6 Inspirational Quotes From Influential Transgender Women

1. Janet Mock

On violence against trans women:

This pervasive idea that trans women deserve violence needs to be abolished. It's a socially sanctioned practice of blaming the victim.

We must begin blaming our culture, which stigmatizes, demeans and strips trans women of their humanity.

— from her bestselling autobiography, “Redefining Realness”

Writer, transgender activist and former staff editor of People magazine, Janet Mock definitely has an impressive resume and a career that's likely enviable for most people.

Now a contributing editor for Marie Claire and a host on MSNBC, Mock has become one of the most influential trans women in the media.

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2. Laverne Cox

On being a liberator:

Each and every one of us has the capacity to be an oppressor.

I want to encourage each and every one of us to interrogate how we might be an oppressor, and how we might be able to become liberators for ourselves and each other.

— after being honored at the GLAAD Media Awards, 2014

Laverne Cox has been a major face of the transgender community since the debut of “Orange Is The New Black” in 2013.

After becoming the first transgender woman to receive an Emmy nomination and making the list of Time's 100 Most Influential People, she began using her celebrity status to highlight key issues facing the trans community.

Cox continues to break barriers for the transgender community, and her success is an indicator of audiences being more accepting of transgender men and women on television.

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3. Caitlyn Jenner

On the difficulty of transitioning:

This transition has been harder on me than anything I could imagine.

And that’s the case for so many others besides me.

For that reason alone, trans people deserve something vital. They deserve your respect. And from that respect comes a more compassionate community, a more empathetic society and a better world for all of us.”

— accepting the Arthur Ashe Award for Courage at the ESPYS, 2015

Caitlyn Jenner also made headlines as a major advocate of the transgender community following her stunning debut on the cover of Vanity Fair in July.

Her very public transition and the popularity of her new docu-series on E!, “I Am Cait,” have both touched and inspired the hearts of her fans all over the world.

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4. Andreja Pejic

On the public's understanding of transgender people:

“I would like them to understand that we are people. We're human beings, and this is a human life.

This is reality for us, and all we ask for is acceptance and validation for what we say that we are. It's a basic human right.”

— in an interview with Vogue, 2014

Pejic is an Australian model, and the first openly transgender model to be profiled in Vogue magazine.

Her feature in the magazine marked a turning point for the fashion industry and its views on the acceptance of transgender models.

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5. Lea T

On what’s more important than sexuality:

“I believe much more in love and heart. That’s much bigger [than] to see what you have in the middle of your legs.”

— in an interview with The Huffington Post, 2014

Lea T is a groundbreaking Brazilian fashion model. Identifying as a transgender woman, Lea T has shifted the fashion industry’s perception of beauty norms.

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6. Geena Rocero

On being LGBT:

Being LGBT is innovative, in and of itself.

In a hetero-normative world, we’ve managed to be here, collectively sharing our resources, struggles, successes and our visions for a more just and compassionate world.

— at the LGBT Innovation Summit, 2014

Having once been named one of the transgender pioneers who inspired Caitlyn Jenner, Geena Rocero was thrust into the spotlight when she came out as a transgender woman during a TED talk in March 2014.

Now an advocate for transgender issues, Rocero has launched a new web series,“Beautiful As I Want to Be,” which features stories of transgender youth as they work to define their own beauty standards.

20 Famous Transgender Celebrities

Bruce Jenner made headlines this year by publicly announcing his transition into a woman, Caitlyn Jenner, and opened the door for discussion about transgendered people of all types — not just celebrities.

And while Jenner’s is certainly the most public transition to date, there are others in the industry who have been blazing their own trails of transition.

Caitlyn Jenner

As mentioned, this former Olympian and reality star made the official announcement of transitioning from Bruce to Caitlyn in 2015.

Via: Caitlyn Jenner

Laverne Cox

Best known for her role as Sophia Burset on the hit Netflix show Orange is the New Black, Cox was the first transgender person to ever be nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award.

Via: Huffington Post

Janet Mock

Former People staff editor Janet Mock became a woman at age 18 and came out publicly as a woman in a Marie Claire article in 2011. Since then she has become a spokesperson for transgender rights with her New York Times bestselling memoir, Redefining Realness.

Via: Wikimedia

Andreja Pejić

As Andrej, he rose to fame as a male supermodel who modeled both male and female clothing before having sex reassignment surgery in 2014, changing her name and announcing that she wished to be recognized as a woman.

Via: PopSugar

Caroline Cossey

A British actress and model who starred as a Bond girl in For Your Eyes Only and modeled for Playboy, she was outed as transgender by the British tabloid The News of The World, after appearing in the Bond movie in 1981.

Jenna Talackova

The Canadian model made headlines and broke down barriers, in 2012, when she legally fought to be allowed to compete in Miss Universe Canada. By the way, she won the title of Miss Congeniality.

Via: Wikimedia

Alexis Arquette

Born into the famous Arquette acting family as Robert, Alexis has had supporting roles in several movies and her transition from male to female was documented in the 2007 film, Alexis Arquette: She’s My Brother.

Via: PopSugar

Isis King

King was a contestant on both the 11th cycle and the 17th cycle of the reality television showAmerica’s Next Top Model. She was the first trans woman to compete on the show, and became one of the most visible transgender people on television.

Via: PopSugar

Chaz Bono

The only child of Sonny and Cher, Chaz (born Chastity) documented his transition from female to male in the 2011 film, Becoming Chaz.

Via: Twitter

Sylvia Rivera

An American drag queen, gay liberation and transgender activist, Rivera was a founding member of both the Gay Liberation Front and the Gay Activists Alliance. She also co-founded the Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries (STAR), a group dedicated to helping homeless young drag queens and trans women of color.

Christine Jorgenson

Born George William Jr., Jorgenson fought in the U.S. Army during World War II, and underwent a series of sex reassignment surgeries in Denmark after her service. She was the subject of a NY Daily News cover story in the 1960s that made her a household name.

Via: Blogspot

Candy Darling

Born James Lawrence Slattery, Darling was an American transgender actress who starred in Andy Warhol’s films Flesh (1968) and Women in Revolt (1971), and was a muse of the band The Velvet Underground.

Via: IMBD

Carmen Carrera

As a reality star, model, and burlesque performer who appeared on RuPaul’s Drag Race and Real Housewives of New York City, she has announced that she is a transgender woman and not a man in drag, as was presented on television.

Via: Huffington Post

Ian Harvie

Born as Janet, Harvie is a transgender comedian who came out at the age of 32 and is best-known for his work with Margaret Cho, with whom he’s toured and starred as a permanent member of her off-Broadway comedy revue.

Via: IanHarvie.com

Lana Wachowski

As one of the world’s most successful movie producers (as half of the duo formerly known as the Wachowski brothers), she helped created the successful Matrix franchise, as well as dozens of other well-known movies, including V for Vendetta, Speed Racer, and Cloud Atlas.

How you can make the gender question on an application form more inclusive?

   

A lot of people are unsure of how to make an inclusive gender or sex question on a form, and default to “are you male or female?”  Let’s not do that.  Read on for some best practices and suggestions to make your forms more gender inclusive.

The first question I would ask in response to this dilemma is “what relevance does gender have to your membership application process?” Oftentimes, I’ve found that the reason people ask for gender is simply because they always have.  Is gender truly a relevant and necessary factor in making your selections (or whatever you’re doing with your applications?).  In a lot of cases it’s irrelevant.  If it’s irrelevant, don’t ask.  Problem solved.

If you’re asking because you want to know what gender pronouns to use to describe a person, simply ask that (“What are you preferred gender pronouns?” providing options and a fill-in-the-blank).

But let’s assume you have thought through that first question and want to proceed with a gender question on your application.  Below are are a few sample options/food-for-thoughts.

Sample Options/Food-for-Thoughts

Super simple solution, but one that is not easily sortable (in a spreadsheet):

1. I identify my gender as… __________ (fill in the blank)

If you don’t NEED gender, but would prefer to have it, here is one way you could do it:

2. I identify my gender as…[] Man
[] Woman
[] Trans*
[] __________ (fill in the blank)
[] Prefer not to disclose

If you absolutely need to know gender, my next easy suggestion would be to simply remove the “not disclose” option:

3. I identify my gender as…[] Man
[] Woman
[] Trans*
[] __________ (fill in the blank)

If you’d rather not have a fill in the blank because it will complicate things (e.g., make it harder to sort a spreadsheet), but you want to be incredibly inclusive and specific, here’s another suggestion:

4. I identify my gender as…[] Man
[] Woman
[] Transgender
[] Transsexual
[] Genderqueer
[] Genderfuck
[] Non-gendered
[] Agender
[] Genderless
[] Non-binary
[] Trans Man
[] Trans Woman
[] Third Gender
[] Two-Spirit
[] Bi-Gender
[] Genderfluid
[] Transvestite

And if you’d rather have fewer options, even at the sake of inclusivity/specificity:

5. I identify my gender as…[] Man
[] Woman
[] Trans*

And FINALLY, if you need to know sex rather than gender (the only examples that pop into my mind for a reason why are medical), here’s a way you can do it and still be inclusive:

6. I identify my sex as…[] Female
[] Male
[] Intersex
[] MtF Female
[] FtM Male

 A few additional thoughts

One of the things you’ll notice as a common thread throughout all of the questions is the prompt, “I identify my…”  I recommend this because it begins the action as a form of empowerment, instead of other options I’ve seen that often take the power to decide away from the individual answering the question.

Also, consider how you are going to be using the data you’re collecting before you decide how to collect it.  If you’re planning on matching people up based on gender (e.g., partners for activities, team relationships), you might ask for the applicants’ to report their gender but also ask them which gender they would feel most comfortable working with.  Then you can use their responses to place them in self-described comfortable partnerships, or choose to challenge them if you would rather see them working outside of their comfort zone.

I’m not a big fan of exhaustive lists when trying to describe identities (see #4), because they are rarely exhaustive.  And if you miss one or two, but include 15 others, those one or two get the sense of super-marginalization.  (did I miss any in #4 that you know of?)

Finally, this is not an exhaustive list of options, nor is it necessarily all right.  Share additional options, or revisions to the ones above, in the comments below!