The "T"

Transgendered people present a complication in the understanding of gender and sexuality. The question of whether the “T” really belongs with LGB does not provide a simple and straightforward answer. In many ways, it seems that trans is such a complicated category, that it deserves to be on it’s own, while in other ways it seems inherently linked to the LGB community.

The trans community has its own culture, its own terms, and its own way of understanding where it fits in with dominant society, but it has a huge spectrum of community members. Some trans people have had surgery or intend to, and some not; some don’t mind messing with gender norms and having those in dominant society know about their transition; some want all traces of their former life erased, not even revealing the truth to their partners; some only transition for part of the time, while others live only as the opposite sex from which they were born. In all reality, this spectrum can make it hard for trans people from opposite ends to find common ground to relate over.

While in some ways it may seem to be sort of a stretch, the T really does belong with the LGB. Despite what some may argue, there is an inherent link between gender and sexuality and those in the LGBT community, both best exemplify that link and challenge it. The gender you are and the gender you are interested in determines your sexuality, at least in the conventional way of compartmentalizing people’s sexual desires. Defining someone or oneself as trans does not give an immediate understanding of gender nor sexuality, but it is really the ultimate bond between these two ideas—giving one the opportunity to self-identify in both of these categories instead of getting stuck in a predetermined one. While some may reject the trans and LGBT communities all together, it seems that the LGB community might in fact be the space in which most trans can find a common ground.