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luiniedYesterday a friend of mine posted this really excellent analysis of a pernicious myth about trans people: specifically, the idea that trans men are be especially masculine and trans women are especially feminine. The short version is that it comes from decades of dealing with terrible doctors. This isn't quite news to me, but it's the first time I've seen all this information in one place. (There's a video at the top of the article which is pretty much identical in content, so read or watch as is your preference.)
I remember seeing no reason to question this myth way back in the late 90s, when I learned that being trans is a thing-- some of you were there then, and you might remember it as well? Since then I've learned just how much subtle damage said myth causes, so I really want to spread this article around. And yet... that friend of mine posted it to Facebook, and despite Facebook having a really convenient reshare functionality, I still haven't decided whether it's a good idea to actually post it there myself.
I don't have the problem of hordes of conservative family members or old high school friends that a lot of people do with Facebook, but there are still quite a few people (family, super old friends, academic colleagues) whose knowledge about trans people I have no assurances of. And I don't want them skimming this article (or watching half the video), getting quotations from terrible people and/or stories of trans people, er, studying for the test, and taking it as justification for an inability to take trans people seriously that I didn't known they had.
And it's infuriating that I have to do this sort of cost-benefit analysis, you know? As though I'm in any way qualified to weigh the possible outcomes of what I do or don't post on friggin' Facebook! And I realize that Real Activists put tons of effort into tuning their messages for casual consumption by ignorant people all the time-- I'll bet they wouldn't use words like "ignorant", for instance-- so it's hardly like this is a dilemma no one else has ever faced. It's just... a reminder of the gaps between people, I guess.
I remember seeing no reason to question this myth way back in the late 90s, when I learned that being trans is a thing-- some of you were there then, and you might remember it as well? Since then I've learned just how much subtle damage said myth causes, so I really want to spread this article around. And yet... that friend of mine posted it to Facebook, and despite Facebook having a really convenient reshare functionality, I still haven't decided whether it's a good idea to actually post it there myself.
I don't have the problem of hordes of conservative family members or old high school friends that a lot of people do with Facebook, but there are still quite a few people (family, super old friends, academic colleagues) whose knowledge about trans people I have no assurances of. And I don't want them skimming this article (or watching half the video), getting quotations from terrible people and/or stories of trans people, er, studying for the test, and taking it as justification for an inability to take trans people seriously that I didn't known they had.
And it's infuriating that I have to do this sort of cost-benefit analysis, you know? As though I'm in any way qualified to weigh the possible outcomes of what I do or don't post on friggin' Facebook! And I realize that Real Activists put tons of effort into tuning their messages for casual consumption by ignorant people all the time-- I'll bet they wouldn't use words like "ignorant", for instance-- so it's hardly like this is a dilemma no one else has ever faced. It's just... a reminder of the gaps between people, I guess.
