Angry at Author!

I found this article in the Daily Trojan very shocking, especially because just two weeks ago, USC as school showed their acceptance of cross-dressers as they hosted a Drag Ball. This kind of writing, although not directly attacking transgender people, was very inconsiderate, as well as obviously didn't understand the full circumstances of this issue of gender identity. It's pretty clear the writer has never taken a gender studies class ;). But in all seriousness, it's true. Referring to a sex change as a "personal decision" and that "people who choose to identify themselves in a different way need to be aware of the effects of such decisions" just seems like the writer is unknowledgeable. Although considered a 'choice' to go through sex change surgery, there is never a 'choice' about which gender someone wants to be. Everyone feels differently inside, and in relation to Queer Theory and desire, perhaps there is never a way to really connect with just one gender, just one sexual orientation. It is important to understand that desire is always changing, and had this author examined the issue from a more open minded view, the tone may not have been as inconsiderate.

The author goes on to explain that " We should instead be more accepting of the people who aren’t as comfortable with working with people who identify as transgender." So the author is suggesting that we should be more accepting of these people that are unable to accept someone for who they are? Wow. This line really shocked me. The fact that we shouldn't be accepting of someone who is merely expressing their desires baffles me. I thought the entire point of anti-discrimination was to allow people to expresses themselves in any way they want. Obviously there are people who will be uncomfortable with this kind of change as they view society in two categories: boy and girl. Having the norm changed is somewhat scary, but perhaps if these people were educated in the idea that nothing is really 'normal' and that all of our desires are constantly changing, they could look at the world differently.

I personally think these new laws are very important to society's acceptance of everyone, and although I wish in reality that laws like these were never really needed, it is important to bring these issues to the foreground of American's minds. Yes there are other large issues, but it's not like we can solve our debt problems overnight. We can, however, begin to transform American's minds and work to create a more unified nation through acceptance, which I think can go a long way in terms of improving this country.