#trans men just LOVE to be reduced to their birth genitalia

[belovedarise]

What is Gender?

1: GENDER IS A COMPLEX THING. Essentially gender is our internal relationship to societal concepts of masculinity and femininity.

2. GENDER EXPRESSION is the behavior attributes and symbols that indicate and perform one's gender(s).

3. PART OF IT HAS TO DO WITH how you feel, part of it is how people see you, part of it has to do with expectations based on biological sex. Frankly, no definition of gender really gets all of what it is or isn’t. 

4. MANY PEOPLE IDENTIFY WITHIN the binary of man or woman, many have a fluid experience within the spectrum, and still many identify outside the spectrum of these two options altogether.

5. CISGENDER PEOPLE identify with the gender society prescribes them at birth based on external sex characteristics.

TRANSGENDER PEOPLE internally align with gender(s) other than those assigned at birth.

Even Biological Sex Is NOT A Binary

The terms “MALE” AND “FEMALE” are used to categorize the anatomical differences in our bodies, but everything we attribute to biological sex— chromosomes, horomones, sex-linked genes, and genitalia— all exist on a complex spectrum. We are taught that XX chromosomes means female and XY chromosomes means male, but someone with XX chromosomes can be born with a penis and someone with XY chromosomes could be born with a vagina. Other chromosomal combinations exist (including X, XXY, XXX), and many people are born with varying degrees of both ovaries and testicles. This diversity has come to be generalized as “intersex” (neither male nor female). Tragically, doctors in many parts of the world perform irreversible surgeries to assign a binary sex to children whose bodies don’t match traditional understandings of male and female anatomy.

//For a descriptive thread on why biological sex is not a binary, visit https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1207834357639139328.html 

Gender vs Orientation

BEING TRANS IS NOT THE SAME THING AS BEING GAY.

Who you are sexually or romantically attracted to is separate from your gender. Many people confuse the two.

“When I first came out as a lesbian in college, my friends assumed I must feel like a man on the inside because they couldn’t imagine two women loving each other.” “Growing up, everyone assumed I was gay because of my personality and how I dressed, but that was because they didn’t have the language for gender diversity. To them, everything queer had to be gay.”

Brief History of Gender Diversity

While most of the western world is only just waking up to the diversity and complexity of gender, many cultures around the world and throughout time have recognized transgender and gender nonconforming people, often giving them spiritual reverence.

Ancient Egyptians identified three genders, man, sekhet, and woman, as early as early as 2000 BCE. Other cultures acknowledge three, four, and even more genders.

THE MODERN EMPHASIS ON GENDER as a rigid binary is primarily the consequence of European colonialism: a Christianity of patriarchy and cis-normativity allowed European colonists to call other cultures primitive and justify violence against them along with other forms of theft and control.

The Importance of Pronouns and Names

There’s so many options for pronouns: he, she, they, ze, or even just using a person’s name, and more. THE WORDS WE USE TO GENDER PEOPLE MATTER.

Calling a transgender person by their birth name, or a previous name associated with an identity that is not authentic to them can be harmful. Often times trans people choose a name that aligns more with their identity. Their previous name is sometimes called their “dead name.” DON’T DEAD NAME PEOPLE.

Using a person’s chosen name and proper pronouns can REDUCE THEIR RISK OF SUICIDE BY 30%.

FUN FACT: the singular ‘they’ has been used as a gender neutral pronoun in English for many hundreds of years!

God is Not a Man

God is infinitely more complex than can be contained within human vocabulary and thoughts (see Isaiah 55:8-9).

THIS INCLUDES GENDER. God’s fullness includes woman, man, non-binary, and being outside of gender. The gender-diverse nature of God is reflected throughout scripture. In addition to masculine terms, God is repeatedly described as a nursing, protective, and comforting Mother who has born us from Her womb (Hosea 11:3-4; Deuteronomy 32:11-18; Isaiah 42:14, 49:15, 66:13; Psalm 131:2; Matthew 23:37; etc). Even Genesis 1:27 says all of humankind was made in God’s image (not just cisgender men).

In the Beginning

The Bible says that in the beginning, God created day and night, land and sea, birds and fish. But have you ever seen a sunset, or a beach, or a penguin? Well, trans and non-binary people are kind of like that. A BEAUTIFUL ARRAY OF DIVERSITY.

So, God created male and female, and we are no less beautiful, diverse, and wild than a sunset or a beach or a penguin. God created people with genders beyond male and female in the same way God created realities in between, outside of, and beyond these others. Trans and non-binary and agender and intersex: God created us. --Adapted from a message from trans pastor Asher O’Callaghan

To see the post in slide guide form, go here.

[nerdygaymormon]

what do you think about the new handbook?

In January 2016 I received a calling that gave me access to the Church’s Handbooks and I was surprised at the amount of specific things in there on which I had never considered the Church having an official position. I imagine a lot of people are having that experience this week.

I’m glad the Church made the Handbook available to everyone, it’s a move towards transparency. Before this, people were being held to standards or facing processes that only their leaders could access.

I appreciate that in some areas there’s better framework and clarity, but am sad that it often came in the form of being more restrictive or not in line with modern science.

I’m going to outline the changes and add a few comments. ’ll put my opinion about all of this at the end, so if that’s what you want to see, scroll to the bottom.

————————————————————— 

Miscellaneous

The Handbook covers a lot of information, so I’m certain in the days and weeks ahead more new things will be discovered. But for now, here’s some assorted policies.

Sacrament

We’re supposed to take the Sacrament with our right hands

The wording that young men are encouraged, but not required, to wear a white shirt and tie is gone. All males who pass the Sacrament are asked to be clean and well groomed.

For a long time, which hand to use has been considered a personal choice, and some associated special meaning by using their right hand.

In February 2019, Elder Oaks saw some youth take the Sacrament with the left hand and he gave a short lecture that went viral telling these kids they were wrong, and now it’s official policy in the Handbook.

Dress Standards

The Relief Society Presidency is to teach dress standards to the sisters so their appearance and clothing show reverence and respect at Church and at the temple.

These are adult women!!! They can’t figure this out for themselves? It mentions ostentatious jewelry and casual clothes without any examples of what this means. I’m afraid some leaders will enforce their personal opinions, such as pants are verboten.

Also this section included a comment about ostentatious jewelry. What is that? Having 2 earrings in 1 ear?

—————————————————————

Discipline

Disciplinary councils have been renamed “Membership Councils”

People no longer are disfellowshipped or excommunicated. They have “formal membership restrictions” or “withdrawal of membership”

Does away with the unequal disciplinary structure for adult men vs adult women.

Before, men who were endowed had a disciplinary council at the stake level. Everyone else had a disciplinary council held by their bishopric.

Now anyone who is endowed and likely to have their Church membership withdrawn will have a stake membership council. Everyone else has a ward membership council for serious sins & actions

At the ward level, membership councils still function the same (the bishopric holds a council with the person whose membership is at risk).

At the stake level, the council now is similar to the way it works at the ward level (the stake presidency meets, without the high council also being involved).

The individual’s bishops can sit in on the council. The individual can also choose for the Elders Quorum or Relief Society President to sit in on the council.

Same-sex marriage is no longer apostasy

Apostasy has been removed from a list of reasons to hold a membership council. Instead it is on a case-by-case basis.

The stake president can place informal membership restrictions on the person and the stake president counsels with the Area Presidency (which are Seventy) about anything more than that, such as a membership council

The language is softer but the results are the same.

I like that men & women are treated equally in this new system. It always struck me wrong that most men in the church automatically had a council of 15 men and women had 3 men.

The reversal of the 2015 Policy of Exclusion finally made it to the Handbook. 

————————————————————— 

Gay, Lesbian, Bi, Same-Sex Attracted

Families & members should be sensitive, love and respectful of people who are gay, lesbian & bi

Sexual activity with someone of the same gender is on the same level as an unmarried sex.

Membership councils are optional in these cases, based on the leader’s discretion.

As long as an LGBTQ member is “striving” to live the law of chastity, they’re allowed to hold a calling and temple recommend

“Sexual cohabitation” used to be forbidden, now it’s “cohabitation”. So I guess gay people living together is a problem regardless of whether they have sex. I do know of a few couples who live together, but have given up sex in order to be temple worthy. I guess that’s no longer an option.

The mormonandgay website was done away with and some of the items moved to a new page titled “Same-Sex Attraction.”

Most of the links on this new page don’t work. I’m sure this will get fixed

Most of the “resources” from the old page aren’t on the new page.

The last 4 video stories of members from the former site are on the new site.

Credit for finally making this page available in languages other than English.

I wonder if it will still say it’s okay to identify using the terms gay, bi or lesbian.I know President Oaks prefers the phrase “same-sex attraction” and a lot of his influence is seen in the new Handbook changes. 

The best section of the previous site was a collection of 17 members who are gay, bi and lesbian (well, 2 of them are parents of gay kids). Hearing them tell their story in their own words was powerful. Most of them have asked for their video to be removed.

The only stories remaining are 2 people in a mixed-orientation marriage and 2 parents who have a gay son. Each of those 4 members now has multiple videos (Laurie, Laurie’s husband, Laurie’s bishop, Laurie’s friend). 

The experience of most LGB people in the Church is now absent from this page, which again confirms for me that this has been a site for leaders & family, not actual members who are bisexual, lesbian or gay.

—————————————————————

Transgender

Preferred names can be noted in your membership record and Church leaders are encouraged to use them.

People can also to ask others to use their chosen pronouns

Elective surgical or medical intervention (which I believe means hormone treatment) for the purpose of transitioning, and social transitioning will result in membership restrictions.

These restrictions include not getting to exercise the priesthood, receiving or using a temple recommend, and receiving some Church callings

Even if the hormone therapy is prescribed by a medical professional to ease gender dysphoria or reduce suicidal thoughts, membership restrictions will result

Transgender people who don’t transition can have Church callings & temple recommends

Gender is defined as “biological sex at birth.”

This is recorded on Church records and determines whether someone can receive the priesthood and how they experience the temple ordinances

Transgender people & their family are welcome to attend Sunday church meetings and social events

There is now a page for transgender people, just as there has been for LGB people

This whole section of the Handbook makes me sad because it reduces these members to being a mistake and they need to choose a side. Nevermind they were born this way and have complex lives, they need to look and act like a cishet member.

I’d love if the church leaders could show scriptural backing & the words of the Savior to justify their views on trans folks other than the Family Proclamation.

Credit to the Church for switching from “transsexual” to “transgender

While trans people are welcome to attend the 2nd hour of church, no guidance was given about if they can choose either Relief Society or Elders Quorum

It’s problematic to define gender being as your biological sex at birth. If gender is eternal, why is “at birth” needed? A doctor or nurse assigns a biological sex at birth by taking a look at the newborn’s external genitals. This is only 1 of 5 markers of gender. A doctor or a nurse is not God.

5 components of biological sex

external genitalia

inner reproductive anatomy

sex hormones

chromosomes

gonad differentiation (gonad secretions cause sex-specific patterns in many other tissues & the brain)

This section of the Handbook still speaks of gender as binary–you’re either male or female and trans. Genderfluid, nonbinary, or any acknowledgement of a spectrum doesn’t exist.

To say a trans person will face consequences for social transitioning is really troubling. What does “social transitioning” mean? Do pronouns count as “social transitioning?” Long or short hair? If people must dress according to gender stereotypes, then it seems like leadership is more concerned about the feelings of the 99 and not the health & well being of the 1.

Why is it only transgender members who have a ban on these surgeries? Lots of breast enhancements, reductions and mastectomies take place every month with not a whiff of interest by church leaders, but if it’s done to affirm one’s gender identity, then it’s forbidden, even if it’s life saving.

It did make me feel queasy to read that even if medical or surgical intervention is prescribed by medical professionals to deal with gender dysphoria or suicidal thoughts, too bad, we’re still going to punish you. What kind of monsters came up with this?

————————————————————— 

Intersex, aka People Whose Sex isn’t Clear at Birth

The Handbook says the incident rate of intersex is extremely rare

Questions about membership records, priesthood ordination and temple ordinances for youth or adults who were born with sexual ambiguity should be directed to the Office of the First Presidency.

This is the first I’ve seen Intersex given their own section in the Handbook.

While policies about LGBT people are listed as “moral issues”, the section on intersex people is under “medical and health policies.” That’s a good sign, it means that the medical profession determines what is best, not a church leader.

I appreciate that church takes this out of the hands of local leadership. It’s a complex issue that untrained people shouldn’t get to have say over.

The Church assumes that surgical & medical intervention is needed for this group of people. Unfortunately it implies the default is to do so in infancy or early childhood when current best practices would be delaying, if possible, until the individual can weigh in on their body & identity. 

The idea that intersex is rare, well that depends on what they consider rare.

The rate could be as high as 2% of the population or as low as 1 in 2000.

If we think of that in terms of Church congregations, it suddenly seems not so rare.

In North America, a ward must have 300 members. If 1%-2% are intersex, that’s a couple people in each congregation.

If we go with the lowest rate of 1 in 2000, consider that in the US & Canada a stake requires a minimum of 3000 members. So 1 or 2 members per stake would be intersex.

—————————————————————

I think these changes show that the Church is willing to include queer people up to a point. We can feel & be the person we believe ourselves to be as long as we don’t actually act in a way that affirms who we are.

We are to be loved, respected and welcomed, however these homophobic and transphobic policies remain in place. Love & respect is more than smiling & being nice to someone.

The policies of the Church regarding queer people is out of line with science. As science continues to advance and confirm that gender identities and sexual orientations are real and biological and not changeable by will, the tension for the Church on these topics will continue to grow.

“The only clear line I draw these days is this: when my religion tries to come between me and my neighbor, I will choose my neighbor. Jesus never commanded me to love my religion.” -Rev. Barbara Brown Taylor

Considering Jesus admonishes us again and again to love each other and that we are all alike to God, I can only guess that Jesus wept. Again.

[cowboyjen68]

that one ask you got wasn’t transphobic because she said she isn’t attracted to trans women (although you don’t always know when a girl is or is not trans and if you’re attracted to her when you thought she was cis and not after you know she’s trans is indeed transphobic and if she has a vag there is no way to blame it on not liking penises), it was transphobic because she said that it’s impossible for a lesbian to be attracted to a trans women. trans women are women plain and simple. (1/)

hey are not men and it is transphobic to say they practice “performative gender,” have “male bodies,” liken being attracted to them to conversion therapy, and say they cannot be desired by lesbians. that’s an extremely binary and transphobic way of thinking of trans people. some lesbians have problems with penises, and that’s ok, but what isn’t ok is to reduce trans women with penises to that part of their body 

2/)or their “pheromones” or whatever and justify blatant transphobia by saying that it’s a matter of personal preference. you are not always going to know who is trans and who is not, indeed many straight men and gay women date trans women and are still their sexuality, first of all, and second of all, a trans woman’s worth is not defined by someone’s ability to be attracted to her. writing it off as not being able to be attracted to trans women is a dangerous generalization bc it normalizes (3/)

not only the idea that trans people are undesirable, but also that it’s ok in the least to reduce them to their genitalia or to even suggest that they are always going to be whatever they were assigned at birth. lesbians can be and are attracted to trans women. it’s up to those who aren’t to examine why, because it’s not that they have “male pheromones” or penises. 

(4/)some of them are on estrogen which changes pheromones and some of them have vaginas. it’s because of transphobia and the ingrained otherment of trans women. this isn’t policing someone’s sexuality, this is calling out of dangerous rhetoric that contributes to more violent transphobia whether or not you have trans friends (5/5 fin.)

soo. honestly.. I am have had a shit month and a REALLY shitty couple of weeks. And I am exhausted and sad and experiencing heartbreak and loss and fear and uncertainty all at once.  Like life altering terrible.  So I will do my best to answer this. 

I can only speak from my experience.  I am not trans, nor in any way gender dysphoric.  I don’t have a degree in gender studies. I proclaim zero expertiese on gender or transgender issues.. hence my speaking partner who handles that information. 

I do align my sexuality and my gender with people who were genetically and biologically born with my same sex traits.  NOW.. as I have stated. I have no idea if I have ever been phyicially attracted to a trans person..because I have not dated anyone who is trans.. I know this because I have had sex with all of the women I have dated.. which is not many…  I never said it was impossible nor did I say their attractiveness had one single rats ass to do with their validity or right to be happy, healthy and safe.

Lesbians defining their own sexuality is well with in their rights. If they only want a vagina that is all original parts that is not transphobic,, but to say lesbians can’t be same sex and gender attracted feels homophobic to me.  

I don’t  claim to have immunity because I have trans friends.  Far from it. But I do make the effort to bring them to every table I sit at out in the community so their voice can be heard.  The deal is.. they agree to hear my voice.  

If a lesbian wishes to define herself as a lesbian and date a transwomen.. okee dokee.  FIne with me.. I don’t own the rights nor do I really care what her partner has in her pants. NONE of my business. If a trans person tells me they are a woman.. good enough for me.. I don’t need an explaination nor disclaimers nor a run down of what is under the hood.  Same goes for me.. If I say I am a lesbian.. done. .end of converstation. Let’s all go get some vegan tacos and bitch about Trump.    I don’t need to define that further. It is just unneceassary for casual interaction.  

If I started to fall for someone then found out they have a penis, that is likely a deal breaker for me.. One, yes…partially to societal pressure that lesbians don’t like penis. That is a giant barrier I likely could not break through. I am one hundred percent willing to admit that.  I can’t lie and say.. I’d get over it.. I wouldn’t  want to start that relationship on unfairly shakey ground.  Not if I truly cared. And secondly, and mostily, because penises just don’t turn me on. I don’t like them on me, in me or a touching me. AND if the person is post op? Can’t give you an answer.. for me personally I don’t have any clue if I would be arroused.. never been in that situation.. I literally have no way to know.  

The conversion therapy part comes into play because many lesbians.. and I know this is unpopluar but it is true for many and a fact is a fact, just don’t like nor want to like a penis no matter who has it.. Lesbians to the far end of the same sex trait and same gender attraction exist.  I am one.. as far as I have experienced.  I don’t owe anyone to say otherwise. It would be disingenuous at best.  

I don’t hate transpeople.. I am not afraid of transpeople. I support their right to exist, to be happy and loved and I support people who id as lesbians to date anyone they want. If you can fucking meet someone, fall in love and have mind blowing passionate sex.. then god damn well do it because such a thing is a rare and wonderful.

I love vaginas and breasts that are part of the original body.. I just do.. I don’t have any interest in finding out otherwise.. but ALSO don’t feel the need to announce that every where I go.  

You ask me to examine why?  I admitted above some of that is due to societal and community pressure, but by in large you are correct.. IT IS UP TO ME and I choose to not really look into it because right now I have no reason to question my sexuality and natural attraction. Should a situation arrive where It would warrant a closer look I can still choose to delve deeper or not and that is my choice.  I don’t owe anyone an examination of how i define my lesbianism… just like no one owes me one as to how they define theirs.

[trans-advice]

I am having an internal debate and conflict about changing my sex on my documents, biologically I was born femalr its my gender that is not female and sex and gender are not the same and I having trouble defending this to others because do they have a point? i will always have my biological make up of a female

While a lot of people deny the existence of transgender people, it doesn’t mean they’re right. I am going to divide this post into 3 sections: #1 vocabulary lessons, #2 discussion about sexuality, #3 links explaining how physiological sex isn’t as tidy/discrete as people say it is,

Also I Do understand the difference between sex & gender. I learned it in 8th grade & I was yay in validation when i did & i used similar language “sex is male but my gender is female”. Point being, the sex versus gender distinction is liberation & I’m glad you’re aware of it. (Hugs or salutes, whatever you prefer.)

#1 vocabulary lessons

Now that being said gender is pretty broad, so the specific term is gender identity. There’s also:“gender roles” basically it refers to division of work & double standards, basically it’s about the pervasiveness/manifestations of sexism“gender attribution” (or “perceived gender”) which refers to what people say your gender is AKA what you pass as,“Gender expression” which refers to your behaviors & mannerisms & other nonverbal communicators like clothing, and how they get attributed & fit into gender roles.If you ever heard of “butch” & “femme” those basically come from people trying to fit lesbian/wlw couples into a heteronormative/straight model of relationships. (Therefore, these terms when used properly say that these gender-binary codings are actually inappropriate.) “Butch” means masculine aligning & “femme” means feminine aligning.

For sex it refers to anatomy & physiology.

#2 about sexuality & how people talk about it:

Sexuality is totally different from gender. Sexuality is more like an eHarmony survey & discussion of fantasies & things you like in a person. However because society doesn’t want to go through 200 questions, we tend to focus on the attributed gender &or gender identity of who we love/have sex with etc.

Usually since physiological sex correlates to attributed gender & gender identity, people who deny transgender people exist would probably define that gender based grammar of sexuality as being based on physiological sex.

An example of a parallel discourse to gender expansionism in sexuality is kink discourse. I get somewhat disturbed by the topics in the education materials, but those are not my kinks. But yeah, discussions about Consent & communication & how to properly do things are pretty cool, but it does require educating yourself. But yeah, that’s the LGB side of the LGBTQIA coalition.

Basically sexuality is what you look for in partners, while gender identity is how you understand yourself.

#3 links for further reading & comments about

http://murphysoutlaw.tumblr.com/post/156363590861/gender-and-how-we-talk-about-it(Explains how there are several definitions of gender & how they must be clarified in order for us to communicate effectively.)

http://www.theplaidzebra.com/science-finally-supports-that-we-are-all-born-as-blank-slates-and-gender-is-merely-a-construct/(Discusses that brains don’t have as much of a dimorphism as generally consensused. Also mentions the antique/ancient “one sex” model of gender that says like women were just men with backwards pensises. Granted, the one-sex model is not entirely accurate, but I think it’s actually more accurate since private parts developed from the same stuff but get placed & formed differently & a lot of human sex dimorphism isn’t as dramatically different like it is in other species. CW: genitalia discussion: Like the testes & ovaries are the same root. Scrotum & labia are the same root. The 2 holes of the vagina that aren’t the anus fuse during the development of males, except for i think 3 in 1000 or 500. The prostate is the g-spot.

https://www.glsen.org/blog/6-ways-i-make-my-science-class-lgbtq-inclusive-trans-teacher(Describes how sex anatomy starts out the same & therefore gives gender neutral terms for stuff. This is kind of huge I think)

https://trans-advice.tumblr.com/post/159422880475/the-future-now-boom-science-follow(Discusses how genetics doesn’t fully fit with what we call sex characteristics being. Also discusses how different species can develop their sexes differently)

https://trans-advice.tumblr.com/post/152687957726/emo420-emo420-enderkevin13-i-want-someone (This is long, but it cites academic research, it tells about gender constructions in different cultures, goes into biological stuff, it’s a great post: a classic!)

https://sgaprivilege.tumblr.com/post/154928776786/sonoanthony-hatingongodot (A classic. Gives other gender systems throughout history. Basically shows how people claim science until it doesn’t suit them. Gives hope for finding sources & touches upon people claiming “fake news” all the time.)

http://kiriamaya.tumblr.com/post/128707247524/i-have-a-penis-for-now-but-my-sex-is-not-male (Argues the only reason why we have sex is because (our) society uses gender. Basically that sex is an extension of Gender instead of gender being an extension of sex. I think it’s kind of accurate, but it’s kind of advanced/unhelpful for people who don’t even recognize a difference between sex & gender. Granted, our society’s use of gender’s rooted in lack of birth control, but that doesn’t make it any less social.)

https://trans-advice.tumblr.com/post/153092781587/sex-is-the-same-thing-as-gender-and-it-is (This post is kind of confusing actually, but it’s a good one because it helps give insight to the evolving discourse regarding gender. It discusses how sex is made to fit gender. Granted, trans deniers who call themselves feminists (aka TERFs) say that sex is based on reproduction & perceived reproductive roles, but that in itself is still a social construction & a chosen grammar, similar to how grammar of sexuality got changed from how sperm was used to perceived gender (Discusses how if you call a body parts male or female instead of what body parts they are that it’s gender assignment not sex/reproductive physiology. Like calling a penis a male body part is gender. Technically it goes on to say how penises vary & such (the gender-neutral term is “phallus”).

https://trans-advice.tumblr.com/post/160086635255/dan-whites-got-an-issue-in-2017-science (Brief tweet mentioning how stuff is sprectrums, & the categories are made up. Think of like how “black & white” thinking is really more like grayscale so many kinds of gray. Evolution of species & languages works the same way)

https://stevia333activism.tumblr.com/post/160654062034/featherinmycapandcheese-if-i-say-hatred-of (Argues how the gender binary is racist. Explains racism is a bias of results. So like quinoa is racist because it favors feeding gringos & starving brown Venezuelans because gringos have more money. It describes indigenous peoples having nonbinary gender systems. Granted, indigenous peoples have claimed white people are appropriating nonbinary identities, but it’s discourse from 2016.)

https://stevia333.tumblr.com/post/153233156213/lets-unpack-special-snowflakes People tend to call non-binary people “special snowflakes” or even “trendgender” which is offensive because it reduces atypicality & even disabilities into fame or atrention seeking demonizations. It’s messed up.

https://trans-advice.tumblr.com/post/158930333484/the-invention-of-heterosexualityThis is a classic staple that describes how straight versus gay is a recent invention. Like remember how I went into how way back in the day sexuality was based on where sperm went? Basically this article goes into how that changed. If people be like disgusted that we don’t “fit” into this or whatever, the inventedness of heteronormativity is a good thing to comfort & empower you & heck even throw at them. Basically if we changed in the 1930s about how we talk about sex then we can do so again & we can so about gender.

Good luck, peace & loveEve

[theconservativebrief]

Though they are often conflated by many Americans, and particularly Republicans, sex is not the same thing as gender.

Sex is determined by the biological configuration of chromosomes. Gender is our individual identity: one that can be fluid or fixed. Respecting and honoring this difference is key to respecting the rights of transgender people.

The Trump administration is hoping to erase these distinctions, via changing the Department of Health and Human service’s interpretation of Title IX. As the New York Times reported over the weekend, the administration “is considering narrowly defining gender as a biological, immutable condition determined by genitalia at birth,” and that “any dispute about one’s sex would have to be clarified using genetic testing.”

But as Jack Turban, a resident physician in psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital who researches gender identity, told me in an email, “There is no ‘scientific definition’ of gender. Things like anatomy and chromosomes just don’t cut it. The only way to know someone’s gender is to ask them.”

The administration’s insistence on using genitalia to define gender, he adds, also doesn’t make sense for people born with genitalia that are “not clearly defined as male or female.” It’s possible for some people to have XY sex chromosomes, but their bodies neither respond to testosterone nor develop into that of a typical male (known as androgen insensitivity).

So, the Trump administration’s proposal is not grounded in science, or reality. And if the government conflates sex with gender, it could mean that civil rights protections will no longer apply to the 1.4 million Americans who are trans, and that discrimination against them could increase.

They already experience a lot of prejudice: A 2017 NPR/Harvard poll found that 38 percent of transgender Americans have experience slurs, and 22 percent said they “have been told or felt they would be unwelcome in a neighborhood or building because they are transgender.” Transgender people are often targets for violence.

I don’t want to understate how painful the HHS policy changes would be. But there is some hope that the discrimination they face doesn’t have to go on forever.

It’s worth to revisit a small glimmer of hope from psychological research on changes in attitudes toward transgender people. These insights may not change the mind of the president. But they can help change the minds of our neighbors.

In 2016, the journal Science published a remarkable bit of insight: It’s possible to reduce prejudice and sway opinions on anti-transgender legislation with one 10-minute conversation. What’s more, the researchers found that the change of heart can last at least three months and is resistant to anti-transgender attack ads.

The study is titled ”Durably reducing transphobia: A field experiment on door-to-door canvassing,” and it was the first large-scale, real-world experimental effort that shows lasting opinion change is possible.

It worked because the canvassers in the study did a simple thing: They listened to people with anti-trans views.

Dave Fleischer, a longtime political organizer, calls it deep canvassing. The key to it is that Fleischer has the voter do most of the talking.

Instead of pelting voters with facts, “we ask open-ended questions and then we listen,” Fleischer told me. “And then we continue to ask open-ended questions based on what they just told us. … “The key part of this is having people think back on their real, lived experience in an honest way.”

In talking about their own lives, the voters engage in what psychologists call “active processing.” The idea is that people learn lessons more durably when they come to the conclusion themselves, not when someone “bitch-slaps you with a statistic,” says Fleischer. Overall, it’s a task designed to point out our common humanity, which then opens the door to reducing prejudice and changing opinions.

Here’s a video example of deep canvassing. It’s of a real voter and a canvasser from the Leadership LAB, a program of the Los Angeles LGBT Center. The woman in the video starts off ambivalent on transgender issues. But through deep canvassing, the activist is able to turn her around.

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Specifically, the canvassers ask the voters to recall a time when they were discriminated against. And then toward the end of the conversation, the canvassers nudge the voters into thinking about how that experience can relate to the plight of transgender people. The idea is that people learn lessons more durably when they come to the conclusions on their own.

In the video above, notice how the voter starts to come around on the issue when the canvasser asks if she’s ever been on the receiving end of discrimination. She talks about being picked on at work and feeling different. He responds by telling his own story of being discriminated against for being gay. It’s a real heart to heart between strangers.

And in that moment, the canvasser points out that a transgender nondiscrimination law would help people who feel discriminated against at school or work.

”Oh, okay, that makes a lot of sense,” she says.

Fleischer has shown me several videos the LAB has shot of real encounters his canvassers have had with voters. They’re really compelling demonstrations of how attitudes can change in the course of a conversation.

In another video shot in Miami, a young canvasser named Virginia approaches an older South American man named Gustavo. Virginia is tattooed up to the neck, and Gustavo is wearing a sleeveless undershirt tucked into khaki pants. Virginia is a gender nonconforming person who identifies as neither male nor female.

In the beginning of their conversation, Virginia asks Gustavo how likely he’d be to support transgender rights legislation. Gustavo says he wouldn’t support it because he’s worried about predatory men using the law as an opportunity to enter women’s bathrooms.

Virginia asks why he feels that way.

”I’m from South America, and in South America we don’t like fags,” he tells her.

This next moment is crucial: Virginia doesn’t jump on Gustavo for the slur, and instead says, “I’m gay,” in a friendly manner. Gustavo doesn’t recoil. Actually, he becomes more interested.

Gustavo and Virginia go on to discuss how much they love their partners, and how that love helps them overcome adversity. Gustavo tells Virginia that his wife is a disabled person. “God gave me the ability to love a disabled person,” he says, and that taking care of one another is why love matters.

”That resonate a lots with me,” Virginia responds. “For me, these laws, and including transgender people are about that. They’re about how we treat one another.”

Now that Gustavo is in a place where he’s more open, Virginia asks him to imagine what the worst thing could happen if he used a bathroom with a transgender person. He admits he wouldn’t be scared. Then comes the breakthrough. “Listen, probably I was mistaken,” he says of his original position on trans rights.

This all may sound a bit saccharine, but the research in Science suggests it works. Political scientists David Broockman and Josh Kalla analyzed the effectiveness of deep canvassing. They found these conversations not only move people to be supportive of trans people and trans-inclusive legislation — but that effect also persists three months out. (Read more about their study design here.)

In the paper, Broockman and Kalla describe the lasting opinion change between the experimental and control group as comparable to the public’s changing attitude toward gay and lesbian people that occurred between 1998 and 2012. “That two decades of opinion change took place during a 10-minute conversation, and it persisted for at least three months — that’s a big effect,” Kalla told me.

But the main message of the strategy couldn’t hurt to try: Listen to people, get them to think about their own experience, and highlight your common humanity. The Trump administration proposal denies transgender people the right to assert who they are, and potentially furthers public misunderstanding. There’s some hope in knowing there’s at least one scientifically validated way to fight back.

Original Source -> Trump’s anti-trans proposal may increase prejudice. Here’s one way to combat it.

via The Conservative Brief