Being Different in a Black and White Industry
Confident enough to break the binary and face assimilation, Shaina Attanasio has had a hard time passing as male to others, so he uses clothes to help express his gender identity. “I identify as non-binary and I don’t feel comfortable in my own skin,” said Shaina Attanasio, Senior Film Major at Montclair State University (MSU).
The clothing industry is binary, meaning there are two fixed points, male and female. This can make it difficult when people wear clothes from a binary side that doesn’t match their body. Men’s clothing are often made for tall men that have a standard body, broad shoulders and tiny waist. Women’s clothing tends to be made for shorter, thinner bodied people and often has space built in for breasts, hips, and curves. When a transgender person or even just a male who likes wearing a dress comes along and tries to fit into these items, they face a challenge. The way clothing is made places us in these boxes, for not only what gender to express but how our bodies should be.
Zoey Blanco, a Junior Management of Information and Technology Major at MSU, agrees and shared with me, “a goal for me attending this University (as a transgender student) is to go out and not feel super self conscious, I was going to wear a dress today and I opted out of it because I couldn’t walk out of my room and not feel guilty or ashamed of what I was wearing and hopefully one day I’ll be able to overcome that.”
When it comes to gender there are several aspects, first there is gender identity, which is how you feel on the inside, some examples are: male, female, non-binary, transgender, agender, and genderfluid just to same a few. Then there is gender expression, which is how individuals present to others, it is about what we show on the outside, some examples are: feminine, masculine and androgynous. An important thing to remember is that none of these identities or expressions are set points, it is more of a continuum that is fluid and changing for some.
Attanasio said, “I like to be comfortable but look put-together, I used to only wear sweatshirt, tee shirts and jeans. I’ve been dressing in clothes I feel more comfortable in for the past few months because I finally discovered I felt more comfortable in men’s clothing because of how it is cut and how it fits me.”
Blanco describes her style as, “I haven’t worn a dress to class yet even though I really want to, it is just new environments for me can be really uncomfortable and i’m worried of turning heads and stuff because some people have gendered me as male in class no matter what I wear. I love skirts and tights, I love dresses, I wish I could wear them more often. I love tight clothing, I don’t like anything baggy, unless it is sweaters, sweaters are okay but I like clothing that compliments any curves I have.”
Often times, people will misgender someone based on their appearance. “People still gender me as female though I would like to be perceived as male,” Attanasio said. Individuals also feel like they have to fit in a box, either male or female, and if we challenge those norms and look differently, altercations can occur, “I think one of the most memorable experiences is when I was on the train for 2016 pride and I was confronted by a women on the train for what I was wearing, and I did my best to ignore her but she kept shoving these church pamphlets in my face and trying to lecture me on, Am I a guy? Am I a girl? I’ve had slurred thrown at me, tranny, freak, faggot,” says Blanco.
Moving forward, perhaps the fashion industry becomes more accommodating to different body types and starts to create more gender inclusive clothing. Society also needs to becomes more accepting of people’s identities, allowing individuals to express themselves however they want. Blanco says, “sometime I get called a ‘she’ though and people will say ‘oh can you help that woman over there’ and it makes me feel really good inside.”
