My Teacher’s Trans Fat Slide Made a Trans Woman Joke
I hope he stopped using it and didn’t get in trouble. Yes, I forgive him completely.
When I was in high school, our health class had a recurring guest speaker in the field of nutrition. He was memorable for his fair but no-nonsense lectures on every known vitamin and mineral. On top of the obscure vegetables he interested us in trying, he also dismayed many a student with bad news about our favorite foods — like dairy and sugar.
Teenage cheese fans were livid. I gulped whenever he badmouthed syrup. Still, I respected his dedication. He delivered the best data and unbiased suggestions he could muster — temporarily raising our cortisol levels, but good for us to know in the long run.
As a non-accepted and depressed transfeminine teen, I was suffering enough. I didn’t need sugar-filled cereals or anything else worsening my health! I appreciated his advice.
But there was one image from his PowerPoint I would never forget. To introduce a section on trans fat, he showed a photo of a trans woman.
Audience members laughed.
Trans fat — what is that?
Artificial trans fat in our food had good intentions, but bad results. By adding hydrogen to…
