Trans of thought: Invisible

Trans of thought: Invisible

MaiaMonet_MugI was recently asked to speak at my alma mater on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of Princeton’s LGBT Center. I had been recommended by the outgoing director of the center as a visible transgender alumnus possibly willing to appear. Given how invisible I was on campus back then, I found the irony striking. After being reassured that such a story would be valuable and worth hearing, I reflected on my journey, and I realized there was a common thread of erasure running throughout.

During my teen years, before the Internet, I did not have the resources to recognize my gender identity issues. My misconception of trans women, as informed by the mainstream coverage of the day, was so stereotypically straight and hyper-feminine, that a burgeoning lesbian like myself, who couldn’t have cared less about playing with my sister’s Barbie dolls, found little commonality. In my mind back then, I was not possible.

When I arrived on the Princeton University campus in the fall of 1989, my situation had not much improved. Whereas I readily found outspoken gays and lesbians struggling for acceptance, envied the growing recognition of their legitimacy, and admired them for their openness, I still didn’t find anyone else quite like me. I was a blind spot in a community that did not then actively acknowledge the existence of the “T.” Of course, with the amazing explosion of transgender people into the public consciousness, the same can’t be said for today. However, the legacy of the dark days of erasure linger.

In early November this year, Orlando celebrated Come Out With Pride where we recognized the achievements of the LGBT+ community, as well as remembered the great sacrifices of our community as marked by blood, sweat, and tears. Slightly more than a week later was the most significant day of the year on the transgender calendar: Transgender Day of Remembrance. TDOR is when we remember and read aloud the names of those we have lost in the past year through murder and suicide. If you’ve heard of Pride, but this is the first time you are hearing about TDOR, then you are like a lot of straight and LGB people with a transgender knowledge gap. If you are aware that the annual Pride marches around the country were inspired by the Stonewall Inn riot of June 28, 1969, chances are you are not aware of the pivotal role played at Stonewall by transgender women of color Sylvia Rivera and Marsha P. Johnson in helping spark the acts of defiance that led to the birth of the modern gay rights movement.

The transgender community has grimly taken note of how we have historically been expunged within LGBT circles. The most famous example being a deal in 2007 to drop gender identity, but not sexual orientation, from the proposed Employment and Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) in the hopes it would have increased its chances of passing. The first openly gay member of Congress, Barney Frank, and HRC were the driving force behind the deal. Their reasoning was that something was better than nothing. Of course, the determination of what constituted an acceptable “something” sent the message that it was reasonable to erase the rights of the T in favor of the LGB. We heard loud and clear that we were nothing.

In 2014, HRC apologized for its past actions and promised to do better by transgender people. They held fast to that promise recently when discussions between various LGBT orgs were held suggesting that non-discrimination bills at the state level stood a better chance of passing if public accommodations (e.g. bathrooms and schools) gender identity protections were dropped. HRC voiced their opposition to the compromise, as did other organizations, but not all.

It is heartening to see change, but the rights of transgender people are still too easy to overlook. Something I was reminded of recently as the LGBT world fretted over the prospect that marriage equality might be overturned with the new government administration. However, I have heard too little about much more immediate risks to transgender citizens who stand to lose, among other things, federal document identification changes, the ability to serve openly in the armed forces, federal vendor non-discrimination policies, as well as a sympathetic Department of Justice willing to go after states and schools who discriminate based on gender identity. Marriage equality is important, but it would be much more difficult to reverse than the aforementioned transgender rights, which could be reversed on Day One of the new administration.

The second most important date on the trans calendar is Transgender Day of Visibility in March. For a community where visibility has often been seen as dangerous to our health, it is a radical concept to be conspicuous. However, it is difficult to change hearts and minds from the shadows, and we need to continue to stand up and be counted or risk being dismissed. That has already happened too many times in history.

Melody Maia Monet is a photographer at Southern Nights in Orlando and she operates her own YouTube channel on transgender issues. You can view her videos at youtube.com/melodymaia and she can be reached at monet@alumni.princeton.edu.

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