Sidi-not so saintlY

Gender and Sex

Facebook has 71 options for gender, is this appropriate, excessive or simply incorrect? Is self-identification/ declaration of Gender and Sex safe, accurate and factual? 

Gender refers to the socially constructed characteristics of women and men, which manifests itself uniquely in every culture and society. Expressions of male and female characteristics in society can be related to clothing, colour appropriation (pink is for girls, blue is for boys), or more important issues such as males can work or be educated and females can’t. 

Colloquially the words Sex and Gender are often used interchangeably, however Human Sex specifically refers to the phenomena produced at the time of conception. This determines whether the baby will be genetically female (XX) or male (XY). 

Therefore, there are in fact only two options for Human Sex. The physical manifestation of Human Sex (genitals/reproductive organs) is very specific and have profound purposes. The only exception to this is intersex, this small population has both male and female genitals and/or reproductive organs. 

Contemporary society’s preoccupation with evading this fact or creating fictitious sex and gender categories is a little lost on me. The physical composition of a human can be altered with the help of medication and surgery but can never eliminate genetic and biological realities. 

My frustration is with the current social constructs that argue that people who transition from one sex/gender to another; should be identified fully and wholly as that sex/gender with no reference permitted to their past experience in another sex. This issues seems to be particularly divisive in relation to trans women. 

As the modern liberal argument often pertains that, simply repressing testosterone, putting on a dress and “identifying” as female means you are now a woman, always were a woman and should be fully treated as a woman. 

I do struggle with this concept for the following reason. A lived experience of a biological female including all its associated social, political, biological and hormonal connotations and sometimes, the inequalities suffered cannot and should not be undermined in our attempts to be inclusive. 

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie a Nigerian writer, her sentiments shared in 2017 resonated with me when she said “trans women are trans women”.  Adichie recognised the discrimination faced by this group as a serious issue, but said that “we should not conflate the gender experiences of trans women with that of women born female.” The case being made here, particularly from a feminist perspective is that most trans women may have experienced male privilege. 

For example, Caitlyn Jenner who lived her entire life as a privileged man, competed in the highest levels of sport and benefited from her male biological assets, requires merely months into transitioning to then win awards/accolades in female only categories for “her bravery”. Added to this is Jenner’s ignorance of female experiences, when asked in an interview what the most difficult part about being a woman was. Her response, “the hardest part about being a woman is figuring out what to wear”. 

Jenner’s response was not only dumb but failed to mention any truths, such as menstrual cramps, carrying pepper spray fearing rape, child birth, salary disparities, hypocrisy of men with promiscuity or anything remotely close to what real women find difficult daily. And, how could it? Her lived experience is that of a white, middle class, successful male. She knows nothing real about living as a biological female for an entire lifetime.

I am by no means taking away from trans women’s experiences, many of which are also marked by disadvantages and which are horrific enough to endure. But they still shouldn’t be equally compared to female experiences. 

Janice Raymond in The Transsexual Empire (1979), argues psychological and surgical methods to transsexualism reinforces traditional gender stereotypes; and transsexualism is based on the “patriarchal myths” of “male mothering”, and “making of woman according to man’s image”. 

This is done in order “to colonize feminist identification, culture, politics and sexuality”.  She shockingly adds, “All transsexuals rape women’s bodies by reducing the real female form to an artefact, appropriating this body for themselves. Raymond views may well be extreme and she has been accused of being transphobic. 

I am indifferent to Raymond’s assertions, however I am intrigued by the notion that trans women are invading female only areas, such as sports, awards, opportunity etc and their male privilege is not always societal but physical.  

Voicing such concerns in contemporary culture is often labelled transphobic; as former Wimbledon champion Martina Navratilova experienced recently. She was criticised for “disturbing, upsetting, and deeply transphobic” comments after she argued that allowing transgender women to compete in women’s sporting tournaments was “insane and cheating”. Navratilova has campaigned for LGBT rights her entire career, and the accusations against her are simply foolish. 

Its seems pointing out facts such as a biological male who has gone through puberty will be stronger, have more muscle power and bone density (even after testosterone repressing treatment) than females are not permitted. 

Male tennis players are often taller with more upper body strength and serve a lot harder than their female counterparts. Consequently, trans women competing against women not only in tennis, but boxing, wrestling, football, rugby etc would be unfair. It is not transphobic to point this out, it’s simply a biological and scientific fact. 

My sentiments are iterated by Dr Nicola Williams feminist writer who argues “there are times when biological sex does matter for safeguarding, privacy and dignity, fairness…when the sex of a person must be acknowledging.” Kristina Harrison a political campaigner and a post-operative transsexual supports the idea of a diagnostic system of legal gender recognition. She points out only using self-declaration of sex would fail vulnerable youngsters, undermine women’s sex-based protections and harm trans people themselves.

In our eagerness to be all-inclusive, non-discriminatory and utterly accepting, scientific facts and the sanctity of women seem to be forsaken. The effects of the extreme need for not discriminating result in absurdities such as 71 options for Gender on Facebook, to inaccuracies such as biology shouldn’t be a determining factor for identification of gender/sex.

Firstly, biology exists and can’t be abandoned for diplomatic jargon; trans women are biologically different to women, period. 

Secondly women have experienced discrimination, exclusion and inequality for centuries and continue to be oppressed the world over. Women have worked hard to form their identification, independence, culture, politics and sexuality across the world and still battle to do so daily. Their efforts can’t simply be inherited or transferred to trans women.  Finally, inclusivity is the most honourable, courageous and imperative virtue for individuals and societies to uphold; and it should be fully extended to trans women with common sense and facts intac