Seeking advice/resources on dealing with systematic oppression and transphobia

[luminated_lucy]

Hi all,

I'm looking for a bit of practical advice on dealing with the constant systematic oppression trans-people face, can anyone recommend any resources?

A bit of background. In some way or another, being transgender has resulted in being fired, turning to sex work for income, losing my family, dealing with multiple sexual assaults, having the police ignore them when I tried to get them to arrest my perpetrator, a drug addiction that nearly killed me (sober now), multiple suicide attempts (more emotionally stable now), and becoming functionally disabled.

I'm in trauma therapy and have relatively stabilized, but it's hard to get better, and want to get back into the world with daily reminders that trans-people are considered second class citizens. That, on top of rape culture is like having salt poured on my wounds, every single day. Most trauma therapy seems modeled on this idea that something bad happened to you and you get over it. To me, the constant societal oppression trans-people face is its own trauma that feels like it's not going to go away in my lifetime.

Any advice? Cognitively I know there's nothing wrong with being trans, but emotionally sometimes I kind of just want to exit a society that doesn't seem to care for me very much.

[Devlyn]

Big hug! You've had a rough go. I don't know where to point you, to be honest, but I'm here for you with
a kind word and a smile.

Hugs, Devlyn

[Rachel]

Hi Lucy,

I am sorry you have been abused, physically and sexually. The type of therapy that may be helpful is gestalt.

I know several girls that have it very rough. Yes, being trans is very difficult and for many it so unfair and brutal. My heart goes out to you.

[natashaX]

I have undergone the same thing
And nothing will change
People csnt offer a solution what so ever
Everyone pretends to care but in reality they don't
Its social convention to say you do.
The only thing to remember is that society and culture
Actively tries to kill us. Its genocide
The best solution I found is keep plugging away
Yes I was a sex trade worker 
And 
Its me against the world now

Over time something will break...if not run to Canada

[suzifrommd]

Any advice? Cognitively I know there's nothing wrong with being trans, but emotionally sometimes I kind of just want to exit a society that doesn't seem to care for me very much.

It's not this way everywhere. In a lot of places our right to transition is protected by law and accepted by most people.

Any chance you could make your way to a more accepting area?

[luminated_lucy]

It's not this way everywhere. In a lot of places our right to transition is protected by law and accepted by most people.

Any chance you could make your way to a more accepting area?

So the kind of funny things is I live in, and most of this stuff happened to me in Seattle, which is pretty tolerant as far as places go. And yeah, we have legal protections up here but actually getting them enforced is pretty tricky. I'm not sure a new location would help that much.

[suzifrommd]

Are there resources for LGBT people in distress? I know there are in other major cities.

[luminated_lucy]

Are there resources for LGBT people in distress? I know there are in other major cities.

There is a transgender support group I'm familiar with but they've indicated to me that their facilitators aren't comfortable dealing with strong emotions, mental health related issues or trauma. Other than that there are a few more niche groups I know of dealing with addiction, domestic violence, etc. Since I'm not dealing with any present domestic abuse issues and have been sober for a while, not exactly what I'm looking for.

[Natkat]

Beside taking care of yourself and as you said getting better I think you got all rights to blame the sociaty and the opression. My advice is to take the anger and opression and use as your toil, no revelution happent out of happyness it happent out of opression. user your anger to fight agenst these systems, you can do alot from helping organizations making speaches, demonstrations being political invold and so on, its not easy but I feel it somethimes more easy than to just sit back because you think its not going to get better anyway, and no the cisnormative world are probably not going to change unless people force them to.

[natashaX]

Not what I would do there
Let others wave the flags
You never know what happens in life later
But you know not many will want to hire you after
Being a screaming activist and the world knows your face
Find any job anything deliver pizzas newspaper
Kitchen diahwassher anything fkr now
I got into social housing so lucky there
I can sace for some ffs over time
The only thing we can do is scrape your dignity up .and
Keep going. And it is hard but best revenge is never let them see you down
Truth