f-T-eminism
here are some of the things i remember (or scrawled down on the back of a flyer)[0][1] from the f-T-eminism workshop at the feminist gathering on sunday just gone (anyone else who was also there is very welcome to contribute points i've missed/overlooked/not explained as well as they could be in the comments - thanks *smile*):
the sense that transmen get that the women's movement perceive them as having betrayed them by transitioning from 'f' to 'm'
that transitioning is a political act not a personal one[2]
that trans threatens feminism (or feminists?)
sexism from ftms
where to go, meet other trans people - in the queer movements/communities, but what of broader spaces
different places - the point(s) at which we're at
depoliticisation of the trans community (busy with internal/introspective journey)
the relationship between feminism and masculinity
reconsidering identifying with 'feminism' as a term - is it useful, could/should it be articulated in different ways
femininity, and masculinity, and being neither
nature vs nurture, essentialism vs construction
hierarchies - of passing, of queering - within trans and gender varaince
transguys are the men the feminist movement wants!
some of our concerns (why we as gender variants are feminists, what we want/what wer'e working for) include:
equality
deconstructing the patriarchy and capitalist sytem
addressing ranking and hierarchy within society
better ways of organising (than patriarchal)
there was some very interesting discussion of how we can challenge sexism while staying personally safe within the encounter (particularly if it might reveal us as trans/gender vairant)
one thing that came up a lot was that it's not a single issue issue - not simply about sex & gender - its articulations can't be seperate from the impact of class, race, sexuality, disability...
[0] at least, my understanding/interpretation of them
[1] i'm sorry this isn't clearer/more coherent (and possibly better remembered/recalled) now i come to look at it... but i was busy following the discussion over the background noise, occasionally dealing with the background noise, holding a lot of the ideas in my head with an intent to link some of them with each other as they emerged, making sure i understood what someone was saying and that the group understood what each other were saying, looking out for people who wanted to speak, and minding the time...
[2] i had interesting bits of conversation elsewhere/with others about how, far from this, the politics surrounding the issue were/have been something that slowed me (and others) down/made me (and others) put off thinking about any form of 'ftm' transition... delayed the personal action, our personal bodily self-determinaiton...
the sense that transmen get that the women's movement perceive them as having betrayed them by transitioning from 'f' to 'm'
that transitioning is a political act not a personal one[2]
that trans threatens feminism (or feminists?)
sexism from ftms
where to go, meet other trans people - in the queer movements/communities, but what of broader spaces
different places - the point(s) at which we're at
depoliticisation of the trans community (busy with internal/introspective journey)
the relationship between feminism and masculinity
reconsidering identifying with 'feminism' as a term - is it useful, could/should it be articulated in different ways
femininity, and masculinity, and being neither
nature vs nurture, essentialism vs construction
hierarchies - of passing, of queering - within trans and gender varaince
transguys are the men the feminist movement wants!
some of our concerns (why we as gender variants are feminists, what we want/what wer'e working for) include:
equality
deconstructing the patriarchy and capitalist sytem
addressing ranking and hierarchy within society
better ways of organising (than patriarchal)
there was some very interesting discussion of how we can challenge sexism while staying personally safe within the encounter (particularly if it might reveal us as trans/gender vairant)
one thing that came up a lot was that it's not a single issue issue - not simply about sex & gender - its articulations can't be seperate from the impact of class, race, sexuality, disability...
[0] at least, my understanding/interpretation of them
[1] i'm sorry this isn't clearer/more coherent (and possibly better remembered/recalled) now i come to look at it... but i was busy following the discussion over the background noise, occasionally dealing with the background noise, holding a lot of the ideas in my head with an intent to link some of them with each other as they emerged, making sure i understood what someone was saying and that the group understood what each other were saying, looking out for people who wanted to speak, and minding the time...
[2] i had interesting bits of conversation elsewhere/with others about how, far from this, the politics surrounding the issue were/have been something that slowed me (and others) down/made me (and others) put off thinking about any form of 'ftm' transition... delayed the personal action, our personal bodily self-determinaiton...