Introduction

Hello, my name is Alice and I'm starting this blog in order to look at and examine the sociological reaction to transgendered or other non-gender-conformist groups in society. This includes the assumptions, the phobias, the human rights movement, the counter-rights movement, religion and even the dissenting and consenting voices within the transgendered/transsexual, gay/lesbian/bisexual/pansexual, and feminist communities. Hopefully through these intellectual indulgences we can come to a better understanding on how to fight oppression of any kind towards transgendered, non-gender-conformist or queer groups.

I will begin by saying I am a biased individual. I have grown up through much of my life with white straight healthy male privilege, in a society dominated by patriarchy. I am a male-to-female transgendered woman. I do not represent the views of female-to-male transgendered men, non-white people, people with mental or physical disabilities, people from lower socioeconomic classes, people who are homeless, and cisgendered men or women. I also do not identify as transsexual or in need of sex reassignment surgery. My experience of being "full-time" is also limited, but this blog will hopefully help me put my experiences into theory without getting too personal about them.

Through my life I was never physically stronger than my opponents. I also had next to no privilege in the social system beyond the fact I was considered a caucasian male. The education system didn't know what to do with me as an emotional child who simply did not listen to authority. With power stripped from me and placed into the hands of my parents, who largely followed the words of the experts, I was powerless. And so, I learned to use language, to trap them with their own words. Which is why at age 20 I can use big words and write relatively coherent essays while my classmates still struggle through them. (Not that I'm elitist or anything.)

I live in Canada, which by all accounts is one of the better, more privileged places to live in the world for a transgendered woman. It has a universal health care system which helps fund the Sherbourne Health Centre, one of the "meccas" for transgendered health services. Despite the existence of CAMH and Dr. Kenneth Zucker, both of which have been marred in controversy over transgendered and homosexual issues, resources are both readily available and free to most transpeople.

I'm hoping that through this blog, both cisgendered and transgendered people can understand our differences and our similarities, and come to the same conclusion: that all groups that consist of people are equal, and that oppression between oppressed minorities is silly and counter-productive.

And so, here we are! I hope this blog works out. I plan on updating twice weekly, with blog posts on Tuesdays and Saturdays.