ok full disclosure im gonna have to slowly migrate back to this website for a while [only on desktop, i couldnt handle this place on my phone] to post some art for visibility sake. and. yeah im still not happy to see the way my trans brothers are talked about on here . im not happy with how we're talked about in real life. tumblr is not real life. its been six months, more since all this infighting nonsense started. six real world months. im 20 now. im choosing to hope, post art and log off, and try to enjoy life where i can. we dont need infighting to dictate what privileges trans men have*, we need sensible legislation to protect all trans people and ensure that we all have access to security and access . we also need lou sullivans diaries for sale at every corner store
adding a footnote because i feel i will be misconstrued if i dont specify my specific opinions
*A] i think the idea that trans men experience "privilege" as a broad concept ignores both that trans men are a broad social group who experience varied states of perceived safety- namely that trans men as are not all the thin, white, able bodied passing men we are frequently assumed to be. As well, a lot of the elements of privilege [ie, the ability to be read as male while "having access to afab spaces" often doesnt account for the previously explained vastness of the transmasculine experience, but also the shaky ground that some of those "privileges" leave under the feet of trans men lucky to experience them. if trans men's perceived privilege comes from either outing, ie to access "afab" spaces, or from stealth, ie access to the privileges awarded to cis male peers such as higher rates of pay or less threatened violence, then those privileges are situational and easily revoked. some individual examples of perceived privilege i have seen cited that i find to be good examples to explain this point include as follows.
trans men's ability to use women's restrooms. this is an act that requires forced outing of the trans man. in order to guarantee safety in an age of increased gender-policing, one must either de-gender themselves or misgender themselves to re-gain the privilege of "safety" in the women's restroom. in one example i saw written on this website, the poster described a hypothetical anecdote their roommate described, in answer to the question of "how do you prove you arent in the wrong restroom if you are questioned" in which their transmasculine roommate, assuming jokingly, explains they would show their top surgery scars. not only would this be a forced outing of the transmasculine person in this hypothetical, but one that is not feasible in a realistic interaction. it should go without saying why some trans men are forced into using the women's restroom, but for clarity- the use of the women's restroom is to avoid potential violence or outing in the men's restroom.
the wage gap. i will not deny we have it better than our trans sisters, but labeling our, still very notable, wage gap compared to our cis male and cis female peers as privilege is willfully ignoring a few key details. namely, that we still make 70 cents for every cis man's dollar. whether or not these studies focus on stealth or out trans men in a variable i will have to look into further.
lack of policy directed at us- namely in sports. ill be quick with this one, i promise. For American politic specifically, trans men's access to medication is already heavily monitored. Here in the Us, unlike estrogen, testosterone is a controlled substance which carries jail time with its unlawful possession. its use is also heavily regulated in sports, being banned since 1979- though there may be acceptations to which im not aware. this is why trans men in sports often have to play on the women's team. this is not a sign of privilege or being able to "fall back" onto birth sex for security, much like with the bathroom example discussed earlier this requires both forced outing on part of the trans man but also can entail forced de-transition, as well as de-gendering or misgendering. when we are left out of legislation on sports bans or proposed diy hrt bans this is because our existence in these spaces already caries with it the threat of force or incarceration.
these are just a few examined circumstances, of which i am clearly biased in the discussion of. my discussion of these topics, as stated before, does not come out of a want to frame trans men as having it worse than trans women. this infighting mentality is, in my opinion, childish and does nothing to benefit us as a community. my specific detailed examples are to show the nuances that come from a trans-masc existence and the ways that our transition becomes either institutionally scrutinized, ie in sports or in possession of medication, or socially scrutinized, ie in discussion of our often forced de-gendering as "privilege." i hope to lay out my points clearly so as to not have my words twisted, or malice read into my own personal experiences. yes, our trans sisters have it worse - and yes our trans brothers also have it bad and deserve a space to discuss these issues. the presence of one does not silence the other- we must navigate gender politic and the fight for trans protective legislation with a focus on dialectics.
happy pride. meow meow meow . and so forth