Who is your transsexual idol or role model?

[Joanna Dark]

I fell in love with Calpernia after watching this video.

Oh you sassy girl you 

OMG!!! That.Was.AWESOME!

[kariann330]

I don't really have any idols or role models, but instead i have those that give me the inspiration to keep going and there are a large number of them here, especially Jamie who is always there with positive ways to view the hard time im going thru right now. Other then the girls here, there are all of my cis friends who are constantly offering support, and Danielle Foxxx who even tho she is a porn star, is a proud T girl.

[Oriah]

Ashawna Hailey......for her work with MAPS, the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies, and other philanthropic endeavors

[Heather]

I fell in love with Calpernia after watching this video.
Oh you sassy girl you 

I didn't think I had a trans role model till now. She is awesome! 

[Jaelithe]

For me, Erin Lindsey, author of the webcomic Venus Envy comes to mind.  Though it remains unfinished(HORRIBLE CLIFFHANGER!!!) I understand that web artists frequently need to prioritize real life over their online careers.  She's created something that remains entertaining for both trans and cis readers, and makes very believable characters.  I love it!

[Allison]

My friend recently pointed out that Tom Gabel of Against Me! came out as trans last year; and is now Laura Jane Grace. This is amazing because I actually loved the band before this and to realize one of my favorite artists is transgender is soooo awesome and kinda makes me realize there are others out there who do have it worse than me and I should accept what I am going through. I mean going through something like that while being in the public eye has to be so hard.

[Genevieve Swann]

Calpernia Addams is quite amazing. She has endured quite a difficult journey. Fiest being a combat medic in the US Navy. Also the loss of a lover from murder. Yet she stands fast. Her BF (Barry) was killed with a baseball bat for being Gay. During an interview Calpernia stated that he was not gay and I am a woman. "I have always been a woman. "

[Joelene9]

Christine Jorgensen was my inspiration! She was the first one I heard about who was "like me" in the 1950s; she was the one who let me know it was POSSIBLE and set me on the path to DIY hormones at 13 and fighting/struggling to find medical help in my teens.

There was a small group of girls I met in a city 2 hours away when I was 14 who were just like me but they were more bold and adventurous and helped pull me out of my shell and lead a more normal life 'on the other side'. I am afraid I don't even remember their names after all these years but they inspired me to BE me.

My only role models were women, just normal women, I met after transition to stealth. From them I learned how to integrate into normal, every day life, how to become all I could be.

Mine was Christine Jorgenson as well.  For very much the same reasons. 

  Joelene

[Cassandra Hyacinth]

Donna from "My Transsexual Summer"

[carolinejeo]

My role model and inspiration is april Ashley.

Her story showed me that changing sex was possible way back in the 60s.

Caroline

[Carlita]

I fell in love with Calpernia after watching this video.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjqsB1huDxg&list=TLJ1mHewTBWlA

Oh you sassy girl you 

I guess I'm alone in this, but I don't find Calpernia Addams 'sassy' or cool, or admirable. What I see (and this is just a personal response) is a person - irrespective of gender, race, age, whatever - who comes across as snarky, bitter, intolerant, aggressive, bitter and really not very funny.

I can understand exactly why she would feel angry, given her life experience. And I'm totally not defending any of the people whose words or actions brought her to that point. But heres the thing - there's no point fighting hate with hate.

This isn't some kind of 'turn the other cheek' self-sacrifice. It's just that no one likes being met with anger and hostility. So if we want people to be tolerant and accepting of us, then it helps if we're tolerant and accepting of them. Be assertive. Insist on respect. But do it in such a way that people understand why it's justified. Think of the people who've really changed things - Jesus Christ, Dr King, Mandela, Gandhi. Their passion, their conviction and their fury were never in doubt. But they found a way to bring people with them. They had dreams and visions of a better world that all of us could share.

But when I see Calpernia Addams I don't see a woman with much of an interest in sharing anything. She wants to express her rage by driving away all the people who have hurt her. Again, I understand. But what good does that do?

Many of the questions she objects to might be asked in genuine innocence by people who mean no harm, don't know very much about transgender issues, don't understand what transition involves and certainly haven't been educated to know about what is and is not offensive (always assuming there are cut and dried rules about that, because - as is true for many, many issues - what is profoundly offensive to one person may be a lot less so to someone else).

Now, Calpernia may say, 'Well those people damn well SHOULD know. It's their damn duty to inform themselves.' But how are they going to do that if every question they ask is greeted with an angry, sarcastic sneer?

For example, is it really so unreasonable to ask whether SRS hurts? Plenty of girls on here who've not had the operation ask girls who have whether it hurts, how long it takes to recover, what the process involves, etc. It's natural. So if we don't know, and want to know, why should everyone else be any different?

And when people preface a question by saying, 'I don't want to be offensive, but ...' maybe they're just telling the simple truth. They don't want to be offensive, but they do want to know something about transsexuality and they just don't know how to ask, so they're trying to let you know they mean no harm.

That's not to say that there aren't many, many insensitive, intolerant, transphobic a-holes in the world. And I certainly don't think they should be indulged. Nor do I think we should just roll over and let people treat us like dirt.

But if we want more acceptance from the great mass of the population, sneering at them is one surefire way NOT to get it.

So, I'm sorry, but Calpernia doesn't make my idol/role-model list ...

[MaidofOrleans]

I guess I'm alone in this, but I don't find Calpernia Addams 'sassy' or cool, or admirable. What I see (and this is just a personal response) is a person - irrespective of gender, race, age, whatever - who comes across as snarky, bitter, intolerant, aggressive, bitter and really not very funny.

I can understand exactly why she would feel angry, given her life experience. And I'm totally not defending any of the people whose words or actions brought her to that point. But heres the thing - there's no point fighting hate with hate.

This isn't some kind of 'turn the other cheek' self-sacrifice. It's just that no one likes being met with anger and hostility. So if we want people to be tolerant and accepting of us, then it helps if we're tolerant and accepting of them. Be assertive. Insist on respect. But do it in such a way that people understand why it's justified. Think of the people who've really changed things - Jesus Christ, Dr King, Mandela, Gandhi. Their passion, their conviction and their fury were never in doubt. But they found a way to bring people with them. They had dreams and visions of a better world that all of us could share.

But when I see Calpernia Addams I don't see a woman with much of an interest in sharing anything. She wants to express her rage by driving away all the people who have hurt her. Again, I understand. But what good does that do?

Many of the questions she objects to might be asked in genuine innocence by people who mean no harm, don't know very much about transgender issues, don't understand what transition involves and certainly haven't been educated to know about what is and is not offensive (always assuming there are cut and dried rules about that, because - as is true for many, many issues - what is profoundly offensive to one person may be a lot less so to someone else).

Now, Calpernia may say, 'Well those people damn well SHOULD know. It's their damn duty to inform themselves.' But how are they going to do that if every question they ask is greeted with an angry, sarcastic sneer?

For example, is it really so unreasonable to ask whether SRS hurts? Plenty of girls on here who've not had the operation ask girls who have whether it hurts, how long it takes to recover, what the process involves, etc. It's natural. So if we don't know, and want to know, why should everyone else be any different?

And when people preface a question by saying, 'I don't want to be offensive, but ...' maybe they're just telling the simple truth. They don't want to be offensive, but they do want to know something about transsexuality and they just don't know how to ask, so they're trying to let you know they mean no harm.

That's not to say that there aren't many, many insensitive, intolerant, transphobic a-holes in the world. And I certainly don't think they should be indulged. Nor do I think we should just roll over and let people treat us like dirt.

But if we want more acceptance from the great mass of the population, sneering at them is one surefire way NOT to get it.

So, I'm sorry, but Calpernia doesn't make my idol/role-model list ...

Licking everyone's boots doesn't make you friends as you are implying.

Comedians do this kind of thing all the time. Just because we are trans doesn't mean we can't vent about all the BS we deal with on a daily basis because we are afraid me might offend someone. 

You may just need a sense of humor....

[Carlita]

Licking everyone's boots doesn't make you friends as you are implying.

Comedians do this kind of thing all the time. Just because we are trans doesn't mean we can't vent about all the BS we deal with on a daily basis because we are afraid me might offend someone. 

You may just need a sense of humor....

Well, I spent years writing comedy for a living. But that may not be a recommendation ...