My strongest identity among these is my gender. I think it’s the strongest because as a trans person, it’s the identity I’ve put the most time and effort into changing and effecting. Different elements of my identity shape my reality by giving a framework to my interactions in society. These elements shape who I talk to, how I interact with others, as well as how I am grouped with others.
I think that society does not view me in the same light that I view myself. I’m aware of a lot of stigma and hatred towards transgender individuals, and I understand that the majority of those who perceive me and interact with me hold these views that are vastly different from mine.
Transgender Woman, Bisexual, Middle Class, Caucasian. For some, I measure it with observations, with others, it is a personal attribute that only I can know. There are a lot of ways that people categorize differently. For some of these elements, they are based upon attributes and usually don’t change throughout life, but for things like sexuality and social class, these things are able to change and can over the course of a lifetime. For some of these attributes, they can effect each other. For instance, if your race is african american, there is a higher chance that your social or economic class might be lower, which is a product of the society we live in, not anything inherent to the individual.
I think that my identity absolutely influences the way people perceive me. As a transwoman, I frequently feel out of place in highly gendered spaces such as the restroom. For instance, a year or so ago, I went to use the bathroom and used the womens restroom. As I was washing my hands, a woman came into the restroom and paused as she saw me. I could tell she was staring at me and she turned around and walked out. I assumed nothing of it but as I was walking out of the restroom, she scoffed at me and walked back into the womens room. She was not comfortable using the womens room with another trans woman, and waited for me to leave.
Interactions like this are highly impactful to not only me but all gender non-conforming individuals. We have faced a lot of discrimination and in my personal experience, when I am personally the victim of discrimination, I tend to isolate myself and doubt my identity.
This axis absolutely impacts my friends. Both of my partners at the time of writing this are transgender, my best friends are transgender, my online friends are transgender. I do have a lot of cisgender friends, but this is a product of the social groups that trans people form as part of a social support net. My identity effects who my friends are by showing me who truly sees me as a trans woman and not just a man in makeup, or any other discriminatory idea, and I sort them out from there.
