By : Jason Smathers
Sometimes, the biggest mistakes come from the most intelligent of individuals.
Sometimes, the biggest mistakes come from the most intelligent of individuals.
Take my high school physics teacher. He received a Ph.D. from Berkeley, worked under a Nobel Prize winning physicist and was one of the few people I would ever label a genius. He was prone to tangents in class and one Tuesday morning in 2002 was no exception. During a discussion of art, sex and quanta, someone raised his hand and asked, “Hey Steve, what do you think of sex changes?”
“There is only one reason anyone would ever get a sex change: boredom.”
While his comment was funny and fairly harmless, it stems from the same kind of ignorance that plagues the transgender community. And that ignorance is getting to be a lot more noticeable.
This past year, Largo, Fla., city manager Steve Stanton informed city commissioners of his intent to undergo a sex change operation. As he explained later, he had thoughts of being a woman since the age of seven, but finally decided in late 2006 to have gender reassignment surgery. He informed a small group of family and co-workers, collaborating with them to try to reveal this decision in an honest and open way. However, the media got to it first, and what followed was a firestorm of controversy.
While Mr. Stanton (now known as Susan Stanton) defended the decision and around 70 supporters came out to stand by him, Mr. Stanton was eventually fired. City commissioners said his gender switch had nothing to do with his termination, and many who spoke against Mr. Stanton cited a lack of trust. One city commissioner said his decision was borne out of selfishness while another said, “I find that I can no longer trust his judgment.”
The confusion and pain that came out of the Stanton situation is a common reaction. While we have a burgeoning representation and greater understanding of gay and lesbian lifestyles in today’s media, transgender issues are often seen as disturbing, strange situations. Often, people explain these people away as freaks, no more than transvestites who took it a step further. Part of the reason behind this is because there is no real consensus about what exactly it means to be transgender.
First let’s dispel common misconceptions: Identifying as transgender has nothing to do with sexual orientation. Someone who is transgender usually feels that his or her assigned gender, regardless of actual chromosomal makeup, is incorrect. For instance, an individual born as a physical male may feel as though he is female. In some cases, the individual undergoes surgery to have the physical sex match the gender identity, or begins living the lifestyle without the physical change. In Ms. Stanton’s case, what people needed to understand was that he wasn’t trying to become a different person; she was simply trying to be himself.
But there are far more who live their lives under the supposed norms of society in direct opposition to their feelings. This is usually because, as Ms. Stanton’s case shows, people seem to see gender identity as synonymous with sex. What they need to understand is this is not a case of an individual simply deciding he or she wants to be a different gender. Instead, his or her gender is self-defined, not subject to physical appearance.
Unfortunately, people are unlikely to accept this idea since medical and psychological experts can’t seem to agree on the topic either. Currently, “gender identity disorder” characterizes the desire for cross-sexuality as a psychological problem, one that must clinically impair social and occupational functioning. In these cases, psychologists often treat this “disorder” as one that fades with proper intervention by parents, peers and guidance by society. They note that most of these people eventually identify as bisexual or homosexual.
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“There is only one reason anyone would ever get a sex change: boredom.”
While his comment was funny and fairly harmless, it stems from the same kind of ignorance that plagues the transgender community. And that ignorance is getting to be a lot more noticeable.
This past year, Largo, Fla., city manager Steve Stanton informed city commissioners of his intent to undergo a sex change operation. As he explained later, he had thoughts of being a woman since the age of seven, but finally decided in late 2006 to have gender reassignment surgery. He informed a small group of family and co-workers, collaborating with them to try to reveal this decision in an honest and open way. However, the media got to it first, and what followed was a firestorm of controversy.
While Mr. Stanton (now known as Susan Stanton) defended the decision and around 70 supporters came out to stand by him, Mr. Stanton was eventually fired. City commissioners said his gender switch had nothing to do with his termination, and many who spoke against Mr. Stanton cited a lack of trust. One city commissioner said his decision was borne out of selfishness while another said, “I find that I can no longer trust his judgment.”
The confusion and pain that came out of the Stanton situation is a common reaction. While we have a burgeoning representation and greater understanding of gay and lesbian lifestyles in today’s media, transgender issues are often seen as disturbing, strange situations. Often, people explain these people away as freaks, no more than transvestites who took it a step further. Part of the reason behind this is because there is no real consensus about what exactly it means to be transgender.
First let’s dispel common misconceptions: Identifying as transgender has nothing to do with sexual orientation. Someone who is transgender usually feels that his or her assigned gender, regardless of actual chromosomal makeup, is incorrect. For instance, an individual born as a physical male may feel as though he is female. In some cases, the individual undergoes surgery to have the physical sex match the gender identity, or begins living the lifestyle without the physical change. In Ms. Stanton’s case, what people needed to understand was that he wasn’t trying to become a different person; she was simply trying to be himself.
But there are far more who live their lives under the supposed norms of society in direct opposition to their feelings. This is usually because, as Ms. Stanton’s case shows, people seem to see gender identity as synonymous with sex. What they need to understand is this is not a case of an individual simply deciding he or she wants to be a different gender. Instead, his or her gender is self-defined, not subject to physical appearance.
Unfortunately, people are unlikely to accept this idea since medical and psychological experts can’t seem to agree on the topic either. Currently, “gender identity disorder” characterizes the desire for cross-sexuality as a psychological problem, one that must clinically impair social and occupational functioning. In these cases, psychologists often treat this “disorder” as one that fades with proper intervention by parents, peers and guidance by society. They note that most of these people eventually identify as bisexual or homosexual.
To Continue Click Here
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