What's Next To Increase Transgender Exposure To The Mainstream Cultural Lexicon

[RallyCola]

so...what's next?

we have had shock value stuff like springer, maury and howard stern. we have had gia darling, vaniity and others do "crossovers" to traditional mags. We have had negative press and such for legal cases. next year, the ts winner will be on stage at the AVN awards. we have had The Crying Game, Boys Don't Cry, Transamerica, Soldier's Girl, the Hangover 2 and a whole bunch of comedies on the big and small screen. We had the story of the transgendered olympic wannabe, the iron ladies, Chaz Bono, Kim Petras and also Andrej Pejic.

Still...with momentum building, there still is very little "mainstream" awareness of the tg community...whether it is purposeful or blind ignorance.

The question is...what will come first.

1) a high profile person in a serious relationship with an M2F transgendered person (because I think F2M is somehow more tolerable)

2) a high profile role going to an M2F transgendered actor that is NOT a transgendered role..i.e. not having to show cock like in the Hangover.

3) a solid music album/billboard style popularity for an M2F transgendered recording artist

4) something else?

[Stavros]

Transgendered people in films, on tv, on the stage, in books, in sport and popular culture have been around for several centuries albeit at different levels of intensity; there is no 'momentum' forward or otherwise. Just as the string quartet occupies a niche in classical music, which makes it a minority interest in classical music and an even smaller niche in music as a whole, so I don't see transgendered people, who by volume in human society are a minority, occupying anything other than a niche in popular culture as transgendered people, whether or not they can, in films or tv play roles not specific to being transgendered will remain occasional rather than normal.

The main thing is to hope that when transgendered people are in the public eye, it is not as figures of ridicule, but as people like everyone else, with something to offer that is as valid as everyone else.

[RallyCola]

see, i believe, or at least want to believe, that the niche is being broken and opened up. no?

[Merkurie]

Middle class suburban kids coming out to their parents.

[GreyAshes]

well, in my opinion ,the united states public seems to be way too homophobic for an mtf to actually get accepted in a nontrans role. i doubt it will ever happen. film producers want an actor/actress that people can relate to and most americans wont be able to get over the "she used to be a guy " thing. A majority of amercans are too dumbed down for this to ever happen. Sure, some people and certain generations are getting more used to it , but its more about transpeople are getting more tolerated rather than actually being accepted. A big thing for me is that most mtf's and in some cases ftm's dont pass or are anything coming close to being attractive. This is always going to make people more judgmental cuz they are scared or whatever.

[sunairco]

I would think that the "next" advancement would be the opposite of #2. A transgendered individual appearing in a recurring role as a transgendered character that's treated just as a normal individual without calling attention to the fact. Just the inclusion of a transgendered person functioning normally as any other character would do wonders for acceptance. No dwelling on transgendered issues, concentrating on the character with a heavy handed plot component or making a poster child of them. Just simple inclusion presented as normal everyday character as a starter. If several shows and movies would do this with real transgendered individuals playing transparent characters that you know are transgendered, but otherwise just function as regular characters I think would be the next step. Not a paradigm shift, just inclusion. Look at Ellen or some other out characters like Portia. For the most part, outside of some religious wingnuts, most folks don't even give it a second thought anymore that they're gay. If several transgendered celebrities could achieve that transparency, that would be the "next" advancement.

[GroobySteven]

Transgendered people in films, on tv, on the stage, in books, in sport and popular culture have been around for several centuries albeit at different levels of intensity; there is no 'momentum' forward or otherwise. Just as the string quartet occupies a niche in classical music, which makes it a minority interest in classical music and an even smaller niche in music as a whole, so I don't see transgendered people, who by volume in human society are a minority, occupying anything other than a niche in popular culture as transgendered people, whether or not they can, in films or tv play roles not specific to being transgendered will remain occasional rather than normal.

The main thing is to hope that when transgendered people are in the public eye, it is not as figures of ridicule, but as people like everyone else, with something to offer that is as valid as everyone else.

Cool post.

[Stavros]

I would think that the "next" advancement would be the opposite of #2. A transgendered individual appearing in a recurring role as a transgendered character that's treated just as a normal individual without calling attention to the fact. Just the inclusion of a transgendered person functioning normally as any other character would do wonders for acceptance. No dwelling on transgendered issues, concentrating on the character with a heavy handed plot component or making a poster child of them. Just simple inclusion presented as normal everyday character as a starter. If several shows and movies would do this with real transgendered individuals playing transparent characters that you know are transgendered, but otherwise just function as regular characters I think would be the next step. Not a paradigm shift, just inclusion. Look at Ellen or some other out characters like Portia. For the most part, outside of some religious wingnuts, most folks don't even give it a second thought anymore that they're gay. If several transgendered celebrities could achieve that transparency, that would be the "next" advancement.

I am not saying you are wrong, but in an early episode of LA Law it emerged at the funeral of one of the senior lawyers who died, that he was in a relationship with a young transexual who delivered a eulogy to the shock of all concerned; and one of the detectives in Twin Peaks was a post-op transexual in episodes in the later phases of the tv series. One of the characters in the longest-running soap opera in the UK, Coronation street, Hayley Cropper, is a post-op transexual and has been there since 1988 although she is played by a woman. Does any of this mark a breakthough? Perhaps; is it part of a trend where transgendered people appear on a regular basis in programmes as police detectives, cooks, taxi drivers, mothers and fathers, teachers, night-club bouncers in Sydney...not sure.

[GreyAshes]

I am not saying you are wrong, but in an early episode of LA Law it emerged at the funeral of one of the senior lawyers who died, that he was in a relationship with a young transexual who delivered a eulogy to the shock of all concerned; and one of the detectives in Twin Peaks was a post-op transexual in episodes in the later phases of the tv series. One of the characters in the longest-running soap opera in the UK, Coronation street, Hayley Cropper, is a post-op transexual and has been there since 1988 although she is played by a woman. Does any of this mark a breakthough? Perhaps; is it part of a trend where transgendered people appear on a regular basis in programmes as police detectives, cooks, taxi drivers, mothers and fathers, teachers, night-club bouncers in Sydney...not sure.

I think this more has to do with the simple fact that trans people do exist and they do have normal lives and jobs and tv shows tend to express that by including them in the storylines, much like gay characters. i. e. Rebecca Romjin played a ts on "ugly betty".
however, there is a big difference between a female playing a tranny and a tranny playing a female. Its bullshit and not right, but it is what it is. Sure maybe this is helping transwomen by exposing them and showing that they are just like everyone else, but its a far cry from people accepting a transwoman as just a woman and a majority of the world will never see it that way, which is why youll prolly never see a famous ts actress playing female roles.

[JenniferParisHusband]

I don't know, I look overseas at places like Japan where TV hosts are Transsexual, or Korea where (admittedly for a very short period of activity) a group like Lady were popular and Harisu is still famous... I think there is a way to accept them as celebrities and entertainers that aren't in a niche way, but just as something different. I think you can have a society that appreciates TS ladies without the sexual roles, it just hasn't happened that anyone in the USA has created a role like that for someone.

I can't remember her name, but there was a show on ABC featuring a transsexual in a reoccuring role. I remember her being accepted to the extent of her appearances on the show. So yeah, it can be done. Even when you look at a Caroline Cossey, who does more "serious" types of interviews on Oprah rather than Maury, it's not as a "freak or the week" but as someone who has actually been through a bunch of stuff and came out the other end better off.

Having said all that, I have to agree with Ashley here. The problem isn't so much about the roles in music or entertainment or who they marry though, until the entire concept of someone being transsexual isn't seen as taboo by American society, the entire concept of acceptance as a celebrity is kind of moot. Because it would be fleeting, and never really accepted. Most Americans know Eddie Murphy gave a "car ride" to a TG, most people don't know of Tula these days. People will always dwell on the differences, whether they don't look feminine as a M2F, or are flamboyant in the way they act, or how they dress, or are just bigots who can't get past their own religious intollerance for anything different. Until you can change the impression of taboo, it's not going to happen. And it takes more than one breakthrough to do it.

It can happen, the 1950's and 1960's good luck having people accept inter-racial marriage, tattoos were really never accepted until the mid-80's, and only now are Gays and Lesbians starting to be seen in a better light. It might take generations, but it can be done. Best way I've found to build awareness was just to introduce my family and friends to the girl I was dating at the time. She was a sweetheart, once people got to know her, they loved her too. She even got most of the friends after the breakup.