I noticed that most of the responses to your story are pretty heated. I hope you’re taking care of yourself! People can be very nasty on the internet.

You don’t know the half of it! (Literally half: I’ve deleted and blocked about half the responses, which were too vile to leave up.)

It’s been getting worse lately, either because of my growing platform, or because of increasingly ugly public discourse. Probably both. It is really hard to keep publishing. I know other trans writers who have quit.

Just try to remember that its because of the nature of the medium, not the nature of the person. (Hopefully.)

Unfortunately, with regard to trans, I suspect it is often the people. People attack us in real life in pretty much every way possible, the worst of which (in terms of severity of actual harm done to life, health, and safety) are in media and law. People score points with their audiences by attacking trans people. I am less concerned with the specific attackers than I am with what this says about the audiences.

These attacks dehumanise us, as a tactic, which then permit cis apathy, schadenfreude, and further attacks by others (since one needn’t be concerned for non-humans). This has been increasingly bad in recent months, in many countries. It feels like transantagonism is gaining ground across the globe. I am worried. And tired.

I know you do not intend to offend or equivocate, and that you did not invent the term ‘transface.’ But there is a solid argument to be made that the word is a bad one and should be replaced.

. . .

I appreciate that you are seriously considering what I have to say. I would love to hear your counter points! My mind isn’t exactly made up on this topic.

I do want to pursue this issue, in discussion and probably for a story, as I am getting super frustrated with what I see as ‘new rules’ against any comparison between anything when it comes to combating oppression. Which is absurd when you consider that it is the same groups doing the same oppressing using the same tactics on everyone.

We know we need to band together to push back, but we’re not ‘allowed’ to point out the pattern of oppression? We don’t get to say ‘See what you did? You’re doing it again’? That just seems bizarre. Sometimes this feels more like a trademark dispute than a fight for human rights.

Also, no one wants to be compared to trans people. So, yea, there’s that.

❤ Allison