• Home
  • About
    • Topics
  • Our Editors
    • Barbie
    • Bridie Marie
    • Dominique
    • Erika Turner
    • Jan DeVry
    • Kate Jo
    • Lady Bee
    • Logan Howlett
    • Lucy Small
    • Luz Delfondo
    • Jenny Talia
    • Miss X
    • Lunas
    • Rebecca Flin
    • Reyes
    • Robin Marie
    • Rosie Franklin
    • Skylar Fox
    • Stevia
    • Susan Shelley
  • Policies
    • Comment Policy
    • Become a Guest Contributor
    • Trigger Warning
    • Accessibility
  • Glossary
  • Contact Us
    • DDP on Twitter
    • DDP on Facebook
    • DDP on Tumblr

Disrupting Dinner Parties

~ Feminism is for everyone!

Disrupting Dinner Parties

Daily Archives: July 9, 2014

Transitioning, Access, and Privilege

09 Wednesday Jul 2014

Posted by Hex in Queer-LGBTQIA, Trans

≈ 10 Comments

Tags

gender, genderqueer, Privilege, trans, transitioning

Today’s guest post is by Hex.

As a non-binary person who is just starting to physically transition, I’ve been thinking a lot about the way that process is valued by queer and allied communities. I’ve been out as trans for almost a year now. I’ve been using the same pronouns and presenting myself roughly in the same way for most of that time. About two months ago I started taking testosterone. Soon after starting I told an acquaintance about it and she immediately said “Oh, I have a friend who’s doing a project and wants to include a trans voice. Can I give him your name?” Of course, the tokenism at work here could be the subject of a whole post of its own, but the salient point is that I had been trans all along, but it was only after starting hormones that she thought to mention this. In fact, as people found out about my taking hormones – long before there were any actual effects – my preferred pronouns were used more consistently. I started getting requests to sit on panels or to lead trainings. In short, people became noticeably more respectful of my identity.

This is a problem I see happening over and over again in different communities. Despite rhetoric about self-identification being the most important thing, time and again I see hierarchies of who is “really” trans being constructed around who fits the dominant narrative of physical transition, mirroring our mainstream media’s obsession about the physical aspects of transition. The ones who are most respected are the ones who, like me, take medical steps to change their bodies. This ignores the fact that many people who are as legitimately trans as me choose not to or are unable to access these things.

I couldn't come up with a picture so here is a cat wearing a backpack. You're welcome.

I couldn’t come up with a picture so here is a cat wearing a backpack. You’re welcome.

There are a lot of reasons why people don’t take hormones or get surgery. Continue reading →

Topics

Archive

July 2014
M T W T F S S
« Jun   Aug »
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
28293031  

Recent Posts

  • A Retrospective
  • A Thoughtful Response to: “I Am Reminded I Am a Woman When I Learn to Be Silent”
  • Self-Care
  • Langston Hughes wrote the perfect response to Donald Trump 80 years ago
  • Invest in the world you believe in
  • Partner Privilege
  • The Power of Memes
  • “What if I have it?”: Five Ways You Might Be Contributing to HIV Stigma
  • An Attack By Any Other Face is Terrorism
  • Refugees and Feminism

Top Posts

  • Take the Red Pill: The Truth Behind the Biology of Sex
  • How to be a good cis lover to your trans partner
  • Let Stan be Loretta: Monty Python & Gender
  • Dark Girl Nude: The Spring 2014 Guide
  • Shave 'em Dry: Making Your Privates More Public

Enter your email address to receive notifications of new posts by email.

RSS Feed RSS - Posts

Blogroll

  • .Disrupting Dinner Parties on Facebook
  • .Disrupting Dinner Parties on Tumblr
  • .Disrupting Dinner Parties on Twitter
  • Ambidancetrous
  • Autostraddle
  • Black Girl Dangerous
  • Blue Milk
  • Effing Dykes
  • Feminist Frequency
  • Feministe
  • Feministing
  • Homoclimbtastic
  • Jadehawk's Blog
  • Pervocracy
  • Racialicious
  • Radical Doula
  • Sex Nerd Sandra
  • Shakesville
  • Sociological Images
  • Tiger Beatdown
  • Womanist Musings
  • Yes Means Yes

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

Cancel
Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy