: Houston Press article :
I just finished reading a very interesting article on the genderqueer phenomenon in the Houston Press ("Bois and grrls" - March 16, 2006) which I'd describe as young transgender expression. It brought up some interesting points about the transgender condition and further shows how out of the closet we are becoming.
In the article, TG author Kate Bornstein talks about how she went through SRS to become female, but for her, it almost drove her to suicide. She did not want to conform to society's roles available to females - she wasn't a straight woman, and lesbians shunned her when they found she was trans. She makes an interesting point that GID is the only medical condition where the suggested therapy (then, as sometimes now) is to lie or hide the truth. We're told to transition and get on with "normal" life in our chosen gender. But the fact is that we will always be TG, and hiding it only perpetuates this mode of treatment. Only by being open and honest will we ever hope to change society enough to where TG people, pre- and post-transition, can live a completely open, honest life without persecution.
In the article, TG author Kate Bornstein talks about how she went through SRS to become female, but for her, it almost drove her to suicide. She did not want to conform to society's roles available to females - she wasn't a straight woman, and lesbians shunned her when they found she was trans. She makes an interesting point that GID is the only medical condition where the suggested therapy (then, as sometimes now) is to lie or hide the truth. We're told to transition and get on with "normal" life in our chosen gender. But the fact is that we will always be TG, and hiding it only perpetuates this mode of treatment. Only by being open and honest will we ever hope to change society enough to where TG people, pre- and post-transition, can live a completely open, honest life without persecution.
