trans-former

[phaballa]

This report over at Towleroad makes me really sad and angry and disgusted with newspeople:

I thought Oprah handled the story of pregnant transgender man Thomas Beatie with respect yesterday. Not everybody's so accepting of Beatie, however, and plenty of people are openly threatened by him

Comments

[greenie_breizh]

I have to wonder if this is the same group of people who were totally okay with ENDA being non-trans inclusive ie the HRC and so on. Because if so--if there is really a significant portion of the GLBT community that would rather NOT include the T--what does that say about the community as a whole?It really bothers me when people who strive to be accepted as they are reject others who just want the same. I find it so problematic because it means that rather than challenging notions of normality, you're only saying that you belong within those boundaries while others (the fag, the trans) don't. It's not what LGBT activism is about - LGBT activism is about respect and redefining our narrow understandings of sexuality and desire

[phaballa]

That's my stance on ENDA, too. I want the thing passed. If we can just get one version passed, we can add on later. To me it's not about whose rights are being left out with ENDA. It's about actual, real political movement forward. Which happens in slow, small steps. Anyway. Taking advantage of forward political movement isn't the same, to me, as saying we should exclude trans people. I don't like that they're not included, I don't like the attitude that allows for such a thing to be possible, but political reality and personal morality/ethics rarely meet in a fully encompassed way.

It really bothers me when people who strive to be accepted as they are reject others on the same principle. I find it so problematic because it means that rather than challenging notions of normality, you're only saying that you belong within those boundaries while others (the fag, the trans) don't.Yes, exactly. It's like saying, "Well, maybe I don't have sex like you, but at least I'm not one of those trans freaks! Accept me because I could be

[lurkitty]

I wrote an email to the Letterman show sharing my disgust with his comment.

Joe Scarborough is a crank. I really wish MSNBC would sell him to Fox and get a more reasoned pet Republican. I'd even settle for Pat Buchanon, who knows the difference between personal jibes and political ones.

OTOH, we all expected this, including Beatie. I really don't think he had any illusion that he would be accepted by all with open arms given the times. He is a pioneer, and he will be derided for it. It only takes one first time. As people push the envelope, the folks that came before them seem less extreme. Suddenly, the drag queen down the block doesn't look as odd when next to a pregnant man.

[phaballa]

I know. And even though we all knew he was going to be derided and mocked and all those other awful things, it just still bothers me a LOT. Has fandom screwed me up so much that I really don't think pregnant men are at all freaky? When I found out about Beatie, I was all, "OMG, that's so cool, it's like 10 of my favorite fics come true!" I think it's exciting! And I don't see anything weird about it. I mean, he looks like a man and indentifies as a man, but he's still got his woman parts, so why shouldn't he use them? It just makes sense to me.

[bououou]

I believe in personal freedom above all: to be able to do with your own self and body what you choose to do, as long as you're not hurting anyone else.
I completely agree. I don't understand how people can't just let other people live the way they want.

[phaballa]

Me neither. And more than that, I can't understand why anyone would say that a transgendered person's freedom is not worth fighting for at the expense of "normal" gays and lesbians. That's the most shocking part to me. That does against every belief I have about the movement and human rights as a whole.

[jedirita]

It is probably also - whatsit called? Latent homophobia? Self-hatred? Like, "Compared to THAT, I'm normal!"

But the whole thing is that a person can't help being gay (or straight or bi.) Transgender is the same thing.

But like the gay thing, it makes a difference if you actually know someone who is trans. I've known several people. They talk about knowing it since they were very small children.

It just goes to show that a lot of us are still all screwed up over gender issues and gender roles. It's plain, old-fashioned sexism, too - these men saying, "Ooh, how gross!" What - pregnancy is gross? If you as a man are disgusted by the idea of a man being pregnant, what does that say about YOU?

[phaballa]

Yeah, I think you're right. And you know, I happen to think pregnancy is incredibly gross and I never ever want to do it, but at the same time I recognize that no one is asking ME to do, it has nothing to do with ME and no affect on ME. That's what I really don't get about bigotry--this idea that someone else's differences somehow taint or degrade the lives of others. As IF. It's their own gross interpretation of this new knowledge that degrades humans everywhere.

[phaballa]

Like, honestly? If someone feels threatened by the fact of a trans man having a baby, they need to grow the fuck up, take their heads out of their asses, and realize that the world isn't all about THEM and this fact isn't going to affect them in any way, shape, or form. People are so stupid and horrible sometimes :(