This was super interesting to read and it clearly took a lot of self reflection and bravery to talk so openly about! It gives me immense hope to think that there are more people trapped in GC spaces that do not actually belong there and aren't in it for the cruelty of it all.
I'm sure your insight can make a difference for other people, so thank you for sharing it so eloquently and humbly.
Thank you very much for your insight in this subject.
I'm not particularly puzzled about why people are bigots, but it's very interesting to see how that takes cult-like shape even on people who were not bigots previously.
This is really good like all of your articles on the subject. As a trans woman your writing have helped me come to a better understanding of myself and settle a long-running internal struggle around sex/gender transition.
I do have a problem in that when it comes to fights over practical issues (women's sports or misogyny among trans people for example) trans-exclusionary radical feminists often have valid points to make and I want to work towards compromises that benefit all and advance the feminist cause. I don't believe trans activism and feminism have to be at odds yet in practice they often are. Admitting this is an invitation for all sorts of attacks so speaking on trans issues while being a committed feminist is frustratingly difficult. The people who argue back are most often other trans people and allies, while the arguments they make are comically bad if they can even be called that. At times it feels like I'm being radicalized against my own intentions. I would like to see a widespread change in how all of us think and talk about gender. I'm convinced that the ideological construct of 'gender identity' as people now use it does not represent or help me as a trans woman at all. It only makes sense as recognition of the social position that is the aftermath of my transition, a difficult subjective process.
I hope you are doing well and staying safe out there. You are an important voice for us even if you don't want to say so yourself.
There are more and more trans theorists questioning the phrase "gender identity" without being reactionary about it. If you follow it through history you can see that it also has a lot to do with medicalisation of the trans experience by cis people and the recycling of LGB liberationist ideas. "Gender identity" came to the rescue of the fragile sex dichotomy, it itself is a reactionary tool. Yet it was embraced by large parts of the trans community with open arms because it gave us *some* legitimacy. But it's biting us in the ass, so to speak.
Regarding the "legitimate concerns": the problems are not the concerns but the proposed solutions. I have yet to hear about one real or imagined scenario where people would agree that the solution is exclusion if the affected were any other group of women but trans women. *Exclusion* is the problem, not addressing possibly real differences in individuals. On the GC side broad exclusion is the only offered solution and other possibilities aren't even considered. It's always about keeping power. Trans people have always been so traumatised by GCs that they aren't able to discuss the nuances either because they are so used to this being just a pretext for further abuse.
Thank you for that deep honesty and making yourself vulnerable.
New bridges can be built :)
The funny thing is: society itself is already largely "radicalised" on the idea of binary and immutable gender. Coming to terms with my transness was a hard philosophical journey for me, too. In retrospect it often feels like escaping a brainwashing situation. Add to that the trauma from mental and physical abuse, there was a time where I felt so disorientated that it reminded me of stories from people who have been held hostage.
Imagine being a woman in a situation where she has to pretend to be a man in order to survive and if she ever gets found out she might be killed for it. That's how it felt for me - I believed being trans would at least mean social death and at best make me work the streets forever cursed to be an outcast and laughing stock.
At sone point you start to rationalise your male roleplaying, try to naturalise it and try to imagine your prison as your true home and calling and your captors as your friends - otherwise you just can't survive.
This was super interesting to read and it clearly took a lot of self reflection and bravery to talk so openly about! It gives me immense hope to think that there are more people trapped in GC spaces that do not actually belong there and aren't in it for the cruelty of it all.
I'm sure your insight can make a difference for other people, so thank you for sharing it so eloquently and humbly.
Thank you very much for your insight in this subject.
I'm not particularly puzzled about why people are bigots, but it's very interesting to see how that takes cult-like shape even on people who were not bigots previously.
Thanks for this. I think it's one of the most deeply honest personal sociopolitical/philosophical reflections I've ever come across.
So inspiring!!
This is really good like all of your articles on the subject. As a trans woman your writing have helped me come to a better understanding of myself and settle a long-running internal struggle around sex/gender transition.
I do have a problem in that when it comes to fights over practical issues (women's sports or misogyny among trans people for example) trans-exclusionary radical feminists often have valid points to make and I want to work towards compromises that benefit all and advance the feminist cause. I don't believe trans activism and feminism have to be at odds yet in practice they often are. Admitting this is an invitation for all sorts of attacks so speaking on trans issues while being a committed feminist is frustratingly difficult. The people who argue back are most often other trans people and allies, while the arguments they make are comically bad if they can even be called that. At times it feels like I'm being radicalized against my own intentions. I would like to see a widespread change in how all of us think and talk about gender. I'm convinced that the ideological construct of 'gender identity' as people now use it does not represent or help me as a trans woman at all. It only makes sense as recognition of the social position that is the aftermath of my transition, a difficult subjective process.
I hope you are doing well and staying safe out there. You are an important voice for us even if you don't want to say so yourself.
There are more and more trans theorists questioning the phrase "gender identity" without being reactionary about it. If you follow it through history you can see that it also has a lot to do with medicalisation of the trans experience by cis people and the recycling of LGB liberationist ideas. "Gender identity" came to the rescue of the fragile sex dichotomy, it itself is a reactionary tool. Yet it was embraced by large parts of the trans community with open arms because it gave us *some* legitimacy. But it's biting us in the ass, so to speak.
Regarding the "legitimate concerns": the problems are not the concerns but the proposed solutions. I have yet to hear about one real or imagined scenario where people would agree that the solution is exclusion if the affected were any other group of women but trans women. *Exclusion* is the problem, not addressing possibly real differences in individuals. On the GC side broad exclusion is the only offered solution and other possibilities aren't even considered. It's always about keeping power. Trans people have always been so traumatised by GCs that they aren't able to discuss the nuances either because they are so used to this being just a pretext for further abuse.
Meant to say "often traumatized" not "always traumatized"
male and female are assigned for life based in gametes.
Thank you for that deep honesty and making yourself vulnerable.
New bridges can be built :)
The funny thing is: society itself is already largely "radicalised" on the idea of binary and immutable gender. Coming to terms with my transness was a hard philosophical journey for me, too. In retrospect it often feels like escaping a brainwashing situation. Add to that the trauma from mental and physical abuse, there was a time where I felt so disorientated that it reminded me of stories from people who have been held hostage.
Imagine being a woman in a situation where she has to pretend to be a man in order to survive and if she ever gets found out she might be killed for it. That's how it felt for me - I believed being trans would at least mean social death and at best make me work the streets forever cursed to be an outcast and laughing stock.
At sone point you start to rationalise your male roleplaying, try to naturalise it and try to imagine your prison as your true home and calling and your captors as your friends - otherwise you just can't survive.
Not so far away from your cult experience...