Comments on: On Thomas Beattie, being trans and daring to have children

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 06:13:28 +0000

Yeah, I’ve seen plenty of comments to that effect, too. The particular ones that prompted this post were very much of the “men don’t get pregnant, so he’s a woman” variety (blech), but the concerns about going public are rather more understandable.

I guess, yeah, I’m not inclined to see hiding as a particularly effective political strategy, and saying “oh, don’t speak up, don’t tell them you exist” for me kind of reeks of the stance Barney Frank and HRC have taken towards our community generally a bit too much to be comfortable with it.

Anyway, thanks for dropping by, Nick! I’ve always liked your comments elsewhere.

By: Nick Kiddle

Nick Kiddle — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 22:13:35 +0000

The comments I’ve read in the ftm livejournal comm were mostly along the lines of “hey, if he wants to get pregnant that’s fine, but he’s an asshole for going public with it”, the very real fear being that legislators will notice the loophole that makes it possible for a legal male to get pregnant and start refusing to change the legal sex of anyone still in possession of a uterus.

And it is a real and justified fear, but I think the outrage is being targeted in the wrong direction. Beattie isn’t the one making stupid essentialist laws, but it’s easier to hold him responsible because the crazy-making ways of legislators is outside our control.

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 04:51:05 +0000

It’s frustrating, but I do see where it comes from.

As a transwoman, I get pretty frustrated with people who would paint me as something other than a woman; I can see how that would spout fears of “well, if a transman can be seen to do something reserved for women, what is that telling people about me?” There’s also the prospect of really negative consequences specifically for transmen if going to the media backfires, such as the possibility of requiring even more invasive surgeries (such as hysterectomy) for legal recognition of their maleness.

That just clashes with my anti-essentialist side, however - which says “why does pregnancy have to be coded as something intrinsically female? if the dissonance in carrying a child is low enough that a transman doesn’t mind doing so, good luck to him, and the essentialists can go fuck off”. Really, when it comes down to it, I’d rather stand and fight for all of our community rather than throwing people under the bus because it’s politically convenient.

By: Anon E. Mouse

Anon E. Mouse — Sat, 12 Apr 2008 04:42:56 +0000

Everyone seems to have their own opinion. It seems to me I hear more negative reactions from the men in our community. They tend to be along the lines of “This is messed up and it’s screwing up things for everyone.” The responses from women tend to be along the lines of “This is his right and reproductive freedoms” and some might add “…even if it’s a little weird.” Like I said, it’s not a rule.. I’ve heard both reactions from both, but I wonder why that is?

By: Tobes

Tobes — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 13:16:30 +0000

Wow. I didn’t know there was a split in the trans community over this. That is so sad. I hope that Thomas Beattie has enough of a close personal friend/family support through all this. I can’t imagine what he’s going through.

The whole damn situation is so ironic. All the moral majority folks are foaming at the mouth about this and I just want to shake them all and be like, “Stop thinking you have the right to control who has children and when.”

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 01:49:41 +0000

I can’t say I’m all that surprised, considering his actions and tone on ATSN. But censoring tons of posts? I’m all curious now….

By: RyanWren

RyanWren — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 01:30:42 +0000

OOH Az, I am totally up for that beer!

I have noticed that the person in question often adds his response to the emails sent out by other people that are pouncing on him (rather than emailing a separate response), and these days discussion has just about died on the list.

By: az

az — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 00:53:35 +0000

Wow, the Ozguys/ATSN stuff doesn’t surprise me either. That person has a long history of behaving with near pathological disgust towards anyone who doesn’t completely identify as a man. Although I’m surprised, reading RyanWren’s post, that apparently people pounce on him nowadays. So many posts have been censored on the ozguys list that a special journal exists to discuss them! If you ever want to have a beer sometime, I can tell you stories and stories….

By: RyanWren

RyanWren — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 12:46:42 +0000

I’ve been getting more and more frustrated with the trans communities reactions to this Beatie case too.
I wasn’t terribly surprised about the who the author of the email was, but I was surprised that he aired those opinions on ATSN, but has stayed clear of the discussion on OzGuys. I thought that was a particularly nasty brand of cowardice.

By: nix

nix — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 12:02:04 +0000

the livejournal posts and comments have really, really pissed me off. there have been some pretty horrific things said, and really bigoted opinions have been supported by a lot of people. it makes me sad.

also, i think i know who you’re talking about wrt to the email, and i’m so *not* surprised.