Are you Gay?

[Rianna Humble]

No, this is not a re-hash of a perennial question. It is an attempt to understand the perennial question (lol) that is asked of the TG community when we come out to everyone, not just SOs, but family, friends and colleagues.

Invariably we are asked “Are you gay?”, if not the first question, certainly within the first 5.

This is stereotypical of the public perception of the TG community, where this idea comes from originally is a matter of debate, however, as a community it is one that we perpetuate.

This is an interesting question. I was talking to a cis friend on the weekend who knows a few trans folk, but she could not understand how sexual orientation and gender could be different. In her way of thinking, if you want the MtF operation, you must want to have sex with men. She even had a problem with my suggestion that I might be a lesbian because to her if I want women, why don't I want to keep my twiddly bits? This is not an ignorant person, but she could not get her head round the concept that my sexuality and my gender are separate.