One of the reasons I am very public with my contact information (410-336-9857) is because people (Men AND Women) need room and space to realize that their queer theory views on gender are actually conservative and anti-woman. Many people who started out as stridently pro-gender and aggressive towards me specifically (I don’t take it personally, by the way) have subsequently realized that gender is the problem. I also get lots of emails and calls from people who have direct experience with “being transgender.” What follows is a post from one of these folks. It is vital that people have space to have these critical discussions and to change their minds (or not).

GUEST POST: We Are All Non-Gendered

I am an XY male who tries not to gender, I came out very young cross dressed publicly for a few years, transitioned at 23, stopped at 29 or so, I’m a 30-something non-gendering male, my legal status is still female/ post-op, all my papers etc. say female, I couldn’t care less, one day I will change it back over but it was such a hassle to start that it’s not really an issue for me as I don’t use things that can cause an uproar…I use men’s rooms, etc., never barge or interrupt female spaces as I am not one. I still take estrogen as synthetic testosterone is very horrible, I don’t know how the FTM crowd does it, holy crap that stuff is scary, plus I do feel better on estrogen mentally, and that is more important than breasts or hips, ever will be.

We are all non-gendered, gender is a very external expression and worn only like accessories, a jewelry for the masses and self.  We all in some way want to be recognized, admired or loved and accepted. We are social creatures and it’s only natural that we be a part of that social connection/acceptance.

I have never seen anyone wear that triangle.

The naked body is biological both internal and external (mostly external for males)(and yes, there are the percentage of folks who are either intersected or have ambiguous genitalia) as we know breasts come in all shapes and sizes for both sexes but predominantly in females as can bone structure between the two. (hips, hands, feet etc…)

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Recently, a friend ran across a PowerPoint from 2009 entitled Transgender Inmates in California’s Prisons: An Empirical Study of a Vulnerable Population. The PowerPoint apparently summarizes a study that examined the significant problem of prison rape and the responsibility of prison officials under the Prison Rape Elimination Act to prevent it. No doubt, prison rape is a significant and troubling problem. No person deserves to be raped under any circumstance, and prison officials have a duty of care to ensure inmates in their custody are free from rape and other bodily harm.

Let me repeat this: No Feminist supports sexual assault of Men or Women who are incarcerated.

Ok, remember that. Let’s proceed.

The PowerPoint is not particularly well done (I don’t know about the study itself), and I am not a statistician, but a few things stand out.

First, methodology.  Dr. Valerie Jenness, the Dean of the School of Social Ecology at UC Irvine and a Professor in the Departments of Criminology, Law and Society and Sociology, conducted the study, which does not seem particularly rigorous with regard to the determination of subject inclusion.  Jenness indicates that the study consisted of interviews with 315 inmates “Determined to be Transgender.”

Dr. Valerie Jenness

“Determined to be Transgender”? [...]

The most important book I have read about use of media and public relations to manipulate public opinion is Toxic Sludge Is Good for You.  If you are not familiar with this book, trust me, it is worth the read.  Essentially, the book details how powerful interests manipulate the media to get you to smoke cigarettes even though they kill you, get unhealthy cosmetic surgery, and support fracking. It’s about how to Jedi Mind Trick a populace into thinking porn is awesome, women are objects, and Real Women have penises.

The Transgender Movement has done a remarkable job to convincing you that Toxic Sludge is Good for You.  They’ve done an amazing job in 20 years, by coattailing on the movement for gay and lesbian rights and spinning a woman’s reticence to share private intimate space like a locker room with a man with a penis as bigoted and hateful. In Maryland, the latest Toxic Sludge we are being force-fed comes in the form of Senate Bill 449, the Fairness for All Marylanders (Except Women) Act.

“It’s my time to fuck over women so it won’t be Dana Beyer’s time to run against me,” Montgomery County Senator Rich Madaleno

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Much has been written on the butch/femme dynamic and whether it is incompatible with Women’s Liberation. Indeed, much has been written about “the Butch Identity” and “the Femme Identity,” including by Lesbians like Dirt and Bev Jo who are extremely gender (transgender) critical. Bev Jo suggests that the “Butch Identity” is the “true woman identity” because it does not cater to the Male Gaze, thus concluding that Butches are somehow more oppressed than Femmes (who, presumably, are Femme because they want to cater to the Male Gaze).

There is a lack of recognition, it seems, among these transgender-critical activists that Butch and Femme are also gender. And although you might arrive at a different conclusion about the relative harms or benefits of Butch and Femme as “beauty” or “cultural” practices by Women than the conclusion you would reach about a grown man deciding he’s a lady and trying to enter women-only space (I know I would), it seems somewhat dishonest to not acknowledge that Butch and Femme are both part of the Big Ball of Crap We Call Gender. [...]

I am an avid reader of your blogs (I think I sent you a FB message once saying something to the effect of “keep fighting the good fight”). I was wondering if you might write up a post some day on how lay men who are not part of this particular struggle can be allies to females. I understand that this could mean we need to shut up, respect female-only spaces, and divest ourselves from patriarchy as much as we can. I think that you might have something to say though beyond that, which I think the handful of observers like me would be interested in hearing. Keep fighting the good fight.

Men can be allies to Women. [...]

I don’t mind casual racism when it goes with my hipster lifestyle and political views on gender!

Dan Solomon is a  ”straight, white cisgender man” from Texas who has things to say about Women like Suzanne Moore and Julie Burchill who dare to (1) notice that transwomen are men and 2) have the guts to speak out about it.

Dan wants you to know that he’s got the backs of his fellow Men, err transwomen.

And he wants you to know why he takes transgender issues personally…

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this jacket is fab!

Meet Levi Pine.

Levi is a trans man who lives in Chicago and does union organizing. He seems like a good person.

And he’s not trying to invade women-only space, even though I’d welcome him (as he’s actually Female).

It’s Levi’s “actual Femaleness” that led Levi to cross my desk. The Windy City Times reports that Levi has filed a complaint with the Illinois Department of Human Rights for gender identity discrimination.

And what happened? [...]

“Being a woman is not about spending thousands I agree, it is about conviction, courage and standing up to patriarchy and the glass ceiling. It is about finding Leda and the Swan disgusting and hating violations of womankind, or indeed mankind. But, transwomen have to work to attain what non trans women have from birth. For the record, I have never spent thousands, I don’t have it to spend.”

Do you find this disgusting? If so, you are a woman.

A news item from Fort Worth, Texas crossed my inbox recently.  Teresa Cross, a Transgender Woman, attempted to shop at a store.  When Teresa asked if she could use her debit card, the clerk stated that “he” could not. This act bothered Teresa because “she’s a Woman.”

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Alan Leo Bounville is walking across the country for the gays and the trans folks.

That’s nice. Recently, I enjoyed an exchange with him on Facebook where he minimizes women’s safety concerns and disregards the fact that Gender Identity legislation enshrines sex stereotypes into law. What a “hero.”

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So, I was going to ignore this news item when a friend passed it along.

Victory! Transgender Woman Wins Insurance Coverage for Sex Reassignment Surgery

As you might imagine, I have hundreds of friends and acquaintances who email me various items on gender identity and other anti-woman developments.  I am truly grateful to receive these tidbits and for the women and men just as dedicated to eradicating gender as I am.  Because we are all not buying this gender bullshit.

So, we keep each other company, and we watch and opine.  We hope for improvements and wish to god this planet wasn’t so fucked up.

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