My first real experience with transphobia was when I was stationed in Japan a little over a year ago and a marine we deployed with murdered a transwoman they picked up at a bar after discovering she was trans. There was so much talk about it for a while after that, that I found out exactly what people really felt and it has made my transition at work pretty nerve-wracking. I just can't bring myself to tell anyone out of fear even though it'll probably be pretty obvious in a matter of months.

Quote from: Steph2.0 on August 29, 2017, 10:08:20 AM
Interesting how the same words can have completely different meanings, depending on the intentions of the speaker. A friend of mine who's very supportive told me, "God don't make no junk!" meaning this is the way I was intended to be and I should be loved (and love myself) for who I am, not for what other people think I should be.

I think whoever said that struck at something fundamentally important that many people who superficially claim religion always fail to grasp: God's plan works both ways. If his intent is absolute, then by being who you are you are simply following that intent. Not just dealing with this issue, but pretty much with everything. (And I'm sure you all know the type I mean by superficially claiming religion; like the guy at church every Sunday who still doesn't hesitate to cheat on his wife every opportunity he gets.)

I also like to think of it in another way: God may not make mistakes, but he sure as hell loves to make trials. And there aren't many trials out there bigger than this. This is something that I've had to hold on to personally over the years, primarily in helping shape how I treated others before I was anywhere near accepting who I am.

I haven't experienced it much.

Far as I'm concerned an opinion is sticks and stones if it's a transphobic one. I rarely hear those directed at me, though.

I'm more concerned about attitudes shifting and violence towards trans people becoming the norm; so anything I've experienced is negligible next to the sort of treatment I could be getting. That's why I practice stealth

I feel like I am a road map (in the days before GPS) and I just resist being folded back up properly. The rest of the world is the person in the passenger seat trying desperately to fold me back up neatly and put me back in the glove box so I am not an inconvenience to them. In my case they have me somewhat folded properly but they haven't managed to get me quite put-away.

Maybe if someone opens a window I'll blow around in the wind and give up and throw me in the back seat to let me unfold and be myself.

So yeah...maybe the fresh air/wind metaphor means I need to start hanging around different people. Its hard to say good-bye to people who you otherwise like...but maybe it has to happen.

For me, it's a demonstration of the sheer stupidity and societal/religious indoctrination that is present in certain people. It's immediately rejected job interviews, college-age bullies, and utterly delusional religious fanatics. It's blatantly inaccurate malicious stereotypes, and comedians past their prime making inappropriate jokes. It's murder attempts in response to your existence. It's a drunken bum yelling slurs at you when you walk past him. It's red tape thrown your way by a psychologist or doctor who secretly hates you for existing but can't publicly express it  because it would get them fired.