TransActive II: Expectations
by dentedbluemercedes
July 23, 2010
http://dentedbluemercedes.wordpress.com/2010/07/23/transactive-ii-expectations/I'm sometimes asked how people can advocate for the trans community, usually by apprehensive people who have visions of standing out in front of government buildings with picket signs shouting slogans, or sometimes by people who are whipping themselves up into an energetic frenzy so that they can be as boisterous as possible. The truth is that that's only one form of activism (a kind of last resort, really), and the larger picture is, well, more mundane. That is not to say it's easier, it can be very complex at times, but in the end it's... well... a different kind of drama.
I want to be clear that I'm not wanting to push the Mercedes way of doing things, nor to make myself out to be a guru of some sort. What I say here needs to be tempered with what your own experience and instincts tell you. Readers' experience levels will vary, but I discovered that as basic as some of these things seem, sometimes they still do have to be said. For those starting out or debating about doing advocacy, I'm hoping this will help folks avoid stumbling out of the gate.
