Transgender Conformity

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Recommended: Current transgender media portrayal

In the words of Ellen Wittlinger regarding transgender “...you can only lie about who you are for so long without going crazy” (“GoodReads”). It is a shame that society would force a person to hide their identity but many have concealed themselves in order to conform into social norms. One group that has been socially marginalized and forced to hide their true selves are the transgender community. The definition of transgender is “Appearing as, wishing to be considered as, or having undergone surgery to become a member of the opposite sex.” (“Free Dictionary”) People have many prejudices and ideas of what transgender is but many times these are erroneous. Transgender people have been in society since it began but have been forced into hiding due to society’s ignorance, tendency to categorize, and lack of knowledge.

Ignorance is a difficult barrier for anyone to overcome but many remain ignorant by closing their minds to new or atypical things. In Horrace Mann’s “From Report of the Massachusetts Board of Education, 1848,” he explains the powers that shape our educational system (Colombo, p. 116). One power he concluded to be intertwined in the educational system was religion. This religious power in our school systems explains why LGBT, or Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Intersex individuals have been discriminated against and condemned. According to many religious people, being LGBT is immoral. If this belief is being taught in schools then LGBT people will continue to be marginalized. Also, when people see someone who is different they stare or mutter an ignorant statement regardless of how that person actually is. This ignorance and prejudice can turn into hatred and action. According to FBI statistics from 2010, of t...

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...viduals are normal humans just like everyone else and deserve to be treated as such.

References

Colombo, Gary, Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle. Rereading America: Cultural Contexts for Critical Thinking and Writing. 2nd ed. Boston: Bedford Books of St. Martin's Press, 1992.

"FBI Releases 2010 Hate Crime Statistics." Federal Bureau of Investigation. FBI, 2011. Web. 6 Mar 2012. .

"GoodReads." Transgender Quotes. GoodReads, 2012. Web. 06 Mar 2012. .

"Sex Reassignment Surgery." Encyclopedia of Surgery. N.p., 2011. Web. 7 Mar 2012. .

"Transgender." The Free Dictionary. Farlex, 2012. Web. 7 Mar 2012. .

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