Im watching the next generation star trek episodes lately.
Currently Im watching the episode "the outcast"
The episode is about a genderless species.
How easy it is to understand the race. I remember seeing this episode years ago as a teen. Even then it made such simple sence to me. I dont think however that i realized its not so easy to comprehend a genderless state of being.
Over my life it made so much sence that I never realized how little i understood why gender plays such a big role in our world.

This episode clearly was trying to explain to the masses how a third gender or genderless people are equally as deserving of recognition as males & females.
To me however it just made me realize that the episode can also do the reverse to those of us that are not cis people.

There is an episode of the last Star Trek series (Enterprise) titled "Cogenitor" the premise is there is a third person necessary to become pregnant.  In the show, the Cogenitor was treated like property.  They were an "it" and basically treated like a pet by being locked in their room and not given any education.


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When I was growing up in the late 60's, 70's I used to search the newspaper and tabloid papers for anything remotely involving crossdressing, I first heard of  Sydney Les Girls, Who I saw on a TV program when I was about 8 or 9 and swore to myself I would get out of where I was(somehow) and get to Sydney with some vague idea that I could "fix" what was wrong with me. The next was Christine Georgeson story which was some kind of documentary or film but at the I really could not be two interested in it...might have fallen out of my closet

I remember watching an episode of the original Mission impossible series where a young boy was dressed as a girl to smuggle him through some kind of checkpoint...I was captivated and so wanted to be that boy and why did he make such a fuss it such a pretty dress...then after that was a book by Jan Morrison Conundrum...I had never read anything that had made me feel as understood. It was a hard read   But I think the Rocky Horror Picture show kept me the sanest as I could be as "camp" (not that I was anyway) as I wanted and it was fine....being a cult film just suited me fine....

I saw that TNG episode a few months ago when I was re-watching the series!  I was amazed that they would do something like that in the 80s, but Star Trek was always ahead of it's time (1st interacial kiss & all).
I'm a fan of Japanese animation, and was always drawn to the gender-bending shows like Ranma-1/2, where a teenage boy is 'cursed' to change into a girl when doused with cold water (hot water changes him back). I thought about how great that would be, but then realized I'd be avoiding hot water!

Quote from: ElizabethK on June 05, 2017, 05:54:39 AM
When I was growing up in the late 60's, 70's I used to search the newspaper and tabloid papers for anything remotely involving crossdressing, I first heard of  Sydney Les Girls, Who I saw on a TV program when I was about 8 or 9

I remember seeing Les Girls on TV in the 70s. I was mesmerized but still couldn't totally relate to it because they were touted as 'female impersonators'. From a very early age, I was drawn to anything trans related in the media. Sadly, most of it was either portrayed as comical (eg. Auntie Jack, Dick Emery, Kenny Everett, Dame Edna etc), sensationalist, perverted, or just plain weird. Rocky Horror also reinforced trans as being weird to me. Growing up in the 70s and early 80s, I don't ever recall seeing trans being portrayed by the media in a positive, empathetic light.

It's amazing how far we've come in just a few decades.

Boy as I think back there were a lot of influences.  I remember watching some early 80's cop show where the partners went undercover as women.  I was totally transfixed.  Later, Jerry Springer and Maury Povich got a lot of mileage out of transsexual reveals on their talk shows.  I would always try to find a way to end up watching those episodes.  You Can't Do That on Television came on Nickelodeon in the late 80's and I remember a number of scenes where the boys were forced to dress as girls for reason or another. I remember thinking how lucky those actors were.  One in particular I remember was dressed in a skimpy French maid's outfit.  Man was I jealous.

Pretty much any time I could find something on TV with a male character crossdressing/transitioning, I did my best to watch it.