Now that the show has aired I have fielded countless questions on what it means to be Transgender, and I’m amazed at the sheer amount of misinformation and ignorant stereotypes that are still largely pervasive about the LGBT community.  A great many of those stereotypes and misconceptions can be observed by daily comments right here on this site.  I knew it was bad, I just didn’t know it was this bad.

I’m going to begin my tirade with the “abomination of God” folks.  The typical, knee-jerk quip you will receive from these individuals is: “why can’t you be happy with the way God made you?”  If someone is born deaf, blind, or physically incapable of walking and there were medical procedures available to provide someone with the ability to hear, see, or walk again would you tell them to be happy with the way God made them?  To a lesser extent, are people who undergo Lasik eye surgery or a triple heart bypass defying the will of God?  I guess it’s only okay to have medically corrective surgery as long as they are restricted to myopic social norms.  This line of thought is also woefully presumptuous in that it assumes we all subscribe to the same narrow religious dogmas. 

I’m a naturalistic pantheist, not a monotheist.

The primary assault on my gender identity, however, comes in the form of “you were born male; you are always going to be male”.  Being that I am a scientist at heart we will deal with the science before the abstract.  I can honestly say that I have never had a Karyogram or any other karyotyping test done; I have no idea if I was born XY or XXY (for a long list of undisclosed medical reasons).  Genetics aside, there are some who believe I am male because I lack certain female reproductive organs.  So does a uterine cancer survivor cease to be a woman because she underwent a hysterectomy?  How about genetic and anatomic females who were born without ovaries?  My inability to birth a child is no different than countless women who are also unable to conceive.

When it comes to being Transgender, and this is almost always specifically from men, the reference to genitalia is usually described using the words “cut” and “off”.  During Gender Reassignment Surgery existing skin is refashioned into a beautiful and functional vulva and vagina; nothing is amputated.  Contrary to popular belief, there is more to being female than the lack of a penis; women have their own unique set of genitals that have nothing to do with male anatomy. These misogynists are also from the school of thought that women need not wear watches because the stove already has a clock.

The last bastion of the ignorant is “but you don’t look like a girl”.  I feel a great swell of pity for those who subscribe to an anorexic standard of beauty and think that being beautiful equates to some obscure measurement of my waist, hips, thighs, bust, or ass.  Women exist in all shapes and sizes, and beauty is not limited to the standards of Western civilization.  Anyone who feels the need to attack someone’s gender identity, or their value, through a superficial assessment is a lethargic devil and should look inward before wantonly casting judgment on another person.

There’s more I’d like to say on this matter, but this will have to suffice for now.

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