Quote from: Jess42 on June 11, 2013, 08:50:16 AM
Wow, the list is long but I would say that my main issue is how M2F are portrayed on TV. It maybe just me since I am M2F so maybe I am being overy sensitive.
It kinda falls in line with my major concern of society.
The way we're protraied by the media doesn't help us
at all. We're all aware of the way movies like Rocky Horror Picture show, and Jerry Springer and Silence of the Lambs make us look.
But if that wasn't bad enough . . . Ever do a google image search for Transexual or Transgender? Now, thankfully . . . these images are improving of us. Every day I've looked more and more of them are respectable images, of people who are normal, healthy, and happy. That's the impression we want and need to give people if we're ever going to be accepted by society.
But, let's be honest. There's still quite a few images on there that make us look
like freaks.
Just about the only female to male image I see when I google either transgender or transexual is of a pregnant man, with his hand resting on his lower belly. Now, for a lot of reasons, I honestly see no problem with this image by itself. To someone who's at least some what educated on the issues we face, it's a beautiful image of human diversity and life. But it's nearly the
only representation of female to male trans people that show up with a generic search. Speaking honestly,
uneducated people are going to see that and walk away with possibly a missunderstood impression.
The images of male to female trans people in overly bright makeup that's badly applied, or who are badly dressed in gaudy, indecent outfits, pulling their shirt up and on and on . . . doesn't help us either. And admitedly, I'd be willing to bet several of these images are fake, made by people who wish to
taunt us, or they're made by people in the sex trade, or maybe even by trans people ourselves who are possibly dealing with mental issues or trying to make a statement in some way.
Regardless of who makes these rather unflattering images of us, I'm going to speak honestly. They don't help us. We're trying to be accepted by society and trying to convince people we're worthy of respect, and human rights.
I truly hope I don't come across as harsh, but, again speaking honestly, when someone even like me, trying to do research on my options for treatment and trying to understand myself sees images like this?
They scare me. They make me think "...Oh my
god. What if
that's what I wind up looking like?" If that's how I feel, and I at least concider myself knowledgable on the subject, open minded, and trans myself . . . how is someone who just stumbles across them going to react? Or how is someone who's a member of our family or a close friend or even a co-worker or prospective employer trying to understand us when we sit down and admit to them we're transgender and they go looking on the net for some answers and knowledge going to react and what are they going to think?
Are they going to walk away with a positive impression of us? Are they going to be likely to support us when we go to the government of our nations practicly begging on our hands and knees for equality and equal health care, or for our neghbors to at least not kill us in the streets?
I guess it's not surprise to any of us we have a serious public image problem due to missinformation and negative education by people who don't understand us.
What I'm trying to figure out is . . . how can we change that? 20 years ago people were talking about gay people the same way they talk about us today. So, it can be fixed. Changes to the DSM-V are a step in the right direction, as is recent more positive press about us. But we still have a long way to go. But I guess . . . I'm preaching to the chior, and this is somewhat off topic.
