I normally like Bill Maher. I think his show is funny, and if I have a few hours to spare I'll sometimes watch an episode or two.
However, last week Maher made the claim that LGBT rights, and trans rights specifically, should be put on hold during the election year, so we can focus our power on stopping Trump. People are flocking to Republicans because they're "taking a stand" against trans people. They're using us as fodder, as way to gain support. By doing a blackout on trans people, Republicans won't be able to use us.
The problem, for me, lies not with Republicans but with the public's perception of transgender people. We're so threatening and frightening that the Republicans have been able to stir up their base just by suggesting that we may go to the bathroom. Misconceptions are leading to dangerous laws being passed and nondiscrimination bills being overturned. Now more than ever trans people need to speak loud.
Transsexuality is an alien concept to a lot of people. As a trans person, I know how confusing it can be. I'm open to any questions, because I want transsexuality to be normal. I hate feeling like an outsider to human society, and I think education is a step in the right direction. Luckily, with trans people being in the forefront that education is being spread.
The Transgender Tipping Point was in 2014. Laverne Cox was on the cover of Time Magazine, and was portraying a trans character on a wildly popular Netflix show. Amazon's Transparent was winning awards. Laura Jane Grace released the (excellent) album "Transgender Dysphoria Blues," and Facebook added 50 genders and a gender neutral pronoun to its website.
It was only a matter of time before there was backlash. It's been two years since the supposed tipping point. North Carolina has passed a bathroom bill, parents are pulling their kids out of schools over the possibility of trans kids using the bathroom, and presidential candidates are calling us social experiments. And now, Bill Maher is suggesting that trans people back off and lay low until after the election.
Thing is, we can't. If we lay low now, 2014 will be the last good year for trans people. I came out of the closet in 2014 because I thought the hard part was over. It's not. We've reached a new era for civil rights, and the battle is just beginning. What Maher doesn't seem to understand is now is when trans people need to scream the loudest. Right now, the misinformation about us is being smeared by respected politicians and we're the only ones able to wipe the smears off.
