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trans2008-11-11 10:49 am
garlicfiend.livejournal.com) wrote in trans2008-11-11 10:49 am
Entry tags:
Vet-Trans Day
Bad pun is bad, sorry.
Today is veterans day. As a lot of you probably know, racial minorities are over-repersented in the military, mostly for economic reasons. What isn't widely known is that trans people are also over-represented in the military as well, usually pre-transition, pre-realization of who they are. MTFs gravitate there in the endless quest to over-compensate and prove they are eral men. FTMs go there to find an environment where male gender expression is both normal and encouraged.
My experience in Iraq from 2004 to 2005 was pivotal to my decision in 2006 to accept who I am and medically transition. Going on estrogen and coming to terms with who I really am, living an honest life, has enabled me to manage my duty-related PTSD.
Many of our trans brothers and sisters will not have it so well as me. They will come home missing arms, legs, organs. Some won't come home at all. And too many won't find a way to outrun the demons of war, and will take the final option that tempted me so many times and put a gun to their head.
Pray for these people. Work for change so that they won't be victims of "friendly fire" or just negligence on the part of their team mates because they sensed their comrade was "different". Work for change for the courageous souls who decide to medically transition while serving.
The military is often seen by GLBT people as an alien hostile entity. It's not. It's very much the sum of its parts and we are a part of it. An invisible part due to centuries of discrimination, which is why it is so important to push for change, but we are there in the ranks.
The American military is still actively enganged in Iraq and Afghanistan. Soldiers and innocent civilians continue to die every day. Remember them, those that have chosen to fight on our behalf. Remember them and resolve not to let the fights for peace and justice die. We elected Obama and filled congress with Democrats. But let the success of proposition 8 remind us that there are still powerful forces of hate and bigotry at work, undermining everything we work for. The military can be a tool of warmongers, or it can be a progressive force of social change. But history has shown that it is seldom both.
Stand together and remember our brothers and sisters in arms. Fight for them as they fight for us. It's our duty.
ETA: This is not a pro-military post. I personally have a lot issues with the military and it's missions. But there are trans people serving, and it's a piss-poor place for a trans person to be. In all the speeches given today, I felt that somebody should mention them. Sorry if that offends you.
I wish this post wasn't locked, but I understand why and thank the mods for their involvement in the matter.
x-posted to![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
garlicfiend
Today is veterans day. As a lot of you probably know, racial minorities are over-repersented in the military, mostly for economic reasons. What isn't widely known is that trans people are also over-represented in the military as well, usually pre-transition, pre-realization of who they are. MTFs gravitate there in the endless quest to over-compensate and prove they are eral men. FTMs go there to find an environment where male gender expression is both normal and encouraged.
My experience in Iraq from 2004 to 2005 was pivotal to my decision in 2006 to accept who I am and medically transition. Going on estrogen and coming to terms with who I really am, living an honest life, has enabled me to manage my duty-related PTSD.
Many of our trans brothers and sisters will not have it so well as me. They will come home missing arms, legs, organs. Some won't come home at all. And too many won't find a way to outrun the demons of war, and will take the final option that tempted me so many times and put a gun to their head.
Pray for these people. Work for change so that they won't be victims of "friendly fire" or just negligence on the part of their team mates because they sensed their comrade was "different". Work for change for the courageous souls who decide to medically transition while serving.
The military is often seen by GLBT people as an alien hostile entity. It's not. It's very much the sum of its parts and we are a part of it. An invisible part due to centuries of discrimination, which is why it is so important to push for change, but we are there in the ranks.
The American military is still actively enganged in Iraq and Afghanistan. Soldiers and innocent civilians continue to die every day. Remember them, those that have chosen to fight on our behalf. Remember them and resolve not to let the fights for peace and justice die. We elected Obama and filled congress with Democrats. But let the success of proposition 8 remind us that there are still powerful forces of hate and bigotry at work, undermining everything we work for. The military can be a tool of warmongers, or it can be a progressive force of social change. But history has shown that it is seldom both.
Stand together and remember our brothers and sisters in arms. Fight for them as they fight for us. It's our duty.
ETA: This is not a pro-military post. I personally have a lot issues with the military and it's missions. But there are trans people serving, and it's a piss-poor place for a trans person to be. In all the speeches given today, I felt that somebody should mention them. Sorry if that offends you.
I wish this post wasn't locked, but I understand why and thank the mods for their involvement in the matter.
x-posted to
garlicfiend