Julia Serano Profile picture
Jul 18, 2022 7 tweets 3 min read Read on X
I've spent much of the last 10-15 years countering online anti-trans propaganda & disinformation. it's typically some combination of irrational, paranoid, & hateful. but I don't think I've ever seen anything quite as batshit as the recent "transvestigators" trend...
...if you don't know what "transvestigators" are, here is a thread I just came across:
...and another thread from @ParkerMolloy from earlier today:
...and now I "can't stop thinking" about this Twitter exchange from back in September, wherein a writer who some cis ppl consider "knowledgeable" about trans issues confessed her obsession with "transgender eyes"... screenshot of Twitter conve...
...upon noticing the frequency with which gender-atypical traits arise in the population, most ppl would conclude: "wow, human beings sure do exhibit a lot of gender & sexual diversity!" but instead, transvestigators conclude "omg everybody is transgender except for me!" #batshit
...as many pointed out, there have been plenty of past cases where ppl claimed that a famous person is "secretly trans" or "really a man". but what's different here is that these transvestigators are seeing trans ppl everywhere they look. examples here:
melmagazine.com/en-us/story/tr…
...while "transvestigators" have clearly gone off the deep end, they seem at least partially driven by the common misconception that #trans (& #LGBTQ+) ppl are inherently "deceptive", which I discuss at length in my latest book Sexed Up (juliaserano.com/sexedup.html)... excerpt from Sexed Up that ...

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More from @JuliaSerano

Feb 2
1) yet again, the @nytimes has published a lengthy "raising concerns about trans" article based largely on anecdotal stories & evidence, while ignoring the big picture & actual statistics – a tactic that I dissect in this essay (w/100+ references)...
juliaserano.medium.com/gender-affirmi…
2) for today's "raising concerns about trans" article, @nytimes tapped Pamela Paul, who's basically become their in-house anti-trans activists – many of her past anti-trans articles are discussed & critiqued here: #trans #transgender #LGBTQfair.org/home/pamela-pa…
@nytimes 3) the article raises the specter of "ROGD/transgender social contagion" – as I discuss in this essay, there are currently NINE published research studies that contradict or refute this hypothesis. so why is @nytimes promoting pseudoscience?
juliaserano.medium.com/all-the-eviden…
Read 4 tweets
Sep 8, 2023
the easiest way to delegitimize a group of ppl is to equate them with "sex" or portray them as "excessively sexual" – it's happened w/many past & present stigmatized groups. in my book Sexed Up (), I examine the why this is so pervasive & effective... juliaserano.com/sexedup.html
...here is an excerpt from the last chapter of Sexed Up (free online: ) about this tendency to sexualize marginalized groups & why respectability politics reactions to it are ineffective (because its not about what we do, but rather how they see us)... juliaserano.medium.com/sexual-dystopi…
screenshot of highlighted passage from linked-to excerpt that reads: I have already provided countless examples of how certain subpopulations are “marked by sex” and viewed as “excessively sexual” in many people’s eyes. A man who walks down the street topless is not considered “sexual,” whereas a woman who does the same is. A heterosexual couple who engages in public hand-holding or kissing is not considered “sexual,” but a same-sex couple doing the same is. If a billboard ad featured a white, cisgender, thin, able-bodied woman wearing a sexy outfit, many passersby wouldn’t even notice it, ...
...I make the case over the course of the book that people in our culture unconsciously view both sex and stigma as deeply intertwined with contamination & corruption, which is why stigmatized groups are viewed as "excessively sexual" (Sexed Up, p.180, )... juliaserano.com/sexedup.html
screenshot of linked-to book passage that reads (in part): That said, I don’t think that this is a queer-specific phenomenon. Since many people unconsciously conceptualize sex itself in terms of imagined transfers of stigma from one person to another, it’s not that much of a stretch for perceivers to read sexual motives and meanings into nonsexual interactions with other stigmatized groups. This is especially the case for perceivers who are already apprehensive about sex and sexuality to begin with. Perhaps this is why white segregationists were so quick to connect the issue of school integ...
Read 5 tweets
Jun 27, 2023
this is good summary of the many complexities regarding the issue that has become a "gateway drug" to publicly expressing transphobic opinions...
...I can't tell you how many ppl since early 2022 (when GOP first started wielding this as a political issue) have asked me my thoughts on trans women competing in women's sports. I used to answer with all the (crucial) complexity that Evan shares in his piece...
...but nowadays I respond this way: 1) ask the person how many women's sporting events they follow or have attended in the last year. the answer is almost always none – I then point out their seemingly misplaced concern. [if they do support women's sports, I discuss complexities]
Read 6 tweets
May 16, 2023
brand new essay, many weeks in the making: "Gender-Affirming Care for Trans Youth Is Neither New nor Experimental: A Timeline and Compilation of Studies." no-paywall link, 15 min read + over 100 references – please share & give it "claps"!
juliaserano.medium.com/gender-affirmi… #trans #science
...FYI most media outlets wouldn't have allowed me to publish this piece as is. so if you appreciate that I make essays like this freely available online, pls consider supporting me on Patreon for as little as $1/month!
patreon.com/juliaserano #trans #transgender #LGBTQ #science
🧵my essay 1) provides a brief history of how gender-affirming care came to be, 2) debunks the most common anti-trans & just-asking-questions talking points & tactics, 3) provides a list of over 100 studies & reviews showing how established this field is:
juliaserano.medium.com/gender-affirmi…
Read 13 tweets
Apr 27, 2023
I see lots of ppl on my TL asking for Bluesky invites. so I guess I will throw my hat into the ring to haha...
...I remember people were talking up Post when it first launched. I'm there now, but I find the platform to be rather boring, so not sure what to think of this latest Bluesky craze ¯\_(ツ)_/¯... post.news/@/juliaserano
...in any event, if you ever decide to leave the dying mall that is Twitter, here are all the other places I can be found: juliaserano.com/socialmedia.ht…
Read 4 tweets
Mar 5, 2023
FYI the word "transgenderism" began as an in-community term to refer to the phenomenon of transgender people (our existence & experiences). TERFs later twisted it to make it sound like an ideology (it's not). "eradicating transgenderism" = eradicating us.
juliaserano.blogspot.com/2015/08/regard…
...CPAC dude & others on the right may quibble over "what he actually meant was..." but their actions speak louder than words:
...it's so f-ing exhausting to end a week of pundits arguing "just b/c the rock & helicopter whistleblower lied doesn't mean her story is completely untrue" with "just b/c he said 'transgenderism' doesn't mean he was referring to transgender ppl" takes...
Read 4 tweets

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