Posted by Amanda Hess on Mar. 18, 2009, at 11:41 am
QuoteNobody knows the double standard better than Graffeo. Before transitioning, Graffeo says he endured 33 years of gender discrimination—as a woman. "I had a lot of experience with people being prejudiced against me because I was female," says Graffeo. "I was told I wouldn't be hired because they thought I was going to run off and get pregnant. I was denied loan applications for a house because I was female," he says.
The discrimination began in childhood—"nobody likes a little girl who doesn't act like a little girl"—and lasted up until seven years ago, when he transitioned with the full support of his co-workers and social circle. At that point, Graffeo re-applied for the home loan "with a male name and worse credit," and was accepted. "Women are just given the raw end of the deal," he says.
