Are You Visible?

The Trans Day of Visibility is this Saturday are you doing anything special?

On Trans Day of Visibility, Do More Than Make Yourself Seen
Being out and proud is important, writes Milo Primeaux, but visibility alone will not set us free.
The Advocate
By Milo Primeaux
March 28 2018

There was no Transgender Day of Visibility when I first learned what "transgender" meant as a freshman in college. It was the fall of 2003. I was absent-mindedly flipping through books from the library of the queer culture house on campus when I came across Loren Cameron’s book, Body Alchemy, and saw transgender men of all shapes and sizes staring back at me from beautiful black and white portraits. I knew in an instant, with great shock, excitement, and some terror, that the men featured in this book were me. I saw them, and saw my future.

Fifteen years later, much has changed. Transgender issues have never been more visible in mainstream culture. If I were a freshman now, that electrifying moment of self-recognition would have happened long before I stepped foot on campus. I would already have spent years reading best-selling books by trans authors, watching TV shows and movies with trans lead characters, and watching as trans people get elected to public office. And I would have witnessed the backlash against that greater visibility; hearing politicians debate whether people like me have the right to exist in my school, to serve in the military, to have access to health care or jobs or homes.
[…]
The reality is that visibility alone will not set us free. There can be a lot of pressure to be out and proud in every sphere for the express purpose of gaining more social and political acceptance. But this can actually render invisible the risks and costs of being expelled, fired, evicted, or denied medical treatment just for being who you are. This is especially true for trans people of color, poor trans people, those with disabilities or HIV/AIDS, or who are undocumented, don’t speak English, have criminal records, or are in abusive relationships — all of them at exponentially and disproportionately higher risk of experiencing violence and discrimination if they are also perceived to be transgender.

I am always leery on days like this and the “National Coming Out Day” because I feel the most important thing that you can do is be safe. Think before you take the leap.

For me, I am going grocery shopping.

As a very out trans woman there is not much more that I can do to be visible, but what about you? Are you doing anything to be “out”?

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