Trans-What?

[U. Jean]

I am curious. I am a male to female person; married for thirty-seven years to the same person; transitioned seven years and an ordained pastor. I knew nothing of the LGBT community or trans-lingo until I found a doctor in 1999. Someone help me with this please. The words transgender and transsexual puzzle me. I know they have nothing to do with medical lingo but I also know of no one who claims to 'be' trans-anything. We claim the labels but not what the labels imply. Hetero cross-dressers claim to be a single gender whether dressed or not; though some will use opposite pronouns. Folks like me (GID) know themselves to have a gender identity before transition that matches the one they have after transition.  The reason I transitioned is because I am female; not to become female. Even after four surgeries, my genotype is the same. Neither gender nor sex went trans-anywhere.

I heard one of our antagonist, a well know radio personality, use the two words against us and state that our labels represent a basic lie. Why do we use transgender and transsexual? Are we not confusing congress, clergy and employer with what appears to be misinformation?  Don't they know by instinct that we are tongue-in-cheek with our own labels?

[HelenW]

Well, if I were to explain the difference between transgender and transsexual I would use the analogy of metals.  Transgender is to metal as transsexual is to gold, a family name so to speak.

Our radical religious right antagonists would paint us as liars and deceivers no matter what our self defined labels are.  I do not expect to see any kind of fairness or good faith from them.

The education that the masses require to understand us would be much easier to apply if we didn't have to fight each other as well as our opponents over labels.

hugs & smiles
Emelye

[Jordan]

As much As I would like to come to these boards and just click on a category called:

FEMALE

I am technically a Transexual, whether I feel I am Female or not, it is simply a word to help non understanding people understand us.

As for the radio host he is just plain ignorant to not understand that fact, we are either men or women, but for his sake, the outsiders to our communinty thier term of us is Transsexual SCIENTIFICALLY!

I do not consider my self a TS I am a WOMAN, but to the world I am not a woman but a TS.
It is a never ending circle of misunderstanding, that should be regarded as just that.

[NicholeW.]

I am curious. I am a male to female person; married for thirty-seven years to the same person; transitioned seven years and an ordained pastor. I knew nothing of the LGBT community or trans-lingo until I found a doctor in 1999. Someone help me with this please. The words transgender and transsexual puzzle me. I know they have nothing to do with medical lingo but I also know of no one who claims to 'be' trans-anything. We claim the labels but not what the labels imply. Hetero cross-dressers claim to be a single gender whether dressed or not; though some will use opposite pronouns. Folks like me (GID) know themselves to have a gender identity before transition that matches the one they have after transition.  The reason I transitioned is because I am female; not to become female. Even after four surgeries, my genotype is the same. Neither gender nor sex went trans-anywhere.

I heard one of our antagonist, a well know radio personality, use the two words against us and state that our labels represent a basic lie. Why do we use transgender and transsexual? Are we not confusing congress, clergy and employer with what appears to be misinformation?  Don't they know by instinct that we are tongue-in-cheek with our own labels?

Look up Virginia Prince. You may find some satisfactory answers there. She seems to have been the originator of the Transgender term. 

[Hypatia]

If it was up to me, I'd say I'm a woman who took the long way around.

"The Long Way Around" by the Dixie Chicks is practically my theme song:

Well, I fought with a stranger and I met myself
I opened my mouth and I heard myself
It can get pretty lonely when you show yourself
Guess I could have made it easier on myself

But I, I could never follow
No I, I could never follow

Well, I never seem to do it like anybody else
Maybe someday, someday I'm gonna settle down
If you ever want to find me I can still be found

Taking the long way
Taking the long way around
Taking the long way
Taking the long way around

[Berliegh]

People have started using the awful word 'Transwomen' on forums and even some psychiatrists have also been using the word. It may be to cover up inadaquacies in their own ability to assist in a 'real' physical transition, therefor for a word like 'Transwoman' is used as word to say not a man or a woman, but a freak..

I think this kind of terminology skinks and so far no one has ever used it in my company and I hope they never do.....

I'm not trans anything.......I am female and that is how I am percieved...

[Jordan]

I couldnt agree more, we are women, not trans anything.  I personally hate being called a TS, it just classification for what we technically are, even though we technically are WOMEN.  the whole thing just stinks, it feels like it should be so much more simple than people make it.

[cindybc]

Hi Maragirlygirr

I agree with you although I have been full time for 7 years and had the surgery four years go I guess I have forgotten about the trans words. I can't say that I realy pass that well either but my work was such that I had to deal with quite a few different people in a days work. Maybe they just got use to Cindy had accepted me.

You are quite right though, since we live in a world with so much diversity both flora and fauna of carbon based life that it is important in the fields of scientific research to have various labels for the many different life forms and such it is all part the growing diversity of the gender *deviants*,<--- an other world I don't care much for. But I have been called weird for most of my life anyways, so what's a few more labels to go with it.

Cindy

As much As I would like to come to these boards and just click on a category called:

FEMALE

I am technically a Transexual, whether I feel I am Female or not, it is simply a word to help non understanding people understand us.

As for the radio host he is just plain ignorant to not understand that fact, we are either men or women, but for his sake, the outsiders to our communinty thier term of us is Transsexual SCIENTIFICALLY!

I do not consider my self a TS I am a WOMAN, but to the world I am not a woman but a TS.
It is a never ending circle of misunderstanding, that should be regarded as just that.