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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (May 7, 2004)
may 7 .2Q04 * SIAVQ AJ.HVPJ AB SO lO H d Genderqueer: Used to describe identities that transgress boundaries of gender identifica tion as well as sexual identifica tion. This term is growing in popularity as it is understood to be less rigidly defined than either “transgender” or "transsexual,” in much the same way that “queer” can be used to encompass gay, lesbian and bisexual. G ender variance: G ender behavior and/or presentation that varies from traditionally defined “masculinity” in males and “femininity” in females. Melissa Shepherd coordinates the Trans Advocacy G roup at Basic Rights Oregon Intersex: A person whose bio logical and/or genetic structure at birth does not correspond with conventional con cepts of male/female anatomy. This term is often preferred to the dated term “hermaphrodite.” effective ally and a list of local resources leave participants with a “way to keep talking to each other when we’re gone,” says Shepherd. Janice Schaefer, a panel member who iden tifies as a lesbian, male-to-female, pre-operative transsexual, adds: “Each person speaks for themselves. G ender has been seen as a continuum—one end male and one end female. It’s very binary. I believe all of us [in TAG] recognize that gender is a lot bigger than that. It may be a sphere. G ender is infinite. “My view of BRO and TA G ,” Schaefer con tinues, “is that we try to recognize that, more and more, there may be almost as many defini tions of ‘trans’ as there are people.” Sex: A person’s sex is determined by the presence of sex organs (vagina/uterus, penis/tes- ticles) and post-puberty by secondary sex char acteristics such as breasts or body hair. Tradi tionally, a person’s sex has been confined to the binary categories of male or female. T rans: O ften used as an umbrella term for gender variance th a t does n o t fit neatly into oth er categories. This term is employed by transsexuals, transgender folks and gender- A glossary of terms o give an idea of the various definitions that Schaefer is talking about, Just Out has compiled a brief suggested glossary. T he distinctions between the terms are not meant to include or exclude any individual or to tread on the complexity of anyone’s experi ence or identity. These terms are m eant as a baseline for the purposes of this article, no t as an authoritative list. T Cross-dresser: A person who sometimes employs the clothing and aesthetics of a gender other than one they typically present in their daily lives. Gender: T he set of social, aesthetic and behavioral expectations imposed upon an indi vidual based on the perception of that individ ual’s sex. Though gender identity is discussed as a specific aspect of personal identity, it cannot be separated from an individual’s race, class or historical moment. LOCALLY OWNED Christa-M argaret N elson is the operations manager at p:ear. She facilitates the Trans Youth G roup at the Sexual M inority Youth Resource C enter. O RG A N IC PR O D U CE | 1 2019 SE Belm ont W IT H R E T A IL SPACE (503)236-6496 •Organics to You H O M E ^ D E L I V E R Y OF ORGANIC GOODS w w w .o r g a n ic s to y o u .o r g | FITNESS A R I A I C E R T I F I E D F * A m k rica m A I | M 1 ■ I-ÜP m Transgender: A person who moves > * across gender bound • r . aries without altering their physical body. This movement can involve innumerable means of expression including dress, behavior and language. Transsexual: A person who has altered or intends to alter his or her physical body— through hormone treatments and/or surg eries— in order to create a physical presenta tion that more closely matches his or her inter nal sexual and gender identification (MTF: male-to-female transsexual, FTM: female-to- male transsexual). Teaching T to the GLBs hepherd says unique challenges arise when educating other queers on issues of 1 trans identities. “Gay and lesbian people.. .understand that they’re supposed to have a connection to trans people, but many times they don’t know why, or don’t internalize it,” she says. “Liberal attitudes that are catching up with sexual orientation are not catching up with gender identity. Genera tions of effort by trans folks are being left out, and trans folks are still behind [other] queer folks in regard to legislation and public perception.” Sexual minorities have traditionally organ ized around sexual orientation and in so doing have perhaps unintentionally reinforced binary notions about sex and gender. In some ways, the assertion that gender and sexuality are dis tinct and separate from one another has set the stage to exclude transgender and transsexual people from the queer community. Historically speaking, gender variant people have often been the queer community’s most vis ible and accessible members. The hutch/femme dynamic that dominated lesbian culture throughout the early 20th century banked upon the gender separation of behaviors and aesthetics as cues about sexual roles. Women courted and coupled based on the hutch/femme scheme, which offered a recognizable albeit limited ver sion of gender presentation. Drag performance— which highlights gender’s performative nature— was popularized as enter S ! * IU N C IL L O N ‘‘I t is divisive — w ith in th e sex an d g e n d e r co m m u n ity to m a k e fin e r a n d fin e r distinctions a b o u t w ho is in clu d ed in which g ro u p s ” - J a n S ch aefer tainment in the United States during the 1920s. Drag has long been a nexus of pride and celebra tion within gay circles. In fact, drag queens led the rebellion at Stonewall in 1969 that began the modem movement for queer rights. Though butch lesbians and drag queens of the mid-1900s would not have called them selves transgender, their experience points to the importance of gender variance in gay and lesbian history. Schaefer, 67, says she has watched trans identities and notions of gender change over time. She sees the shared interests between the gay, lesbian and bi communities and the trans community and is aware of the misconceptions that hamper coalitions between the two. “G ender is a cultural thing,” says Schaefer. “We have expectations of men and women’s behavior. If you don’t meet those expectations in your looks or your behavior, it doesn’t m at ter how you see yourself. You are going to have difficulties. T hat is not about sexuality, it’s about gender. Many people in the queer com munity don’t recognize th at.” Schaefer believes it is precisely the common experience of social exclusion around sexual- ized identities that makes cooperation between trans and nontrans queers important. “It is divisive within the sex and gender community to make finer and finer distinctions about who is included in which groups,” she says. “I believe that coalition building is the kind of work we need to be doing— recognizing multiple oppressions.” Schaefer and other trans people also note that it is essential to recognize that these iden tity components are very often present in the same people. In the way that a person may he a woman and also queer, another person may be trans and also queer. Schaefer’s experience with TAG has given her the opportunity to interact at length with young genderqueers who she has come to admire. “Young people are much more out and It’s Me! 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