Silent No More

Last month I wrote on the silence surrounding transgender individuals, even among and between themselves. After a few "ain't it awfuls" I promised a column with suggestions for dissipating the aura of secrecy and shame around transgenderism.

In thinking about solutions, they seem to fall into several arenas - those changes that need to occur within society-at-large, within the TG community and within the individual. Although the larger the arena, the more difficult it is to impact upon, still, we shouldn't overlook whatever opportunities for intervention exist.

In society, there is an emphasis upon conformity and conversely, an attempt to extinguish diversity. This atmosphere inhibits the exposure of transgendered individuals, even to one another. The only forum in which I see transgendered people valued is on the Talk Show circuit where a focus is placed on the drama and exoticism of their lives rather than on their humanness and desire to participate in all realms of society. It is too rare to see an openly TG individual occupy a position of respect and responsibility, performing a service independent of his/her transgenderism.

While the passage of legislation assuring fair treatment of diverse groups is an important step, it reinforces the marginal position to which minority groups are relegated. I look forward to the day when legislation will not be needed because society will value individual differences rather than suppress or overlook these.

I will not let my profession off lightly. When working with a client who complains of depression, anxiety, substance abuse, fractured relationships as well as gender issues, too many therapists conclude that the illness is transgenderism. Too few are informed about issues and concerns related to gender. They believe that with the realignment of the client's gender with his/her anatomy, all symptoms will disappear. Their ignorance, in some cases is so profound, they do not know what they do not know and go on to misdiagnose, mistreat and do harm to the already vulnerable individual.

Discussion is under way to establish a professional category called "Gender Specialist" (see Recommended Guidelines for TG Care, in press, 1995). This should be a considerable step forward in helping TG individuals who elect psychotherapy to find competent and experienced professionals to work with them in making informed choices and addressing their personal concerns.

The TG community can do a better job than it has in interpreting and demonstrating to society-at-large the nature of transgenderism, the needs of their members and the value of the diversity that TG vision and lifestyle offers. The ignorance of the dominant culture about gender and transgenderism and their interface with sexual orientation, anatomy, mental and physical health, parenting ability, etc. is mind-boggling. Of course, transgendered people are also a product of the culture and have been infected with the same biases, prejudices and stereotypes as the general population. They often buy into the negative and pejorative judgments levied upon their own group and collude with society's effort to exclude and shame them. Silence and secrecy may seem an adaptive response to the alternative of being labeled sick or sinful. But it perpetuates the larger view that transgendered people have no place in society. I'd like to see TG organizations broaden their mission from serving those members (and their significant others) who self-identify and reach out to the larger community with an educational and service component.

I also would like to see the elitism within (but not unique to) TG organizations addressed. Hopefully, they would become more welcoming to TG individuals who do not present themselves in a socially passible manner but none-the-less need the support and guidance of these organizations.

Dr. Anderson is a therapist in the San Francsico Bay Area. She can be reached at 415-776-0139. This article originally appeared in Devil Woman, the newsletter of the Diablo Valley Girls.


© 1996 by Barbara Anderson & 3-D Communications, Inc.