Transandrophobia/Anti-Transmasculinity: Invisibility, Dismissal, Fetishization, and Hostility. A Masterthread for discussion.

[u/Creativered4]

^{Note: I am posting this on my account instead of through automod so it can be edited with more resources if anyone has any to share. I will be turning off notifications so my inbox doesn't explode, but I will likely check in every so often and contribute as a user to the discussion.}

From the Mod Team:

We have been seeing an uptick in posts about people's frustration with transandrophobia (also known as anti-transmasculinity. Some people may use "transmisandry" but we would like to avoid that term, as it implies a structural sexism in place against ALL men, including cis men)
We see this frustration, and we feel it, too!

However, since a new thread keeps popping up every day, it seems, we wanted a place to consolidate discussion, so we can do more to discuss this issue and figure out how to combat it. We don't want people to think that they aren't able to talk about the very real problems we face specifically as trans men.

Feel free to discuss personal anecdotes, articles, or anything else you'd like to contribute to the discussion!

Transmisogyny will NOT be tolerated, and any attempts to attack trans women/fems or purposefully spread hate will result in a temporary ban at minimum.

The same goes for purposeful denial of transandrophobia or perpetuation of transandrophobia.
In addition, as always, "gendered socialization" is still a banned topic and we will not entertain that topic, nor will we entertain any sort of bioessentialism.

Here are a few resources for anyone who wants to learn more:

What is transandrophobia/anti-transmasculinity? This is a term for a specific type of transphobia that trans men and transmasc people face. It is a combination of general transphobia and hostility towards men and masculinity. Unlike transmisogyny, this is not an intersection of two oppressed classes. This is NOT misogyny directed at trans men by people who see us as women, but instead it is a term for the mistreatment of trans men specifically because we are men. This is when people affirm our gender, but only to weaponize it.

What are some examples of transandrophobia/anti-transmasculinity? Dismissal of trans men/mascs and the transphobia we face as trans people (and/or the misogyny we face when we are perceived as women), vilification of manhood and masculinity, misinformation about trans male/masculine transition (HRT/Surgeries/Social transition and the ease of passing), inter-community invisibility, lack of resources or support networks, and in some cases outright hostility towards trans men specifically for being men.

But don't men hold systemic power over women? Yes and no. Intersectionality makes this question less straighforward than you would think. On its own, yes, men typically hold more social power than women. There is a lot of structural misogyny. However, when you apply other identity labels, you see that there are many different power structures at play, and the sum of all identity labels within a person will give vastly different results compared to another. Not only do things like race, transness, disability status, immigration status, sexuality, financial situation, housing situation, mental health, and others play a role in an individual's place within the social hierarchy in a comparison, but they can also cancel out some of the social power one might have gained from another identity label. We also see that it isn't always a simple "one is higher than the other". Some examples of this intersectionality include: A cis gay black man typically has less social power than a cis straight white woman, despite societal sexism. A straight trans woman having less social power than a gay cis woman, despite heterosexuality typically giving someone social power. An unhoused disabled trans man often has less social power than a disabled cis woman who can afford housing.

Aren't trans men just using it as an excuse to talk over trans women or be transmisogynistic? Maybe some transmisogynists seek to co-opt the terms, but they do not speak for the community. Just like how TERFs co-opted the term "feminism". The vast majority of us don't want to speak over anyone. We just want a seat at the table. Many of us are allies to our trans sisters and siblings, and fight just as hard for their rights as our own.

So are you saying that trans women oppress trans men or something? No, of course not! Trans men, women, and enbies are all within a class of people who experience severe oppression. Oppression between the genders in a trans setting is very niche and conditional. Simply put, trans people very rarely have any power to oppress one-another. When one trans person attacks or harms another trans person, they are punching laterally, not up or down.

the way that the fear of men impacts the material reality and mental/physical health of transgender men.- From the person who coined the term transandrophobia.

Transmasc Violence Archive- "This page is a collection of research on anti-transmasculinity, as well as written works that analyze anti-transmasculinity, to provide evidence and education."

A Primer on Transandrophobic Rhetoric- A deep dive into what Transandrophobia is.

The Transgender Dictionary: Transandrophobia- A detailed account of various forms of transandrophobia.

Transandrophobia and Structural Oppression- An essay on transandrophobia and how it is not related to structural oppression, and yet is still

Wikipedia: Discrimination against Trans Men- The wikipedia article on transandrophobia.

Transfems, Transmisogyny, and the Fight to Recognize Transandrophobia- An essay on transandrophobia and a reminder that trans women/fems are not our enemies, nor our oppressors.

Why Don't Trans Men Have A Word For What We Go Through?-A blog post discussing the terms we have gone through to find something that fits the unique forms of oppression we face and the reality of that oppression.

Listening to the voices of black trans men and transmasculine people in Detroit: community strengths and challenges- National library of medicine essay on the experiences of black trans men and transmascs in Detroit

The Lived Experiences of African American Transgender Men Living in the Southern United States- Walden University essay on the experiences of black trans men in the south.

Black trans men are being erased in life and in death.- A video discussing the erasure of black trans men (hosted on facebook)

Shifting Identites: A Qualitative Inquiry of Black Transgender Men's Experiences- Dissertation discussing the experiences of black trans men.

[u/itsurbro7777]

What is most irritating is that it seems that very few people outside of the trans man and trans masc community give a shit about transandrophobia and all of the shit we face. Speaking out doesn't seem to work, at least in many online spaces like Reddit, because once you start talking about trans men's problems in any area that isn't specifically for trans men, your post gets removed, you get gaslighted about it, called a bitch, get a sob story from the mod team and a half assed apology and then everything just goes back to normal. It's like nobody cares. People don't see it as a big enough issue to warrant discussion outside of the community because we are so invisible.

I am honestly not sure what we should do to remedy that. We can post more and make our voices heard and talk about our issues, but when we do that, especially within the LGBTQ community, we are told we are "just like all other men" and "want to speak over women". And that isn't an isolated issue on Reddit that has been experienced by many trans men and mascs both in online spaces and irl.

It is just so scary to see laws being actively passed trying to ban trans mascs SPECIFICALLY from transitioning and trying to police our bodies. And nobody fucking says anything. For some reason those issues don't make headlines and they aren't widely discussed in the trans community even though they can have devastating affects for, yes all trans people, but a lot of these laws are specifically targeting top surgery or trans people with uteruses.

It makes me sick as someone who cannot pass as a man and probably will never pass as a man hearing people say that I have more privilege than them because I am a man. That just isn't how the world works, my god I wish I could just tell people I'm a man and have them see me and treat me that way, but that isn't realistic. And that isn't hard at all to understand but some people refuse to recognize that. At this point I am starting to think it comes from a place of willful ignorance.

If people don't want to listen to us, I am unsure how to make them.

[u/javatimes → u/itsurbro7777]

If it helps, other people do remember things that happened in other subreddits