He Dresses, She Slacks: Transgender Sex Roles

May 2, 2014 by ohnwentsya Leave a comment

Thank you Grace! A lot of good questions here. I’ve always considered gender superfluous and just done as I pleased-much to the consternation of the narrow minded culturally boxed in sorts I encounter:-)
I’ve had a lot of transgender friends over the years, some were really psychologically distressed, others like my friend Courtland, seem vastly better adjusted than the average person.

I’ve always wondered why the majority go along with narrowly defined sex roles-or anytime really. Is it just easier to conform or do people really feel comfortable with such absurd limitations?
I feel very lucky to live in a time and place where the colonized can no longer force Native men to cut their hair and become dysfunctional like the settlers.

Grace Buchanan Audiobooks -- Let's Build Bridges Together -- renovating

I notice when people complain about weak sex roles. “Women should be women, and men should be men. “If we didn’t have rigid sex roles, might we all be “people” instead of “male” and “female”?

a "feminine" Barbie Doll contrasts with a "masculine" Lieutenant Worf action figure

Last month, the highest court in Australia decided to recognize some people as being of a non-specific sex. If we didn’t have rigid sex roles, would we all be “people” instead of “male” and “female”?

If we didn’t have rigid sex roles, what might be a reason for being transgender?

Let’s take a look at some of our ideas about sex roles, and think about what we want and expect from men and women, and from ourselves.