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June 23, 2009
 
What's In a Gender?

A friend of mine recently received an email with a series of pictures. The subject of the message was: "Guess who is a girl and who is a guy." The problem is that I'm pretty sure all of the women below consider themselves women, not "guys."

Click on a thumbnail for the full size pic.

The answer on the email: "All of them are GUYS!! Be careful out there!" This is the kind of viewpoint that some people have of transgender people, that we are trying to trick people or manipulate them into believing we're something we're not. It's not only completely false, but extremely offensive. These women are not "guys." They are women, and they are honest about who they are. Here's why: they are participating in a contest that is exclusively for women who were born men ("ladyboys" in Thailand). You can't even say they're trying to hide anything, since their very participation, the very reason these photos exist, says to the world that they were born male. They are honest about who they are, past, present and future. That's a lot more than can be said for many people who are not transgender.

These women should be applauded for their courage to go through the long, arduous process of transition and dealing with discrimination. And damn, they are really gorgeous! Congrats to all the participants!