My Gifted Life

I was thinking about going to the Portsmouth NH women’s march tomorrow. So I started reading about trans women and the women’s marches and uncovered and unfortunate truth. Many of my sisters are a thin skinned and, pardon me for saying so, whiny bunch. We whine about the number of trans speakers, the use of female genital symbols, the central concentration of women as being women for their whole lives.

I have news for you. For the overwhelming majority of women, that’s just the truth. Talking about their bodies doesn’t disrespect your body. It doesn’t say they won’t include you under the “woman” label, but remember that there are some very real differences, especially with those of us transitioning in middle years.

Do I think trans women are women, yes. Do I think we need attention on some of these important issues? Absolutely! We are murdered, raped, assaulted, and harassed like all of our sisters. But don’t be down on women who don’t immediately think female brain + penis = woman, I daresay it takes some of us awhile to warm to the notion and we have a vested interest.

I’m staying away from the march. I have this fear I’ll run into TERFs and not be able to stop myself from arguing with them and ruin my whole week. In the  meantime I want a pussy hat.

One of the articles I read today had it right. For that matter I heard a similar comment from my mother in law thirty years ago.

The women’s movement or the women’s march focuses on affluent white women. The people who voted 53% for DJT while the rest of us screamed. They have no particular concern for the LGBT+ community, women of color, women of other faiths, women who do sex work, or other women who are not in their model of womanhood.

If I had my way, oy, if only….

• The women’s movement would stop being exclusive, first lesbians, nowadays there are few black women and no real concerted effort against the TERFs of the world
• We’d ignore the petty stuff. It is NOT NOT NOT trans phobia to put a portrayal of a breast, uterus, clit, vag or vulva on something at a woman’s march. Learn to embrace symbolism instead of being literal. If you still have a penis call it your outtie yoni or something else cute. Reframe.
• Given the current climate and the #me2 movement be practical that the focus is on that and women’s rights and that a woman’s march is not predominantly going to be about trans rights. Sure, it’d be nice but women = 50% of the population, trans = .3%, different audiences.