Finished reading: Whipping Girl by Julia Serano 📚

A powerful read that was at times depressing and demoralizing, but overall was uplifting, affirming, and empowering. Well worth the investment of time.

Three great quotes:

  • In a male-centered gender hierarchy, where it is assumed that men are better than women and that masculinity is superior to femininity, there is no greater perceived threat than the existence of trans women, who despite being born male and inheriting male privilege “choose” to be female instead. By embracing our own femaleness and femininity, we, in a sense, cast a shadow of doubt over the supposed supremacy of maleness and masculinity. (p. 15)
  • There is no right way to be trans. Each of us simply needs to figure out what works best for us and what allows us to best express who we feel we are. (p. 28)
  • It’s time we replace the existing gatekeeper model with one that’s centered on the needs of trans people themselves. This begins with the public acknowledgment that all people have the right to self-identify (even if that identity falls outside of the male/female binary), and that one’s self-identified gender is necessarily more legitimate than the one that is rather naively assigned to them by others. (p. 158)

And finally, this thought really struck me. When asked by a friend what she found attractive in trans women, the author replied, “… it is almost always their eyes. When I look into them, I see both endless strength and inconsolable sadness. I see someone who has overcome humiliation and abuses that would flatten the average person. I see a woman who was made to feel shame for her desires and yet had the courage to pursue them anyway.” (p. 279)