Books and books have been written about being transgender. This page is meant to cover some very basic concepts. It is very hard for cisgender (birth sex and gender identity in synch) people to understand what it means to be trans. To discuss being trans is further complicated by the many labels and terms used by lay-people and professionals, not always carrying the same meaning.
Much of the information presented comes from on-line articles and websites, speakers, conferences, books, and trans individuals sharing personal experiences. A list of just a few book and videos can be found on the trans book page.
More to come....please be patient.
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Gender Variant? Gender Fluid? Transgender? Transsexual? Crossdresser? Cross Gender? Trans?
These words seem to be thrown about quite a bit today. Among people involved (one way or another) with the transgender community it appears that there is little agreement on what, exactly they mean. Psychiatrists have one view. Therapists have an opinion. And the lay person, something different. So often people are asked, "so what are you?" Perhaps, in the future, just answering, "me" will suffice. In the meantime we are saddled with a plethora of terms and labels. The word transgender was coined by founder of the Society for the Second Self (Tri-ess), Virginia Prince. A crossdresser, Virginia used the word as a description for those who went beyond the traditional societal gender norms: trans (beyond) - gender. We might look at it as a word to describe any individual for whom there are incongruities between their birth sex and their gender core. Used this way, it becomes an "umbrella" word, covering a variety of different people. (Hence the term "transgender umbrella.") So, for a person to say they are "trans" could mean any number of things. As Helen Boyd, professor of gender studies at Lawrence University said, "if you've met one trans person, you've met one trans person."
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Much of the information presented comes from on-line articles and websites, speakers, conferences, books, and trans individuals sharing personal experiences. A list of just a few book and videos can be found on the trans book page.
More to come....please be patient.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gender Variant? Gender Fluid? Transgender? Transsexual? Crossdresser? Cross Gender? Trans?
These words seem to be thrown about quite a bit today. Among people involved (one way or another) with the transgender community it appears that there is little agreement on what, exactly they mean. Psychiatrists have one view. Therapists have an opinion. And the lay person, something different. So often people are asked, "so what are you?" Perhaps, in the future, just answering, "me" will suffice. In the meantime we are saddled with a plethora of terms and labels. The word transgender was coined by founder of the Society for the Second Self (Tri-ess), Virginia Prince. A crossdresser, Virginia used the word as a description for those who went beyond the traditional societal gender norms: trans (beyond) - gender. We might look at it as a word to describe any individual for whom there are incongruities between their birth sex and their gender core. Used this way, it becomes an "umbrella" word, covering a variety of different people. (Hence the term "transgender umbrella.") So, for a person to say they are "trans" could mean any number of things. As Helen Boyd, professor of gender studies at Lawrence University said, "if you've met one trans person, you've met one trans person."
Next Page --->