Category: Blog

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Complicit in your own self-self-mutilization?

 

bimo mentara patriarchy.jpg

Bell hooks (born Gloria Jean Watkins) is an African-American author, feminist, and social activist. Her writing has focused on the interconnectivity of race, class, and gender and their ability to produce and perpetuate systems of oppression and domination.

In a recent interview on The Transamorous Network Podcast, due out soon, we talked about the power of the patriarchy, its viciousness and its vile effect….

Not on women.

On men.

What does this have to do with trans attraction?

A lot. The shame you feel being trans-attracted rests deep in the vileness of the patriarchy. Like the quote says: patriarchy’s first violent act is within men.

Something to think about. Some questions to help you:

  • Why do you keep thinking you’re gay because you find trans women attractive?
  • Why are you asserting your straightness in online dating ads and other communiques about your interest in trans women?
  • What are you afraid of in owning your trans-attraction?
  • What do you have to lose if you do own your attraction to these beautiful people?
  • Is what you have to lose really so valuable that you are willing to tolerate being less than, expressing less than all you are?

All of this is definitely worth thinking about. Contact us if you need someone to talk with about this.

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Fear and loathing creates more fear and loathing

Screen Shot 2018-06-12 at 10.51.49 AM.jpgRemy was a star last week.

Portland Community College’s (PCC) art department, invited her to critique a highly controversial sculpture. I attended for moral support.

Controversy surrounded the work because, apparently, it was created by a cisgender woman. And PCC’s transgender community…well actually, apparently two community members…were not happy with it.

The artist’s work was not only displayed in the college’s art gallery, it won an award.

Both accomplishments attested to the work’s technical quality. But its subject matter was significantly disturbing…to some.

The artwork was of a transgender woman. The sculpture depicted the subject in repose, her legs crossed. Between her legs a disproportionately HUGE penis (IMO) laying flaccid against her thigh.

We were told (although we couldn’t see it) that the “ball sack” was squeezed between her legs from the back.

This piece pissed off two transgender community members and perhaps a small number of non-trans community members for a couple reasons. According to those present, the artwork exploited “trans ness”, was “cultural appropriation” and left at least one transgender woman feeling “exposed” in the PCC community, causing her to have panic attacks among other intense feelings.

Another student, not a trans community member, was nonetheless upset because the artist, amidst the controversy, changed her explanation about the work. This student felt the artist didn’t stand by or acknowledge the work’s controversial nature. She thus  disrespected the community through her naive understanding of the transgender community and issues surrounding it.

During the event we attended, the artist did seem visibly upset by the controversy, and also expressed extreme regret for the outcome. I’ll get to in a future post.  She did allude to her own ambiguity around her gender, suggesting her artwork was an extension of that.

I intend to interview her in a subsequent post. There’s a lot to unpack around the flap that generated around this bronze work.

This post is about teeing up the subject. I don’t want to try to explain all that happened because so much did happen and there is a TON to explore about that. So in my next post, I’ll bring more to light.

But what I will say here is the exchange offered a glimpse into all kinds of opinions people have about the controversial topic that is “trans ness.”

And it’s really fascinating.

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Be thoughtful about Pride Month

Chris Johnson WHAT STORIES
Photo by Chris Johnson

Seems every minority has a month. The LGBTQ community is no exception. This month is Pride.

An interesting factoid about Pride: it was spearheaded by the transgender community. Pride sprung from the Stonewall Riots. A major figure at Stonewall was Marsha P. Johnson, a well-known black transwoman in the community. Her and other transgender people were primarily responsible for sowing the seeds which became pride festivals celebrated across the country.

But that’s not really the real interesting factoid. The really interesting factoid is that while gay, lesbian and bisexuals primarily benefit from Pride awareness, those same communities once rejected transgender people from their ranks.

To some degree they still do. Despite this, we see a tremendous upsurge of transgender awareness. I think that’s exceptional. Trans people will not be held back. They represent a leading edge of what it means to be human and humanity is wanting to express itself in ALL ways.

Regardless how others think about transgender people and the people who love them, Pride offers a reminder for transgender people and those who find transgender people attractive to check your stories. What is it you’re thinking about who and what you are? Are your stories positive? Are they uplifting? They better be if you’re wanting what you want.

Your stories about you, about the world, about everything are determining your life experience. This month, take a moment to reflect on what you’re thinking, sharing, tweeting, reposting, reading.

It makes all the difference in the only world that matters: yours.

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How we can help more…

elizabeth-tsung-HOLDING HANDSI’m thinking about a different approach to The Transamorous Network that I hope will make our work more accessible. Quite a few men have downloaded our guides. Quite a few people (men and women) are watching our shows. But I think we can be more effective as allies to trans-attracted men and transwomen. So I’m thinking through a process to make that happen.

It’s more than just thinking actually. I’m testing the ideas in my newest company Positively Focused. Initial ideas and implementation has got me excited. We’ll see how the results match that excitement.

Like everything in our society, without money it’s difficult to accomplish anything significant. I think I have some ways to create more money flowing in. But it’s going to take some deliberate effort focused on that and that alone. But I promise efforts to generate more cash will benefit all the people who onus our content.

Stay tuned. I think you’ll be as interested as I am.