When the excluded exclude
Caveat the First: I was not at Pantheacon. Instead, I lost five pounds in 24 hours due to food poisoning.
Caveat the Second: I do not self-identify as pagan.
Apparently, there was a public ritual held there, specified as being for cis-women only. And a silent protest ensued.
Oh, how this makes me itch in funny places. I know all too well about being excluded by those who consider themselves also excluded. And it leaves me sad, tired, and not a little bit bitter. Granted, my issues fall along disability, rather than gender, lines. But I cannot help but wince a bit at this.
I once had a middle-aged transvestite man point and laugh at my visible disability. And I was gobsmacked that somebody who has likely been harshly judged for their external presentation did not see a problem with harshly judging how I present. Compounded by the fact that this happened at a science fiction convention -- a space that itself purports to not only be inclusive, but a haven for those excluded by majority culture.
And I just don't understand it. Seriously, use small words. Make me smart. Because...I'm at a loss to understand how a space claiming to be inclusive is OK with excluding.
[EDIT: Also? Once you haul out the term 'transies,' you can just talk to the hand as far as I am concerned.
Caveat the Second: I do not self-identify as pagan.
Apparently, there was a public ritual held there, specified as being for cis-women only. And a silent protest ensued.
Oh, how this makes me itch in funny places. I know all too well about being excluded by those who consider themselves also excluded. And it leaves me sad, tired, and not a little bit bitter. Granted, my issues fall along disability, rather than gender, lines. But I cannot help but wince a bit at this.
I once had a middle-aged transvestite man point and laugh at my visible disability. And I was gobsmacked that somebody who has likely been harshly judged for their external presentation did not see a problem with harshly judging how I present. Compounded by the fact that this happened at a science fiction convention -- a space that itself purports to not only be inclusive, but a haven for those excluded by majority culture.
And I just don't understand it. Seriously, use small words. Make me smart. Because...I'm at a loss to understand how a space claiming to be inclusive is OK with excluding.
[EDIT: Also? Once you haul out the term 'transies,' you can just talk to the hand as far as I am concerned.