i don’t think most cis people realize that we already live in a society that on some level believes there is more than two genders.
My gay male best friend has been told by cis people that “he isn’t a real man” but exists outside the category “man” on the basis of his gayness. Keep in mind he is cis, always been a male, but as soon as he came out, his “male-ness” was scrutinized. Socially conservative society looks at my friend and categorizes him outside of the “male” category… despite the fact that my friend is just performing another type of masculinity.
I myself have been called “not a real woman” because of my androgyny, both biological and performative. I have been “accused” of being a trans woman. To many cis people around me I exist outside of the term “woman” because of my gendered appearance.
This is so true. People repeatedly identified me as being outside their appropriate boundaries for “real woman” before I even know that there was an inhabitable land there.
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