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Guest Post #4: A Conversation Between Transmasculine Me and Queer Woman Me

6/7/2012

8 Comments

 
This is a guest post by BW reader Jack Kaulfus, who also blogs at www.jackkaulfus.com and teaches writing in Austin, Texas:


I’m out there somewhere on the trans spectrum, socially and politically (by "trans," I mean one who self-identifies as transgender, transsexual, or gender variant).  But I've always felt more inclined to identify myself as a woman--even if it means coming out to everybody in a 100 yard radius when the soccer referee insists that my coed team needs another woman on the field to continue the game.  This past Tuesday, I was reduced to screaming "I'm a GIRL!" down the field after a short but excruciating "Who’s On First" set between my team captain and the ref.  My name is Jack, so that complicates things further. 

Every time there is a public misgendering in which I am ultimately perceived as a woman,  I sit in the middle of a heated exchange between the proud, transmasculine-identified me (TM) and the proud, queer woman-identified me (QM).  The internal dialogue goes something like this:

TM: You’re passing!  Awesome.  But you aren't really a girl, so you just kind of lied.

QW:  That was embarrassing.  No one else has to prove she belongs on the field.  Maybe you should start a fight.

TM:  Well, what did you expect?  You have a low voice and a bit of facial hair.  The other girls have ponytails.  People don’t like to be confused.

QW:  F**k other people’s confusion.  You don’t have to have a ponytail to be a woman.  You’re not trying to deceive anybody.

TM:  BTW, studly, this particular binding/uniform shirt combo is really working for you tonight.

QW: You need to talk to that ref after the game--educate her about how to deal with situations like these.  You need to explain that policing gender at a sporting event is insulting to every woman here.

TM:  It’s her job to make sure people follow the rules.  One of which you’re probably breaking because you have more testosterone coursing through your system than some of the guys on the other team.  You should transition all the way.  Quit waffling.  Take responsibility for your own identity.

QW: Yeah.  Assuming that mantle of white male privilege is going to be a terrible responsibility.  Make sure you’re prepared for the raise in pay and automatic deference to your opinion...

TM: Not all men are alike.  You are not like other men.

QW:  Not all women are alike.  You are not like other women.

TM and QW:  I’m glad there will be beer after this game.

The next time the ref was down my way, she apologized.  I was prepared to just let it go (like I always do), but then she added that everybody was calling me Jack, so she was confused.  I told her that Jack is my name, and then the ball came barreling toward us.   Conversation over.  

At times like these, authenticity feels like a tiresome luxury.  I’m not quite prepared to give it up, but it requires living in a state of near-constant personal revelation.  I find myself needing to be prepared to answer for my gender in the strangest places and situations. 

I’ve been told many times that it just doesn’t matter--or that it really only matters to me, because I think about it too much.  Gender is a social construct.   Gender is all in my head.   If I could only get past this pesky gender hang-up and live freely as Just Jack, I’d be happier.  

But so often, identifying and embodying one easily recognizable gender identity becomes the reason other people feel they should treat me with respect: I’m a girl for my co-ed soccer team, a guy walking through a deserted parking garage, a trans writer who can write with authority about girlhood in America.  I could really get behind the idea that it just "doesn’t matter" if I weren’t constantly being asked to make a decision about how my identity fits into the paradigm du jour.


BW note: Thanks to Jack for this great article, as well as Guest Post #3.  Read more of Jack's writing at www.jackkaulfus.com.  If you're interested in writing a guest post for Butch Wonders, email me here.

8 Comments
Kris
6/7/2012 05:20:24 am

Great dialogue with yourself. I does matter, the dialogue matters, the exchange with the ref matters. To say it doesn't matter negates the importance of both the internal and external conversation. To say it doesn't matter negates you and who you are--a tragedy for us all.

Reply
Jack link
6/9/2012 02:33:54 pm

Thanks - and I agree.

Reply
mx. punk link
6/9/2012 01:32:42 am

ah, public misgendering... i can totally relate to that, jack! i'm in the jazz program at my university and we do concerts all the time. at the last concert, the director introduced each person on stage-- and he introduced me as a "mysterious lady!" and i'm not even feminine! perhaps my completely masculine appearance was what made me "mysterious," i dunno. fortunately, i had a mic in hand and was able to immediately and publicly correct him, so all was good. still felt bad for being so disruptive, though.

i love your story; it totally resonates with me as a commonly-misgendered trans* person. thanks for sharing!

Reply
Jack link
6/9/2012 02:40:19 pm

Wow. Mysterious Lady! Was it suddenly 1962 on that stage?

I'm glad you were able to correct him. What did you say? Was he receptive and gracious?

Reply
mx. punk link
6/9/2012 03:22:23 pm

i announced that i wasn't female OR male-- something i don't normally have the nerve to do in front of crowds, but i srsly don't like that person. my rage made me more articulate and gutsy than usual, methinks.

"...receptive and gracious?" lulz. this is the guy who tells the "ladies" to sit down while teh menz set up music gear on the stage. he spluttered a bit before saying something misogynist about me (cuz he doesn't get non-binary gender and is also a misogynist).

actually, if you'd like some graphic depictions of what i hope his future will be, you can check out this post: http://rainbowgenderpunk.wordpress.com/2011/08/06/its-too-serious-ful-around-here/ and also my avatar.

honestly, i think the whole thing was 'larious-- i'm smiling just thinking about it. XD

i love tm and qw's conversation! not to totally gush over this post, but it really resonates with and is awesome.

Reply
Butch Wonders link
6/10/2012 11:10:18 am

That totally took guts. I am impressed(!).

Reply
mx. punk link
6/9/2012 03:24:26 pm

sorry about the triple comment! pleasepleaseplease delete 2 of them for me if you're not too busy, bw? you're probably swamped, but omg i feel so silly when i triple-post!

Reply
Genderqueersquared link
6/21/2012 10:13:08 am

Awesome. I loved this post

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