Author: Jeremiah Ancheta

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An Explanation of TERF Ideology

By Jeremiah Ancheta

Introduction

The term TERF, or Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminist, has become more known in recent years as the fight for (and unfortunately, the fight against) trans rights continues. But what exactly is the deal with TERFs and what relevance do they have with trans people?

This post will give an explanation of TERF ideology and why it is harmful towards transgender people.

Feminism and Radical Feminism

First, what is feminism? I like the simple definition given by bell hooks that encompasses various strands of feminism throughout history – “Feminism is a movement to end sexism, sexist exploitation, and oppression.” Radical feminism can be described as a strand of feminism which seeks to eliminate the patriarchy with a re-ordering and re-structuration of society. 

Feminists and radical feminists point out the existence of the patriarchy, which can be roughly described as a social system in place that advantages men and disadvantages women in various social aspects of their lives. Such social aspects include one’s social standing, access to material resources, how they are affected in the political sphere, etc. The advantages that men have in society in virtue of being men is what makes them privileged, in contrast with women who are oppressed due to the disadvantages they have in virtue of being women.

Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminism

Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminism, or TERF, can be described as believing in these two points:

  1. Following feminism in seeking to end oppression towards women
  2. Gender is identical to sex and is thus a biological phenomenon

As explained in a previous post by Cloud Dancers, those who believe that gender is a biological phenomenon believe that whether a person is a man/woman is based on biological features, typically one’s sex chromosome make-up and their sex organs. For such people, what it is to be a woman is to be a person with XX sex chromosomes and a vagina. This is also how one’s gender is assigned at birth.

Those who believe that gender is a strictly biological phenomenon typically deny the existence and identity of transgender people – people whose gender does not align with one’s sex assigned at birth. 

So for TERFs, trans-women do not count as women. As such, they are excluded from being considered oppressed as women in following their project of feminism. 

Furthermore, it is seemingly the case that those associated with the term TERF also vehemently criticize trans activism. For instance, J.K. Rowling and Dave Chappelle are two such notable individuals and have criticized trans activism and trans people within their fields of work. For more on this, see Cloud Dancer’s posts on Rowling and Chappelle. 

As seen through the actions and reception towards Rowling and Chappelle, those associated with TERFs see much support due to their public endorsement of feminist ideals, yet their ideology continues to hurt trans people by denying their existence and identity or painting their activism in a negative light.

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Missouri’s Restrictions on Gender-Affirming Care

By Jeremiah Ancheta

On April 13, 2023, an emergency rule from Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey was introduced that restricts gender-affirming care for transgender people in the state. According to an article by AP News, the ruling “will impose numerous restrictions on both adults and children before they can receive puberty blocking drugs, hormones or surgeries ‘for the purpose of transitioning gender.’” It goes into effect on April 27 and expires in February 2024.

Such restrictions include:

  • Transgender patients must have undergone at least 15 hour-long sessions in therapy over a course of at least 18 months prior to seeking gender-affirming care
  • Patients must be screened for autism and “social-media addiction,” 
  • Patients with psychiatric symptoms due to mental health issues, such as depression and anxiety, must first be treated and resolved

As we can see, Missouri has made it nearly impossible for transgender people to attain gender-affirming care. As noted in previous posts from Cloud Dancers, transgender people often go through various mental health struggles due to the discrimination and stigma they face. 

In fact, according to the Columbia University Department of Psychiatry, “research demonstrates that gender-affirming care… greatly improves the mental health and overall well-being of gender diverse, transgender, and non-binary children and adolescents.” Furthermore, a 2021 study in the Journal of Adolescent Health involving 11,000 gender-diverse youth found that access to such care reduced depression and suicidality.

Additionally, the ruling is harmful in an intersectional manner as it denies access to gender-affirming care to autistic transgender people. In other words, the ruling is harmful towards transgender people, autistic people, and autistic transgender people.

Unfortunately, Missouri isn’t the only state to see bans on gender-affirming care. Other states such as Alabama and Florida have had similar rulings implemented.

Not too long ago, “[Texas] Gov. Greg Abbott told state health agencies… that medical treatments provided to transgender adolescents, widely considered to be the standard of care in medicine, should be classified as ‘child abuse’ under existing state law” according to a 2022 article by the New York Times.

Many organizations are already looking to challenge this ruling. For instance, the ACLU and Lambda Legal said in a joint statement that they would “take any necessary legal action” and urged those affected to call, according to another article by AP News.

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The Importance of Data Collection

By Jeremiah Ancheta

The Current State of the Data on the Trans Community

According to the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE), “Transgender people, and the issues they face, are under-studied because surveys of the general population rarely ask whether a respondent is transgender.” Furthermore, “Without including questions to determine whether a person is transgender on general population surveys, we lack official information about unemployment rates, income and poverty, drug and alcohol abuse, suicide, and all other data that are regularly measured in the general population.”

This point is echoed by the U.S. Foundation Funding for Trans Communities, stating that “Many federal programs and major surveys do not collect data on gender identity. This lack of data has made it difficult to identify and fully understand the unique needs of transgender communities.”

The Importance of Data Collection

As noted above, the lack of data on transgender people has made it difficult to accurately identify and understand the depth of the issues they face. As such, it is clear that the more data we have on trans people, the better we are able to understand their plights and act accordingly to deal with those issues.

For instance, let’s consider the importance of data collection in other social spheres. This article by the NCBI notes that “Racial and ethnic disparities in health have been extensively documented… Making progress toward the goal of eliminating disparities will require widespread, reliable, and consistent data about the racial and ethnic characteristics of the U.S. population.”

Insofar as there are health disparities between the trans community and the general population (and there definitely are), then eliminating these disparities will also require collecting reliable and consistent data on trans people.

The health sphere is only one kind of the many disparities between transgender people and the general population. Other disparities include suicide risk and ideation, being victims of violent crimes, and being at greater risk of unemployment and poverty.

Next Steps

First, we encourage transgender people to participate in the NCTE’s United States Transgender Survey (USTS). The 2015 USTS has been to date the largest national survey that has collected information on transgender people, covering their experiences and the issues they face. The next one started in October 2022. The more transgender people that participate in the survey, the more accurate data we will have on the community.

Second, we call for more investigations and research into transgender people and the issues they face. As noted above, transgender people and the issues they face are under-studied. 

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Sex and Gender

By Jeremiah Ancheta

Sex and Gender as Identical

Many people believe that ‘gender’ is simply another word for ‘sex.’ As such, to say that one is male is identical to saying that one is a man, and to say that one is female is identical to saying that one is a woman.

Additionally, it is believed that whether a person is a woman/man (and thus whether that person is female/male) is based on biological features. The main features that are said to determine whether one is a man/woman are typically one’s chromosomes and sex organs. Women are people with XX sex chromosomes and have vaginas; men are people with XY sex chromosomes and have penises.

These coupled beliefs are typically held by those who deny the existence and identity of transgender people. For instance, Maya Forstater, a researcher who worked for the Center for Global Development, has previously tweeted “… male people are not women. I dont think being a woman/female is a matter of identity or womanly feelings. It is biology.” For more on Forstater and her involvement in J.K. Rowling’s transphobia, see Cloud Dancer’s previous post on the matter.

Sex and Gender as Distinct

In contrast to the idea that gender is simply synonymous with sex, or that one’s gender is identical to one’s sex, many feminists believe that sex and gender are distinct. From the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy article ‘Feminist Perspectives on Sex and Gender,’ the distinction is characterized as follows:

Provisionally: ‘sex’ denotes human females and males depending on biological features (chromosomes, sex organs, hormones and other physical features); ‘gender’ denotes women and men depending on social factors (social role, position, behaviour or identity). 

The idea is that ‘sex’ and ‘gender’ refer to two different phenomena – the former referring to a biological phenomenon and the latter to a latter phenomenon. Since they refer to different phenomena, then it does not make sense to say that they are identical. 

Unlike the idea that sex and gender are identical, this distinction between sex and gender is able to explain and account for the existence and identity of transgender and non-binary people – those whose gender identity does not align with the sex they were assigned at birth. 

What exactly does it mean to say that one’s gender identity does not “align” with one’s sex assigned at birth? It’s helpful to understand this idea by first understanding what makes someone cisgender – when one’s gender identity does align with their sex at birth.

Typically, cisgender people are characterized as one of these two:

  • People who identify as a woman and were assigned female from birth (Cis women)
  • People who identify as a man and were assigned male from birth (Cis men)

People who do not find themselves under one of these two relationships are said to be transgender or non-binary.

  • People who identify as a woman and were assigned male from birth (Transwomen)
  • People who identify as a man and were assigned female from birth (Transmen)
  • People who neither identify as a a man or a woman despite their assigned sex from birth (Non-binary people)
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Explaining J.K. Rowling’s Transphobia

By Jeremiah Ancheta

J.K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series, has made several transphobic remarks in the last couple of years. Despite the criticism she has received from trans people and activists, Rowling continues to make such comments and doubles down on them in the face of trans people. Unfortunately, it seems that most in the public sphere are in support of Rowling, characterizing the attacks towards her as unjustified and simply due to “cancel culture.”

The public debate has re-emerged in popularity with the recent release of the popular video game Hogwarts Legacy which is based on Rowling’s Harry Potter novels.

This post will give a comprehensive explanation of why J.K Rowling is transphobic. 

Rowling’s Support for Maya Forstater

In 2019, Maya Forstater, a researcher who worked for the Center for Global Development, “lost her job at a thinktank after tweeting that transgender women cannot change their biological sex” according to a piece by The Guardian.

Forstater has a history of transphobic comments on Twitter. She has previously tweeted “… male people are not women. I dont think being a woman/female is a matter of identity or womanly feelings. It is biology.” Additionally, she has misgendered Pips Bunce, a non-binary and gender fluid person who was listed on the Top 100 Female Executives in 2018 by HERoes, having tweeted “he is a man who likes to express himself part of the week by wearing a dress.”

In response to Forstater’s losing her job, Rowling sent out a tweet in December 2019 that said: 

Dress however you please. Call yourself whatever you like. Sleep with any consenting adult who’ll have you. Live your best life in peace and security. But force women out of their jobs for stating that sex is real? 

#IStandWithMaya #ThisIsNotADrill

Obviously, Forstater said more than “sex is real.” She has denied the existence and identity of trans people. By standing with Maya Forstater, it is clear that Rowling is defending Forstater’s transphobic comments and is in agreement with them. 

Rowling’s Problematic Conception of a Woman

A June 2020 tweet by Rowling revealed her conception of a woman – a person who menstruates. While this has the strange entailment of excluding some cis-women from being considered women due to a hysterectomy or menopause (people that I’m sure Rowling herself would consider as being women), it also excludes trans-women from being considered women and counts trans-men who menstruate as being women.

Rowling’s Transphobic Essay

In response to the criticism that she has received, Rowling published an essay on her website discussing her views on trans issues and problems she has with trans activism. Despite Rowling’s attempt to justify her comments and stances on trans issues, Rowling only revealed more of her transphobia.

Magdalen Berns

Rowling talks about the criticism she received after following Magdalen Berns, who unfortunately passed away years ago from an aggressive brain tumor.

Months later, I compounded my accidental ‘like’ crime by following Magdalen Berns on Twitter. Magdalen was an immensely brave young feminist and lesbian who was dying of an aggressive brain tumour. I followed her because I wanted to contact her directly, which I succeeded in doing. However, as Magdalen was a great believer in the importance of biological sex, and didn’t believe lesbians should be called bigots for not dating trans women with penises, dots were joined in the heads of twitter trans activists, and the level of social media abuse increased.

Here, Rowling seems to characterize the criticism she has received as unjustified  by painting Berns as an unproblematic individual fighting for feminism. Just as she did with Forstater, Rowling characterizes Berns as merely making claims about biological sex. However, what Rowling failed to mention was the more blatant transphobic remarks made by Berns, which is the actual reason why such criticism was made in the first place by trans people and activists. 

For instance, Berns has denied trans women their identity and existence, saying that “trans women are male” in a YouTube video of hers. Furthermore, she has previously likened trans women to “blackface actors,” calling them men who pretend to be women for perverted reasons. This was reported by The Guardian and an image of the original tweet can be found here. 

Rowling’s Vilification of Trans Activism

In the second half of her essay, Rowling gives her reasons for being worried about trans activism. 

First, she says that:

It’s been clear to me for a while that the new trans activism is… pushing to erode the legal definition of sex and replace it with gender.

This definitely isn’t happening and it’s hard to believe Rowling when she doesn’t give examples of any organized activist efforts to replace the legal definition of sex with gender.

Second, she says:

I’m an ex-teacher and the founder of a children’s charity, which gives me an interest in both education and safeguarding. Like many others, I have deep concerns about the effect the trans rights movement is having on both.

Again, Rowling doesn’t give any substantial examples of the effects that trans activism has on education and safeguarding.

In her third reason, she simply says:

As a much-banned author, I’m interested in freedom of speech and have publicly defended it, even unto Donald Trump.

Rowling seems to be saying that trans activism is a threat to freedom of speech, perhaps due to the criticism she has received for her remarks. As Rowling doesn’t give an explanation of how trans activism threatens freedom of speech, there isn’t much to respond to.

Given all this, we see that Rowling is vilifying the trans movement, stating that it is a threat to the legal definition of sex, education and safeguarding, freedom of speech. Despite these concerns, Rowling doesn’t give any evidence or explanation of how the trans movement threatens all these things.

Perpetuating Predator Myths

In December 2021, Scottish police stated that they will “record rapes as being committed by a woman if a male attacker simply identifies as a female” according to a piece by The Scottish Sun. Rowling responded to this by tweeting:

War is Peace. 

Freedom is Slavery. 

Ignorance is Strength. 

The Penised Individual Who Raped You Is a Woman.

To be clear, the first three lines come from George Orwell’s 1984 and are meant to convey contradictions present in the fictional world of the book. By saying “the penised individual who raped you is a woman,” Rowling conveys that this message is a contradiction and that in fact a person who identifies as a woman and has a penis is a man. 

Not only is Rowling, again, denying the identity of trans people; she is perpetuating the myth that trans people, particularly women with male genitalia, are sexual predators and only identify as women in order to find opportunities to commit sexual assault towards other women. Proponents of this claim typically believe that such sexual assaults would occur if we allow trans people to use public restrooms that correspond with their gender.

Despite this popular myth, there is absolutely no evidence to back it up. In fact, a 2019 study in the Sexuality Research and Social Policy journal found that the enactment of laws permitting trans people to use public restrooms that correspond with their gender “is not related to the number of frequency or criminal incidents in these spaces. Additionally, the study finds that reports of privacy and safety violations in public restrooms, locker rooms, and changing rooms are exceedingly rare.”

Final Words

As we have seen, Rowling has made various transphobic remarks the last couple of years – showing support for other transphobes, vilifying trans activism, and perpetuating trans predator myths. 

Much of her justification of her stances involve obfuscation or lack of context that make it seem like the criticism towards her as unjustified, For instance, she characterizes Maya Forstater and Magdalen Berns is simply being believers in biological sex, leaving out the fact that they have made blatant transphobic remarks. In failing to mention these latter facts, people learning about the controversy through her own words do not get the whole picture. Rather, they get an embellished one that paints Rowling as a “victim” of trans activism.

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The Importance of Transgender Storytelling

By Jeremiah Ancheta

One of the key focus areas of the Cloud Dancers Foundation is documenting transgender stories. We have previously documented the stories of trans seniors such as Petra Wenham and Maeve DuVally who have shared their journeys in becoming their true selves and the hardships they faced along the way. But why is it so important to document the stories of trans people?

Feminist Standpoints and Situated Knowledge

Storytelling is important because it allows people to listen to and better understand the realities of marginalized individuals. These stories consist of the personal experiences of marginalized people, experiences that non-marginalized people never had. As such, people who don’t identify with certain marginalized groups have a harder time identifying and understanding the issues that these groups face. Such theses are discussed within feminist social philosophy, mostly in the idea of standpoint theory.

From the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, two relevant claims of feminist standpoint theory are “(1) Knowledge is socially situated. (2) Marginalized groups are socially situated in ways that make it more possible for them to be aware of things and ask questions than it is for the non-marginalized.” 

The idea is that insofar as the situations and experiences of marginalized groups are different from that of non-marginalized groups, they will come to have different understandings and interpretations of their social situations. As Sandra Harding, one of the seminal authors on standpoint theory, puts it, “knowledge is supposed to be based on experiences, and so different experiences should enable different perceptions of ourselves and our environments.”

One important aspect of this concerns matters of discrimination and oppression. Oppression is typically taken to involve two parties – the oppressed and the oppressors. Given the nature of oppression, the social situation of the two groups is radically different. While one experiences privilege and advantages along some social dimension (e.g. economic, material, etc.), the other experiences discrimination and disadvantages along those same dimensions. As such, the oppressed group who experience systematic disadvantages are in a better position to understand their plights than the non-oppressed group, who do not experience disadvantages and thus are not usually conscious of the issues that marginalized groups face.

It’s important to clarify that belonging to one marginalized group doesn’t mean you better understand the plights of other marginalized groups. For instance, being a cisgender black woman doesn’t mean you better understand the experiences of trans people than trans people themselves. To draw back on the main thesis of standpoint theory, this is because cisgender black women have never experienced what it is like to be trans. 

This is a point made in a previous Cloud Dancers blog post concerning Dave Chappelle’s comments on the transgender community. As a non-trans individual, Chappelle has never experienced what it is like to be transgender and thus has never experienced transphobia. Despite this, Chappelle makes claims that imply he understands transphobia better than trans people themselves. However, his claims are uninformed by the actual realities of trans people and what they are saying. 

Storytelling – Critical Race Theory

These sentiments are also echoed in the works of critical race theorists. One of the basic tenets of Critical Race Theory is what Richard Delgado and Jean Stefancic call the voice-of-color thesis. Due to the different experiences that individuals from marginalized groups have, especially with respect to discrimination and oppression, they are able to communicate matters that non-marginalized individuals are unlikely to know. Within the context of race, it is difficult for America’s dominant racial group to understand what being non-white is like.

With this in mind, critical race scholars promote the practice of storytelling – for black and brown people to describe their personal experiences. The goal of storytelling is to describe the realities of marginalized individuals, realities that involve experiencing discrimination and systematic disadvantages, realities that non black and brown people will likely have a harder time understanding.

Transgender Storytelling

Similarly, Cloud Dancers looks to document the stories of transgender people, to cover their journeys and hardships in order for non-trans people to better identify and understand the issues that they face. From the activism within feminism, which brings attention to the realities of women, and critical race theory, which brings attention to the realities of non-white people, a similar practice can be made with respect to transgender storytelling, which brings attention to the realities of transgender people.