Transgender panel.

[Mouse]

O hai.

I'm annoying with all this stuff but you guys are really good with ideas and things.

My GSA and I decided that I'll be replacing our normal meeting two weeks from tonight with a transgender lecture and panel thing. I know what things I want to focus on, but I figure the best way I'll be able to help is to answer the questions that people REALLY need to know.

As someone that's kinda been immersed in trans stuff since I was a preteen I really don't know what's not general knowledge anymore. I've been asking around and stuff but you guys are pretty good, too. Especially since there are a lot of gay folks here and I'll be speaking to a predominantly gay group. The issues are unique because the misunderstandings about trans people within the gay community are different from the misunderstandings about trans people within the hetero community. I've gotten the worst prejudice from gay folks, to be completely honest.

If you were sitting in on a trans info thing what would you be interested in asking? Like really interested? I know there are going to be a lot of people to shy to ask some questions so I'd like to address those without them having to ask.

If you have any ideas at all please let me know. I really appreciate it. I needt o start putting together an outline of my talk. And it's going to be a really large group of kids so I kind of want it organized so I don't look like a twit.

[emeraldize]

Hi Mouse,

First, I think I'd want to hear a bit about your life and dealing with being transgendered. In the process, you would define it, and help me to envision what life is like looking through your eyes, experiencing your body and helping your body to be redefined.

Go larger. Are there any famous people, dead or alive, who are transgendered? Have they written anything about it? Articles, movies, plays?

How do the medical folks treat you and others? The docs, nurses, psychologists, psychiatrists? Are they kind and understanding, is it a mixed bag as with most everything else?

Then, open it up to questions. You might get a few, or a lot. It's a topic few people have ever had a chance to think about, let alone discuss.

Don't be concerned, you will never, as you say, look like a twit. You are giving them the experience of a college lifetime and more.


Em

[heartforyou]

I would be interested to know when you first realised you were stuck in the wrong body.

Did you hate your pre-op body?

How long does the process take from first hormones to final transition.

Has your family been understanding?

Are  most transgender people attracted to the opposite sex or is there an equal "homosexuals after the transition.

Good luck Mouse. I am proud of you.

Hermie

[fearless]

Cover the real basics little one.

While it's a topic that I fell I should know something about, in all honesty I know diddly shit. I suspect it's the same for a lot of folk and maybe even more so for gays - feeling they should know and just sorta nodding like they do know but in reality 100% ignorant and a little embarassed to admit and/or ask questions.

[Jody]

Yes Jaser you are correct in stating that there is some degree of prejudice towards transgendered folks in the gay community.  I have heard some very rude comments such as "Well if I wanted to be a with a woman I would just be straight" and other such disparaging remarks from men who should know better and be more understanding of those in our society who are perceived by a large number of people to be different and even inferior.  That is not true and as a young person starting out in college Jaser, you are doing an admirable thing in your endeavor. 

For some gay men, anyone who is not perceived to be this "perfect" guy with youth, a hot bod and all the right attributes is not even worthy of equal rights and respect.  This is pretty awful.  I'm not saying I don't like nice looking fellows but everyone has the right to live their lives to the fullest.

A while back I feel bad as I was probably having a bad day when I posted here about all the "ugly folks" on the subway.  Well those good people are there during the morning rush for the same reasons I am- to earn a living and make a better life for themselves (and do so in an environmentally friendly fashion ).  So a little love for all folks goes a long way toward making them feel better about themselves and us to feel better as well.  I can't imagine the pressures transgendered folks must feel daily, what with so many prejudiced people including some gays who should certainly be more tolerant of those who don't come from a cookie cutter.

For example our LGBT center in Manhattan represents lesbians, gays, bisexuals AND transgendered people and provide ALL of the above a safe haven and all the resources they need and deserve.

Good luck.  I think you have quite a future!!!

Jody 

[emeraldize]

You might want to consider including a brief mention of what's been going on with activism, hearings and briefings on GLBT issues. I got an e-mail today about an upcoming briefing but could not locate anything in Google. Here's the link to the hearing in June. http://www.nctequality.org/hearing.html

[next2u]

id be interested in discrimination. id be more interested in certain aspects of intersectionality -- personal politics. id be most interested in a dialogue on sexuality and gender. it seems there is a small community of gay trans folks and id like to know more about that community. as far as intersectionality, id like to know the differences between people who identify with multiple groups (ethnic groups, sexual identity, class, gender and nonconformity). i know the last request in a mouthful, but it definitely gives me a mental boner.

and reflection. i want to know how trans people feel about people's perceptions of themselves. a lot of people say this isn't important -- that what other people think of us doesnt matter. i think it has an impact. take away what you want from this. if you want more info hit me up on an im.

best,
d

[Matty the Damned]

I would be interested to know when you first realised you were stuck in the wrong body.

Did you hate your pre-op body?

Hey Hermie!

The Smaller One is a little busy with College at the moment, so I thought I might address this point. It's commonly held that transsexuals are "trapped in the wrong body" and gender reassignment is about being liberated from that "wrong body".

Actually, it's not so.

Jaser has a perfectly fine body, It's the only body he has and is, therefore, the right body for him. I know that might seem a bit odd and since I'm cisgendered (ie the opposite of a transgendered person) I can't really explain it properly. I'll drop the Skweeker a message and ask him to step in and address this issue.

Love,

MtD

[Andy Velez]

Jaser, you don't have to feel compelled to cover "everything" all at once. Keep it simple. Cover some basics along the lines that have been suggested and then perhaps allow some time for questions.

Great that you're doing this. Good luck and enjoy yourself with it. Let us know how it goes.

Cheers,

[Mouse]

Yeah, Matty was pretty close.

I mean, I don't hate my body. Maybe I did at one point, but it's a useless thing to feel. What I've learned to do, and what most trans people learn to do, is to just accept what they've got and do what they feel comfortable with with what they have. I know I'm never going to have a bio male body. There's nothing I can do to change that.

There are some things I am not comfortable doing because of the way I'm equipped and how dysphoric I am, but that doesn't mean all trans people feel the same way. Some may feel worse. It's an individual thing.

But yes. I like to think of myself as a 'man inhabiting a female body' rather than someone 'trapped in the wrong body'. It's my body. It happens to be one perceived as typically female. The insecurities I have about it are all because of society's misconception about what men are supposed to be. The things that I am not comfortable doing due to my dysphoria are not things I need to do to be happy. The only way my body inhibits me is because of the notions of others.

I am well adjusted to what I have to work with. We all do the best we can. None of us have perfect bodies. I hate the 'trapped in the wrong body' thing.

Would I prefer to be a bio male? Yeah. On a fundamental level all of us just want to be accepted and feel like we are 'normal'. But I not! And I am not less than a bio male because I'm trans. I am just as good. The bodies of trans people are JUST AS GOOD as the bodies of cisgender people.

[heartforyou]

Thanks Jaser and Matty.

My remarks are based on what I have heard and learned on transgender issues.
I bet most of the population thinks "you're trapped in the wrong body".

I can only applaude your initiative as it is a very gray matter for most of us.

Good luck,

Hermie

PS Can you explain "cisgender" please?

[Mouse]

Thanks Jaser and Matty.

My remarks are based on what I have heard and learned on transgender issues.
I bet most of the population thinks "you're trapped in the wrong body".

I can only applaude your initiative as it is a very gray matter for most of us.

Good luck,

Hermie

PS Can you explain "cisgender" please?

'Cisgender' is just a fancy way of saying 'not transgender'.

[marc11864]

My two cents, when I used to speak in college regarding my same sex attractions I tended to just shoot from the hip. While I did have a general outline, I tried to keep the outline structured loosely and following a linear path from birth to my young adult life.

I felt that people connected more to the story this way and could better comprehend it by finding similarities in their own lives.

[GSOgymrat]

We had a panel of transgendered people come to one of our classes when I was in school. I found the distinction between "sexual orientation" and "gender identification" to be helpful. Also it is just interesting to hear people's stories. I hope it goes well.

[Mouse]

We had a panel of transgendered people come to one of our classes when I was in school. I found the distinction between "sexual orientation" and "gender identification" to be helpful. Also it is just interesting to hear people's stories. I hope it goes well.

Yes, thanks for bringing that up. That's a big deal to most people. The majority just doesn't seem to get the simple difference between who you love and who you are.