According to an article by HRC.org, “2020 has already seen at least 32 transgender or gender non-conforming people fatally shot or killed by other violent means.” Each day another it feels as though another trans or gender non-comforming person is met with hatred. While many in the LGBTQ+ community can understand this hatred. To a certain extent. As a high schooler I have seen time and time again, the “weird” person who thinks gender is fluid, being harrassed and bullied by their peers. The world can be a scary place. But for trans individuals, it’s terrifying.
I had the amazing opportunity to interview Anthony. He goes by he/him pronouns and is a trans man. He is also only 14 years old, which some may say is “too young” but ask any queer person and they will tell you that they knew before they even knew. (If that makes sense.) I got to ask him a few questions about the journey he has taken. He is only in eighth grade, a year I do not hold with fondness, and he already knows a part of himself, others can only dream of.
Q1. When did you realize that you were trans?
“Ever since I was little, I wanted to be a boy. I had always thought that was just some impossible thing. So I just accepted that it wasn’t possible. Until, I was on youtube and I had stumbled across a Buzzfeed article about Drag Kings. He elaborates, “I was like ‘woah!’ you can just dress up as a guy! That’s where I found a bunch of youtubers sharing their stories about being trans. It was out loud for everyone to see and they had transition photos and it made me realize that I wanted to start [transitioning.]
Q2. What has been your biggest obstacle in the process?
“My biggest obstacle is dysphoria, honestly.” Gender dysphoria by definition from The American Psychiatric Association as a, general descriptive term refers to an individual's discontent with the assigned gender. “I have begun to take pills to stop my menstrual cycle but they take a long time to work. Some days I just can’t deal with it, so I just sleep the dysphoria away. Which is not really a good way to deal with it, but it just becomes too much.”
Q3. As a person of color how has being trans affected you not only in the LGBTQ+ community but also the hispanic community?
“It has affected me in both positive and negative ways. Sometimes the positive outweighs the negative and vice-versa. The negative is that I lost a lot of Hispanic friends, they would tell me that they would not accept me. After that, I did find friends that were in the Hispanic community and the LGBTQ+ community that accepted me with open arms. They would give me advice and really help me. I have found that some members of both of the communities are negative to each other. I think that it’s stupid. We are all on the same boat, just getting off at different destinations.”
Q4. How has your transition been going?
“ I came out two years ago and the transition has been good. It has been slower than usual but I am just waiting to start hormone therapy. I am excited for hormone therapy mostly. I am excited for the changes to start to take place. I am ready for my body to be the way it expected it to be from the beginning.”
Q5. What are your hopes for the future of trans people in this country?
“Justice. Acceptance. Education. Honestly the crimes that happen to the community that never get confronted. They never try to look into something further when it involves a queer person. The deadnaming, the misuse of pronouns, and the trans women of color being murdered just frustrates me. I want justice. I think better education, I think a lot of these things stem from uneducation. I think fear stems from uneducation. People were just taught to hate it. I am just scared, honestly. Like I'm scared for the future. I'm scared that so many things are gonna go wrong and I won’t be able to be who I am.”
Having the privilege to listen to stories like Anthony’s help me get a deeper, and more sympathetic, view of our community. Trans americans are at a heightened risk of homeless, hate crimes, and murder. We have let it happen. People like Anthony, who are 14 years old, are scared. I am scared. The LGBTQ+ community has a long history with racism and transphobia. We will never be able to advance, to stop being scared, unless we fix the deep rooted problems within our community first. Like Anthony said, “We are all on the same boat, just getting off at different destinations.”
Resources for Suicide and Trans Hotline:
Citations:
Violence Against the Transgender Community in 2020. (n.d.). Retrieved October 14, 2020, from https://www.hrc.org/resources/violence-against-the-trans-and-gender-non-conforming-community-in-2020
(n.d.). Retrieved October 14, 2020, from https://www.psychiatry.org/patients-families/gender-dysphoria/what-is-gender-dysphoria
Photo: Lilly, C. (2020, September 08). Trans Medical Conference Celebrates 10 Years. Retrieved October 14, 2020, from https://southfloridagaynews.com/National/trans-medical-conference-celebrates-10-years.html
Love you Anthony!