Thread:Jassim Al-Madeh/@comment-10733658-20141110162556

Hey, there. For the sake of not clogging up the Mod's wall, I figured I would reply to you here instead.

The basic jist is that "real sex" is kind of a controversial thing when it comes to Transgender/Transsexual people, and as such is better that it be avoided especially worded as "real".

In terms of the idea that maybe Mutsuki just hates being seen as weak, and really does identify as a girl....I had considered that possibility. However, his particular way of describing his feelings shoots down this theory completely and instead points towards a straight-forward example of someone suffering from Gender Dysphoria. The fact that he states it is something he's always felt from early on, and his inability to explain why he feels that way is the key. Transgender people typically experience such Dysphoria from early on in their lives, and are unable to point to a particular logical reason it bothers them. If it were a matter of social pressures, or feeling weak, then Mutsuki would have been able to come up with a reason for what he was feeling. Since he cannot, the idea that he identifies as a girl is kind of shot down.

Respecting Gender Identity is....well.....it's simple. It is about respecting another person, plain and simple. Gender Identity is a very tricky thing, because Science is really only beginning to scratch the surface in understanding how it works. What we do know, however, is that it is a deeply-ingrained trait that is vital to a person's emotional and psychological well-being.

There was a landmark case involving twin boys -- one suffered a mishap during circumcision, and the doctors made the decision to do sex-reassignment surgery. So that twin had girl-bits, and was raised as a girl with absolutely no idea about what happened to him hours after birth. As a teenager, he learned the truth after he began expressing a male Gender Identity. He got reassignment surgery and lived as a male from then on -- however, he ended up killing himself in his late 20s as a result of everything. While tragic, it increased understanding of how Gender Identity is an inborn trait. There have also been numerous conditions discovered that lead to a Transgender identity, mostly Chromosomal or Neurological conditions that result in the brain not matching up to the external sex characteristics.

But for whatever reason, at this point we do know that not everyone has an Identity (Mental, Emotional) that matches with their Birth Sex. And for no other reason than because it can be extremely hurtful or disrespectful, it's important to accept and honor someone's preferences in terms of their Gender Identity.

Sorry for getting long-winded, but I hope this helps explain stuff. 