One of the assumptions made by many is that everyone in the world belongs to one gender or the other. You’re either male or female and that’s it.
Which puts Genderqueer identifying people in a bit of a bind; they’re always expected to take the plunge and be the Man or Woman they were always meant to be.
Gender isn’t quite so black and white, but Genderqueer peeps are fighting for recognition in a binary gendered world, and they’re fighting hundreds, perhaps thousands of years of societal expectation.
Jacob Tobia writes about this very issue in their MTV article.
Like so many genderqueer people, my transition has not been from one gender identity to “the other.” Rather, it has been from the well-understood categories of man and woman to an identity outside traditional notions of gender. Over the years, I’ve learned to embrace both my love of lipstick and my facial hair, my affinity for sequins and my broad shoulders. I’ve learned to love all parts of myself equally, to hold my femininity and my masculinity in tandem — understanding them not in opposition, but as compliments to one another.
They also make a point that I’m sure most Genderqueer identifying people (and indeed anyone who doesn’t identify as strictly male or female) will relate to:
Before you ask a genderqueer or gender non-conforming person when they’re going to “fully” transition, consider for a moment what you’re really saying. You’re telling them that their body, as it currently exists, is unacceptable, that their gender identity is somehow incomplete.
Read the full article at MTV.Com
You can also visit their website at jacobtobia.com
