are serious and grave medical professionals who sign off on 'yes George is indeed Georgina'", but making it "here is Susie who hasn't changed one scrap of her appearance or behaviour except now she is claiming to be nonbinary 'they/them' and will fly off the handle into an absolute hysterical shrieking fit of rage if some poor passerby calls them 'she'" and "sure this may look like a guy, sound like a guy, and have raped two women violently as a guy, but now you must believe with all your heart and all your mind and all your soul that she is a real woman and should be put into a women's prison" is a step too far.
Except if you object to "yes but this is a guy, surely? isn't it dangerous to put a rapist in with women, you know?" then you are a wicked and violent transphobe who wants to ensure troubled trans kids commit suicide. Look at The Science! Trust The Science! and here those studies are pulled out to support the case.
Is it any wonder people eventually go "That makes me a transphobe? Okay, I'm a transphobe!" and the real suffering dysphoria people get thrown out with the bathwater?
We had a candidate for the Supreme Court dodging "what is a woman? well how can I possibly know, I'm not a biologist" and though I completely understand why she did it, as it was a 'gotcha' question, the fact remains: a woman can't dare to give an opinion on what is a woman. Had it been "what does it mean to be black (or Black, even)?" would she, as a black woman, have clammed up the same way? Would she be open to accusations of racism had she given an opinion on what it is to be black? See the difference there?
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