Why Transtrending Hurts Trans People

This person is everything that trans women fight against being stereotyped as. Eden the Doll (dark blonde) and Blaire White (brunette), the commentators in the video above, are trans women themselves. Seeing that they worked very hard to get where they are, this person dressing in women's clothes and terrible lipstick while making no effort to otherwise appear feminine is a walking middle finger to all the dysphoria, anxiety, and fighting for acceptance. This person is the hypothetical "trans woman" in every bathroom law discussion.

Before people get mad at me, I'll clarify that I believe that people should have a choice over their presentation and appearance because that is a part of free speech. I also acknowledge that, because transgender transition is a long and arduous process, it comes with the inevitable "growing pains" and awkward in-between stages that every positive change comes with. I don't know if this person is actually dysphoric and using really weird coping mechanisms, just a troll, or taking satire to the next level but this kind of thing is going to give trans people, especially trans women, a hard time when it comes to being taken seriously and respected as a person.

Transtrending isn't unique to this individual either. Just go on Tumblr and you'll inevitably stumble upon a "non-dysphoric trans boy" (girl with short hair and a binder) with a neon undercut or someone who seriously identifies with a @kaliyuga gender. While LGBT people are being tortured and killed in the Middle East, people in the privileged (and I say that in a socioeconomic context) west are mocking them by being everything they fought against being seen as. Stuff like this is why reactionary conservatives are creeping out of the woodwork.

Why are people like this the go-to for trans issues and not people like Blaire White, Eden the Doll, or Ollie Chadra? It could do with the concept of the vocal minority or it could be a clumsy attempt to reach people who are in those awkward in-between stages of being trans or go against the idealized images of trans people one may see whilst watching Blaire White's videos. However, plenty of people (such as Ash Hardell) show the awkward in-between phases whilst not making fools of themselves and mocking other trans people in the process.

People can't always get their experiences through actually meeting people, so they turn to the media to understand others who are different from them. However, people who are more "different" than even the outsiders of society get more attention in order to get ratings and revenue. As such, people form their views based on what they see. I used to not accept trans people because I thought being trans was being like Rachel Dolezal (If you don't know who she is, it's better if you don't.). However, when I befriended trans people on the Internet and discovered Blaire White, my views changed.

Acceptance starts with putting out there what others should see in a person, not a caricature of that which is "shocking" or "other". This applies to every community. For the sake of others who aren't even given the chance, I think the portrayal of "trans people" as being these "F the gender binary and every type of normalcy whether it's good or bad" types will only hurt other trans people in the long run. This alienates reasonable trans people from the discussion of issues that pertain to their very wellbeing and is ultimately a return to when we first started to acknowledge trans issues.