A state of trans
Advocating for trans rights as a trans woman has always been a matter of walking a line between passionate trans activism and not projecting my own personal subjectivities onto the topic at hand. A recent comment on one of my posts accused me of pulling up the ladder behind me in relation to trans sports, something which I am always conscious when discussing the issue. It made me pause, because often when trans people critique and criticise my work it forces me to reflect and look at being trans from different perspectives. I never pretend to speak ex cathedra, always from my own place in the world, operating from a state of trans that is inherently different from most trans people in the world. As such, being called out, especially being called transphobic and a veritable quisling, stings. Sucks to be me I suppose, or, rather, I believe it is a sign that no matter what I may say or write I am not going to please everyone. Being candid and open is I better approach I believe, rather than simply towing a trans party line that may be the flavour of the moment.
Part of the reason this matters is due to the global nature of trans discourse in 2024. It is not simply cis v trans, it is a fractured morass of different elements talking at and often over other groups, self-proclaimed transsexuals using their privilege as a sledgehammer against other trans identities, exclusionary feminist believers denigrating cis allies…
