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 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"...
...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)...
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
...at first, I didn't see the appeal of this strategy. I thought "weird" undersold how scary MAGA proposals & rhetoric have gotten. plus I have long self-ID'd as "weird" (as many queer folks & artists of various sorts do). so I didn't get it, until I saw...
...how intensely MAGAs have (over)reacted to being called weird. even though "weird" is not anywhere near as pejorative as the "groomer"/"vermin"/"satanist" accusations they hurl at us.
but then it struck me how much their worldview centers on them being the supposed norm...
I don't write a response to every trans person who says something I disagree with (or else that's all I'd ever do). But as someone who has researched and written about trans-related science and healthcare, Brianna Wu has no idea what she's talking about...
...gender-affirming care isn't some "extreme activist position" – it's the literal science-based medical consensus, as I explain in great detail (with over 100 sources) here:
...is *disaffirming* children's genders, which causes *real harm* (as detailed in the aforementioned essay & research). Wu also brings up kids detransitioning in "the next 5 to 10 years" which is what anti-trans ppl have been saying forever, see here: juliaserano.medium.com/the-cass-revie…
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…
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…
...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
...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]
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…