Reading about the appointment of Amanda Simpson to the Department of Commerce. No one doubts her creditials, but all the pundits are taking one of two sides. The first is that she is setting a trend for trangender employees to find jobs or careers with the federal government, except she's not the first, only the first political appointment. This is fine except for two things.
First, she's not transgender, but a post-transistion or legally-recognized woman. She transistioned years ago and long left the label and identity. Second, by using the term to describe her, she's becoming a puppet for both sides, or really all sides. She's used by the transcommunity as a shining example of a (trans)woman - they add the prefix trans. She's used by the LGBT community for equal opportunity. And she's used by the government to show they're trans-friendly.
All except she was appointed for her creditials, or maybe only mostly so, and I suspect partly because she's repesentative of "transgender" women. Meaning all post-transistion women aren't really women, despite all their effort to be physically (as medically possible) women and legally female. The world will still treat them as transgender. And that's the sad part.
Amanda accomplished a lot before she transistioned, and more afterward. And although she, like almost all transwomen, who transistioned on the job with the same company, she didn't advance during and after her transistion. Companies advertise support and protection for transgender people, but they always find a way to redirect their work and career out of the public eye and away from their career path as a man.
It's why all post-transistion women have big valleys in their career from the start of their transition to several years after they finish. Almost all never reclaim the same professional level after as before. If they do, it's usually outside the company they started with and more often in other careers or work. Generally only artist tend to stay in same profession because it's what they do and are known.
A few do go on to bigger and better things. But only after years of little or no work for years, sometimes near a decades, and after reinventing themselves. We are still a society that allows people to transistion, but we haven't allowed them their work and careers without professional and personal discrimination.
Until of course, it's happens to fit a political agenda. Like Amanda Simpson. I wish her well and know she will do well, but she's now stuck being the token transgender women during her career with the Department of Commerce. Something she likely didn't want but has, and will have to work harder to prove herself both as a manager and a woman. That's not different as any other woman, but she has an extra burden too, her transgender past.
Political puppets are that, and try as they do and as much as they succeed, in the end, they're still puppets. No different than other polticial puppets, only a different flavor one.
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I spoke to Amanda Simpson on the telephone before posting my article on National Center for Transgender Equality.
ReplyDeleteAs for puppetry: without the trailblazers before him, we wouldn't have an African-American President. Amanda my not succeed to your liking, but if nothing else she blazes a way for today's trans youth. I strongly believe the next generations of trans youth will be able to dream bigger dreams because of the position Amanda begins at tomorrow.
I agree with you on the trailblazers, but in many respects they all were and are puppets to some extent. I don't think, however, the younger generation is making or taking much of her. Maybe with someone under-30 for an appointment and you'll get their attention.
ReplyDeleteI think she's a good example of what's possible with hard work, patience and perserverence. She's earned and deserved the appointment. That said, however, she has to know, understand and accept it has a cost (of doing) and a price (of being). Agree with it or not, I respect and applaud her for it.
The proof will be in both what she does in the job and what is asked of her in the (trans) role. I personally have concerns why some people continue to call or accept the label of transgender after their transistion. It seems the one thing you want to escape from, to be accepted as simply a man or woman than a transman or transwoman.
In her case, however, that's not possible. She worked on LGBT boards and with groups so her status is public. But the vast majority of post-transistion women probably won't or don't care as they're already legally recognized as women. No trans anything.
And in the end, a puppet is still a puppet, it only depends on who's holding the strings and how much they're controlling them. And how you act and react. We'll see.