Quote from: Cindy Stephens on December 04, 2015, 06:51:24 AM
Sorry if this offends anyone. We know that being gender variant of some sort certainly isn't a fad for us. However, I can see how SOME teens might be drawn into it from a "fad" perspective. Kids that age do things, sometimes, just to get a response from overworked parents, indifferent schools, etc. This is where the much maligned "gatekeepers" shine. Some of it just may be a loosening up of dress and association codes. When I was in school, wearing a pink button down shirt could get you beaten up. The gatekeepers can make those determinations. My fear is that if too much of this happens then the people with malignant intent will use it against us.
I do see some people (with an overrepresentation of anatomically female individuals) identifying as nonbinary, seemingly more in "rebellion" against strict gender norms than because of dysphoria, usually without changing their name, pronouns or seeking any kind of medical treatment. But then I also know several nonbinary-identified people who experience gender dysphoria, some of whom have changed to gender neutral pronouns or prefer no pronouns at all, and some have also been taking low-dose HRT and/or changed their names. And for this group, whichever changes they have made, socially and/or medically, seem to be just as essential to their wellbeing as my "full" transition - which is really a stupid term, since if you are nonbinary, then you have fully transitioned when you've arrived at whatever result you feel comfortable with!
But anyhow, when I meet people who identify as nonbinary, I really don't care about whether they do so out of a political/cultural need to rebel, or out of dysphoria. Sometimes I get a feeling it's one or the other, but it's really none of my business and both are legitimate - and to be honest, feeling trapped by societal norms could also be described as a kind of dysphoria, even though it's not "medical" (to be honest I'm starting to really hate that word, as it's used to delegitimize people's identities). Even though our experience may be different (if they don't experience "hormonal dysphoria"), I can understand the cultural dysphoria, since after all I feel kind of the same way about being expected to be ultrafeminine now that people see me as a woman; I don't like being confined to look or act a certain way, and there's nothing I love more than showing up on a wedding with let's say an ultrafeminine dress combined with Converse and an army green cargo jacket (I've actually done this, it was fun). So I'll respect people's identities either way.
Anyhow, I believe the "rebel" group could be influenced by culture, and I have noticed that this group is overrepresented by queer, female feminists. It would not surprise me if social/ideological influence played a part in forming their identity. But I also believe the other group, who experience more dysphoria and are more dependent on some level of transition to alleviate dysphoria, has a similar prevalence between generations, just like binary trans people. This says nothing about legitimacy though - only the person themself has the right to define their own identity, and while "typology" can be interesting in learning more about trans*, it can only be used on groups, not individuals. And groups often blur into each other, there are no clear boundaries. That's what the word "spectrum" means, after all.
