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Social abuse because of gender expression

Discussion in 'Gender Identity and Expression' started by EmmaReed, Feb 17, 2017.

  1. EmmaReed

    Regular Member

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    Hi everyone!

    I want to share with you my experiences. Gender identity issue is hard to understand for cis people but it's harder for them to accept gender expression.
    I'm transgender and recently i express my feminity openly, although i haven't taken hormones and didn t have surgery yet. When i walk in the street i feel that people are staring at me and they face express confusion and aversion.
    Yesterday, at the metro station some girls we're talking loudly, trying to figure out my gender identity and then they agreed that i'm a transvestite (which i am not!). And they said that it' s disguisting and laughed. I felt uncomfortable.
    It' s kind of new for me but i see that the majority of our society doesn't know what transgender means, and they detest any form of transgender expression.
    They find it weird, disgusting and have hate on us. They make fun of us, they don't see us as humans but something inferior what has to disappear.

    Please share with me your experiences and your reaction to those unpleasent situations.
    Thank you!

    Emma
    (She/Her)
     
    #1 EmmaReed, Feb 17, 2017
    Last edited by a moderator: Feb 17, 2017
  2. Cailan

    Full Member

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    Out to everyone
    Actually it's rather natural for people to act this way, and I doubt it will change.

    Humans evolved as tribes, small social groups bound by genetics and survival. Those different from the expected norm are a threat to our selves and our tribe, both socially and physically. While we don't live under those conditions anymore, our brains are hard-wired for "othering" as a protective mechanism.

    Who we "other" and how we do it is dependent on our culture and what is defined as an okay difference and what is not. The modern Western culture, dominated by Judeo-Christian-Islamic values (like it or not, they're all based on the same essential practices and beliefs) is gender-binary, and anything outside of the Adam and Eve man-woman binary, where you are exactly what you appear to be, is so deeply ingrained, I don't think it's going away any time soon.

    The current younger generation is *more* open minded to cultural change and accepting new norms, but it's only by degree. Many people who accept transgender individuals as within their normal experience often still have negative emotional reactions, even if they're allies or understand transgender - a subconscious "gut reaction." Even transgender individuals may not be comfortable around other transgender individuals.

    I really don't see society changing in the near or somewhat distant future. Like it or not, trans individuals make up less than 1 percent of the population. The last number I saw was 1:187 or something like that. There really is no incentive for the average Joe or Jane to care, unless they have a direct family member or loved one is trans, or if they're a SJW - and sometimes not even then, which we all know well.

    For an example, African-Americans and Hispanic Americans are still roundly abused and "othered", often feared and reviled in the minds of the average Joe and Jane. I'm talking 60-80 years of work. Yes, each younger generation gets a little more open minded and accepting, less racist, by degrees. However, overt racisim is showing no signs of going away, and sublte racism never went anywhere. Overt racism simply goes "underground" when socially unpopular, then pops up again the moment there's an opportunity.

    I have no believe one of us today will live to see this culture be anything different from what we have now. In fact, the modern Western culture has even managed to subvert older accepting cultures like the Samoans. So it may actually get worse, not better. Especially in the near future with the current political climate being what it is.