Lenina Rosenweg
1st August 2010, 21:01
Transgenderism
A transgender person can be defined as one who identifies to various extents as members of the opposite sex or gender to which they are born. It’s unknown what percentage of the population can be defined as transgender. According to some estimates most TG people are still “in the closet.”
Since roughly the mid 1990s with the popularity of the Internet there has been a huge increase in the number of people openly identifying as TG and of TG groups. TG feelings — identification as a member of the opposite gender — can be deep seated and last a life time. Like homosexuality there is no "cure" for TGism. Hypnosis and aversion therapy have been tried but do not work. TGism can be an important part of one's personal identity.
There is the example of the African-American jazz musician Billy Tipton (1914-1989). Billy Tipton was a genetic female but lived as a male, married, and adopted children. Few people knew Tipton's secret until after his/her death. Tipton died of uterine cancer. He/she refused to go to the hospital or seek any medical treatment for fear of being "outed." This can be taken to mean that Billy Tipton's gender identity was so important that he literally sacrificed his life for it. Transgenderism can be a powerful aspect of one's identity
To define and discuss transgenderism, it’s helpful to clarify a few terms. Some of these terms might seem like common sense at first. "Sex" is what someone is born as — whether someone is a “man” or “woman.” It refers to the biological and physiological characteristics that generally define men and women. It concerns whether someone has XX chromosomes or XY chromosomes. Gender refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for men and women. “Male” and “female” are sex categories, while “masculine” and “feminine” are gender categories. Aspects of sex do not change much between different societies, while aspects of gender may vary greatly. Aspects of gender include ideas of what are considered appropriate clothing, the division of labor in areas such as housework, and styles of personal interaction.
The term "transgender" was coined by the transgender activist Virginia Prince in the early 1990s. The meaning of this term has evolved a lot since it was first coined, but today it’s generally taken to mean anyone who identifies partially or completely as a member of the opposite gender to which they were genetically assigned. Transgender people can be male to female, female to male, androgynous, and various combinations of these. This is in connection with the wide diversity and spectrum of human behavior. There are also levels and degrees of transgender feelings and behavior.
Transgender people can be cross dressers (CDs), "transgenderists" (people who live an alternate gender full-time but do not choose to have surgery), and transsexuals — people who have surgery to be their preferred gender as completely as possible. There are “drag kings”, male to female crossdressers, “transmen,” and “transwomen.” “Genderqueer” are people who combine elements of different genders.
Gender identity (the gender one sees oneself as) and sexual orientation (who one is sexually attracted to) are not the same thing. Many crossdressers regard themselves as heterosexual men. Their need to crossdress can create problems with their partners and families. There are cases of male to female transsexuals who regard themselves as lesbians and female to male transsexuals who live as gay men. While it’s somewhat complex, the motivation to transition to the opposite gender is not because of sexual attraction but because of an inner identification, although sexuality may play a role.
Although very little research so far has been done, male to female transsexuals seem to fall roughly into two groups; primary and secondary. Primary transsexuals have a strong identity as female from an early age. These people "transition" early, often in their teens or early 20s.. Secondary or "late onset" transsexuals transition later, usually late 30s or early 40s. No one knows why these two groups are different. It could be lack of information until recently.
The causes of TGism is not known. The most currently accepted theory among therapists, and researchers is that of differing "brain sex." Research has tentatively indicated that transgender males have, to different extents, female brains. A pregnant woman under stress secretes a larger than usual dosage of estrogen into her womb. The fetus, in effect, gets a "hormone wash." The fetal brain develops along female lines. If this occurs at an early stage of fetal development, the child will be transgendered. At a later stage that child will be non-TG but can exhibit "female patterned sexual preference," that is, the boy will be attracted to men, i.e., will be gay. Many people involved in TG activism today say that the causes of TGism, whatever they may be, should not matter. People are people and should have the right to choose their identity.
Transgenderism seems to be a universal human phenomenon. It has existed in every culture in the world at least at some time. While this has been largely suppressed in Western cultures, some non-Western societies still have TG traditions.
India, Thailand, Polynesian cultures of the Pacific, and many Native American tribes have transgender traditions and social roles. Much of this has been suppressed by Christian missionaries and Western imperialism.
Although TGism has historically existed since the dawn of human history, as a large mass based movement in the U.S., it is a little over 10 years old. In the U.S. there has been increasing visibility of transgender people at least since the early 90s. Related to this there has also been increasing violence against TG people.
There are issues of class and race facing the transgender community. Generally white TG people from upper-middle class backgrounds have a much easier time than others. It is a stereotype in the TG community that the most successful "trannies" are those working in the software/IT industry. These people command high salaries, can more easily afford transition costs to become more passable, and work in tolerant environments which do not require dealing with the general public. For working-class people and people of color who are transgendered, life can be a nightmare. Without technical skills or a high education level, it can be extremely difficult for TG people to find jobs. Many people are forced into prostitution in extremely dangerous environments.
Violence is probably the single largest issue facing many transgenders in the U.S. There are numerous cases of TG people being killed, often after being brutally beaten, throughout the 90s and 2000s.This especially affects TG people of color. According to a TG activist, “Trans people usually don’t get stabbed once, they get stabbed 20 times, shot, burned, and thrown into a dumpster.” For obvious reasons it is difficult to get precise estimates. According to some activists, one TG person a month is killed somewhere in the U.S. In 1993 Brandon Teena. a 19 year-old female to male transperson, was murdered in Nebraska. This was memorialized in the spectacular film, Boys Don't Cry, which everyone should see. In 1999 Rita Hester was murdered in San Francisco. To commemorate the murder of Hester and other TGs, the transgender community in SF and later other cities began holding a Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 20. In 2002 Gwen Arrajo, a transgender teenager in San Diego, was murdered. Arrajo was beaten and strangled when four men at a party discovered that she was trans. The people who attended the party did not report the murder until 6 months later.
In June, 2006 in New York a TG woman, Christina Sforza, asked to use the restroom at a Manhattan McDonald’s. After being in the ladies room for several minutes, a man she believed to be the manager entered and began severely beating her. According to Sforza the McDonald’s staff and customers began cheering the attacker on, yelling, “kill the fag.” A friend of Sforza called the police. When they came, they only listened to the manager and took Sforza to Bellevue, a NY mental hospital, treating her as if she was mentally ill.
These cases represent only the tip of the iceberg.
According to the online magazine Culture and Current Affairs, the right-wing Colorado talk show host Trevor Carey openly advocates violence against transgender people. Carey is quoted as saying, “if you’re frauding someone, you need to have your teeth kicked in.”
The past ten years have seen an epidemic of violence against transgender people in the DC area, with at least half a dozen trans people murdered. Ethan St. Pierre, a TG activist said in relation to this, “If you are a trans person of color, you’re in deep shit. It’s not going to be easy to get a job. Racism is horrible. It still exists in society.”
The 2006 Amnesty International report, “Stonewalled, Still Demanding Respect” documents a pattern of police brutality against LGBT people in U.S. cities. According to Amnesty International, police brutality is especially severe against transgender people. Police are slow in responding to hate crimes and brutal when dealing with transgender victims.
Transgender people face discrimination based on sexual orientation and can also face severe oppression based on class and race.
At least nine states in the U.S. have laws protecting transgender people from employment, rental, and other forms of discrimination. These are New Jersey, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Rhode Island, New Mexico, California, Illinois, Hawaii, and Washington.
Like other oppressed groups, the transgender community is divided along class and ethnic/racial lines. A fair number of “well heeled” transgenders favor conservative Republican politics or lean towards libertarianism while a larger layer of younger TGs and people of color are moving increasingly to the left.
There are debates within the transgender community regarding orientation to the feminist movement, the broader lgbt movement, issues of “passing” and issues of white and male privilege. The yearly Michigan Womyn’s Festival does not allow TG people to attend. The HRC, the largest lgbt group in the US is not very supportive of transgender rights. The late Ted Kennedy was hostile to TG issues.
The movement for lgbt rights has recently been downplayed by the Democrats and liberals. While there has been some progress, notably in terms of state anti-discrimination legislation and greater public awareness, there is still enormous violence and endemic discrimination against TG people.
Transgender rights are recognized by lgbt advocacy groups but this is a relatively recent development. The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the largest lgbt group in the US, traditionally downplays TG rights. The original lgbt movement stemming from Stonewall in 1969 (according to many accounts led by Hispanic TGs) was far more radical and inclusive than much of the lgbt movement in the US today. This tradition needs to be continued and broadened.
The way forward for TG and other oppressed groups is working to build a broad movement that challenges patriarchy, homophobia, and sexism.
A transgender person can be defined as one who identifies to various extents as members of the opposite sex or gender to which they are born. It’s unknown what percentage of the population can be defined as transgender. According to some estimates most TG people are still “in the closet.”
Since roughly the mid 1990s with the popularity of the Internet there has been a huge increase in the number of people openly identifying as TG and of TG groups. TG feelings — identification as a member of the opposite gender — can be deep seated and last a life time. Like homosexuality there is no "cure" for TGism. Hypnosis and aversion therapy have been tried but do not work. TGism can be an important part of one's personal identity.
There is the example of the African-American jazz musician Billy Tipton (1914-1989). Billy Tipton was a genetic female but lived as a male, married, and adopted children. Few people knew Tipton's secret until after his/her death. Tipton died of uterine cancer. He/she refused to go to the hospital or seek any medical treatment for fear of being "outed." This can be taken to mean that Billy Tipton's gender identity was so important that he literally sacrificed his life for it. Transgenderism can be a powerful aspect of one's identity
To define and discuss transgenderism, it’s helpful to clarify a few terms. Some of these terms might seem like common sense at first. "Sex" is what someone is born as — whether someone is a “man” or “woman.” It refers to the biological and physiological characteristics that generally define men and women. It concerns whether someone has XX chromosomes or XY chromosomes. Gender refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for men and women. “Male” and “female” are sex categories, while “masculine” and “feminine” are gender categories. Aspects of sex do not change much between different societies, while aspects of gender may vary greatly. Aspects of gender include ideas of what are considered appropriate clothing, the division of labor in areas such as housework, and styles of personal interaction.
The term "transgender" was coined by the transgender activist Virginia Prince in the early 1990s. The meaning of this term has evolved a lot since it was first coined, but today it’s generally taken to mean anyone who identifies partially or completely as a member of the opposite gender to which they were genetically assigned. Transgender people can be male to female, female to male, androgynous, and various combinations of these. This is in connection with the wide diversity and spectrum of human behavior. There are also levels and degrees of transgender feelings and behavior.
Transgender people can be cross dressers (CDs), "transgenderists" (people who live an alternate gender full-time but do not choose to have surgery), and transsexuals — people who have surgery to be their preferred gender as completely as possible. There are “drag kings”, male to female crossdressers, “transmen,” and “transwomen.” “Genderqueer” are people who combine elements of different genders.
Gender identity (the gender one sees oneself as) and sexual orientation (who one is sexually attracted to) are not the same thing. Many crossdressers regard themselves as heterosexual men. Their need to crossdress can create problems with their partners and families. There are cases of male to female transsexuals who regard themselves as lesbians and female to male transsexuals who live as gay men. While it’s somewhat complex, the motivation to transition to the opposite gender is not because of sexual attraction but because of an inner identification, although sexuality may play a role.
Although very little research so far has been done, male to female transsexuals seem to fall roughly into two groups; primary and secondary. Primary transsexuals have a strong identity as female from an early age. These people "transition" early, often in their teens or early 20s.. Secondary or "late onset" transsexuals transition later, usually late 30s or early 40s. No one knows why these two groups are different. It could be lack of information until recently.
The causes of TGism is not known. The most currently accepted theory among therapists, and researchers is that of differing "brain sex." Research has tentatively indicated that transgender males have, to different extents, female brains. A pregnant woman under stress secretes a larger than usual dosage of estrogen into her womb. The fetus, in effect, gets a "hormone wash." The fetal brain develops along female lines. If this occurs at an early stage of fetal development, the child will be transgendered. At a later stage that child will be non-TG but can exhibit "female patterned sexual preference," that is, the boy will be attracted to men, i.e., will be gay. Many people involved in TG activism today say that the causes of TGism, whatever they may be, should not matter. People are people and should have the right to choose their identity.
Transgenderism seems to be a universal human phenomenon. It has existed in every culture in the world at least at some time. While this has been largely suppressed in Western cultures, some non-Western societies still have TG traditions.
India, Thailand, Polynesian cultures of the Pacific, and many Native American tribes have transgender traditions and social roles. Much of this has been suppressed by Christian missionaries and Western imperialism.
Although TGism has historically existed since the dawn of human history, as a large mass based movement in the U.S., it is a little over 10 years old. In the U.S. there has been increasing visibility of transgender people at least since the early 90s. Related to this there has also been increasing violence against TG people.
There are issues of class and race facing the transgender community. Generally white TG people from upper-middle class backgrounds have a much easier time than others. It is a stereotype in the TG community that the most successful "trannies" are those working in the software/IT industry. These people command high salaries, can more easily afford transition costs to become more passable, and work in tolerant environments which do not require dealing with the general public. For working-class people and people of color who are transgendered, life can be a nightmare. Without technical skills or a high education level, it can be extremely difficult for TG people to find jobs. Many people are forced into prostitution in extremely dangerous environments.
Violence is probably the single largest issue facing many transgenders in the U.S. There are numerous cases of TG people being killed, often after being brutally beaten, throughout the 90s and 2000s.This especially affects TG people of color. According to a TG activist, “Trans people usually don’t get stabbed once, they get stabbed 20 times, shot, burned, and thrown into a dumpster.” For obvious reasons it is difficult to get precise estimates. According to some activists, one TG person a month is killed somewhere in the U.S. In 1993 Brandon Teena. a 19 year-old female to male transperson, was murdered in Nebraska. This was memorialized in the spectacular film, Boys Don't Cry, which everyone should see. In 1999 Rita Hester was murdered in San Francisco. To commemorate the murder of Hester and other TGs, the transgender community in SF and later other cities began holding a Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 20. In 2002 Gwen Arrajo, a transgender teenager in San Diego, was murdered. Arrajo was beaten and strangled when four men at a party discovered that she was trans. The people who attended the party did not report the murder until 6 months later.
In June, 2006 in New York a TG woman, Christina Sforza, asked to use the restroom at a Manhattan McDonald’s. After being in the ladies room for several minutes, a man she believed to be the manager entered and began severely beating her. According to Sforza the McDonald’s staff and customers began cheering the attacker on, yelling, “kill the fag.” A friend of Sforza called the police. When they came, they only listened to the manager and took Sforza to Bellevue, a NY mental hospital, treating her as if she was mentally ill.
These cases represent only the tip of the iceberg.
According to the online magazine Culture and Current Affairs, the right-wing Colorado talk show host Trevor Carey openly advocates violence against transgender people. Carey is quoted as saying, “if you’re frauding someone, you need to have your teeth kicked in.”
The past ten years have seen an epidemic of violence against transgender people in the DC area, with at least half a dozen trans people murdered. Ethan St. Pierre, a TG activist said in relation to this, “If you are a trans person of color, you’re in deep shit. It’s not going to be easy to get a job. Racism is horrible. It still exists in society.”
The 2006 Amnesty International report, “Stonewalled, Still Demanding Respect” documents a pattern of police brutality against LGBT people in U.S. cities. According to Amnesty International, police brutality is especially severe against transgender people. Police are slow in responding to hate crimes and brutal when dealing with transgender victims.
Transgender people face discrimination based on sexual orientation and can also face severe oppression based on class and race.
At least nine states in the U.S. have laws protecting transgender people from employment, rental, and other forms of discrimination. These are New Jersey, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Rhode Island, New Mexico, California, Illinois, Hawaii, and Washington.
Like other oppressed groups, the transgender community is divided along class and ethnic/racial lines. A fair number of “well heeled” transgenders favor conservative Republican politics or lean towards libertarianism while a larger layer of younger TGs and people of color are moving increasingly to the left.
There are debates within the transgender community regarding orientation to the feminist movement, the broader lgbt movement, issues of “passing” and issues of white and male privilege. The yearly Michigan Womyn’s Festival does not allow TG people to attend. The HRC, the largest lgbt group in the US is not very supportive of transgender rights. The late Ted Kennedy was hostile to TG issues.
The movement for lgbt rights has recently been downplayed by the Democrats and liberals. While there has been some progress, notably in terms of state anti-discrimination legislation and greater public awareness, there is still enormous violence and endemic discrimination against TG people.
Transgender rights are recognized by lgbt advocacy groups but this is a relatively recent development. The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the largest lgbt group in the US, traditionally downplays TG rights. The original lgbt movement stemming from Stonewall in 1969 (according to many accounts led by Hispanic TGs) was far more radical and inclusive than much of the lgbt movement in the US today. This tradition needs to be continued and broadened.
The way forward for TG and other oppressed groups is working to build a broad movement that challenges patriarchy, homophobia, and sexism.