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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
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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
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*
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
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Continued on Page 29
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