Hi was wondering if Crossdressing comes under a LGBT etc umbrella.
Seeing as a lot of CD are straight people just wanting to dress differently. I understand if your Bi curious or other non heterosexual actions or thoughts would mean you are in that description as them things apply even when not dressed but I'm just talking about Crossdressing in general
There's been much argument in previous threads over that, but I'll stand firm with a No. I'm not lesbian, not gay, not bi, and not trans. I'm very straight and I have no problem being or remaining a man. In other words, I'm just a crossdresser.
Others here ARE gay, or bi, or are transitioning, or want to transition, so they would fit under the umbrella, but "crossdressing" doesn't imply any of those things, it's just about dressing.
There are plenty of good arguments for both sides of this question.
I tend to believe that it's more about what's going on inside a person's head.
To me, it's less about what you're wearing than about why you're wearing it.
And there are a whole bunch of possible reasons.
So, I'll just have to shrug and answer "I really don't know. Do you feel like you do?"
Emily
The best label is one you choose yourself.
I always considered crossdressing to come under the 'T' part of LGBT.
This is because your are perceived to be crossing gender boundaries.
The problem with any label is that they tend to be all encompassing. Even though we may consider cross dressing to be just dressing, the public at large considers all such activities under a large umbrella, due to a lack of knowledge and understanding.
Emily, Like Shelly, I believe the CDs are under the T umbrella.
Please call me Jamie, I always_have crossdressed, I always will, "alwayshave".
I would say yes I feel that crossdressing fits under the transgender umbrella. I dont live full time as a transwoman but I am on the transgender spectrum.
I agree, we are somewhere under the T
Crissy
I do not like all the different labels.
But the definition of Transgender term is a very generic term used for crossdressers on one side to transsexual on the other side and everything in between. Is my understanding, the news and general public does not know do their research so their is the disconnect.
I agree with Crissy, Jade, Jamie and others. I think the assessment that we are all under the "T" umbrella is the proper one. As a crossdresser I am proud and revel in being included in that wide spectrum.
www.flickr.com/people/194195593@N05/
I am a straight male crossdresser. I am not "L", "G", "B" or "T".
If you insist on calling me one of the above, you will be insulting me.
Krisi
So am I Krisi--- People have a tendency to confuse the VERB with the Person. That's one reason the term "Transvestite" was used to describe us, instead of plain ol' "Cross-Dresser" like today.--- The reason there ARE "Labels" is to differentiate us from Homosexuals, Transsexuals and those in between who ALSO cross-Dress (verb) for various reasons. There is a BIG DIFFERENCE and we are often confused with LGBTs--and unfortunately, often suffer THEIR "pain" for it.
I believe SOME of the CDers are under the TG umbrella, but not ALL of us are. For many CDing is an Erotic thing and the dressing is to evoke the feeling. For others it serves as a "disconnect" from ones "self" or "psyche" that evokes a pleasurable "High" or emotional or stress release. Not ALL CDers feel being cross-dressed is "the real me". Many like to become "the NOT ME". Being into it for "Thrills" is not necessarily "Transgender." One is only TG if they IDENTIFY with the opposite biosex.
Last edited by MarinaTwelve200; 08-08-2023 at 07:08 AM.
There are no clear lines that differentiate different identity forms. It is somewhat like a rainbow where the colors change over a narrow transition zone rather than having distinct lines. Although the colors in a rainbow have definite names that does not mean they are associated with a particular, wavelength of light - it covers a range of wavelengths that, to us, appear similar. The fact is each change in the wavelength of light produces a unique color, but we don't perceive that and our brains blend different colors at different wavelengths into a single color so we can deal with all that variation more easily.
Same thing in the gender spectrum. So, I suggest you not get hung up on labels but keep it broad and flexible so individuals can identify with who they are rather than with a specific group. CD is clearly on the edge of the T spectrum. Using a particular gender expression that differs from the broad zone of cisgender expression needs to have more of a motivation than "I just want to." The question is why do you want to?
Most all of our choices, although they seem to be under our conscious control, they aren't. Those choices are made elsewhere in the brain based on neurological configurations, some of which are genetic but all of which are highly modified by experiences that pattern the plasticity of the brain to adapt to all of the information that it is gathering every moment of your life. Your consciousness really can't handle all that information at once; so to speak, it take 99 billion out of 100 billion total neurons to do that - your consciousness is in the remaining 1 billion neurons. (Those are not exact numbers of course, just an example.) As the neuroscientists say, "There is no such thing as a conscious decision." In fact your consciousness receives the results of a choice that is made elsewhere and thus implements in a carefully directed fashion the choice with your own awareness and "wisdom."
The very definition of transgender, a concept first described in 1969, allows for a wide range of phenomena to be included. The definition is basically and somewhat simplified as, "A person who SELF identifies, constantly or intermittently, with the gender that is opposite that which would be expected based on the person's sex." And Gender Dysphoria is the negative feeling one gets where they sense a conflict in their identity with what is preferred to be their identity, some of the time or all of the time. The high end of transgender is someone who transitions because that is the state where they have the least dysphoria in the self identity. At the other end is generally the CD who shows only smaller amounts of dysphoria (pink fog), mostly self identifies as cisgender, but still has this need to express as the opposite gender because of subconscious decisions that are being made that create a motivation to express in a particular way that is inconsistent with expectations. There is no right or wrong way to express yourself in clothing and other aspects - there are just different ways.
The general public really doesn't care about such distinctions. They are far too busy with their own lives.
"Whatever you say, that is fine with me" is more likely what they are really thinking.
What do you what them to do with the label? Arguing about your version is one way to make them remember you as CD or TG, if that is what you want.
But, from what I read here, while some CDs what to be seen in public, many would prefer their neighbors not know.
Gender identity and sexual preference are two different things. Much of the professional community still uses "transgender" to cover all forms of gender non-conforming, e.g. crossdressers, non-binary, etc. Nevertheless, confusion and debate over labels and their definitions will always be present because, as The Dude says, "That's just like, your opinion, man."
Calling bigotry an "opinion" is like calling arsenic a "flavor".
What auntie said! The issue is this:
Lesbo, Gay, Bi all r folks who prefer non-typical sex partners.
While Trans refers to a person with self gender issues. And, says nothing about the gender of who they choose for their sex partner(s)!
So, vanilla folks r often confused that most M to F trans r straight!
U can't keep doing the same things over and over and expect to enjoy life to the max. When u try new things, even if they r out of your comfort zone, u may experience new excitement and growth that u never expected.
Challenge yourself and pursue your passions! When your life clock runs out, you'll have few or NO REGRETS!
I would say I?m still entirely heterosexual, if being my full authentic self means I come under the trans umbrella then I?ll be ready to accept that.
The thing with labels like LGBTQABC+++, is that they seem to be defined by society, by people outside the group.
We don't really have much control over where any individual puts us.
I'm most comfortable ignoring the labels and just being me.
There are people that will argue all day that to be bi means you are gay or lesbian or that the T doesn't belong with the LGB at all.
Ok. Knock yourself out arguing over something that petty and insignificant. I'll just sit her and watch the fireworks.
Where do we as cross dressers fit, well, I'd say we are more than a standard deviation from the median, so someone will try to put us in a box somewhere.
I personally am not going to worry about it because almost all of the things in the list of letters exist on a continuum, and I'd wager that the majority of people under that umbrella probably touch at least two of the letters in some way. I mean, I've been to gay bar and seen the super macho biker guys in the booty shorts. Defiantly gay, but those shorts are a touch of cross dressing. I'm just not going to point that out to somebody that looks like he could break me in half.
Ah, I'm rambling again...
Pick a letter if you want to. Don't if you don't. Maybe those that want to have a label could start a movement changing the whole thing to LGBTQC+++
The rest of us can just go shopping for another pair of cute heels to wear with a dress we haven't bought yet.
I am Me and Me is OK!
Shelby
If you go out in public and interact with humans while dressed, you fall under the trans umbrella because you are putting yourself out there in a manner that the average observer cannot easily distinguish from a trans or no binary person. If you only dress in the privacy of your home, you are not representing yourself in public and are therefore just a guy who likes to crossdress. I think that is a pretty clear distinction.
I would still call myself a CD than any other labels. When it comes to going out to places, then I have to pick a LGBT friendly place to go.
Thank you all for all your insights a wide spectrum of opinions. I have mainly thought of my self as gender fluid but upon searching for CD support groups locally there don't seem to be any. LBGTetcetc groups are the only ones that come up. Was not sure if people out there class CDing as being part of that or not. I've read that Trans people frown upon CD or MIAD as being fake attention seekers (a situation that I find hard to understand as they are the first to cry foul if Cis people don't accept them) I was thinking of checking out some of these local groups but very cautious about if I would fit in and wanted to see other peoples perspective of the Label
Many many thanks Emily
The definition of "transgendered" that I prefer is - Someone who presents as opposite of the gender they were assigned at birth - and the concept of the "transgendered spectrum" was created in the 1980's as an umbrella term to encompass all such individuals. Therefore, because I live 24/7 as a woman, I am somewhere on that spectrum.
I sometimes refer to myself as trans and always describe myself as a heterosexual, non-transitioning crossdresser.
"Care about what other people think of you and you will always be their prisoner" - Lao Tzu
I think the word crossdresser should be removed from the dictionary. Why are we still being referred to as crossdressers? If the word is not used for women it should not be used for men either. I call myself a dresser and the only trans I am is transformed.
I don't wish to change my gender I just want to change my clothes.
I'm thinking of myself more and more as a 'dresser', I love that way of thinking
I consider myself gender fluid, a man or woman at any point in time. I also call myself a crossdresser which confuses a lot of people. The reason I call myself a crossdresser is because I look very much like a man naturally and in order to express my woman side the way I want to I have to crossdress. In recent years I think crossdressers have become villianized by the LGBT community which i think is completely unfair. Yes, some crossdressers are just men who like to wear women's clothes, and that's fine. Others will eventually become a part of the LGBT community in one way or another. I've heard a few reports of transgender women being treated poorly by crossdressers, but I'm sure these crossdressers are a very small minority and are probably acting that way because they are in denial about themselves. I have a saying, nobody likes crossdressers. There's the straight "cis" umbrella and the LGBTQ umbrella and the crossdressers are kind of just left out in the rain.
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