So I’m gonna preface this by saying I don’t really use tumblr or any social media to “rant” about things. That said, I’ve been seeing a bunch of crap about transfem Jax and had to get into discussions about it with a friend.
I will say that I am a Jax hater. I believe the series wants me to feel that way but there’s more of an issue with the shows writing than anything else and the fact I probably need to rewatch it from start to finish. That issue doesn’t matter right now since this is a fandom issue.
Ever since Jax being a closeted trans woman was made explicitly canon, I have seen some of the worst takes on a character known to man. I even had to defend her since my friend tried to argue for some of the worst lines of thinking I’ve heard. I will add for context that neither my friend or I are trans. I am a white bisexual male and I obviously don’t know the struggles of a trans person.
That said, one of the biggest complaints that was brought up was that Jax was “bad trans rep” and pushed harmful stereotypes about trans women. This argument has always came across as disingenuous because it gives an idea that Jax did everything she did due to being trans instead of the outright stated reasons provided.
Jax was a self destructive, abusive monster of a person because of her circumstances. The movie spoon fed the viewers that Jax’s issues were caused by a horrible home life that resulted in the possible death of her abusive mother and homelessness. Hell, the follow up to the mother incident was Jax (Leroy) coming out to her mother and being met with a flurry of confusing messages that involved degrading insults and a hug.
Jax has all the evidence that her issues are a result of bottling up all her trauma and pain instead of working on themselves. This is further emphasized by the gun episode where she quite literally states “There’s nothing more to me… so please… just stop looking” they don’t want to form connections because they only view them as something that will only backfire to hurt. Due in part to their involvement in the abstraction (suicide) of two of her friends.
Jax isn’t a trans rep in the sense that she is a character revolved around being trans and her actions are related to it. Jax is a character who is a classic warning that holding onto trauma and taking out your pain on others will only result in the worst outcomes for everyone involved. They just happen to also be trans.
Jax being called bad trans rep is like saying DIO is bad bisexual representation because of how evil he is. Jax and DIO are in no way comparable due to DIO being several leagues above Jax in terms of criminality but the point stands that their actions and identity have little to do with each other.
I felt like I needed to add my 2 cents but, again, I am not trans. Please take the opinions of those who actually go through the journey of transitioning as they can provide more depth than I can ever hope to provide. I just felt the need to shout my thoughts into the void of the internet.