5.2 G ENDER AND G ENDER S PECIFIC I DENTITY
5.2.5 Primary school teachers’ interpretation of transgender expression and employment
(Brenda).
Bizjak (2018) claims that transgender identities both conform and oppose normative gender practices through various gender performances. However, Bizjak (2018) points out that when non-conforming individuals are kept separate through polarisation of gender expression, new binaries emerge that conceal transgender identity. When Natalie refers to transgender as transitioning into the other sex, there is an unspoken assumption that transgender individuals must fit one gender or the other. Whereas Brenda states that transgender identities feel happier as the other gender, and by making this statement omits alternative transgender identities from social life and subsequently discriminates based on gender identity.
Bockting et al., (2021) proclaim that transgender identities conform to gender binary conceptualisations to avoid stigma associated with non-conformity. The authors state that transgender individuals either conceal their gender identity and non-conforming feelings from society by expressing themselves as their assigned sex or attempt to recreate themselves to pass as a cisgender member of the other sex.
The next section will look at how transgender expressions and employment is interpreted.
5.2.5 Primary school teachers’ interpretation of transgender expression and employment
“You see it happening all the time … you see young boys acting very girlish”
(Diane).
“I have observed these things, when you going to, like, the local mall, and if you observe people [transgender] you will see how they behave, how they walk and talk, and all of that” (Thomas).
The above extract focuses on entrenched experiences of high level stigma attached to transgender identities. Most of the teacher participants (72%) unsuspectingly characterised transgender, particularly transgender women, as caricatured identities with exaggerated personalities and behaviours. Diane professes that non-conforming gender expression is prevalent in the local community but also alludes to alternate gender expression being an ‘act’.
Language is a powerful tool used to convey everyday ideas, thoughts, and feelings, and Diane’s use of the word ‘act’ can be interpreted in one of two ways. First, act could mean that non-conforming gender expression is being reduced to a pretence, an attempt to make transgender identity appear true despite this not being the case. Alternatively, acting entails that non-conforming gender expression is part of theatrics or caricatured in a way that accentuates behaviours that are dissimulated. Thomas’s response also reinforces the idea that transgender identity is simplified or exaggerated behaviours when he regards transgender identity and expression as something that can be observed. Both Diane and Thomas in this instance based their understandings of transgender identity on fixed understandings of masculinity and femininity, and how men and women should perform in society.
“You know Bruce was different before, well I do feel like he changed a bit, you will see Caitlyn Jenner now all dressed up and takes care of his looks but before, like before he revealed himself as transgender, he used to dress up not fashionable. Now he's very into nails and take[s] care of his skin and clothing.
So he has become feminine after he transgendered” (Helen).
Hughto et al., (2020) claim that transgender individuals experience discrimination across the home, school, and work environments due to acts of mis-gendering, denial, and violence. As seen in the above excerpt, Helen elaborated on Caitlyn Jenner’s transition process, but refuted Caitlyn’s gender identity through the use of incorrect pronouns. Dolan et al., (2020) state that mis-gendering occurs when individuals deliberately or inadvertently address or describe a person with language that does not align with their gender identity. When Helen assigns the incorrect pronoun to describe Caitlyn Jenner, she then becomes culpable of mis-gendering which Dolan et al., (2020) claim discriminates, marginalises, and destabilises transgender identity. However, the practice of mis-gendering needs to be understood in relation to rigid ideologies around essentialism.
“I did see kids in high school and how they dress and how they talk and how they walk. I know that there's a change in the way people think; I know that! But for me, it still remains very straight forward – you [are] born with the parts of a man, and so you will be a man” (Maria).
Presently, transgender identities live through substantial levels of stigma due to the historical support of gender essentialism. Everyday policies and practices robustly impede opportunities for transgender identities (Skewes et al., 2018). Maria’s response illustrates how fixed essentialist mindsets obstruct the realisation of gender equality for transgender identities. Even though Maria observed non-conforming gender expression in the school environment and acknowledges the shift in global gender perspectives, she formidably advocates for essentialist thinking. The assumption that men and women are defined by their biological composition, distinct characteristics, and immutable nature increases the risk of discrimination and violence against transgender identities. It is important to note that although the following interpretation of transgender identity is not shared by most of the participants in this study, it is however fundamental in gathering contextual views of primary school teachers.
“If you look at most of these people [transgender] and I’m not trying to make a judgement or something but most of them are coming from backgrounds that have a lot of issues… They are coming from homes with socio economic barriers, and uhm, how can I say, there is this demand for a cross-gender or transgender person relationships. So you will see because of money issues and these backgrounds that these individuals come from, they have turned to being this way, especially the guys” (Jennifer).
Jennifer’s interpretation of transgender identities moves away from innate recognition of self to acquired financial security. This response contends that individuals turn to being transgender due to various surrounding factors, including environment and financial concerns.
Even though Jennifer did not explicitly state that transgender identities engage in sexual activities for financial gain, her language choice, for instance, “demand for” and “turning to”
suggests that transgender women in the community turn to sex work. Yasin and Namoco (2020) declare that any sexual act or practice in exchange for money is defined as prostitution.
Even though the broad term is “sex work”, in actuality, anything from sensual dancing and pornography to sexual solicitation carried out for food, housing, or other services is considered prostitution. Jessica’s interpretation of transgender identities is not implausible as the perception of transgender women as sex workers stem from decades of misinterpretation, which Bermudez de Castro (2017) argued portrayed transgender identities in a dehumanising manner.
“These guys who dress up as girls and stuff because of work issues … there is a lot of pressure on males you know so I think most of them feel like if they are female then the pressure is lesser” (Jennifer).
Jennifer warranted transgender women turning to sex work because of financial strain, and as an approach to evade complexities associated with manhood. Yasin and Namoco (2020) state that the stereotypical narrative of transgender women is one historically inundated by prostitution, drug addiction, and disease. However, the authors argue that being a sex worker is an avenue for transgender identities to generate income to survive. By referring to money and work issues, Jennifer highlighted the link between prostitution and poverty caused by the lack of job opportunities for transgender identities.
The National Transgender Discrimination Survey (2015) reported that 50% of transgender sex workers in the US experienced homelessness and lived in extreme poverty due to being rejected by family and kicked out of their homes at a young age. Due to rejection, many transgender identities are unable to complete school which then results in the inability to find well-paying jobs, perpetuating the cycle of poverty and prostitution.
Richter and Buthelezi (2021) noted the accentuated levels of victimisation and violence transgender sex workers experience after a transgender woman in their study reiterated an incidence of gang rape by clients and described secondary victimisation from hospital staff. In the participant’s response she alleged that the doctor and nurses assigned to assist her made a mockery out of the situation, with statements such as “this is not rape”,
“come see a man got raped”, and “you were sodomised because you are a man” (Richter &
Buthelezi, 2021, p. 146). The participant claimed to have left the hospital without any medical treatment, emphasising the deeply embedded discourses surrounding rejection of nonconforming gender identity, reception of violence, and refusal to support transgender survival (Yasin & Namoco, 2020).