It's been a while since I've done one of these, but I decided to join this Sunday's Stream of Consciousness Sunday at Jana's Thinking Place. Today's optional writing prompt is, "I Don't Understand..." A small sampling of the many things I don't understand:
I don't understand the whole "I didn't know I was pregnant" phenomenon - and yet a woman that I've known for years - going back to grade school - just gave birth to a baby boy without knowing she was pregnant. I know it happens with some regularity - enough that there's a TV show about it - but it's still just really strange to me.
But then I've never been pregnant, so I would have no idea what it's supposed to feel like.
I also don't understand people whose function in life seems to be to rain on everyone else's parade.
I don't understand transphobia. In the past week or so, I happen to have read one article and watched one YouTube video about young people who are transgendered. I don't understand all the negativity, all the people who are so certain that everyone who has a penis has to be a boy and everyone who has a vagina has to be a girl. Put yourself in the shoes of someone who has the body of one gender but the brain of another - not an easy place to be, not by a long shot. Why would you want to be on the negative, narrow-minded side, the side that contributes to bullying and the alarmingly high transgender suicide and violence rates, instead of the supportive side?
Would it really be so bad to trust people to self-report their own gender? Do you really need to be the gender police and check that everyone's anatomy matches their driver's license? Will your world really end if you admit that some people are transgendered, and you can't neatly divide all human beings into males and females?
I understand this much: some people are born one gender and become another. Some people are born intersexed (another thing I don't understand - how, in the 21st century, people still use derogatory words like "shemale" and "hermaphrodite" for intersexed individuals) - in fact, it's relatively common, not only in humans but in a variety of animal species - and some people choose to be third-gendered or non-gendered. Gender is social as much as it is biological, if not more so. Why reduce an entire human being and all of that person's social interactions down to what genitalia the person has?
I don't understand all the attempts to shame people based on their anatomy. When did things that are none of your business unless you're a urologist become more important than treating people with respect, decency and kindness?
3 comments:
Well Erin, you sure spelled it all out nicely for us. Thank you. I am of the opinion that you're correct and the judgments should stop. Be a good person. Do the right thing for yourself and others. Love with all your heart, soul, and spirit. Live and let live. Peace. Yes, I grew up in the 60s. :)
Well, I certainly don't think anyone should judge anyone in that position. How would you know what you would do?
Like they don't have enough to deal with? Oh no, that's right, social ignorance is ALL they have to deal with. As long as they can get on with their lives as they should - without inappropriate intrusion and judgement from others, they'd have no issue. I get tired of ignorance and prejudice and my husband is one of them. He doesn't even understand homosexuality. The only time he's religious is when he proclaims: God made Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve! I mean please. It's a good job I love him and do not judge him by his level of ignorance. Of course, he'd never force his opinions on other nor damn those who do not fit into his provincial idea of the world.
Great to be back - I have a working VPN service again. I can break down the doors of over 18 blogs again! :D X
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