Colombia: Death by television

[katia]

Colombia:  Death by television

http://www.independent.ie/opinion/analysis/death-by-television-1234150.html
By Damian Corless
12/1/2007

"Undeterred, Sky TV in Britain recruited six contestants for a dating show called There's Something About Miriam. The something in question was an unladylike appendage. The 21-year-old Mexican model, Miriam, had been born a man. Confronted with this fact on camera, the winner, Tom Rooke, initially accepted his prize of £10,000 and a holiday with Miriam, before joining his fellow contestants in a lawsuit against the production company for sexual assault, defamation, breach of contract and emotional damage. The contestants extracted undisclosed pay-offs before the final installment could air."

[tinkerbell]

Is Miriam Mexican?  I know she is Hispanic, but that doesn't mean that she is Mexican!  Stereotypes!    *sighs*

tink

[katia]

Is Miriam Mexican?  I know she is Hispanic, but that doesn't mean that she is Mexican!  Stereotypes!    *sighs*

tink

i wouldn't know tink but you are right.  even though i'm italian, i've been called "mexican" many times.  nothing wrong with being mexican but i don't like being called something i'm not.  period.

[LostInTime]

From the wiki, this quote from her:

"I tried to be honest with all of you, not just some of you. Yes, I am from Mexico, I am a model, and I'm 21. But Tom, I really love spending time with you and kissing you. You see, I love men, and I love being a woman. But... shh, quiet everybody, please, quiet. But you see, Tom... I am not a woman. I was born as a man."

[Hypatia]

What's this "I'm not a woman" jive?

No wonder the non-trans majority can't get a handle on where we're coming from. We keep contradicting each other.

[katia]

What's this "I'm not a woman" jive?

she's pre-op so she thinks she's got to have a vagina to "be a woman".

[LostInTime]

That's okay, some of the die hard feminists agree with that notion.

[Hypatia]

I thought it over. Actually, I was wrong. Traditional beliefs about transgender in Latin American culture are not the same as the Harry Benjamin association's views.

In Latin America, an MTF person is not considered to be a woman. Instead, she is categorized more as an extra-sissy maricón. While breasts are grown, SRS is not practiced. Keeping the male genitalia, they say they are not women, they are "like women" which is different. See Serena Nanda, Gender Diversity: Cross-cultural Perspectives, Chapter 3 "Men and Not-Men", for a study of attitudes about MTF transgender in Latin America.

I apologize for any cultural insensitivity I may have been guilty of in my above post.

[Dorothy]

maricon

This word should be eliminated from the Spanish language.  It's the most offensive term I know of.  Theres no translation in any language.  Sissy, queer and ->-bleeped-<-got are harmless compared to this term.

[Hypatia]

Lo siento, Pia, I'm an idiot, forgive me.

[tinkerbell]

maricon

This word should be eliminated from the Spanish language. 

It is happening, slowly so but happening after all.  Most Spanish talks shows will edit the word, but I agree, that word just rips my heart apart everytime I hear it.  I guess that we have heard it for too darn long...  

Lo siento, Pia, I'm an idiot, forgive me.

 It's OK, you didn't know and were explaining something...

tink