Yeah, as a trans person, I'm required to spend at least 40 hours a year doing my trans community service killing as much culture as I can. To be honest, I don't view it as an obligation. To tell you the truth, I enjoy it. Perhaps more than I should.

If it helps at all, I've picked up a lot of good tips from watching episodes of Dexter, and I only kill culture that really deserves to die.

I've run into a few posts recently about Susan Stanton, a transwoman who is somehow involved with the Human Rights Campaign (the precise relationship isn't clear to me). As most trans folk know, the Human Rights Campaign is unpopular with a lot of transfolk for supporting a version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) that excludes trans protections.

Some of the criticisms of Susan Stanton are based on her relatively new-comer status to the trans community. TransAdvocate says:

One of the most obvious reasons that she should not represent the transgender community is experience. This time last year, Susan was still Steve. Susan was still closeted. She transitioned from Steve to Susan in May of last year. The words "newbie" and "neophyte" ring loudly through my ears when the name Susan Stanton is spoken. A recent story in the St. Petersburg Times shows just how unprepared Stanton is to lead this community.

In addition, some of the stuff she says is simply ill-informed:

"Susan has said all along that she’s not like other transgender people. She feels uncomfortable even looking at some, "like I’m seeing a bunch of men in dresses."

Eventually, she decided it was too early for transgender people to be federally protected. People need more time, more education, she says. "The transgender groups boo me, now, when I speak. Isn't that ironic?

"But I don't blame the human rights groups from separating the transgender people from the protected groups. Most Americans aren't ready for us yet," Susan says. Transgender people need to be able to prove they’re still viable workers — especially in the mainstream.

"The biggest issue against the federal legislation is that politicians think the ladies' rooms will be invaded by guys in drag," Susan says, "instead of someone like me."

I usually don't pay much attention to the HRC but they've been leaving an increasingly bad taste in my mouth for a while. And while I am clear that Susan Stanton has been treated horribly her former employers, I just can't understand why she's taking the stances she's taking. No, I can understand. She doesn't have enough experience in these matters, and she's trying to stay friends with the type of people who fired her. This is why trans people need protections like ENDA.

I've been pondering, over the last few days, a post on Body Impolitic. I think the shape of my ponder has looked something like this:

• I read the post;
• I have a gut reaction that kinda looks like disappointment and annoyance;
• I force my brain to more fully engage and say, "Wait a minute. What are they actually saying?";
• I read and re-read the post, parsing it more and more denotatively; and
• I have a lengthy ponder about why the original reaction happened.

( Read like a text )

A little while after WisCon, I was asked to talk about the Transsexuality as Trope panel on RadioFree Transburgh, an online Internet radio interview show. Both Charlie and I were interviewed (separately, though), and the final interview was just posted today.

Sadly, at times we had sound-quality problems, but in general, I think Emilia has done a good job with bringing the material together.

Here's an idea: four or five self-identified transfolk get together on a panel. They've all read the same half-dozen books with some rilly good gender content (they'll chat well beforehand, and agree on some titles). And they analyze the content for what it says and doesn't say about gender, binary gender, and/or transness. Obviously, one of the books on the list would be that year's Tiptree winner.

Would you be on such a thing? charliegrrrl? jiawen? Maybe we could get Aaron (doesn't he have a livejournal?) or nadyalec (whom I saw only once, I fear).

I'm actually serious about trying to plan for it, now. I think I'm starting to believe that the best panels at WisCon are composed of people who've talked enough to know what each other is going to say.

Continuing this thought process:( Again with the long, and potential spoilers to some stories )

Contains references to Crygender, The Matrix, I Will Fear No Evil, Perdido Street Station, Commitment Hour, The Silence of the Lambs, and a lot of spoilers around A Game of You

The other trans woman on "Transsexualism as Trope" panel posted her assessment of the panel on her journal. Which, of course, fires a lot of thoughts in my brain that I want to respond to. I want to be clear that I'm not say, "no, no, no, Charlie has it all wrong!" But I do think that the points of disagreement are interesting sites of exploration.

( And then it all got very long after that... )

So, I had a panel yesterday morning: "Transsexuality as Trope". ( Thoughts, kvetching, etc. )

Y'know, if you've had a really deep ponder, and you've considered the question of trans experience from all possible angles, and rationally weighed all the implications before you've arrived at your considered opinion, and yet you're not trans and you've never known an actual trans person with whom you can have deep, heartfelt discussions... well... maybe there are elements of the experience you've overlooked. Just sayin'.