A new push towards cd acceptance

[Melissa in SE Tn]

There have been several recent threads posted concerning when / if there will ever be public acceptance of crossdressing . Last Friday afternoon I was in my car , listening to NPR, when they ran a story about Hollywood's push to make crossdressing the new item de jour . Specifically , they addressed that some in Hollywood now see their presentment / storylines of the LGBT's to be boring & passé. LGBT , once seen as odious , has now become accepted on television, in movies , in the theater & in American politics. Hollywood is now looking for towards transgendered / transfluid as the new storyline since LGBT themes are now old news. The story went on to mention examples of tg's shown prominently in tv shows such as Glee & House of Florence. There reportedly will be a big push in those shows for more tg character development. They mentioned recent movies such as Dallas Buyers Club & Boys Don't Cry as examples of tg character development. The success of those movies reportedly will spur more tg movie scripts , etc .. What wasn't mentioned was that there are at least 3 Broadway plays with tg story lines with all 3 receiving multiple Tony award nominations.

It would appear that there may be some light at the end of our cd tunnel concerning public acceptance of us. The entertainment world is making a concerted push in our direction . Hopefully , those presentations will portray tg's as normal , loving & caring souls & not as sick perverted individuals . Many of you were hoping for public acceptance . That wish may become a reality sooner than later.

[Nadine Spirit]

Very cool story on NPR. I wonder how much impact this will have and in what arenas.

One of my favorite's is Eddie Izzard. He used to do many of his shows while dressed as a woman, but no more, at least for quite some time. I have read that while he considers himself to be a lifelong cross dresser he found it difficult to get the roles he wanted in Hollywood with presenting as a woman. Thus he is not publicly showing that side of himself so much anymore. Another interesting thing, Jessica Who, whom most of you know, she has taken down pretty much any internet reference to herself. Is it just a coincidence that she moved to Hollywood to pursue an acting career and now you can't find her on the internet anymore as a cross dresser? I mean it is purely speculation on my part, but it is kind of odd that her internet presence has been almost entirely erased.

I think that while TG roles are becoming more common, being a cross dresser is still something that Hollywood does not know how to deal with.

[Rachael Leigh]

What would be a real story would be better, not necessarily for acceptance but how when this is part of a marriage and how it affects the relationship.
So much of what Ive seen in the LGBT community seems to exclude heterosexual relationships as if they cant be a part.
I myself am honest enough here that I dont always agree with that agenda but I do understand why they feel at times they must push.
For many of us here we struggle with being male most of the time but having a part of ourselves that wishes to express in what would be a very female world.
I think in the LGBT community we are a big minority.
Just my opinion

[AllieSF]

This is something that I have seen in the last few years since I started this other side of my life, as more and more of the media are including some part of the "T" in the LGBT spectrum in their programs. There are some in the past like the movie The Crying Game and Transamerica, which dealt directly with a transwoman coming out and trying to live her life, and then some of the main stream television programs like Friends (Chandler's dad transitioned to a woman and showed up at his wedding that way, handled humorously and, at least to me, respectfully), Boston Common with William Shatner had someone working in the office who crossdressed, some of the Fox adult cartoon programs mix in the varying sides of the "T", and so on.

Many here cry foul when we are included in these type of programs in a humorous or not totally respectful way. However, Milton Berle, if anyone is old enough to remember him, as well as, the black comedian Flip Wilson incorporated the concept of crossdressing into one of their many characters years ago and no one ever made a big deal of it. Would these same complainers of today demand a boycott of those early episodes and characters?

It all helps. The more the general public sees us in real life or through the media in all of our various forms, both good and bad (and both do exist) the more they can learn about us and begin to realize that we are not a threat to them and their lives. It is just one other type of education, being exposed to that which we may never have been exposed to before. Yes, sometimes those first impressions may not be the best, but they are only the first ones. Over time these same people after multiple exposures will learn that we are only different and not bad. I always believe that most people are sane enough and practical enough to see that, yes, something may be different and not to their liking, AND that even though it is not to their liking it really causes no harm to anyone and has no affect on them and those around them. They begin to learn to live and let live.

I, therefore, am very happy to see more of this and other efforts to get us and who we are out in front of others in all our many forms by means of the media.

[Teresa]

Melissa very interesting thread, one problem could be being accused of jumping on the band wagon, I'm afraid to the general public we will never get it right, let's try and be optimistic.
The media has regressed some, during the late sixties early seventies light entertainment, theatre and film had an innocent coming out period, I'm sure we can all remember a show or a film that blatantly showed Cding especially linked to the flower power and free love period.

[Melissa in SE Tn]

Nadine, for your information ,NPR just interviewed Eddie Izzard in New York . He is beginning a U. S. tour . You might want to check out his tour dates. Peace, Mel

[Elkeliini]

albert Knobbs.... movie 2011. nuf said.

[PaulaQ]

Hon, if y'all want social acceptance, you need to come out and stand up for yourselves. You really do.

[Nadine Spirit]

Nadine, for your information ...

I am up on that. Thanks. What I am waiting for is for him to set some west coast dates. They have yet to announce them. I know they are coming, but it is driving me a bit nuts!

[AmiFL]

Hopefully someday a cd will be accepted by society like gay and lesbians are today.....

[Ashley Lyn]

I always wondered why CD-ing was 'looked down upon'..
Why should it matter if I want to dress as a girl?? Or look like a girl.. I like it..
My SO's sister said, "as long as its only for Halloween" to me after a dress-up Halloween party..

[Kate Simmons]

I doubt there will ever be volume acceptance, despite what they say. The only way to really be accepted is to prove who you are as a person.

[Tracii G]

Sad part is nobody listens to NPR.

[wanagione]

I think, as I have said before, that time will change things. The younger generations are pushing forward under the umbrella of Transgenderism. They are not afraid to challenge the norm and they are being heard.

[Madilyn A.]

Very interesting thread. The natural progression of movies and television seems to push the bounds well beyond "normalcy", so it would seem that cross dressing and transgenderism will have their day in the sun as well. I too, only hope the presentation does not paint us all as something we are not.

[lingerieLiz]

There was a reality show about professional dressers of the stars. One team included a guy who always wore women's clothes. He did not try to pass, but wore high fashion women's dresses and suits. Stars and everyone didn't seem to mind.

[Jessica86]

When every state adopts a transgendered worker's protection law, I would say we are moving in the right direction. Some states, such as Texas, do not even recognize us as people. The state does not cover us from discrimination in ANY instance, civil or criminal.

[Christina Page]

There was a reality show about professional dressers of the stars. One team included a guy who always wore women's clothes. He did not try to pass, but wore high fashion women's dresses and suits. Stars and everyone didn't seem to mind.

Minding that would be like minding a gay hairdresser. Incomprehensible!

[Carly CD]

Today the Department of Education announced Transgender students are protected from discrimination under the same federal law that prohibits sex discrimination.

"According to guidance issued by the Education Department's Office for Civil Rights, Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 "extends to claims of discrimination based on gender identity or failure to conform to stereotypical notions of masculinity or femininity." Moreover, the Office for Civil Rights states that it will investigate complaints of discrimination on the basis of gender identity."........."Title IX prohibits under federal civil rights law discrimination on the basis of sex in federally funded education programs and activities, thus forcing all public and private elementary and secondary schools, school districts, colleges and universities receiving any federal financial assistance to comply with Title IX." (source: MetroWeekly)

It's a start

[devida]

It is curious why gender rights have lagged behind acceptance of the rights of adults to love whoever they please regardless of gender by modern developed societies. Why would it be that the right to present yourself as a gender other than the one assigned to you at birth would be considered so destabilizing to social norms? My guess is that if you are gay, lesbian, or bisexual you are somehow not as threatening as if you are a man presenting as a woman, a woman presenting as a man or either presenting as something in between. Still, acceptance of the LGB necessarily moves social norms, eventually, to acceptance of the T, and it is the rapid acceptance of the right to love that is leading to the acceptance of the right to present yourself as whatever gender you feel yourself to be, whenever you feel it.

I do think that this is why cross dressers must accept the umbrella term of transgender even if they do not feel that they are a gender other than that assigned at birth. Once they are accepted as T they can begin the long process of educating the public that many of them are not, strangely enough, L, G, or B, but cisgendered and heterosexual. I do understand what a difficult concept this is for the vast majority of people who don't question their gender and cannot understand why on earth anyone would want to. It's even difficult for many cross dressers, even though cross dressing is a clear questioning of socially acceptable and normative gender presentation.

But I do believe the arc of history bends towards justice, as MLK said. And equality, and compassion, and acceptance.

We'll get there, eventually.

[Michelle789]

The transgender umbrella term includes anyone whose gender identity or gender expression is different from their assigned birth sex. So a male dressing in women's clothes not trying to pass as a woman, a man trying to pass as a woman but who still identifies as male, or anyone with androgynous presentation or who changes presentations or identities from day to day, is as much part of the TG umbrella as an MTF or a FTM TS is.

If CDs unite with the TSes, there will be a huge number of us involved. TSes alone are 0.3% of the population, or basically 1 in every 300 people. There are not enough of us. There are 2-5% CDs easily, and possibly up to 10% of the population. Even if we can just get the CDs who venture out in public, whether you try to pass or not, we can have a substantial 2-3% of the population. This will strengthen the T part of LGBT and will benefit cross-dressers, TSes, and any other gender identity or gender expression. We need to stick together and fight for our rights. And show that diversity is the rule within the T community. And always be on our best behavior when out in public. Be polite and courteous. Let's show up to work and do our best performance when we're dressed.

If all of us came out, we'd be noticed. There would be one of us on every street corner. One in every small apartment building. One per floor in a large apartment complex. One per residential street in the suburbs. One in every small town. 1-2 in every mid-sized company. 1-2 in every department of large companies. One of us in the checkout lines of a supermarket per hour every day. 1-5 of us on every plane. Dozens of us on the trains during the rush hour commute.

And if we show that we're decent, productive human beings, people will accept us.

[rian]

?
. The more the general public sees us in real life or through the media in all of our various forms, both good and bad (and both do exist) the more they can learn about us and begin to realize that we are not a threat to them and their lives. It is just one other type of education, being exposed to that which we may never have been exposed to before. Yes, sometimes those first impressions may not be the best, but they are only the first ones. Over time these same people after multiple exposures will learn that we are only different and not bad. I always believe that most people are sane enough and practical enough to see that, yes, something may be different and not to their liking, AND that even though it is not to their liking it really causes no harm to anyone and has no affect on them and those around them. They begin to learn to live and let live.

I, therefore, am very happy to see more of this and other efforts to get us and who we are out in front of others in all our many forms by means of the media.

It all helps. The more the general public sees us in real life or through the media in all of our various forms, both good and bad (and both do exist) the more they can learn about us and begin to realize that we are not a threat to them and their lives. It is just one other type of education, being exposed to that which we may never have been exposed to before. Yes, sometimes those first impressions may not be the best, but they are only the first ones. Over time these same people after multiple exposures will learn that we are only different and not bad. I always believe that most people are sane enough and practical enough to see that, yes, something may be different and not to their liking, AND that even though it is not to their liking it really causes no harm to anyone and has no affect on them and those around them. They begin to learn to live and let live.

I, therefore, am very happy to see more of this and other efforts to get us and who we are out in front of others in all our many forms by means of the media.

I think no matter what media exposure fill the world , our gender will be expelled from living in the open ,,,because to the world would not tolerate to deal and understand our nature ,,,I think from the beginning a bad public realm was formed that this type of nature are not accepted ...

[roxielives]

The key to acceptance is not being seen by strangers in public, it's coming out to friends and family. The more people who know loved ones that dress, the more accepted it will become. Period.

[Rogina B]

When every state adopts a transgendered worker's protection law, I would say we are moving in the right direction. Some states, such as Texas, do not even recognize us as people. The state does not cover us from discrimination in ANY instance, civil or criminal.

I invite you to read any of my threads regarding my experiences while working for our Equality group,and the reactions from forum members and I have one running now in the TS section,and the reactions from some members there...

[ClaudineD]

Regretfully the images presented in "RuPaul" type TV shows will continue to typecast TG/TS community as clownish. The gay and lesbian community have fought hard for their acceptance and political clout. The RuPaul format will continue to drag(pun intended) TG/TS issues. It is a media presentation issue as there are PLENTY in the TG/TS community who are vocal, informative and persuasive. but without a serious depiction to the populace, acceptance will lag.
Newer roles such as the depiction in "Orange is the New Black" spins a more favorable and credible presentation. It is a long road toward acceptance and political influence. Serious presentation in the mass media, TV, movies etc is needed rather than over painted, platform shoe wearing, pink bouffant hair that average populace view as a joke.....