Katarina Masilamani

Milloy

Eng. 101

4/5/17

Transgender: Discrimination has to stop

Imagine growing up and feeling like the body you were born was not the right one for

you. Then you start dressing in clothes of the opposite sex and people would start looking at you

like youre the strangest thing that they have ever seen. How would that make you feel? How are

you going respond and react to what others say and think of you? These are the questions that

people in the transgender community have to ask themselves almost every day. The term

transgender has been used for decades to describe many different people as a whole. People have

also used this term to describe those people as being weird and different, almost as if they were

aliens and not human beings- I have heard this from others about transgender people that they

know. This is why I believe that we as society should come up with ways to reduce all the hate

and discrimination towards transgender people. One way that we as society can help lower the

discrimination towards transgender people is by having signs in every store, restaurant, restroom,

etc. that states that they do not discriminate towards any one of any race, religion, gender, or

sexuality.

The term transgender, or transsexual, has been around for decades, and it is one term that

has many different meanings. The main definition for the word transgender means someone who

believes that the gender that they identify themselves as is different from the one they were born

in. For example, if someone who was born as a male but later in life identifies themselves as
female then they would be considered transgender. There are other terms that have similar

meaning but are not the same exact thing. For example, the term cross dressing is used to

describe someone who dresses in clothes of the opposites sex. This would be like a man, who

was actually born male, and dresses up in female clothing. The only difference between these

two terms is that with someone who is transgender they will actually go through the whole

process of changing their sex. In the book Transgender Voices: Beyond Women and Men

written by Lori B. Girshick there is a women named Glen who tells her story of being a cross-

dresser; A few years ago, I was at a bank in what I refer to as my dressed mode. Makeup, wig,

dress, heels, etc. and I was waiting for my turn with the next available teller. When the previous

lady left, I proceeded to the counter. Suddenly I got a tap on my shoulder and the lady who had

been at the counter previously said, Excuse me, maam, but I forgot one item of business with

the teller. Do you mind? I said No, please go ahead. when she finished, she turned and said,

thank you, maam. Then as she looked at me closely she got a funny look on her face. I

responded with, I hope you dont mind me explaining this, but I am not a madam (Girshick

40). As explains in her story that she is a man who happens to dress like a women, does not want

to be addressed by any type of female pronouns because she is not a female. She then continues

to say that she does not understand why people cannot understand why people cannot see her as

just a human wearing human clothes. Glen felt very offended by this woman. Without have a

clear understanding of why people think the same way that that woman did, she was just

automatically thought that was just disgusting. It is very common to see people who are not a

member of the transgender community to have voice their questions and opinions about those

who are a part of that community-which can come off as very insulting to them. Some of those
people are not asking those questions to try and offend transgender people, they just want to have

a better understanding of it.

In addition, people in the transgender community are living a life of fear and silence.

Most transgender people would have trouble, and possibly almost never, come out and tell

people that they are transgender, even to their parents. This is why a lot of transgender people go

into a state of depression due mostly to the fact that a lot of people would not be accepting of

who they are. Then there are a select few who are not afraid to come out and start by telling their

family and then their friends. There is one article titled Transgender Issue Hits Mat in Texas that

was written by Kent Babb, a news reporter for the Washington Post about a 17-year old boy who

goes to Trinity High School in Euless, Texas. His name is Mack Beggs. This was about the time

in his life when he realized that he was completely ready to transition from female to male.

While still being a member of his high schools wrestling team he started taking testosterone pills

to start the transition process. One mom of a wrestler on the boys division of the wrestling team

had a very negative attitude towards Mack and the change that he was currently going through.

This mom, named Pattie Overstreet has said, Shes standing there holding her head high like

shes the winner. Shes not winning, shes cheating (n.p).

There have been so many ways that people in the transgender community have been dis

criminated by; some of those discriminators are not actually trying to discriminate towards trans

people they are just confused by what it means to be transgender. Then you have the

discriminators that believe those in the transgender community have psychological issues-

meaning that being transgender is a mental disorder, which according to psychologist it is. The

name of this disorder is Gender Dysphoria. Gender Dysphoria is someone who is physically born

as one sex, but psychologically completely believe that they are in the wrong body and should be
of the opposite sex. This is not a mental disorder or disease, this is who they are. For example, if

someone was born male and while growing up realized that they should actually be female; then

them having the male sex organs is what they believe to be a birth defect. Thus is what many

people do not understand, so the easiest thing for them to do is mock or question them. For

example, in the book Transgender Voices: Beyond Women and Men it mentions these two

stories said by Kerwin and Nora. Kerwin is a transgender male (one who changes their birth

gender from female to male) who has spoken up about how badly he was bullied in school.

Kerwin explains, I had rocks thrown at me. I had my car demolished. I had my locker set afire

(Girshick 140). Girshick explains how Kerwin was not really able to fit in as a girl. Throughout

high school Kerwin was forced to face all the taunting the other students were throwing at him.

Nora faced the similar forms of taunting, but in her case she is a transgender female. Nora

explains that she was bullied from the age of 12 to the age of fourteen or fifteen. I had two or

three guys that just really loved to work me over. Then there is Julien who is someone that does

not identify himself as any gender (ungendered); so Julien was bullied for not being

appropriately gendered. These are just a few people who have been taunted and hated for who

they are and being members of the LGBTQ community. These individuals were bullied for

different reasons and in many different ways. I feel that if more and more people were more

informed on what being Transgendered actually means, then they would have a better

understanding of it and would not be so discriminating towards them. We as a society should not

just stand back and watch transgender people suffer, we should be the ones there to help them.

Furthermore, there are so many ways that people can end the hate towards those who are

members of the transgender community; one way to end the hate, or even just decrease it, is by

informing others what being transgender actually means. If someone has a better understanding
of what it means then they would possibly not be so quick to judge. the college I currently attend

had something called Academic Festival Week where they would have a different presentation

every day about many different things. These presentations were to teach us, or more deeply

inform us, about topics that we may or may not know. The presentation I attended, called

Redefining Gender, was a panel of people in LGBTQ community and they were there to tell us,

and inform us, about what it is like to be in that community. Each one in the panel had told us

and explained to us what their pronouns are and why they have chose those pronouns. One

person on this panel, named Sheppard, who is part of the LOFT Program. This is a program for

members of the LGBTQ community and their supporters. Sheppards pronouns are they and

them. The reason why Sheppard chose those pronouns is because Sheppard does not identify

them self as neither male or female. This is similar to someone who is known as Gender Queer-

this means someone who does not really know what their gender is. An example of someone who

is Gender Queer was another person on this panel named Marium. Marium was, and still is,

unsure of her/his gender. Marium came out as being Gender Queer at the age of fifteen or

sixteen. Marium had a boyfriend that straight up said I dont want to be dating a man. What

this panel has taught me is that there is more to gender than just make or female-that female does

not just mean having female sex organs makes you a girl, and vise versa for males. Marium

would also be considered as someone who is Gender-fluid-which is a person who does not

identify themselves with a single fixed gender. Another thing that I have learned from this panel

is that cultural differences can really can really limit peoples knowledge on people in the

LGBTQ community. For example, one of the members on this panel was of African-American

descent and she is also a transgender-female. This looked more down upon than if she were

white. This is one way that cultural and society can have a negative effect on members in the
LGBTQ community. This panel is something that I suggest every college or university have

because it has expanded my knowledge on what LGBTQ means, and it will expand the

knowledge of others which could decrease discrimination.

In conclusion, I feel that if people learn more about what LGBTQ means then they would

not be so quick to judge them. One thing I learned from learning on how to write a well written

argument essay is how to stick to one side of the of the argument. Another thing I have learned is

that how and where to pick the most credible sources that I believe will make my audience

convinced enough to agree with what I have to say about this topic.
 Work Cited

Jeffreys, Sheila. "Helping Transgender Children Transition Is Child Abuse." Transgender People,
edited by Tamara Thompson, Greenhaven Press, 2015. At Issue. Opposing Viewpoints in
Context, link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/EJ3010712226/OVIC?u=24011&xid=ce04f73b.
Accessed 10 May 2017. Originally published as "Comment on Harmful Practices: The
Transgendering of Children as a Harmful Emerging Practice in Australia," ohchr.org, 2012.

Girshick, Lori. Transgender Voices: Beyond Women and Men. University Press of New England,

2008.

Milton, Catherine. Redefining Gender: The Evolution of Gender and Gender Identity. Norwalk

Community College, April 5, 2017, Pepsico Theater.