Can heterosexual cis people be LGBT experts?

I have a new therapist starting tomorrow who claims to be an expert. Timely topic for me. Love to hear input on this.

 

My Afro-American History teacher was white, but I have no doubt on his expertise on African or African-American history. Just because he isn't white, and wasn't a slave (I know there is more history there, but this is a quick reference), doesn't take anything away from him. Of course, if he was black, and a slave, then sure, he'd have more to draw from, in selling his expertise.

I suppose first hand experience, with knowledge, will usually trump only-knowledge. Kind of like how I'd prefer a doctor who had experience, as well as a degree, as opposed to a doctor with a fresh slate.

 

Not in that way. Your ex-therapist had absolutely no reason, and those are laughable grounds (just like you can't claim to be a lawyer because you grew up in a solicitor's household).

That was absolute rubbish, and I think she wanted a smug feeling of superiority; knowing us, being able to sympathise with us, but in that itself, proving that she doesn't really understand how it is. It's not a question of knowing; you can only truly gauge your own circumstances, and the rest is imparted on you by others. And even then, it's difficult to understand yourself.

I don't think a straight and cis person can ever understand fully, but it's not just exclusive to them. Within our own community, we still don't have the same experiences as one another, even with the same labels.

Academically, however, I feel that gender and sexuality studies can be very well understood by straight and cis people, but they're never more than allies and will never have the same understanding of LGBT lives that queer people have. But what your therapist had was neither a personal or academic understanding that I would call expertise.

 

None of us can completely understand what it is like to have a different sexuality, I don't know what it's Iike to have no attraction to women for example but I can you understand what it is like.

 

Hmmm, did your therapist really say the word expert?

A cis straight therapist can be great and a trans gay therapist can be jerk and not helpful at all.
No one will know exactly how you are feeling. Your therapist's experience would be very different from yours even if they were trans and gay.

I think that their gender and sexuality should not be the key how to choose your therapist.

 

I would say yes. The only thing is they lack experience, but then you can be an expert in anything just by knowledge, though experience is an added advantage. Then again, there are animal experts who obviously aren't animals, mental disorder experts who don't have a disorder themselves, and so on. Sure, they wouldn't be able to help as much as another person with experience and the same level of knowledge can, but they can still be experts nonetheless.

 

Well, what defines an expert? Breadth? Depth? Flawless knowledge?

I certainly think they can be well-informed when it comes to common problems and possible solutions, but if they aren't personally living the life there are areas where their experience can be spotty (even then...). Sometimes a firsthand account is just easier to relate to and bounce ideas off of.

 

In my opinion, yes, they can be "LGBT experts," although I won't ever use that word. I prefer "LGBT aware," or something.

I know a straight cis person who is very aware and educated on the LGBT+ community. I learned some things from her, in fact.

Will they know what we go through first-hand? Absolutely not. But who says they can't be as aware as us?

 

If they spend time in the lgbt community and got to know lgbt people on a deep level then yes I think they can also if they did research as well ask speaking to people from the lgbt community on certain topics

 

I agree with the people above me. I feel like they can be super knowledgeable in this field, yet have very little experience. Unless they get to hang out with gay people on a daily basis and know them on a deep level, then I wouldn't consider them an expert.

 

It's entirely possible.

Empathy is a beautiful thing.

 

A mathematician doesn't have to live in the fourth dimension to understand what a Klein bottle is. Similarly I imagine that if they read enough books and maybe took a class in college, someone could learn about LGBTQ topics. I don't think that alone would make them an expert, but I think you could become an expert if you also interact with gay people on a daily basis.

 

I appreciate so much all the opinions in this thread.

 

I guess I'd have to say that one can be an expert without actually living the life.

But I will also say that "I grew up in a gay city" really doesn't impress me as a background that might fully understand LGBT issues. For example, I grew up with at least one cat in the house at all times. By this "I grew up" logic, you'd think I'd understand what it is like to be a cat. Honestly, I have no idea. All I know is what it is like to live with a cat.

I am also reminded of how a high school teacher defined expert:

ex=has been
spurt=drip under pressure​

 

Hi, still a bit new to all this...what does 'cis' stand for, please?

 

Cisgender or cis simply means that your gender identity matches your sex as born. I was born physically male, and see myself male, so I'd be cisgender.

 

Its like this Fox news video where she interview some arab dr/professor and she is AMAZED he wrote a book about christianity...
You dont have to be christian to understand christianity, same as for being gay... what we different from straight ppl is whom we attract to thats all, the rest can be studied like what difficulty we have and stuff like those.

 

I suppose you could be a expert in the theory side but not the practical.