___ Woman

___ Man

_X_ Something that you’ll never understand

“If a society puts half its children into short skirts and warns them not to move in ways that reveal their panties, while putting the other half into jeans and overalls and encouraging them to climb trees, play ball, and participate in other vigorous outdoor games; if later, during adolescence, the children who have been wearing trousers are urged to “eat like growing boys,” while the children in skirts are warned to watch their weight and not get fat; if the half in jeans runs around in sneakers or boots, while the half in skirts totters about on spike heels, then these two groups of people will be biologically as well as socially different. Their muscles will be different, as will their reflexes, posture, arms, legs and feet, hand-eye coordination, and so on. Similarly, people who spend eight hours a day in an office working at a typewriter or a visual display terminal will be biologically different from those who work on construction jobs. There is no way to sort the biological and social components that produce these differences. We cannot sort nature from nurture when we confront group differences in societies in which people from different races, classes, and sexes do not have equal access to resources and power, and therefore live in different environments. Sex-typed generalizations, such as that men are heavier, taller, or stronger than women, obscure the diversity among women and among men and the extensive overlaps between them… Most women and men fall within the same range of heights, weights, and strengths, three variables that depend a great deal on how we have grown up and live. We all know that first-generation Americans, on average, are taller than their immigrant parents and that men who do physical labor, on average, are stronger than male college professors. But we forget to look for the obvious reasons for differences when confronted with assertions like ‘Men are stronger than women.’ We should be asking: ‘Which men?’ and ‘What do they do?’ There may be biologically based average differences between women and men, but these are interwoven with a host of social differences from which we cannot disentangle them.”

— Ruth Hubbard, “The Political Nature of ‘Human Nature’“
(via gothhabiba)

Written documentation of our past is often based on European colonists’ reactions to Cherokee gender, who thought that *all* of our genders were “variant.” Colonists likely saw female warriors or women in positions of leadership as living as men, even though these were acceptable—and important—roles for women in Cherokee gender systems. Trying to glean from colonial accounts which of these female-embodied people might now be called “Two-Spirit” and which were simply acting in accordance with Cherokee traditions for women is very difficult. We must remember these kinds of complexities as we continue to uncover our past and re-weave our present.

~ Qwo-Li Driskill, SHAKING OUR SHELLS: Cherokee Two-Spirits Rebalancing the World (via clatterbane)

daggers-drawn:

jenroses:

oh-snap-pro-choice:

andrastesflamingteet:

antiandrogen:

palyk:

antiandrogen:

stashlecash:

antiandrogen:

nobody ever talks about how saying non-binary genders don’t exist is racist as fuck

How?

many many many indigenous cultures have historically included more than two genders and to say that those genders do not exist is to say that those cultural traditions are invalid, and that only the imperialist gender binary is correct. which is racism.

Source?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hijra_%28South_Asia%29

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bakla

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kathoey

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muxe

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Two-Spirit

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fa%27afafine

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C4%81h%C5%AB

Do you need any more or are you done being a dick

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/apr/16/india-third-gender-claims-place-in-law

http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1820633,00.html

http://www.npr.org/blogs/pictureshow/2012/05/30/153990125/in-mexico-mixed-genders-and-muxes

http://www.nativepeoples.com/Native-Peoples/May-June-2014/Two-Spirit-The-Story-of-a-Movement-Unfolds/

http://theculturetrip.com/pacific/samoa/articles/fa-afafines-the-third-gender/

For those who don’t like Wikipedia

THISTHISTHISTHISTHISTHISTHISTHISTHIS

THE WESTERN IDEA OF TWO GENDERS IS EXACTLY THAT

WESTERN

THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF CULTURES ACROSS THE WORLD WHO SEE GENDER AS A SPECTRUM OR OTHER FORM OUTSIDE OF TWO GENDERS

Judaism has been recognizing six genders for thousands of years.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_and_Judaism

SIX.

JUDAISM.

Fuck off with this “binary gender is commanded by God” bullshit.

I have continually said that gender binarism is deeply rooted in white supremacy and colonialism for this reason and it’s why I often include discussions and mentions of racism while talking about gender.

HRC Publishes New Data Detailing How Unsafe Trans Teens Feel at School

radicalthoughtcriminal:

broadgaytrash:

typingfrantically:

Let me talk to you about books.
Specifically, one book. This book.
This book deals with debunking “Neurosexism,” which is a very fancy term for all of that evolutionary psychology bullshit that people spill about those “brain differences” between boys and girls.
This book debunks such myths as:

Boys are better at math than girls

Women make crappy lawyers/business CEOs/etc, as their brains are not cut out for aggression.

Men make crappy counselors/primary school teachers/primary parents/etc, as their brains are not cut out for empathy.

MEN ARE BUILT FOR GOING OUT AND HUNTING WHILE WOMEN ARE BUILT FOR STAYING HOME AND BABYMAKING IT’S NOT SEXISM IT’S JUST BIOLOGY

And many other such myths.

Neurosexism and gender perceptions in multiple races (as this is not a singularly white experience, just as the western world isn’t a singularly white experience)

Sex discrimination in the workplace, and how women are (or, more often, are not) allowed to behave

How science is used (badly) to support many of these claims

Experiences of trans* people, both through interviews and empirical studies.

Furthermore, this book covers topics such as:
AND FINALLY – It is all brilliantly researched, cited, compiled – and it’s easy to read! Cordelia Fine actually manages to be funny while writing this, which I think is important, because it makes all of this information infinitely accessible.

Here’s a PDF for those that cannot afford it/are frightened to buy it.

^^^^thanks for the PDF link

dodgylogic:

insufficient-earth-skills:

moon-boob:

fecundism:

prissygrrrl:

fecundism:

fecundism:

ive been reading a book that basically explains how so-called “brain differences” between the genders is the result of gendered socialization and not the cause of it. i honestly expected the book to be very cis-centric but its actually the opposite, the author stresses that testimony from trans ppl is actually indispensable because we’ve, in a sense, “lived both experiences”

more cis feminists should have this mindset

one of the first examples that she uses to introduce her point about how perception by others can shape a person’s performance actually uses a trans woman. it explains that as a certain trans woman became to be seen as a woman more and more frequently, the ppl arond her eventually started viewing her as being ill equipped for tasks that they did not bother her about pre-transition. eventually she even found herself underperforming in these tasks herself.

whats the name of the book

Delusions of Gender by Cordelia Fine

Here’s a pdf, babes ❤

I knew it was this book before I’d finished reading the first two lines. Honestly this book is indispensible if you want to debunk any gender determinism people claim is science. I can’t recommend it enough.

She’s written a new one! It won the Royal Society prize for science book of the year, and it’s called Testosterone Rex, and it is excellent.

(Bonus: it’s making old white men really really mad.)

(Bonus bonus: I am myself a neuroscientist, and the old white men mentioned above – who are not – could not have missed the point harder if they’d actively tried. Which. Maybe?)

witch-apologist:

genderqueerpositivity:

I am now even more strongly in favor of removing sex and gender markers from identification and legal documents.

I see no reason for the government to collect and keep information about gender identity or assigned sex on an individual basis. The only time that question should be asked is during a census, and answering it should be voluntary.

Remove sex and gender markers from drivers licences, passports, voter registration cards, and birth certificates.

At best, legal gender/sex markers can be inaccurate. At worst? They can be weaponized by the state and used to enable oppression against already vulnerable communities.

Protect trans, nonbinary, gender non-conforming, and gender diverse lives.

Let’s not forget intersex people!

They belong on official documents about as much as race markers.

And I’m sure there were very similar objections to removing those, where they were a thing until disturbingly recently. Better to ask people in the unusual case where any related info is actually relevant.

bittersnurr:

a-rinna:

fierceawakening:

maid-of-timey-wimey:

chelonianmobile:

tumblr user 1: i have issues identifying my gender and orientation due to borderline personality disorder

tumblr user 2: fair enough

tumbr user 1: which is why i am BORDERLINEGENDER and BORDERLINESEXUAL because my gender and sexuality can change and are determined by a mental illness

tumblr user 2: wait no that’s not how it works

tumblr user 2: that belief is actually very harmful to the lgbtaq community and also delegitimises the struggle of living with bpd

tumblr user 1: Y DO U HATE NEURODIVERGENT TRANS PPL

So it seems clear from context that OP is against neurogenders, but this post doesn’t actually make me any more sympathetic to User 2. User 1 never implied that all lgbtaq orientations and genders are caused/influenced by mental illness, they just said their own were. And how are they “delegitimizing” THEIR OWN illness?

Yeah. Like… I haven’t heard this with BPD, but I do hear it fairly often from autistic people. And it seems there actually are a lot of autistic trans people. So if someone wants to say “I think my self-conception of my gender is influenced by the way my neurology works,” okay. “Autismgender” seems like a usable abbreviation, even.

If you want me to use neopronouns, I’ll probably ask if they/them is acceptable to you, but aside from that I’m not sure why that would be objectionable?

I mean, the old-school “we think this is what the science says but we’re not totally sure” understanding was that prenatal hormones can influence (but not wholly dictate) gender identity and sexual orientation, and if that’s possible/likely, why couldn’t neurological differences do so too?

Yeah, I don’t ID as either borderlinegender or borderlinesexual but I do have BPD and I completely understand why other people with BPD would ID with these terms just from my own experience in questioning my sexuality, because my BPD absolutely impacts that to a significant degree.

I don’t think being borderline on its own has directly caused me to be queer, it’s not the only factor involved, but it definitely influences my sexuality and my ability to feel sexual and romantic attraction and the degree/frequency to which I feel them to the point that it has made it pretty damn difficult for me to figure out just what terms apply to my orientation.

A major reason I primarily ID as queer is because of this, even, because if not for ‘queer’ I’d be spending all my time explaining “well I’m technically bi but also kinda grey-aro/grey-ace because my mental illness makes the way I experience attraction fluctuate from one day/hour/minute to another and for every stretch of time I’m sure I’m attracted equally to people of all genders, I’m totally devoid of attraction for another stretch of time and….” — and yeah, I’m not doing that. I’m tired just typing it out.

So I get 100% why someone with BPD would need a specific term to describe that their BPD is a major influence on how they experience either their gender or orientation or both. It’s a valid way to feel and it’s not an uncommon experience, either (there are people in various bpd tags who post about questioning because their bpd makes things so confusing pretty much every week), and I don’t think it delegitimizes the LGBTQiA+ community or other people with BPD at all.

I think it is mostly a problem where people think you shouldn’t even count as anything but cishet because you might have been cishet if you were neurotypical. It basically results in a subtle “you are not allowed to choose your identity because your perceptions are off”.

And this is extra miserable because idk about other disabled people but I CANNOT PASS as my damn asab because I cannot “preform” femininity correctly. So basically you get outgrouped by you assigned gender then try and find spaces for whatever gender you are and then get told you are failing at THAT for being disabled.

If disabled people ID as trans because they are disabled then that to some people, seems to imply that all transpeople are broken and should be forced to go to conversion therapy…. but I have literally been advised to have conversion therapy by lgbtq people because THEY are fine and normal but I AM broken i guess. Like I have read articles about transgender autistics killing themselves because they were told by gender clinics they couldn’t transition until their autism was CURED. In other words NEVER.

And this doesn’t even get into the fact this also applies to sexuality. Having any sort of baggage is often considered abusive. People will frequently tell people they aren’t allowed to date until they “recover” and I bought into that as a kid but 10 years later and I am now WORSE because of isolation. It doesn’t matter what your sexuality is either. You’d think that you would at least be allowed to be asexual but nope, being anything but straight when disabled is endorsing the “broken” narrative. Every other group will try and force you into the ace box but the ace community also hates you so even if you ARE ace you have no support.

But you know it’s not ableism or anything you’re just trying to sneek into spaces to ruin things for the REAL LGBTQ people.

myceliorum:

lierdumoa:

benfael:

stars-glow-for-you:

fierceawakening:

ferenofnopewood:

jumpingjacktrash:

moldytony:

was cruisin my tl & this is so fucking important

i think the moment i was disillusioned about life was when i was maybe 7 years old and realized the reason all my friends had become assholes was because boys aren’t allowed to have any physcial contact that isn’t fighting

my parents were hippie feminists so my brother and i could play clapping games and sleep in puppy piles and give each other weird hairdos, but all the ‘normal’ boys just up and stopped knowing how to touch anyone without hitting sometime between kindergarten and first grade

and my little kid mind briefly saw the vastness of life stretching out in front of all of us, and all the hugs everyone would need and not get, and for a moment i was just like

maybe life is not such a good idea after all

I grew up around a Russian ballet school. Let me tell you something about Russian men: They touch each other. Especially dancers, who are in my experience almost always super tactile people. They rough house like Americans, but they also hug each other, and sit on each other’s laps, and share blankets when it’s cold backstage.

So I grew up knowing full well that the whole Men Don’t Touch thing was puritanical bullshit.

What I was absolutely not prepared for, however, is the super intense effect it has on straight men’s romantic relationships.

Because when you are literally the only person it is okay for your boyfriend to touch, Jesus fucking Christ, that changes the game.

I strongly suspect that a lot of Str8 Dude feelings of entitlement to women’s bodies, particularly the bodies of their wives and girlfriends, is a direct result of those women being the only non-violent physical contact they’re allowed to have.

I know for certain that the framing of any and all platonic physical contact as un-manly has been directly responsible for a lot of sexual dysfunction (and then the attendant misery of trying to get that treated at the ripe old age of 22) with at least one of my exes. It’s a mess when you can’t get it up because you’re depressed and want to be held but you’ve been brainwashed into thinking what you actually want is sex because being held is for girls.

Amazing how the erectile dysfunction went completely away when he learned the difference between feeling horny and feeling cuddly. /sarcasm

“I strongly suspect that a lot of Str8 Dude feelings of entitlement to women’s bodies, particularly the bodies of their wives and girlfriends, is a direct result of those women being the only non-violent physical contact they’re allowed to have.”

Omfg

No wonder the worst of them seem crazy… profound isolation does exactly that

When I taught in Japan, the boys were all super comfortable with each other. They’d sit on laps and hug and roughhouse and it wasn’t seen as bad ? Like it surprised me at first, but then you realize the problem is with so many men feeling that they have to prove… something? I dunno. I personally don’t like hugs or touches, but that is my own personal reasons and nothing of how I was brought up.

Thank you all for this. Specifically @ferenofnopewood.

Because when you are literally the only person it is okay for your boyfriend to touch, Jesus fucking Christ, that changes the game.

Things I never thought of…I couldn’t imagine if my husband were the only person I was allowed to touch. As I think on it, that extends to the kids, too. The dudes aren’t allowed to really even cuddle their own damned children or nieces and nephews.

Wow.

Also explains why western media romanticizes co-dependency in romantic relationships to such an insane degree.

Also controls what people look at. I child watch in public a lot. Like people watching but watching kids specifically. Talked to a guy who said as a man and a brown man especially he has to control his gaze so it never falls on a child stranger in public. And he works with kids for a living and loves kids! But has had close calls especially with white parents. I’m gender ambiguous looking but white and disabled and whatever one of those makes a difference could be several, but I strike people as far more harmless even though I get sirred enough to know many people take me as a dude. (Genderless biofemale with more than the usual facial hair and endocrine issues that affect appearance.) I don’t get in trouble for merely watching kids and feel terrible that anyone does just based on perceived gender and race. Like he has to watch where his eyes go to keep from being taken for a sex offender or something and that’s just not right. Like stalking kids would be creepy but watching them run around being cute in public should just be a thing that happens and glancing at them shouldn’t be an issue.