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Random Essays by Julia Serano This page contains an assortment of random essays I have written. For links to even more of my writings click here. Contents: my book review of Transgender Rights Paisley Currah, Richard M.Juang, Shannon Price Minter (editors) University of Minnesota Press, 2006 (this piece originally appeared in LiP Magazine #7, 2007) In their introduction to Transgender Rights, editors Paisley Currah, Richard M. Juang and Shannon Price Minter clearly sum up what sets this collection apart from many of the other transgender-focused anthologies and academic studies that have been published in recent years: By foregrounding the political concerns and efforts of trans people, we hope this collection helps shift the center of gravity for intellectual work about transgendered people. There is a substantial body of literature in the law, social sciences and humanities in which trans people appear; however, in much of this work, we tend to be used as exciting examples of the subversion or reification of gender, the undiscovered edges of legal discourse, or some hot new cultural underground... This collection strives to be an act of intellectual production that does not situate trans people as a means to an end or an intellectual curiosity but considers the well-being of trans people as an end in itself. In keeping with this goal, the contributors to Transgender Rights - most of whom have hands-on experience as transgender activists and advocates - provide what is perhaps the most comprehensive assessment of the current state of political and legal affairs regarding those who defy societal expectations and assumptions regarding gender; this includes people who are transsexual (i.e., who live as members of the sex other than the one they were assigned at birth), intersex (i.e., who are born with a reproductive or sexual anatomy that does not fit the typical definitions of female or male), genderqueer (i.e., who identify outside of the male/female binary), as well as those whose gender expression differs from their anatomical or perceived sex (for example, crossdressers, butch women, drag artists, etc.). Many of the essays touch on common civil rights topics such as marriage rights, child custody, employment discrimination, access to healthcare, and hate crimes. While many familiar high profile cases are discussed (such as the Michael Kantaras child custody trial or the murders of Brandon Teena and Gwen Araujo), where this collection truly stands apart from other offerings is in the descriptions and critical analyses of many lesser-known precedent-setting cases that have shaped the way transgender people are viewed under the law. A reoccurring theme throughout the book is how rigid societal beliefs about femaleness and maleness (often superficially based on one’s genitals, chromosomes, reproductive capacity, or ability and willingness to engage in heterosexual sex) effectively erase transgendered people from political and legal discourse. Examples cited in the book include instances where judges have completely terminated the rights of biological or adoptive parents solely because of their transgender status, rulings which deny transgender people any protection under sex discrimination laws, and the J’Noel Gardiner case, in which the Kansas Supreme Court’s ruling suggests that transsexuals are not allowed to marry anybody because they do not have an “opposite” sex. Unlike other writers (especially in the fields of gender and queer theory) who have the luxury of discussing the transgender movement in a conveniently abstract manner, the authors of Transgender Rights delve into many of the messy and paradoxical issues that complicate transgender activism. For example, while many theorists argue that gender variance should simply be de-pathologized, Judith Butler’s essay “Undiagnosing Gender” pragmatically describes the Catch 22 associated with Gender Identity Disorder, a psychiatric diagnosis that is vital for adult transsexuals to gain access to the medical and legal means to transition to their identified sex, yet also serves to stigmatize gender non-conforming children and teenagers who enter the psychiatric system because of their parents’ fears that they will grow up to be “gay”. Similarly, while many theorists argue that it is time to move beyond identity politics, Paisley Currah’s essay “Gender Pluralisms Under the Transgender Umbrella” discusses how non-identity-based approaches (for example, arguing for protection under freedom of expression) have failed to gain the legal and political traction that identity-based concepts like “gender identity” and “transgender” have. As Currah explains, “The transgender rights movement might be described as an identity rights movement that seeks the dissolution of the very category under which it is organized.” A number of essays in Transgender Rights are dedicated to highlighting the intersection of anti-trans sentiment and other forms of prejudice. Dean Spade’s contribution “Compliance Is Gendered” explains the ways in which capitalism, class and race often exacerbate anti-trans discrimination: “for low-income people caught up in the especially gender-regulating public relief systems and criminal justice systems that dominate the lives of the poor, the gender regulation of the economy is felt even more sharply.” Richard M. Juang’s piece “Transgendering the Politics of Recognition” focuses on how, “racism is frequently gendered, while gender discrimination is often shaped by racism.” And Shannon Price Minter’s essay “Do Transsexuals Dream of Gay Rights?” discusses the often acrimonious relationship between gay rights and transgender rights, providing a fascinating historical account of how classism and racism have contributed to the fracturing of these two movements from one another. In addition to chronicling difficulties regarding transgender law and policy, Transgender Rights also offers a number of promising new avenues for future activist work. Willy Wilkinson describes how collaborations between the transgender community and public health organizations in San Francisco helped to facilitate HIV prevention and access to health care in this marginalized population, as well as inspiring similar programs in other cities. Jennifer L. Levi and Bennett H. Klein recount the progress that has been made pursuing protection for transgendered people through disability laws. While some have a knee-jerk reaction against taking this approach, as it seems to imply that the person in question suffers from a detrimental or limiting health condition (a claim many transgender people strongly reject), Levi and Klein remind us that disability antidiscrimination laws also cover people who are “regarded as” having a disability - a definition that can certainly be applied to transgendered people, who are regularly depicted by others as being “sick” or “abnormal”. In one of the few non-U.S. legal developments addressed in the book, Morgan Holmes and Nohemy Sol—rzano-Thompson focus on a 1999 decision by the Colombian Constitutional Court that protected “bodily autonomy and informed consent for an intersexed minor over a parent’s desire that she undergo potentially ’risky surgeries or treatments that do not produce health benefits’.” While this decision is not without caveats, the authors are optimistic that it may help pave the way for similar decisions, thus potentially leading to the termination of the damaging non-consensual genital surgeries that are regularly performed on intersex infants and children. The fact that Transgender Rights starts from the premise that transgender people are entitled to the same rights and protections as non-trans people is refreshing. It is about time for discussions about transgender people to move beyond the superficial sensationalization, objectifying descriptions of body parts and sex reassignment surgeries, and obsessions over the potential causes of transgenderism that dominate public discourse. While Transgender Rights may disappoint those who are merely “fascinated” by gender variant people, it will surely be appreciated and enjoyed by those who have an interest in transgender rights, gender and queer activism, civil rights and social justice. return to the top of the page or check out my writings page. |
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