LadyEllen
Posts: 10931
Joined: 6/30/2006
From: Stourport-England
Status: offline
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At the risk of not getting any work done today at all, and bearing in mind that I try to keep a cool head when posting on these fora (see the Israel, Fascism etc threads), I am having extreme difficulty in not yelling!
There seems to be some confusion in the ranks here about the whole "trans" theme - a confusion which rears it head throughout society as a whole and for some reason particularly in BDSM.
Firstly, there are many sub-groups in the general description "trans", ranging from the occasional crossdresser through to the transsexual. However, despite common misconception, there is not a spectrum connecting these various participants. To oversimplify greatly and with apologies to those for whom this does not apply exactly, there are two main groups who fall under the general "trans" clasification here and everywhere else.
Firstly there is the transvestite who usually dresses in clothes of the opposite gender for short periods for emotional/erotic purposes. More often than not, the TV is heterosexual and indulges his passion because he loves women so much that he wants to experience their world through their apparel, an experience which in his case often leads to erotic arousal due to his proximity to the female by way of her appearance and clothes as a substitution for a female. Equally, some TVs feel great relief when dressed as a female from the macho world in which they must normally function, being able instead to indulge in what males perceive as the less stressful female world. That this relief is of exactly the same nature as gained by submissives in wearing a collar and placing themselves in the hands of another is notable. The TV is released from his day to day life where he is forced into a stressful role, just as the slave is. At the same time, crossdressing also allows the TV to remove all inhibitions he might normally feel - I have seen enough normal hetero males indulging in homosexual acts whilst dressed to know this first hand. Again, this is the same release from inhibition that many submissives yearn for and attain through submission. The argument that transvestism does not belong to BDSM is therefore incorrect - what is so different about crossdressing compared to say donning a PVC mask in order to shift persona and role play I wonder?
Then there is the transsexual who has been born with an incongruence between their physical sex and their psychological identity. This is not a lifestyle choice, neither is it perverse or evidence of mental illness, (reclassification is under way right now). Research indicates that it is the result of foetal development whereby hormonal levels go haywire and the child is born with a body of one sex and a brain of the other. Its not the same as intersex, but similar in nature in some ways. The TS person lives a life of pretence to fit in with societal expectations, becoming more and more miserable until they either commit suicide or get treatment. They go through a lot of shit (sorry for that word) to make their bodies congruent with their minds, losing jobs, relationships, families and sometimes even their lives, and to achieve what the majority feel - sufficient comfort with their identity such that they dont feel "wrong". Once the treatment is completed, they are of the new sex in all but one regard, the reproductive aspect - however if the ability to produce children is what makes one male or female, then we should also discount any infertile people as invalid males and females surely? And if we go down the route of division by genetics, then how do intersex people fit into this division?
The transition from one sex to the other is one which requires total commitment and time. However that is not to say that all the person concerned is, is TS. They are still the people they were, with all the tastes, interests and abilities they had before - often more. The position in BDSM seems to be that a TS person is that alone, as if they had no right to any form of sexual activity, let alone participation. This is ridiculous. Its the same sort of reasoning which says that old people and disabled people should have no sex life, as if being put in a box should remove some or all rights. If I get my leg amputated, am I thenceforth expected to occupy my entire being to the exclusion of all else in being an amputee!?
Now, no one is saying that you should love a TV or TS or even like one - you should get to know them and then decide just as you do with anyone else. Prejudice against a person or group is simply stupid. I hope the above helps in educating and so removing some of the prejudice out there.
regards
E (a TS, a parent, a company director, guitarist, linguist and a million other things besides!)
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RE: Looking to form an all T-gurl HEavy rock BAnd!! - 
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