Change the world?

[Kate Simmons]

Would you say your CDing has had any effect on changing attitudes and the world in general and would you say it's positive or negative and why do you say that? For myself it's not so much of changing the world as it is changing my outlook on things in general to a full spectrum one because of embracing all of the feelings involved. This in turn affects how I do things and how I relate to other people. How has this changed yourself and/or others in either respect?

[Nicki B]

How do you change the world? Surely one person at a time...

[gretchen_love]

I probably do not change the work or its perspective of CDing. Only one of my friends knows about it, and she was accepting before she knew.

[Jaclyn NM]

I beleive in "live and let live", and I think my feelings reflect my crossdressing. If what we do does not hurt other individuals in society, why should we be ostracized the way we have been. It's just not fair, and makes no sense. I wish the world was a much better place than it currently is.

[Kathi Lake]

I try to change the world one sales associate, one passerby, one person at a time. Through my dressing, I let them know through my attitude and confidence that what I am doing is normal - not just for me, but anyone. True, it's not going to have much effect in the larger scheme of things. I am not the "shout it from the rooftops" kind of person. I leave that to the Battys of the world. I'm more of a "Here's me - take me or leave me" kinda gal.

Kathi

[Deb The Brunette]

Not trying to change the world but I play in front of anything from a couple of hundred to a few thousand:nailbiting:

no one seems to care and the other musicians are perfectly fine with it, their attitude is; as long as I can play they couldn't care less (although I must confess that I do tend to hide a little sometimes with stage lighting, smoke machines and loads of cymbals)

I do get called the unusual female drummer by the press, now I'm never sure whether they mean that I am unusual or that I play in a strange style because my kit is set up in a unique way
.

[PaulaJaneThomas]

Changing the world might be a bit ambitious. I'm just trying to change the bit of space around me. If enough of us do that then perhaps one day our spaces may meet.

[Gabrielle Hermosa]

I'm not sure my crossdressing itself is having much affect on the world. I'm trying to do my part with my blog (http://www.mycdlife.com) (additional links in sig). Considerable time and effort goes into my writing and subject matter (from the playful to the serious). It's not much, but if it can help a few confused sisters, open some minds, and educate those who do not understand us, even to a small extent, I'm ok with that.

At least it's something positive out there. I try. :)

[boy2girl31]

I just got home from 6 months of desk duty for the army reserve and the whole don't ask don't tell policy made it very difficult for me to even mention my "unusual" behavior. I think that if we can each get just a few people to change the way they think about us then we will eventually change the world.

[kellycan27]

How do you change the world? Surely one person at a time...
Exactly Nicki

[Teri Jean]

Arianna,
I think you may be right in that as we as individuals change our perspectives it does influence those around us and they in turn bring our perspectives forward. It's kind of by proxi? Does that make sense? I twould be nice and less of a struggle if the world could look at our life style as nothing more than a choice that hurts no one but adds depth to the human race.

Keli

[deja true]

I try to change the world one sales associate, one passerby, one person at a time. Through my dressing, I let them know through my attitude and confidence that what I am doing is normal - not just for me, but anyone. ... I'm more of a "Here's me - take me or leave me" kinda gal.

Kathi

Kathi's put my thoughts into words.

We will have an effect on the general social mindset, I think. The same slow, but relentless progress of a glacier (before they started disappearing so quickly)...

The acceptance of one, then another, then another ... and the change of heart that these individuals have and maybe bring up in conversation with others ... these are the small but progressive steps that will make it easier for us one person, one day at a time. Kinda like a pyramid scheme for social progress.

There is room for overt and noisy political action too, though. That's how to get the issue in front of a lot of people all at once. Even if there are bazillions who oppose a trans equality agenda, there'll always be a few (the intelligent ones, the influential ones) in the "undecided" category who'll see the justice in the message, no matter the nature of the oratory.

So speak softly and make a few good friends ... or speak loudly and spread the word to the masses. Both methods are necessary and useful. The only wrong direction is no direction!

:straightface:

[PaulaJaneThomas]

I twould be nice and less of a struggle if the world could look at our life style as nothing more than a choice that hurts no one but adds depth to the human race.

But being transgender is not a choice.

Here in the UK we have a government which would not generally be considered un-supportive of equality and diversity - quite the reverse. We have in the UK some of the most wide-ranging legal protection for LGB people in the world. We also have Civil Partnerships, which is just another name for same-sex marriage. Quite a few Members of Parliament are openly gay as is one senior Cabinet Minister. You'd think they'd be eager to protect all transgender people but sadly this is not so.

The biggest problem we're facing in the UK is that the Government have been sold the falsity that there is one group of people called transsexuals who have a medical condition, Gender Dysphoria, and another group called transvestites who are just a bunch of men with a weird hobby. Because of this, the Government has, so far, refused to extend equality legislation to include the wider spectrum of transgender people. So the sort of misinformation which you seem to be espousing is actually and demonstrably damaging to our attempts to get equality for all transgender people in the UK and may lead to over 1 million transgender people, plus their families, being left open to discrimination in employment, supply of goods and services, education and housing. Falsehoods are not the way forward. Falsehoods will continue to keep us marginalised. Being honest about our gender identity is the way forward. Educating and explaining that gender identity is not binary is the way forward. You may or may of heard of the Yogyakarta Principles (http://www.yogyakartaprinciples.org/principles_en.htm).

[battybattybats]

The biggest problem we're facing in the UK is that the Government have been sold the falsity that there is one group of people called transsexuals who have a medical condition, Gender Dysphoria, and another group called transvestites who are just a bunch of men with a weird hobby. Because of this, the Government has, so far, refused to extend equality legislation to include the wider spectrum of transgender people.

Yes, the CD-hating Harry Benjamin Syndrome Advocates. They are the opposites of us, a tiny insignificant group with very loud active voices as opposed to us a very large group with tiny near-insignificant voices.

Our silence does us harm. Our personal focus also does us harm unless the people we are educating one-on-one are at number 10 etc. And even someone in the closet can write a letter to their MP.


You may or may of heard of the Yogyakarta Principles (http://www.yogyakartaprinciples.org/principles_en.htm).

Great to see someone else mentioning them!

Certainly my CDing seems to have had a positive effect on several people I know, it lead two to gain the courage come out themselves as Bi, the facing of their transphobia by some of the local lesbians who'd been taught that TG is bad by the radfems anti-tg propaganda, I educated my local MP on TG issues, the local human rights group were made aware of them too and I've raised CD/TG issues both when still largely closeted but increasingly self-accepting to the local MP and the Australian Human Rights Commissions Sex and Gender Diversity report and since then to the governments human rights community consultation.