Over the past year or so, transgender rights have reached a boiling point. This has led to countless people having multiple questions. Many wonder what a transgender woman is, what transgender means, who transgender people are, and more.
Trans women have become more and more public, with this often leading to discrimination. On the other hand, transgender people are fighting for their rights more and more. Part of this involves highlighting the difference between sex and sexuality, among other areas.
What Does it Mean to Be a Transgender Woman?
So, what exactly does it mean to be a transgender woman? The term refers to a woman who was born biologically male, but who has transitioned to become a woman. Transgender people have a deeply personal sense they were born in the wrong body, and they take active steps to change their gender.
For trans women, this means they were born biologically male, but their gender identity says they’re a female. To put it bluntly, transgender women were born male, but have gone through medical procedures to become their own gender that their gender identity says they are.
Their sex is different from what they were assigned at birth, according to an American journal and national center of human rights focusing on the matter. Trans women have received medical treatments to make their physical appearance match up with their gender identity.
They’ll usually go through hormone therapy to help with their transition. This hormone therapy, and other health care and treatments, usually starts in a person’s teenage years or early twenties. Many transgender people, unfortunately, are forced to wait until they’re older, however.
Transgender People Explained
As mentioned above, transgender people are people whose gender identity doesn’t match up with the sex assigned at birth. Trans people have an internal sense of their own gender, and this doesn’t match up with what was assigned at birth. It’ll be on the opposite end of the gender binary.
Many of them will even be non-binary, and will identify as somewhere between male and female. Transgender people can be referred to in different ways. The key terms they use are:
- Transgender person
- Transexual
- Male or female (depending on gender identity)
- Non-binary
- Gender non-conforming
A trans person assigned male will identify as a transsexual woman, and a transgender person assigned female at birth will identify as a man. This depends on their transgender identity, and many transgender people are gender non-conforming.
Transgender equality has been a hot topic for years, and people of various gender identities have constantly been fighting for it. The trans community has been fighting for their gender expression and, throughout this time, they have been victims of violence and discrimination.
Verbal violence and discrimination have been a core part of this. Most transgender people have been the victim of this at some point or another. This is in spite of where in the transition process they are, and they have been physically attacked because of it. That’s especially true of transgender women.
All because they were assigned male at birth but their gender expression doesn’t match up with their birth documents.
Intersex people and people whose gender doesn’t match what they were assigned at birth experience mental health and substance abuse issues because of this. Society has yet to catch up with this, and transgender people describe more and more discrimination every day.
A lot of transgender people live in fear because of that. That being said, society is starting to change and improve, though life as a transgender woman or man is still difficult. A human rights campaign is helping with this, as well as getting legal protections for trans people.
Which Pronouns Should Be Used
This begs the question as to how people should refer to transsexual people. Which pronouns should be used? It’s not exactly like it’s appropriate to ask for identity documents. There’s a right or wrong way of doing this, and it depends on the person’s gender identity.
A great step toward transgender equality is knowing which pronoun should be used, and one’s gender identity should be what anyone pays attention to. It depends on where on the gender binary they fall into.
Usually, this means referring to them as either male or female. Their primary or secondary sex characteristics shouldn’t be a factor in this. Asking them whether they wish to be referred to as male or female is a great step with this.
Transgender people seek validation with their gender identity, and this is vital to the process. Not all transgender people want to be called male or female, however. For some, their gender identity falls in a gray area.
They’re not male or female, with this being described as non-binary. In this case, asking them which pronouns they prefer is recommended. Ask them about their gender identity, regardless of what their physical characteristics say.
Difference Between Transgender and Intersex
People often confuse the terms transgender and intersex, with a few even being confused by the term non-binary. What exactly is intersex, and how does it relate to being transgender? Being intersex means a person isn’t born with the typical reproductive organs that would be expected.
While some non-binary people can be intersex, it’s a separate category entirely. In most cases, an intersex person doesn’t have any reproductive organs. Many often go on to have treatments and surgeries to create these organs, which is why some people believe they’re transgender.
That isn’t the case, though. As mentioned above, a transgender person is born with a stereotypical sex, but this doesn’t match up with their gender identity. If they’re born biologically male but their gender identity says they’re female, they’ll transition from male to female.
An intersex person, on the other hand, doesn’t exactly fit into the traditional standards of female or male. If they go through any medical treatments, it’ll be to help them represent their gender identity.
They’ll identify as male or female, but they wouldn’t be born with the reproductive organs that come with this. Others will identify as non-binary, so they might decide not to pursue any medical treatments to change their reproductive organs.
Because of that, the terms transgender and intersex describe completely different people.
Is This Different From Sexual Orientation?
Countless people believe that being transgender has an impact on a person’s sexuality. This isn’t the case, though. The term ‘transgender’ is used to describe someone who transitions from one gender to another. They’re either assigned male or assigned female when they’re born, despite the fact this doesn’t match up with their gender identity.
This has nothing to do with whether someone’s gay, bisexual, straight, or a lesbian. A transgender person can be a gay man who was born biologically female, for example. One’s gender identity doesn’t affect who they want to have sex with. Sexual orientation isn’t a factor in this.
A trans woman can be straight, bisexual, or lesbian, the same way a transgender man can be gay, straight, or bisexual. Both gender identity and sexual orientation can encompass a wide spectrum of factors. While there might be some overlap between these in life, it doesn’t mean one directly impacts the other.
This is the case for any transgender person, with both male and female transgender people seeing their sexual orientation and gender identity as completely separate. They can still face discrimination because of this, especially if their sexual orientation is anything other than straight.
Some trans women solely have sex with women, while others prefer men. Transgender people can fall under any umbrella term related to sexual orientation.
How Is a Person’s Gender Identity Different From Being Non-Conforming?
It’s often seen that there are more than two gender identities, according to the National Center on Human Rights. Usually, people believe that transgender people fall into one of two categories: trans woman or transgender man. This isn’t the full picture, though.
Instead, there’s also what’s called gender non-conforming. Someone who’s non-conforming is a person who doesn’t fit neatly into the typical categories. While many transgender people will describe themselves as a transgender man or a trans woman, some don’t.
For some transgender people, their gender fluctuates over time. They could feel like a man one day, but identify as trans women the next. This is why so many people believe that gender dysphoria is overly common.
What About Gender Dysphoria?
When talking about transgender people, it’s important to mention gender dysphoria. Gender dysphoria refers to the psychological distress a transgender person experiences because their gender identity doesn’t match up with what they were assigned at birth.
Countless people whose gender identity doesn’t match up with their birth gender experience this. If they were male at birth, then they could experience distress because their gender identity is female.
This gender dysphoria can be a traumatic experience for them, leading to mental health issues. The term can be used to describe people psychologically suffering because of a difference between their birth gender and their true gender.
Gender dysphoria can be treated once transgender people can present as their gender identity.
What if Someone Has a Gender That isn’t Male or Female?
Some transgender people don’t identify as either a man or as a woman. Instead, they see themselves as somewhere in the middle. This can often be seen as gender non-conforming, but that isn’t always the case. Instead, their sex can be in somewhat of a gray area.
They don’t see themselves as men or women, but somewhere in the middle. This is often called genderqueer or non-binary, and these terms describe the same people. People who fall into this category go through life without identifying as either gender.
Summing It Up
Transgender people have been around for longer than many people realize. Despite this, the wider population often misconstrues gender, sex, and more. What is a trans woman, and many other questions pop into their minds.
While gender can be a confusing area, it doesn’t mean trans people don’t deserve to lead a fulfilling life.
Reference:
Transgender: What is it? What Does it Mean? – https://taimi.com/wiki/transgender/
Tips for Dating a Trans Girlfriend – https://taimi.com/blog/tips-for-dating-a-trans-girlfriend/
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