Two things that helped mainstream gays: There is a growing understanding that one is born gay, and gays became "one of us" – the person next door, the co-worker, the church board member, the business owner – rather than "the other" – a freak who lurks in the night, someone you would never know personally.
The same thing can happen for trans people. The more people who know us as their neighbor, their co-worker, the helpful person at church, the friend of a friend, the more accepted we will be. The more people who realize this is not a choice or a lifestyle, the more sympathy we will garner for just being ourselves.
Therefore, to gain acceptance we need to be visible and part of the mainstream. If everyone you know knows that you are trans, that helps. If you look and act like a 'normal' man or woman, that helps. I'm not saying that you need to be out if it is not safe for you. And I'm not saying that you have to conform to some artificial standard of maleness or femaleness. But the more of us who are out and fit into society in our real gender, the more mainstreamed transsexuality will be.
- Kate
