Exit the Trans Culture War? You may have noticed that the conversation around trans issues has been plagued with conflict, accusations and anger in recent years. You may have noticed that there is a lot of shouting and name-calling, but not much actually gets resolved. What you may not have thought about is, does it have to be this way? What happened to make it this way? Is there another, better, way?
I think the degradation of the once polite conversation around trans issues into a culture war bonfire has a lot to do with the entry of things that have nothing to do with the everyday lives of trans people. Like activists with their own agendas from both extremes. And very academic philosophical debates. And, of course, a good dose of blue vs red style partisan politics. That, in particular, always poisons everything.
The truth is, nobody really benefits from this culture war type conversation. Trans people in particular suffer the most because of it. Next time the trans culture wars are on show again, ask these questions: isn't there a better way? Can't we do more mutual understanding, and less us-vs-them? Can't we try to find some common ground, and not heighten the conflict further? Can't we do better?
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