Gender Critical Feminism is Biphobic
A discussion of a common gender critical argument, its biphobic implications, and the role of gender in bisexuality
A common argument from transgender-exclusionary radical (or, as they seem to prefer, “gender critical”) feminists is that the transgender community is inherently sexist. As a member of the bisexual community, I take offense. Let me explain.
The argument asserts that gender is a sexist concept. In detail, it asserts that concepts like masculinity and femininity are prescriptive — they tell us how men and women should be. Therefore, being transgender — for revolving around a sexist idea of how men and women should be — is inherently sexist. Essentially, the argument is that transgender people are acting out sexist stereotypes.
When I describe myself as bisexual, I use the term as opposed to pansexual — that is, I’m indicating I have per-gender preferences. The argument above implies this, too, is sexist. If gender is a prescriptive concept, then my attraction must be dictated by sexist stereotypes.
This isn’t how my per-gender preferences work. Yes, there are specific traits I find uniquely attractive in (for example) men. However, not all of these traits align with what I consider masculine. In fact, I consider some of them feminine. One might speculate I’m fetishizing deviations from sexist norms, but what of the traits I do consider masculine — and those I don’t even associate with a gender?
What I find attractive in a man isn’t dictated by what I consider masculine; it’s dictated by how those traits register within the context of him being a man. In other words, certain traits — whether masculine, feminine, or otherwise — simply “hit differently” in men.
I think music is a useful analogy. Music theory has it that, given notes A, B, and C, A will sound differently depending on whether it’s played alongside B or C. Similarly, I find certain traits “resonate” differently with different genders.
This doesn’t just apply to what I find attractive in other people. It also applies to how I see myself. I have a mix of traits — some masculine, some feminine, and some neither — and I find they “resonate” well with the gender I was assigned at birth. When I look at myself as any other gender, it casts these traits in a different light, and they all feel “out of tune.”
Although I’m cisgender, I imagine what I described is similar to the experience of some transgender people — when a transgender man looks at himself as a man, everything about him — whether masculine, feminine, or otherwise — simply “resonates” well.
That all said, what I’ve described is my subjective understanding of gender. Other people (bisexual, transgender, or whatever else) may have a different understanding — and not just of what’s characteristic of individual genders, but what gender even is.
This is why it’s so naïve (and inadvertently biphobic) to argue gender is a sexist concept. It makes an assumption about everyone’s concept of gender — including mine and that of any other bisexual person with per-gender preferences.
My understanding of gender is one of no doubt many — and I doubt it’s the only one that isn’t sexist.
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