Navigating Non-Binary Existence In a Binary World
Even in conversations about gender and invisibility, genders like mine are rarely mentioned at all.
Think back to the last time you heard the phrase “he or she,” or “ladies and gentlemen.” You may not remember, but it was probably in the past day.
I notice phrases like these every time I hear them. They’re a potent reminder of how infrequently most people think about non-binary people like myself. Because I encounter acts of erasure, large and small, every day, it’s difficult to decide when to speak up. I usually choose not to, unless I know the person well.
In a few cases, the erasure is clearly unintentional. Take, for example, a recent episode of “99% Invisible.” It featured Caroline Criado Perez, the author of Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men. Even though host Roman Mars specified that cis men are the default, Perez used failure to include menstruating people in drug trials as an example of data excluding women. Trans men menstruate, too; anyone who menstruates may be excluded from drug trials on that basis, not only women.
Invisibility in everyday phrases
I saw a production of “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” at San Diego’s Diversionary Theatre, the…
