Never Woman Enough: How Trans Women Are Held to Unrealistic Standards

[damnedifIknow]

The word transgender can otherwise be defined as a person whose self-identity does not conform to the conventional notions of being a man or a woman. By definition, being transgender means being a non-conformist. So, it is an excitingly rare occurrence that the issue has been on the forefront of so much media coverage recently.

*However, for many transgender people, such a dramatic transformation is simply unrealistic and from a practical standpoint, unaffordable. If Caitlyn had come out in 1976, the year she received an Olympic gold medal, such a medal would never have been received. This is because it is of upmost difficulty for a trans individual to participate in sports, being that sports are primarily divided into girls teams and boys teams. Struggles like these are ones that trans people face every day, and that the media often fails to cover.

This became especially evident to me upon my conversation with Delfin Bautista, who is the head of the LGBTQ center at the university I attend and who identifies as being trans, specifically Two-Spirit or genderqueer. For people like Delfin, the only way to attain the proper hormones needed in order to become a "woman" or a "man" in the eyes of the public would be to become properly diagnosed with a mental health problem saying that you need these drugs because of this issue which you are unfortunate enough to have been born with.

"This is who I am. It's not a diagnosis," Delfin says, "However, there are many who are willing to, if you will, play the game and admit to having a problem in order to be who they need to be." While many trans people have sadly developed mental health issues due to the ridicule they have received from their peers or from simply feeling outcast, being transgender in itself is an identity, NOT a mental health issue."

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/unwritten/never-woman-enough-how-tr_b_8166308.html?utm_hp_ref=transgender

[grntuscarora]

1. "being transgender in itself is an identity, NOT a mental health issue."

Yes, yes, & yes.
Proud parent of a transgender 18year old, who last week found the courage to come out to extended family and friends.
My child does not suffer from a mental health issue--he is a well-adjusted, caring and productive member of society.
Good article--thanks for posting the link.

[damnedifIknow]

9. You're welcome

[Mnemosyne]

2. K&R nt

[pnwmom]

3. How would it have been fair for Caitlyn Jenner to compete as a woman in 1976,

with essentially a male body?

Are all women to be denied the chance to compete only against each other, with the only possibility being competitions open to anyone regardless of gender?

[grntuscarora]

4. My impression

reading the article was that she would not have been allowed to compete at the Olympic level at all, had she come out at that time.
But perhaps I misinterpreted the wording of the article.

[pnwmom]

5. I don't think she would have been barred from competing as a male.

They would have thought she was a male with a mental illness, but that wouldn't have been a bar in itself.

[grntuscarora]

6. Would they have accepted her on the U.S. male Olympic team at that time?

I doubt it.
But we'll never know for sure, I guess.

[pnwmom]

7. She would have passed a DNA test. Did they have some other test?

[grntuscarora]

8. Seriously?

Formally, perhaps not.
Other, unofficial tests, quite possibly.

[gollygee]

19. She would have been ostracized

even if she was able to by Olympic rules, she wouldn't have been accepted on the team by her teammates.

[davidn3600]

10. Women were not allowed to compete in the Decathlon in 1976

There was no female equivalent of that event at the time.

Author may have forgot about that as I didn't see it mentioned.

[Aerows]

15. Not this canard again?

Is Caitlyn Jenner attempting to compete in a women's field race?

[Snobblevitch]

11. Caitlyn did not win gold, Bruce did.

I don't really get the point about this competion/gender thing. I do remember something about Renee Richards attempting to play women's pro tennis. (I don't care enough to look it up.)

[LostOne4Ever]

13. Same person only it is polite to refer to her as Caitlyn nt

[Snobblevitch]

16. Of course it is correct to refer to Caitlyn as Caiitlyn.

But I bet even Caitlyn would say it was Bruse who won gold.

[LostOne4Ever]

12. Great post! Here is hoping the transphobe don't ruin this thread

Last edited Tue Sep 29, 2015, 10:07 AM - Edit history (2)

[font style="font-family:'Georgia','Baskerville Old Face','Helvetica',fantasy;" size=4 color=teal]But given that quite a few posts are already hidden from my view I guess that is too late.

Maybe one day transpeople will find full acceptance on DU and then in society as a whole.[/font]

Edit: meant to say "don't ruin"

[ecstatic]

14. All women are held to unrealistic standards

JMHO.

[End Of The Road]

18. mine as well. nt

[gollygee]

20. This is true, however in this situation this comes off just like

All Lives Matter when said in response to Black Lives Matter. Yes, all lives matter, but black people face much greater threat.

[LostOne4Ever]

21. ^This exactly! nt

[beam me up scottie]

17. K & R