Trans Representation Of Modern Society And Western Multimedia

Over the past few years, the issues faced by people who identify as transgender (gender dysphoric) have gained momentum in the media. From Caitlyn Jenner to which bathroom to use, transgender people have made a lot of progress in addressing

I consider magazines, television shows, films, news media, gossip media, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and other Internet sources to be the number one target for negative gender discrimination, stereotypes, inequality, and hatred. For example, Playboy featured its first transgender playmate on a magazine cover which is a positive change in gender role today. However, for some individuals, there was mixed reactions and emotions about a transgender featured on the Playboy cover. To the point where Ms. Ines was receiving negative comments on social media, but she said stated in a recent New York Times Interview, “I would have never thought about people being so transphobic. I knew we still had a lot of work to do to get to a point where people see trans women as women, but I would have never thought of

When discussing injustices, it is pivotal--for the sake of true progressive social change--to include all oppressed groups into the dialogue. Transgender People tend to be heavily misrepresented and demonized. Because of transphobia, there

In today’s vast globalized world, representation is present and has left its impact everywhere, from politics to media to parts of our everyday life. Representation is defined as the description or portrayal of someone or something in a particular way (Oxford University Press, 2016). This has shaped the way people think, talk and view the things around them. Thus, media representation is the portrayal of a group, community, person, event, idea, experience or perspective by the media, regardless of whether it is visual or verbal. Media representation is also a choice made in constructing facets of reality such as people, places, objects and events in media. Such representations exist in a multitude of forms such as print, films and writing. Generally, it would be difficult to showcase every feature of the person or thing, hence, media has been essentialising the representations to suit the views of the majority.

In her book “Gender Outlaw: On Men, Woman, and the Rest of us,” Kate Bornstein goes over a lot of the major issues regarding gender awareness and identity politics. She talks about the ideas of labeling ones self, understanding gender differences, how people view laws, behaviors, and the medical and scientific privilege that make transitioning challenging for a lot of people. Bornstein touches on many of the issues today that affect trans people. She includes poetry, pictures, quotes, essays, and a play to raise questions and discuss the idea of gender. This is a great book to introduce and discuss the issues that affect the lives of trans people as they navigate and explore the lines that define gender.

The North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory signs the House Bill 2, the Public Facilities Privacy & Security Act, which undo all previous non-discrimination legislation, to ban transgendered individuals from using restrooms which matches their sexual identification. The law asserts that they should instead use the restrooms which matches the gender listed on their birth certificates. Enraged civil liberties groups around the country has decry the move as backwards and one which may put the well-being of transgenders at risk. Transgendered individuals have historically been a small vulnerable subset of the population, they have often been meted with violence and hostility. They are seen as a perversion and a dearth of moral values and evidence of societal degradation. But like any other vulnerable groups in society, they should be protected, not vilified as perverts and deviants.

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 misconception of trans women is the accusation of not being a “real” women that can increase violence as a way of rejection. The behavior would consist of rejection, verbal abuse, or severe violence. The worse part of all is this act of crime is not reported because trans women are blamed for this brutality. “She brought it upon herself”, is the common response society has towards this criminal act. Victim blaming is present when a victim of a crime is held responsible or

Throughout the past decades sex and gender have remained in major taboos and impacts within the transgender communities. Indeed, after participating in a Transgender Panel Discussion at Fresno State University, reading articles like Meet the Muxes, class discussions and the conclusion for all four sources lead to words like exclusion, discrimination, and oppressions because those define the lives of transgender, Muxes, and that for following their gender identities become the target for judgement and for countless . However, I never imagined that I could put myself in the shoes of these diverse identities until I visualized the challenges that fill their lives everyday for simply

Who doesn’t love a good superhero? The perfect figure, the spandex suit, the flowing cape, flawless looks, and the powers we can only dream of having. Superheroes have been around for ages now, leaving an everlasting imprint on our hearts. It is no secret that males dominate the superhero industry; both the heroes themselves and those who create them. Superman, Batman, Ironman, and Spiderman have become the top heroes of all time; there is nothing wrong with them holding the spotlight, but female heroes are underrepresented. There are notable female heroes, but they tend to be drawn with a busty figure that few women are naturally blessed with, and show little emotional rational in fights. Take Black Widow (Marvel) for example, anyone would love for her figure and kick-ass moves. Wonder Woman is our hero of the hour, she has made her way onto the big screen; casting her into the spotlight more than ever. She screams fights for love, promotes peace, is a beacon of hope, and screams feminism. What’s not to love? The new movie released on June 2, 2017, has called more attention to the American-spirited, Amazonian woman than ever before. The movie is the first fully female directed movie, Patty Jenkins brings a great female to the big screen. Although the movie is great and supports feminism, is the movie the depiction of Wonder Woman that should be idealized?

A better solution would be to provide an efficient platform for queer voices to write about their own experiences and communities. Queer authors should be promoted better so their work is seen rather than cast off to the side for what straight audiences find appealing in terms of seeing onscreen gay characters. And this includes queer women and trans people who are so often overlooked, even within the queer literature community. Gay male characters have a grip on the queer scene, largely influenced by straight female audiences who have no idea of the harm they cause to actual gay

This past 2 years have seen more and more transgender characters displayed on our screens than ever before. I do feel like this representation is amazing and some cases have done our community proud in so many ways but of course some have not been so good.

TIME magazine in April 5, 2016, in North Carolina, the law passed recently became the first state law in the country limiting transgender people to use the bathroom corresponding to the sex on their birth certificates, also excluding LGBT people from anti-discrimination protections, plus blocking municipalities from passing their own anti-discrimination rules. (Dalesio, 2016)

Out of all the negativity, there are Trans people who are positive about moving forward in the gaming world. There are people like Nicole Modjeski who would never have the courage to come out without being able to make avatars that reflect how she felt inside. Especially in a Mississippi where things tend to be a little more conservative, she says “Big cities like New York, Los Angeles may have opportunities. Places like Mississippi are just as important and those opportunities to be who we are and understanding will grow over time” (Modjesky). Anna Anthropy created ‘Dys4ia’ not only to share her store about going though HRT (hormone replacement therapy) but to add to the growing list of noted (?) trans characters. Anthropy’s games “are ambassadors

The depiction of transgender women characters in mainstream television has been offensive, insulting and derogatory. An article from GLADD called “Victims or Villains: Examining Ten Years of Transgender Images on Television”, examines 102 episodes and storylines on mainstream television that contained transgender characters since 2002. Of these, more than half were characterized as containing negative representations of transgender. In 2007 only 1% of television series had a recurring transgender character, which has slowly increased to 4% in 2013.