Transgender are Women, Right?

            There are numerous expectations in place for women. Individually each are expected to fulfill the role of family maintaince in the US community. The idea of the independent woman is the scariest idea to many a male; those who follow this principle are crucified. This also falls under the principle of feminism who in turn is seen as jokes in popular media. Expectations are not isolated to their roles. They are also expected to behave according to the conventions of the era. Expectations also expand to a women’s bodies. Each generation has their idea of what the perfect woman looks like. The millennial generation seem obsessed with the idea of thickness. The girl whose proportionally has thick thighs, big butt, big breast, and a flat stomach. An idea that is reinforced by music videos, magazine, ad campaigns, films and television, and social media. While women continue to fight these issues, the term encompasses one branch in a gender ideology. In the spectrum of gender, women are those of the correct reproductive organs identified at birth. Transgender women are still fighting to be considered a member of that branch.

            Transgender women are persecuted by many in the community. Males are concerned with being associated with one simply due to being identified as gay. A rabbit’s hole, within the male community there is almost nothing worst then being called gay or any denotation. Transgender women are isolated, and they fear violent repercussion. They are also the recipient of everyone’s jokes. Take comedian, Dave Chapelle, for example. He made a deal with Netflix to do several specials. On these specials he has made a few transgender jokes. One of the jokes happen to be about him dancing in the club with a transgender woman. He did not know she was transgender until the club lights came on; everyone present made fun of him. He expressed despair for having danced with her for so long. He expressed having committed a single sexual act with her, causing the audience to turn against him until he decreed for everyone to grow up. Proclaiming that the sexual act did not make him gay. But one thing he made clear was the women did not want any problems from Chapelle. In Mississippi, 21-year-old Dwanya Hickerson has plead guilty to killing 25-year-old Dee Whigham. The 25-year-old was stabbed 119 times after Dwanya found out she was transgender after committing an act of sex. One of many violence against transgender women, at least eight transgender women have been killed this year so far. In popular culture, transgender women are considered men. Correction, they are considered less than men. Men have their own laws and regulations that they must abide. This means possessing great masculinity and being the opposite of a woman. For transgender, they not only identify as women, but they work to become women themselves. Embracing the femininity that is associated with women, they are considered as far from men as possible.

            Within prison the obstacles only increase? Will they be able to obtain the proper medication, or will they be forced to adhere to something not themselves? Those who are recognized as women have a hard time acquiring all their needs in prison already. Pads and necessary goods being expensive, compared to the cents a day they make. What will happen to the guards in these institutions? Will they protect transgender women? Will they treat them with respect and dignity? In fact, will transgender women ever be allowed to enter prison as determined by their identities? As it stands all prison assignments are subject to identification made at birth. That is a whole other issue.