Seeing the world from both sides

[Charlize]

  When i first transitioned my wife asked why i wanted to give up my male privilege.  An old FTM friend asked the same.  I must admit it has taken time to see the subtle changes that have affected me in relation to my "role" in society.

Last night i was at a symposium about deer damage in our area including damage to the hardwood forests.  This is certainly an issue facing us here as there is no regeneration in the woodlands due to tremendous deer pressure.  I was in a group of male farmers who were mostly concerned with their crops.  There was only one other woman there and she was in uniform as a representative of fish game and wildlife.  It struck me agin how hard it is to get a man to even listen to what women have to say.  I guess i should be grateful that i pass?

  I mentioned my experience to my wife she asked why i did this to myself.  I simply said because it's me and i'm still tough enough to be heard by those with ears but i certainly know who in that group would never appear attractive.

 

This wonderful article in Time magazine is an interesting look at what trans men find as they travel into the 'male" dominated world.  

 

http://time.com/transgender-men-sexism/?xid=time_socialflow_facebook

[Lizzie McTrucker]

I was thinking about this a year, maybe two years ago regarding male and female privilege and it's funny: I didn't realize I had male privilege until I no longer had it. It wasn't a sudden revoke of it but a gradual decrease where I started to notice I was being treated differently and bit more unfairly when I finally asked my friends "what the heck is going on?!" To which they politely clued me in that some of the things I'm experiencing is a result of now being considered and treated as a female in our society. (to which I replied, "this stinks!")

 

But since I was unaware of what privileges I had lost, I decided to look up male privilege online to figure out what I used to be able to do without a care in the world that I was most likely oblivious to the fact that women didn't have this same privilege. (I thought we were all equal.) Then I looked up female privilege to find out what newly acquired privileges I have since switching teams and found out that while we do have some, they're a little more event-specific. (legal issues, child care issues, reproduction issues, etc)

 

I don't know, in my opinion, anyone who asks "why would you want to give up your male privilege?" seems like they're dismissing the inner turmoil we go through and think what we're doing is a choice. I guess in a sense it is a choice: I mean we could do it (transition) or not do it. Still takes a lot of determination to be faced with a list of everything we stand to lose should we decide to transition and say "I still want to do it."

[tracy_j]

Maybe I have had male privilege, maybe not. To a very large extent I have lived with the feelings and way of life I have for years, and the change of clothing has not really made any major changes. I think perhaps that I am more confident now, whereas I was pushed about far more in the past. That being so, I feel that what I have lost in any male priveledge has been more than gained in confidence with its attendant assertiveness.

 

Tracy

[Jani]

Not being the most manly of men I don't think I experienced any privilege but I'm sure I did in some manner.  That's a good idea to look up the differences to compare and contrast.  

9 hours ago, Lizzie McTrucker said:

I don't know, in my opinion, anyone who asks "why would you want to give up your male privilege?" seems like they're dismissing the inner turmoil we go through and think what we're doing is a choice. I guess in a sense it is a choice: I mean we could do it (transition) or not do it. Still takes a lot of determination to be faced with a list of everything we stand to lose should we decide to transition and say "I still want to do it."

This is an important point.  Why?  Well its only one facet of my life and self image, and for me, not a strong one.  The urge to attain a balance in life is extremely strong which is why we make this choice. 

 

Jani