Trans Rights are Human Rights
Edit:
I was angry when I made this post. I should have cooled off first but I didn’t, and I apologize for that. Though that does not change the reason for this post, just the way I’m gonna say it:
I’m not, and I don’t think anyone else is, upset if someone doesn’t want to set a pronoun. The anger came from the comments on the other post, the reaction of some people who stated they didn’t care about the issue, but also cared enough to complain about the fact that it was brought up.
They cared that they were being bothered but did not care to show solidarity.
I think that’s supremely fucked up. I know what it’s like to be on the other side of that cruel apathy, and I will not stand to see it directed at my comrades.
This is what happens when you point out something online leftists could improve on, they feel attacked and get defensive because being good people and good leftists is how many of us identify, so it feels like a challenge to who we are.
Which is just patently ridiculous because we’re all constantly going to have to reflect and question ourselves and our thoughts and actions so we can work towards killing the colonizer that lives in our heads. That’s how we grow.
It’s the reaction to stuff like this being brought up that’s telling to there being a desperately needed conversation.
Also see intelligence based insults for a similar reaction (with the immediate mass discontent and angst, mixed eventually with some substantive criticisms and discussion)
It's hard to learn and grow and not be defensive. I noticed a lot of white people (myself included) going through defensiveness that when antiracism started to become like, a thing white people started paying attention to.
People naturally want to assume they're good, so if you point out where they've made mistakes or treated people poorly (even accidentally), the natural reaction is to defend their psyche and be like "NO U".
I think it's okay to have that natural reaction, just you know, also you have to learn to quiet that defensiveness so you can really listen. Here and real life, i want to build community and find common ground with people i don't understand, you know, so we can wage a protracted people's war. That means listening to them and accepting their candid feedback, so we can both grow and understand each other. And it means making little sacrifices that sometimes feel silly from the outside but is deeply important to them. Not really the same scale, as misgendering actually hurts, but if i go to someone's house and they take their shoes off at the door and leave them outside i do that. If they don't eat food in the living room, i do that. If they want to pray before their meal, i'll close my eyes and be respectful. If someone doesn't drink or smoke, i respect that. That's a part of building community that i find very beautiful and heartwarming, we can all get along so well if we choose to and treat each other with basic respect.