Experiences of a Trans Person

[invalide]

I think it might be healthy to document here the experiences of someone from the other side, and for you to pay it some mind.

I'm an early-twenties STEM student working in renewable energies, and outside of my course I'm a photographer and musician. I've travelled a fair amount and adore my home country of Scotland. Living in Glasgow, I have found a queer community of beautiful people who create a joy to everyday life I treasure.

At the beginning of this month there was a 'Let Women Speak' rally held here that some of you here attended; I have seldom felt more unwelcome and stripped of dignity than while in your crowd, carrying out my photojournalistic duties (images 1&2). While capturing Kellie-Jay Keen pathologising my friends as subhuman perverts and members of the crowd flaunting their homophobia and their use of dogwhistles (subliminal far-right messaging) I was being brazenly looked up and down, receiving steely gazes and pursed lips and hushed whispers behind my back. While photographing the first speaker after Keen, who began her piece portraying autistic people as children devoid of agency, I was approached by one of you who made it clear I looked too queer for their liking and was squaring up for assault. I made my way out at this point (captured at 8:42 here and 9:09 here).
The atmosphere your movement brought to George Square was one I've only before experienced while documenting far-right rallies in Eastern Europe, where I have been hounded through the streets and beaten up for the same reason. I assure you, your ideology would feel very much at home there.

At the other side of the square things couldn't have been more different, you were bathed in colour and music and hugs and laughter, the place is full of friends dancing and dressed resplendent in whatever camp pretty things they felt like (images 2&3).

Ours was a crowd of locals; I strained to hear a Glasgow accent in yours.

Ours is a city that at short notice manages to fill the top of Buchanan Street (image 5) in solidarity with the queer community - the last time I saw it like this was during COP26. It's one that fills George Square in a candlelit vigil for Brianna Ghey.

Your movement has meant I'm called a pervert and a groomer while going about my average daily life. Our morally vacuous, increasingly fascist political class (thinking also of Magnus Hirschfeld and of Martin Niemöller's famous poem) is picking up what you've started and they're running with it. You may not call yourself a homophobe, a white nationalist or an antisemite, but you're sitting awfully comfortably considering that those that do find your movement incredibly attractive.

Look at the woman marshal giving the guy the WTF stare, and then re-read this part from the original post:

"I was approached by one of you who made it clear I looked too queer for their liking and was squaring up for assault. I made my way out at this point"

squaring up for assault
Reality never quite matches up with the story does it?
I bet you were in fear for your life from her eh?

@invalide

Personally, I think you could be female (haven't looked at any of the photos). But maybe female.

The issue with socialisation is by trying to identify out of it and create a separate cohort, you are acknowledging its continuing existence. Allowing it to happen, in fact.

Feminists, on the other hand, will address it. They will address the socialisation head on and campaign to change it.

How else do you think women got the vote, equal pay, access to education, mortgages and bank accounts?

You just pretend it won't happen to you if you pretend you're not whatever sex you are.

It's very much an 'I'm alright Jack, pull the ladder up' mindset. And it's bloody selfish.

Plus, it doesn't work. You'd have to continually disguise yourself in order to evade categorisation.

Who wants to live their life like that? Not many people. And certainly no feminist would slink away from the issue in that fashion.

Try and use your head, ffs.

The person in the photo doesn't look like the one in the twitter bio. Although could just be that he cut his hair, I suppose.

@Datun Twitter bio does not show a female.

OP, if that is you in the picture, that fishnet thing is going to give you some very odd tan lines come summer.

I didn't see the bio, but I'm sure you're right. The thing is it applies to men and women. Men are trying to identify out of toxic masculinity, instead of bloody addressing it.

But, obviously, I'm sure there's every chance that this person is just a common or garden patriarchy upholding, women scolding, self entitled male.

I was partly posting on the off chance, but also, just to get it down.

I see I've missed things whilst I've been absent. I've been skiing work. But whilst I'm in poem mode

SAY CHEESE

Non binary,
Like fine dinery,
Provides the education
To bring to your attention
The very simple facts...
That some men are just twats!

I haven't been skiing? WTF autocorrect? Doing work. Doing!

Twit

in fact in the times you've been out in public it's been a pretty even 50/50 men/women;

A non binary crowd huh?

😁

Skiing ⛷️

in fact in the times you've been out in public it's been a pretty even 50/50 men/women;

how can you tell?

Indeed - what about the poor enbys?

Guarantee I'd spend the next six months in traction!

Agree. A big clip in your hair does not make you gender non conforming. Nor does the tongue pose.

Fucking whoopee!

Why the fuck should one poster on this thread read a thing you say or post after you have posted that women who disagree with you should expect violence because = retaliation. And you have not even bothered to engage with what people have posted.

Not one person on this board owes you anything. If you want to see rates on detransition, we can provide you with statistics from different peer reviewed studies that show between 8.2% and up to 30%.

And tell us, why should we turn our attention to protecting male trans people in any prison? When we are currently fucking fighting to protect female inmates from being harmed from fucking male prisoners who have been moved into their prisons.

WOMEN ARE NOT HUMAN SHIELDS FOR MALE PRISONERS!

So, no. You don't get to come back on the thread to continue to lecture women and insist that you be listened to with no actual engagement with anything that has been said. The entitlement you have shown has very much been already interpreted by readers to your detriment and to your community.

And no. You fucking don't get to lecture women on the fucking patriarchy. And declaring yourself to not be a man doesn't remove you from being the fucking patriarchy. As your behaviour here has shown.

I have been to quite a few of these rallies now and you are also fucking incorrect in the claim that "the times you've been out in public it's been a pretty even 50/50 men/women;" And if you are going to try to argue 'but look at the footage', do you know how many women are NOT being shown on camera? Because of those fucking threats that you tell us are just 'retaliation'.

This post just shows more of that extreme entitlement and privilege that we see often, just the same as the other posts. How fucking unusual (not) for a male to do that and not even understand that they have done so.

Women have said 'no' and you and your mates have decided that us stating our boundaries makes us ripe for the threatening, because 'retaliation'. The patriarchy is fucking alive and well on this fucking thread.

Does ‘Queer’ just mean ‘dressed like a bag o’ mismatched shite’ or something?

I’m very appreciative of a stylish, gender nonconforming chap, eg David Bowie, Marc Bolan, L’il Nas X, Timothee Chalamet, even Harry Styles when he’s had a proper scrub in the shower first…

But a pair of discoloured hi tops, a beige bandana, a fishnet bodystocking and a hippy frock bought from one of those import shops that sell elaborate bongs and smell of dusty incense does not a stylish, gender non conforming chap make.

Currently trying to imagine David Bowie or Marc Bolan with a JD Sports carrier bag.

Failing.

Can’t be arsed to read the whole thread. Have we been called racist yet or do we still have that delight to come?

Yeah, that box was ticked early. It took a while to get to the ageism but we got there in the end.

@invalide Yeah, I think we’re all pretty over being lectured on the patriarchy by a 21-year old white man wearing a hairclip and sticking his tongue out.

Especially once you’ve admitted yourself that you’re pretty economical with the truth (eg. claiming at the start of the thread to be “a trans person”, then admiring you’re not. Haven’t you heard of the boy who cried wolf? Why should we believe a word you say when you yourself admit you’re not who you said you were?)

It’s fucking nonsense for a big, apparently able-bodied, young white man to be appropriating oppression and victimhood, purely on the basis of some little mean old ladies looking at him “brazenly”. Then trying to justify violence against women with nasty bits of made-up names and woman-hating slurs. We see you. And we see your bad dress sense. Sticking a hairclip in your hair is not the radical statement you seem to think it is.

You’re just wrong. You’re trying to cloak woman-hating violence behind a fake veneer of pretend victimhood. You should try growing up a bit, getting a job and learning some life skills instead to occupy your time. It’s weak-willed, childish and offensive to be running around with all this whinging, looking for all the world as if you’re stamping your foot at your mum for asking you to tidy your bedroom.

I’ve no more time for this — you come across as not remotely a decent person, not very clever, certainly not righteous, and most definitely not remotely kind.

Ooohhh!! I’m wearing a hair clip and a dress! Does that make me non binary or trans @invalide ? Or do I have to do the tongue pose too? Asking for clarity? 😀