Thoughts on cisgender privilege that are keeping me up tonight while I lay in bed trying to sleep
Posted on February 26, 2013 by michamaya
Imagine getting coffee in the morning without worrying if your groggy voice makes the barista think your gender is not what it is.
That’s cisgender privilege.
Imagine being able to ride the bus or subway without getting yelled at by a violent homophobe, and without the constant fear of violence.
That’s cisgender privilege.
Imagine being able to speak in class or at work without someone devaluing what you say because of the pitch of your voice.
That’s cisgender privilege.
Imagine being able to go into a store to buy clothes without being looked at like you don’t belong there or told you can’t use the dressing room or ever worrying about those things.
That’s cisgender privilege.
Imagine never having to choose between the negative health effects of hormones or surgery and the negative health effects of being killed because of your gender.
That’s cisgender privilege.
Imagine meeting someone you’re attracted to and talking to them without worrying if their attraction will go away when they get to know your body.
That’s cisgender privilege.
Imagine never being told on the phone that you’re not the account holder because your voice doesn’t match the gender on record.
That’s cisgender privilege.
Imagine not having to spend endless hours seeing doctors, getting poked with needles for blood tests, talking to pharmacies, dealing with oppressive health insurance gender policies.
That’s cisgender privilege.
The next time you hear someone say that being cisgender is not a privilege, regardless of what their gender is, ask them to think again.
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