The Pathologization of Trans* Identity

Filed By Drew Cordes | March 05, 2013 11:00 AM

http://www.bilerico.com/2013/03/the_pathologization_of_trans_identity.php

Devoted Bilerico readers might remember a conversational post from Winter Tashlin and me about reclaiming words and accompanying issues of identity. While I found the discussion edifying, there is one prickly subject I glossed over in a comment that has been hounding me ever since. When discussing the reasons why trans* folks are privy to certain terminology while cis people are not, I said, "For trans people, it's about the body. Some of us are non-op, yes, but dysphoria regarding the body is always there."

Now, I can tell you definitively, because I'm the one who said it, this statement is complete bulls--. This reasoning of mine is faulty at best, and downright dangerous at worst.

I have a number of trans*-identified friends and lovers who are non-op and do not desire hormone replacement therapy. The fact that I failed to recognize as valid the existence of people I was already physically and emotionally intimate with shows the sobering extent to which trans* identity has become pathologized by the medical community/industry and the dominant cultural narratives that reinforce the diagnosis.

Great piece, thanks for posting!