Yeah, We’re Selfish

John Aravosis writes about how he believes that Bush’s veto of ENDA is not guaranteed. I think TransAdvocate covers most of the relevant information, but what stood out for me was the final paragraph:

PS As an aside, I’ve just learned that there’s at least one senior transgender leader in America who is married (and I’m sure other straight transgendered people are married). That’s nice, and I support their right to marry. But I do find it odd that the gay community is being asked (well, told) to put our employment rights on hold until the transgender community can get theirs, but the transgender community isn’t putting its marriage rights on hold until we get ours. Then again, I’d never ask them to put their rights on hold until I got mine.

First, I want to address the last sentence with John Aravosis’ own words:

I support transgendered rights. But I’m not naive. If there are still lingering questions in the gay community about gender identity 10 years after our leaders embraced the T — and there are — then imagine how conflicted straight members of Congress are when asked to pass a civil rights bill for a woman who used to be a man. We’re not talking right and wrong here, we’re talking political reality. Our own community is still grappling with this issue. Yet we expect members of Congress, who took 30 years to embrace a gay ENDA, to welcome the T’s into the bill in only five months.

He’s blogged extensively about asking us to put our rights on hold while he gets his. He makes it clear he’ll take a half-a-loaf as long as that half-a-loaf is all his.

As for his marriage comment - wow. Does he even read about this stuff? Does he realize that the marriage issue is a trans fight as well? Does he just assume that we all get surgery and go on our happy ways to heterosexual marriages?

Or does he just make blind rhetorical assertions to put us trannies back in our place?

Trans people do not have an uncomplicated right to marry. Aravosis does not acknowledge that many trans people cannot get surgery - they lack the funds or health problems preclude it. Many choose not to undergo it for personal reasons. We can only change our birth certificates in some states once we’ve had surgery, and at least one state won’t change the birth certificate if you receive surgery outside America. Also, John must be aware that many trans people are gay, lesbian, or bi, and even after we get surgery, we can’t marry who we want to because same-sex marriages are illegal.

But really, this paragraph is more about bashing trans people than anything else, and bashing doesn’t require factual information to justify it, at least not to those who engage in bashing.