Persuasive Speech On Being Transgender

Internal conflict is something that the transgender community knows all too well. Feeling as though you are living in the wrong body can do serious damage to the way that someone sees themselves. One of the hardest time for transgender teens is puberty. Researchers have said that “This is a particularly hard age, since the body begins to change and adapt gender specific features (breasts, changes in genitals, menses, etc..). Transgender individuals have reported “I was disgusted by (hair, breasts…etc)” (Ami B. Kaplan, 2014). It already puts a child or teen under great stress to see themselves living life as a gender they feel is completely wrong, but, as puberty begins to hit and they see this body changing it only increases that self-hatred that slowly builds. Even though transitioning can be the best decision a transgender person might make, it can still be just as difficult to finalize this. Many transgender youth have said that they have “Fears about finding a partner, feelings about having to experience surgeries, hormones, (and for MTF transsexuals) facial hair removal and voice changes, and fears about violence and prejudice when one is read transgender”(Ami B. Kaplan, 2014). Even when the option to transition arises, doubt may still linger. Some transgender youth that have gone through with transitioning face many issues emotionally such as “Disappointment that transitioning didn’t solve all problems, level of satisfaction with appearance, level of satisfaction

According to a website titled Transgender Student Guidelines, transgender is a term that represents an individual who identifies differently from what his or her biological gender is. In simpler words if an individual was born with male anatomy, then that individual feels identifies as a female, this clarification also

The part that confuses the majority of the people that are not transgender or don’t quite understand what it is, is when they speak to someone they thought was a certain sex and are asked to refer to them as the opposite sex. For example, meeting someone that appears to be a man and asked to refer to him as she/her. This can be especially confusing if a family member is going through a transition. Family members tend to be the most affected by a transgender in the family, they do not know how to react or how to help because they are most likely the only transgender in the family. Being transgender is not a choice, it is a feeling and almost all people that are transgender are unlikely to be able to feel happiness or find peace in life if they are not who they feel they truly are meant to be.

Topics concerning transgender can be very overwhelming for some. When one thinks of the term transgender, one may think of the process of an individual identifying as the opposite sex. The opposite sex of what he or she was born as. For some, this may involve undergoing surgical procedures or taken hormonal medications to fulfill their desire. However, when thinking of this process, one automatically thinks of transgender adults. This is rarely a topic that one would assume would be racing through the minds of young children, but in fact it is. More children today than ever, are either speaking out about their identity concerns, or displaying it in their lives. In fact, according to Date Line NBC, “The handful of American doctors who specialize

Transgender is a metaphorical umbrella term that covers a person whose self-identification, anatomy, appearance, manner, and/or expression is different from the sex assigned to them at birth and does not fit with societies interpretation for the norm of gender roles. Included in the transgender umbrella are transsexual people, non-binary gender identities, and cross-dressing (LGBT Youth, 2017). Transgender individuals are often the target of discrimination, injustice and social stigma that can lead to negative health outcomes.

Transgender youth are children and adolescents who consider themselves transgender or transsexual. Transgender youth are usually dependent on their parents for care, shelter, financial support, and other needs. Transgender youth face different challenges compared to adults and other hetereosexual youth. Transgender issues can arise at different times in life and be experienced differently for each individuals. Many of these children experience rejection as a result of their differences and quickly attempt to repress them creating self hate and isolation. People may see these children regularly and be unaware that they are unhappy as members of their assigned gender by birth.

Kidd and Witten define the term transgender vaguely, stating it “describe[s] people who transcend the conventional boundaries of gender, irrespective of physical status or sexual orientation” (Kidd & Witten, 2007, p. 36). This term is a reference for the ‘other gender’ that is not particularly male or female. Currently, within the American society, there is a growing awareness of individuals who are transgender. Much of this awareness comes from LGBT movements and

The United States is a divided society. We like to categorize ourselves according to political affiliation, race, and religion. We are members of the middle, low-income, or wealthy classes. We choose what seats to sit in during a football game according to the team we are rooting for. It is oddly comforting to know that you belong. All too often, however, transgender youth are denied that sense of ubelonging because they defy society’s categories of male and female. The gender binary divides society into two separate, unequivocal categories that marginalizes transgender youth and directly impacts their emotional health and well-being. Society’s collective response of demeaning, shaming, and violence further increases the divide.

What defines a person? Looks? Beliefs? Gender or sexual orientation? About 0.58% of all adults in the United States identify as transgender, which is around 1,397,150 people. Society commonly feels as though transgender people are unnatural or disgusting, therefore they perform hate crimes because of this fact. Why is that? How could these people target others simply because of their identity, despite said identity having really no impact on their lives? In more simple terms, the identity itself makes the transgender person uncomfortable because does it not match what the subcortical (meaning the area of the brain below the frontal cortex) areas of the brain tell about them, so they feel the need to become the gender their brain tells them to be. Why is that so wrong? Transgender people are just as human as anyone else. They are a little different than the rest of society, but they should be treated with the respect they deserve.

To understand this problem better, one must first know what identifying as Transgender signifies. Being Transgender is when one does not identify with their biological sex, it is a feeling you can get as early as two or three years of age (“Gender and Gender Identity at a Glance”). Being

Being transgender greatly involves identity, naïve realism, ethnocentrism, and relativism. This relates to ethnocentrism because one who is not transgender or doesn’t have a clear understanding may feel as though it isn’t necessary. I define ethnocentrism as the belief that one’s own behavior and beliefs are superior to others. In many cases, some people have even acted upon their sense of ethnocentrism committing hate crimes, homicide, or even murder. This is a reflection of their belief that they are superior. This also is a reflection of how societies enforce this concept of gender and feel threated when someone breaks the boundary. As one of my classmates said, looking at gender from a religious aspect, God is a sort of genderless being and when one is struggling with gender identity or transgender, it may appear as though they are making a statement. One that is telling everyone else that they are on the same level as God. Naïve realism relates to what the guest speakers discussed because they explained that there are a lot of people who tend to kind of stop and stare at them simply because they look different; they are foreign to them. To those who don’t understand being transgender, they may not understand how someone could such an identity crisis, as the feeling cannot be perceived by one who has not endured it. I found this to especially relate to identity because among age, language, and various other things, gender is one of the primary characteristics used to define self. If someone is experiencing an identity crisis, to whatever extent, that’s related to gender it directly correlates with the concept of identity we’ve been learning about in class. Understanding the concept of being transgender may require a sense of cultural relativism. I define relativism as the attempt to understand another culture’s way of life from their own perspective. If someone is wanting to

When discussing transgendered people it is important to understand the difference between sex, and gender. “Sex is assigned at birth, refers to one’s biological status as either male or female, and is associated primarily with physical attributes such as chromosomes, hormone prevalence, and external and internal anatomy,” (APA Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Concerns Office). Sex is mainly important for medical reasons. A person can change their sex, through surgery and hormone therapy. “Gender refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviors, activities, and attributes that a given society considers appropriate for boys and men or girls and women” (APA Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Concerns Office). Gender and sex can coincide or they can be in conflict with each other. Someone whose gender identity matches the sex they are born with is called cisgendered. Cis- is a latin prefix, meaning “on this side”. Contrarily, trans- is a prefix meaning on the “other side of”. A person who is transgender expresses

A person who identifies as transgender is one who expresses a gender identity that differs from the one that corresponds with their assigned sex. Gender identity refers to a person’s internal sense of being male, female, or any other gender. Gender expression refers to the way someone communicates their gender identity, whether it’s through the clothing they wear, their hairstyle, or their voice and body characteristics. Although some may not be aware, sex and gender aren’t synonyms. Sex is assigned at birth and refers to a person’s biological status whereas gender is based on socially constructed roles, behaviors and attributes that given societies consider appropriate for men or women. People who fall under the transgender umbrella may identify

In a lot of places around the world more and more people are coming out as “Transgender.” The term transgender means that the person’s gender identity does not correspond with the gender they were assigned as having at birth. From personally having a transgender boyfriend I have since realized that these people experience a lot of discrimination in and from society. Many people simply just do not understand what the term transgender means and they see it as someone just “wants to be a man” or “wants to be a woman.” While there may be people who present it this way, it is more so that the individual just “feels” different, and “feels” as if they are “in the wrong body.” Some people experience this feeling at a young age as my boyfriend did in his elementary age. We live in a world who put these people down for being who they truly are, and no human being wants or needs that.

The most obvious challenges I have faced living as a transgender male have been physical, but the hardest I have faced have not only been personal, but emotional. I have encountered countless overly personal inquisitions, questioning looks, and awkward introductions. Existing as a biological female for a large portion of my life imbued that period of time with many challenges. As a child, I fought passionately with my parents to shop in the “boys” section of the store, to play hockey and lacrosse, and to never step foot in a dress. I often wondered why other children would point and snicker at my choice of clothing. I even asked my distraught mother why I was “put in the wrong body” at the age of three. I had to grow up and not only learn, but understand and accept that I am not the same as everyone else. I had to come to terms with the fact that most people do not face the challenge of waking up every day and overcoming the feeling that something is fundamentally “off” that cannot truly be “fixed”. “Average” is a description I often longed to be labeled in the past, but over the years I have discovered that striving to be above average is the true key to success.