Misitu

[gwsblogpoject-blog]

Second Post: Raising a Gender Variant Child

Raising children can be quite challenging on its own.  Most parents want to protect, support, and encourage their children throughout their life.  Parents take pride in the achievements and strides their children make.  All of this is wonderful, but when children do not meet certain gender related expectations some parents may not know how to react.  It is very important that parents learn to question and break free of the restraints of the gender binary so that their children are able to do the same. Gender variant children and the parents of gender variant children were surveyed and asked to express their needs.  The survey revealed the similarities of the needs of gender variant children and their parents.  Overall, the needs of gender variant children and their parents are basic human needs.  They wish to be treated as any other person would be, and everyone needs support and understanding.   One of the most important things that parents said they needed is correct information about gender variance.  They do not need sources that tell them their child has a disorder, they need sources informing them on how to make their children feel comfortable and confident with who they are. They also expressed the need for information about parenting strategies to help their children through tough obstacles, negative reactions, and the negative effects of bullying. Parents also want information on choosing the right school and medical provider for their child (one that is supportive, understanding, and accepting).   Along with expressing the need for this information, the parents also expressed that this information needs to be accessible to them and their children.  This information should be able to be found not only on the internet, but also in doctors’ offices/waiting rooms, in libraries, on the radio, and on television.  The lack of accurate information is a major cause of uncertainty which fuels whatever fears the parents have, making it more difficult to properly support their children (Clemson, Diamond, Riley, & Sitharthan 2013)

Riley, E. A., Sitharthan, G., Clemson, L., & Diamond, M. (2013). Recognising     the needs of gender-variant children and their parents. Sex Education, 13, 644-659.

[misitu2015-blog]

I completely agree that parents need to be their children’s allies, especially at a moment and space when children are receiving so much mixed information regarding gender and sexuality. I posted an interview I did regarding this experience someone I know had - she is queer and more masculine presenting and was approached by a young girl who asked her if she was a boy or girl. It was very interesting that the young girl was very curious and inquisitive, however, her mom was embarrassed at the question and situation. Children are aware of gender at such a young age and it’s so important to have the tools and language ourselves to know how to engage them in these conversations. Thanks so much for posting this!

[latinxgws294-blog]

Reflection

Through my research and through listening to my classmates I learned that finding research is extremely difficult when it comes gender nonconforming people especially when they are another minority group.  But I have learned that some people are trying to proactive in the fight against discrimination which gives me a little hope this is in relation to the substance abuse program that is looking to be more culturally sensitive to the needs of trans people. 

With my research I think I can stop assuming certain things about people because there is more than meets the eye; everyone has a different struggle and a different story.  I want my blog project to inspire people to focus their research on gender nonconforming racial minorities because they make up a majority of the population and their voices matter. One of the biggest things I want people to take from this is the stigma that is associated with drug use to be eliminated. Substance use/Abuse is a disease that is often associated with weakness and that is not true, addiction is is powerful and harmful to the individual. 

Photo Credit Here

[misitu2015-blog]

I completely agree with the fact that there is both stigma around drug abuse and very little information/research based on trans latinx that experience drug abuse. Even among latinx, we have little to no information and cultural awareness on the particular experience of trans folks within our own community. For example, similar to what we learned regarding the Two Spirit society, my partner comes from an indigenous community in Mexico whose language did not construct or incorporate gender. When many of the indigenous community members learned Spanish, they had difficulty with pronouns and gendered words, as they kept incorrectly addressing each noun. It fascinates me how language as well as culture plays such an important role in how we understand and see the world. I hope other are inclined to do more research and reflect on their own Latinx communities. Thanks so much for sharing, the picture is pretty sweet, too!

[gws294spring2016]

Transgender and Gender Variant Health Panel

Filmed Thursday, February 25, 2016 at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Presented in conjunction with GWS 294: Introduction to Transgender Studies.

Featuring Margo Bell, MD, Caprice Carthans, Kelly Ducheny, PsyD, Aiden Harrington, APN, CNM, and Shay Phillips. Moderated by Erica Chu.

This panel presentation is geared toward those interested in health for transgender and gender variant people, medical providers seeking greater gender literacy, and students pursuing careers in medical fields, social work, and nonprofit work. The purpose of the panel is to educate the audience about the health-related systems gender variant folks must navigate, the kind of gender literacy required to serve such clients, and the needs currently facing medical establishments for establishing better policies related to gender.

Co-sponsored by the Gender and Women’s Studies Program, the Gender and Sexuality Center, and Pride at UIC.

Full information about this panel including panelist biographies and pronouns, click here.

Useful resources:

“Injustice at Every Turn” - Report from “National Transgender Discrimination Survey Report on health and health care”

The Center of Excellence for Transgender Health

The World Professional Association for Transgender Health Standards of Care

Transgender Health, a peer-reviewed open-source journal

[misitu2015-blog]

I found it very interesting that one of the reoccurring themes and a subject that many of the panelists addressed was the issue of hormone treatment and its accessibility for transgender folks. It seemed as though hospital/healthcare programs and insurance policies alike were being created to expand accessibility of hormone treatment. However, the significance of hormones was not critically analyzed or addressed by any of the panelists except when asked about essential healthcare for gender variant people. Additionally, I appreciated that a couple of the panelists affirmed that all sectors of healthcare needed to be considered essential to gender variant people i.e. mental health as well as physical health. I also appreciated that Shay included an example gender variant college students and the LGBTQ student body at large might experience in regards to healthcare, and that is the experience behind navigating the healthcare system. As someone who only recently acquired health insurance, I am unfamiliar with the process of navigating insurance policies, let alone identifying queer-friendly healthcare physicians. However, Shay mentioned the experience of entering a waiting area or interactions with care providers. I recently began seeing a doctor at the UIC Physician’s Medical Group, and was completely alarmed at the lack of regard my provider had of my sexuality stating very erroneously that lesbians, or women who sleep with women had no risk of sexually transmitted diseases/infections.  It would have been helpful if the panel opened with an introduction of the work that each panelist is dedicated to, and a historical and/or political context of that work. Institutional change commonly disregards collective work, organizing, advocacy and a critical analysis of the work still yet to done. The work each panelist focused on, with the exception of Caprice, seemed to exist in isolation, and independent of each other. I am unaware of the political and social climate in Chicago in regards to transgender and gender variant healthcare, however, highlighting changing bathroom signs and access to hormone therapy as successful stories by institutions that consistently shame and perpetuate disenfranchisement of trans people of color and migrants, then we are not addressing systemic issues at the root; gender transmisogyny & transphobia as well as racism, xenophobia and socioeconomic class all influence our construction of gender and what we construct as socially acceptable. Ultimately, these hidden subjugated knowledges will remain in the shadows.

[andreii-tarkovsky]

We didn’t have a word for our, as you guys call, gay/lesbian people. So we coined that word as an umbrella for all our tribes. We never said, “Well, you’re transgender. You’re bisexual. You’re lesbian.” We never knew those terms. Those are all from Western culture, you know, LGBTQ and all that. So on some level, it’s about getting rid of labels. Those terms were forced upon us.

[misitu2015-blog]

I find this whole conversation to be very interesting. On the one hand, I completely agree with the fact that terms should be honored and used by the collective of people who coined them. Two spirit, for example is very particular to a space, time, and thought. Using it out of context and in reference to peoples outside of the space that created it, is both incorrect and disrespectful.

However..... I am not sure what to think of Ellen Page and her buddy conducting these interviews. I love Ellen Page as an actress, but I don’t appreciate how privilege is exercised in this situation. The interviewers are both young, (socially, financially, and physically) mobile people who get to interact with my people. Borders separate people across the globe. This needs to part of the dialogue of queer people, and our realities in the U.S. Nevertheless, thanks for sharing!

[misitu2015-blog]

This is the video I reffered to in class regarding the NC Amendment One that was passed about 4 yrs ago which at that time made it unconstitutional to perform or recognize same sex marriage. While SONG does not actively participate in legislative campaigns, they emphasize how they used this platform to mobilize queer & trans POCs in the U.S. southeast. They’re great, and always bring forth a feminist / intersectional perspective. They’re now teamed up with an anti-deportation group called #Not1More, which mobilizes around the release of detained immigrants, including QTPOCs.

[misitu2015-blog]

Moving Toward the Ugly: A Politic Beyond Desirability

*Femmes Of Color Symposium Keynote Speech, Oakland, CA (8/21/11) Good afternoon, and thank you for having me. It is lovely to be here with you all. Thank you to the symposium organizers who have …

This is the blog post that I mentioned in class re: femininity, womanhood, and beauty politics. Mia Mingus identifies as a disabled woman of color, however, she often was/is not afforded the right to identify with femininity because of her social location in regards to her disability, and being a person of color. 

[misitu2015-blog]

     In the English vernacular, the term “genderqueer” has the possibility of opening a dialogue for gender exploration that includes the intersections of race, class, and sexuality. Genderqueerness moves beyond the gender binary of heteronormative, white cisgender women and men; it pushes forward the possibility of gender transgression as a process and destination. Individuals who stray, whether intentionally or not, from the gender binary, have a possibility to exist in their current bodies or a new creative form. Furthermore, a genderqueer narrativeproblematizes gender and expands the limitations of man and woman. Still it allows room for those normative identities to exist, but not without first critiquing their complicity in the silencing and erasure of other marginalized gender identities. Consequently, genderqueer has the potential to address the marginalization of cis-women and cis-men of color. People of color are often forced to subscribe to binary gender norms. As author bell hooks explains, the first-wave feminist movement, despite its promising strides for women, reinforced racism, classism, and sexism. White culture reinforced gender stereotypes, and categorized (white) women as pure,submissive, and domestic, while black women were portrayed as sexually deviant, and impure.The devaluation of black femininity is palpable now within visible transgender, and other gender-non conforming language and movements. Race, class, and sexuality are intrinsic in normative gender identity; white, heteronormative, heterosexual, able-bodied people have more accessibility to the categories of woman and man. By allowing fluidity and mobility, gender queerness can be a home for other gender transgressions such as transgender, gender variant, gender neutral and gender deviant and still encompass the complexities of race, class,and sexuality.       The study of gender variance provides insight to the study of gender in a broader sense; gender variance does not assume or enforce a gender binary, and instead creates room for nuanced conversations around gender and its institutionalization. Much like the first wave feminist movement, the fight for women’s rights did not address issues of race, class or sexuality. The category of ‘woman’ was static, and in many ways reinforced the marginalizationof non-heteronormative women of color. Similarly, the static, institutionalized gender binary further marginalizes individuals and groups who do not prescribe to its norms. The incorporation of gender variance implies the deconstruction of gender norms and their physical characterization. By assuming gender variance, we move away from a western construction of gender and instead further investigate the historical interpretation of gender in other parts of the world, and pre-colonization. In Susan Stryker’s Introduction to Trans History, the author emphasizes that transgender, and therefore gender variant, studies encompasses personal  experience, and politics with regards to law and social movements. Through the incorporation of gender variance we have the ability to move beyond social categorization, and explore the possibility of gender and its manifestations. A study of gender variance also opens the door to discussions of race, class and sexuality with regards to its geographic location, and historical context. In Susan Stryker’s, The Transgender Studies Reader, the author acknowledges that before the term “transgender” was coined, different parts of the world had already incorporated similar identities.A trans person might [...] in some parts of the world, consider themselves a lady boy, katoey, or even the reclaimed Maori identities whakawahine or whakatane. Some communities and their terms are ancient, such as the Hijra from Northern India, but many are more modern. (p. xi) While at the Lesbian and Gay History Conference in 1995, Stryker notes that though the panel emphasized gender diversity, the panelists were all cis-gender. Here, gender diversity was conflated with sexuality. Women, for example, could identify as butch, femme, lesbian etc, but the possibility of gender transgression was not addressed. A gender variant approach pulls apart the implications of gender: our sexuality, race, and the way our countries of origin have incorporated (or were forced to adopt) gender.

[darksilenceinsuburbia]

Bex Day: Harnaam

Harnaam Kaur is many things: primary school teacher, model, and self-professed “genderfucker”. Many will know her as Britain’s foremost bearded lady. A walking mass of contradictions, it’s best, perhaps, to think of her simply as subversive, and definitely brave. What becomes clear from talking to Harnaam – warm, chatty, open – is that her most remarkable feature isn’t her appearance, but her unwavering self-belief. (by Amelia Abraham ) 

<333333

[gws294spring2016]

A colleagues shared this video with me. It’s basic info about nonbinary at first, but then it introduces this person’s scholarly work on intersex folks. Seems like a great source!

[misitu2015-blog]

My partner works as a health advocate at a community organization in a predominantly Latino neighborhood in Chicago. Recently, she began a conversation with her coworkers on how to be more inclusive of transgender and gender-non-conforming patients when it comes to language used in medical forms, applications and surveys that collect data that ultimately aim to address the needs of that same Latino community. She found it very difficult and challenging to simply include a third option of “other” under the question of gender especially because the suggestions she received did not prioritize a larger conversation on the health needs of the transgender population, or how to make this change more institutional. This question becomes even more important as we continue to witness other health advocates and professionals who, although open for discussion, present information within a binary and perpetuate gender norms within the health system. Who should push for these conversations? Other cis-gender health advocates have little to no information on transgender health. The perpetuation of health information by health professionals as well as the lack of information available to community members creates a vicious cycle of transgender health exclusion. I have not yet watched the video of the health panel from 2/25, and although the gender question may may be a more superficial conversation of health as it relates to the transgender community, it is still a question that remains unresolved. This question, I believe, may be an opportunity to have a broader conversation on health access, education, and inclusion of all. Additionally, partner claims that because she is visibly more masculine presenting (is this a question of masculinity, or visibility?), patients easily identify her as a lesbian and feel more comfortable in approaching her about their own health concerns or family members who also identify with the LGBTQ community.

[mezcalconcafe-blog]

Introduction

Hi!

My name is Nancy and my pronouns are she/her. I am a third year majoring in Gender Women Studies with a minor is Sociology. Last year I had the opportunity of meeting Cherrie Moraga, and well this picture is a result of that. I’m really excited about this class because who else can say they took a intro to Trans studies as a student.

[queendqgws294-blog]

Hey Nancy!

I am so glad we were given the opportunity to take this course! I am so stoked! How cool that you met Cherrie!! #jealous

[misitu2015-blog]

I love her!!!

[queerchillona-blog]

One day, I remember looking through the films on Netflix when I stumbled onto one called Itty Bitty Titty Committee. Itty Bitty Titty Committee had one trans character named Aggie ( who is in the picture). I remember feeling generally weird about the portrayal of his character. I thought it was such a poor representation of trans people and his character didn’t really get to develop at all. First of all, his character was portrayed by a cis woman instead of a trans man. Second of all, I felt like there were trans phobic overtones in the film. The women in the film had created a feminist group named C(i)A and they only included women but they let Aggie participate because he had “female anatomy” -___-. has anyone else watched this film? any thoughts? criticism?

[misitu2015-blog]

Ahhhh, yes. I remember hearing about this film when I was younger. I’ve never seen it, though. I remember being excited that the queer group (I only saw the previews) looked Latino. Have you found any other better/good spanish-language or films with latino characters? Check out Mosquita y Mari. I haven’t seen it yet, but it highlights a story of these two queer youth. So cute!

[misitu2015-blog]

Woman Crush(ing the Patriarchy) Wednesday: Isa Noyola

This week’s #WCW Isa Noyola can usually be spotted with a bullhorn in hand, raising the volume on the violence trans Latinas like her experience every day. Texas-born and Cali-raised, this mujer, with her indigenous roots from Comitán, Chiapas and San Luis Potosí, Mexico, is the director of programs at the Transgender Law Center, where she fights for the rights and justice of trans and queer immigrant communities of color.

“That’s how trans people live their lives: with fear, misgendering, blatant disrespect, people gawking at us while grocery shopping or on public transportation. It makes us want to isolate ourselves, and many of us do. But that’s a problem, too. As humans, we need connection. We need community. That’s why we need spaces where trans people can intentionally come together.” - Isa Noyola Immigrant rights groups, and particularly organizations led by undocumented immigrants, have made great strides to include the narratives and particular experiences of LGBTQ immigrants in the U.S. However, it is the LGBTQ immigrant community that have “come out of the shadows” and pushed these narratives at the forefront of the immigrant rights movement. Latina.com highlights how Isa Noyola is crushing the patriarchy by speaking on the experiences of undocumented immigrants, and specifically, trans women. She is unapologetic about her work, her experience and her vision of justice for trans latinas and other immigrant trans women. Detention facilities mirror prison structures where individuals sometimes wait up to or more than two years to see an immigration judge in order to move forward on their case. Isa explains that trans women are often placed in immigrant detention centers with cis-men, they experience sexual assault within the first 12 months, and are exposed everyday to violence at the hands of the officers and other detainees. Although detention centers are particularly dangerous for trans women, Isa makes a point to say that detention centers are places of violence, and that improving the culture within detention facilities would not necessarily address the issues that trans women and other immigrant groups are bringing to the forefront. She is confronting not only unjust immigration practices and laws, but gender, identity and and transphobia within different spaces. "...the system is designed to do this – to break you down.” -Isa Noyola

[bonnie-gws-294-blog]

For those of you who may be too young to know who this is, this is Max from the Showtime series The L Word. Max came to identify as FTM trans over the course of the series. There was a lot of issue with the way Max was portrayed in The L Word, and the viewing community voiced their opinions pretty loudly concerning this character. Max came into the series using his birth name, Moira, and was the love interest of one of the main characters, Jenny. Although Max’s journey to happiness taught me a lot of stuff that I didn’t previously know about “transitioning” (I watched this show in high school), The L Word portayed the experience of transpeople as an experience that is full of rage (from too much T), changes in sexuality (Max starts of identifying as a female-bodied lesbian and ends up identifying as a gay man post-T), and all-around unhappiness. Although testosterone has different affects on everyone’s body, Max’s experience was very binary and gender conforming (when he was female-identified, he was happier and attracted to women, and as soon as he started using male pronouns and taking T, he became angry and sexually attracted to men). Max was the only FTM-identified transperson in the entire series, so the way he was portrayed became the one and only portrayal of a FTM transperson in the entire series. I am hopeful that if The L Word was re-made today (as compared to when it came out, in 2004), there would be a broader spectrum of gender-variant individuals as well as more “butch” lesbian characters (although this is a whole different issue I take with the show), and hopefully they would give the roles of transpeople to trans actors. 

[misitu2015-blog]

Hey Bonnie, Thanks for sharing this! I also watched the L word when I was in high school, and unfortunately, it was one of a few things lgbtq that I was exposed to at the time. I would be interested to rewatch the show now and critique it through a feminist lens. I do remember thinking how the show portrayed stereotypical lesbian latinas - Carmen and Papi. Yikes! Carmen and Papi were both really hot though...

[misitu2015-blog]

Introductions Hi, y’all. My name is Lulú, and I am in the Gender and Women’s Studies Dept, in my last year at UIC. I go by she/her/hers & they/them/theirs. I look forward to learning and expanding my mind on Trans Studies.  ------ Pictured above is one of my kitties, Misitu, whose name means “cat” in Purépecha, a spoken language & an indigenous group of people of Mexico.