Over the course of this paper, we will take a comprehensive look at information regarding the transgender community issue in reference to four key sociology concepts. First, we will review information highlighting how transgender people come to the forefront of the public eye as well as the bathroom uproar continuously sweeping the nation. Next, we will examine the facts showcasing how transgender people go against the social norm of associating gender with a person’s given birth sex. Thirdly, we will review information showcasing the cultural inconsistencies throughout the nation when it comes to the acceptance of transgender people. Fourthly, the material will showcase the actions transgender people must face in several states throughout …show more content…
the country when they partake in social deviance through body alterations. Finally, we will review data highlighting how groups on each side of the issues are struggling to gain social control over the public opinion of the transgender community. Now, the transgender issue in America encompasses a plethora of sociological concepts; however, the four key concepts listed above will allow readers to understand the major issues society has with acceptance of this community. The transgender community is not a group that all of the sudden came to fruition this past year. However, the transgender community gains a significant amount of publicity through several events over the previous year. For example, the nationally publicized coming out of Caitlin Jenner as transgender. Now, Caitlin Jenner announces her gender change in a very public manner to help others struggling with the issue of being openly transgender. Additionally, a recent movement of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender activist group to establish equal rights for transgender people continues to make waves throughout the nation (National Center for Transgender Equality, 2015). Now, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender activist group are the leading forefront of implementing the rights of any transgender person to receive reference by their preferred gender pronoun along with the rights of the specified preferred gender. Furthermore, the most recent publicized movement in the transgender community comes from the use of public restrooms. Now, the transgender community is lobbying for the right to use restrooms that associate with their gender identity instead of the gender associated with their birth certificate. Since there is a significant amount information regarding the transgender community’s recent movements, let’s take a look at the nation's reception of these actions. The country’s reactions to the transgender community are ones that raise a plethora of questions and concerns. Now, when Caitlin Jenner first opens up to the public regarding her association with being a woman in a male’s body she receives a multitude of different reactions. For instance, Vanity Fair elects to run an article along with a photo shoot highlighting Caitlin’s courage for coming out as transgender. Conversely, several social media platforms highlight the nations’ disgust with Caitlin’s choice to live life out as a woman. Now, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender activist group members work with politicians to establish federal and state laws and rights allowing transgender personnel to live life under their new gender. For example, protecting transgender individuals from unjust employment pass overs, harassment due to gender choice, and the use of pronouns in a hurtful manner (WBUR Newsroom, 2016). Now, while these specific laws make it into implementation, several states elect to bar other laws such as the use of public facilities based on gender identity (Green, 2016). Since there is information regarding the transgender community’s national reception, let’s take a look at the key sociological concepts this issue presents. The first sociological concept we will examine regarding the transgender community is social norms. Now, according to Chambliss’ and Eglitis’ book Discovering Sociology, norms are an acceptable set of social governing policies such as behavior, beliefs, and rules that guide society interactions (2015, pg.10). Consequently, when the transgender community begins to garner the public spotlight regarding their preferred gender pronouns and rights, it throws the social status quo for males and females into a tailspin. For instance, societal beliefs tell the nation that whatever gender a person's birth certificate indicates is the sex that a person must associate with throughout life. However, the creation of the transgender community threatens this social norms relevance. Ultimately, leading to a public outcry against people of the transgender group. Now, societal bathroom and locker room rules are in place for the purpose of protecting men and women when they are at their most vulnerable in a public setting denying entry to the opposite sex preventing unnecessary exposure (WBUR Newsroom, 2016). Consequently, when the transgender community begins to lobby for entry based on personal gender identity again, threatening the societal norm resulting in the persecution of the transgender community. Now, that there is information highlighting social norms, let’s move onward to the concept of cultural inconsistency. The smelting pot that is America contains a plethora of subculture that varies from state to state; as a result, there is a multitude of different views when it comes to the transgender community. Now, the definition of cultural inconsistency is an opposition between the ideal culture where everyone’s adheres to the norms and opinions and the real culture where members of society fail to uphold the standard of norms and ideas (Chambliss & Eglitis, 2015, pg.59). Now, cultural inconsistency is extremely prevalent in the transgender community because of the infringement on the ideal culture of the United States’ civil liberties life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. For example, transgender people are not able to live a life free of scrutiny for their decision to identify with a different gender violating fundamental civil liberties (National Center for Transgender Equality, 2015). Consequently, this showcases the citizens of United States’ real culture as disdain towards actions that go against what is a social norm. Now, that several different viewpoints are showcasing cultural inconsistency, let’s move onward to the concept of deviance. The sociological concept of deviance pertains to the members of the transgender community who partake in alteration procedures or hormone replacement.
Now, the definition of deviance is as any act or actions that go against cultural norms and laws and promotes retribution if the action becomes public knowledge (Chambliss & Eglitis, 2015, pg.131). Now, the exploits of undergoing surgery to alter one’s physical features to appear as another gender provokes a negative societal action against the person. Additionally, when a person receives hormone therapy to aid in gender transition society, yet again lashes out in a negative manner. Now, the reason for the adverse reaction of society is due to this behavior resulting in a deviant label because the majority of the public believes the determination of a men and women’s attributes and hormones should be from chromosomes, not modern medicine. Additionally, the pockets of the public believe that transgenderism is a result of a sociological disorder rather than a chromosome mistake. Now, that a plethora of facts highlight social deviance, let’s move onward to social …show more content…
control. Social control of the transgender community presents two interesting sides attempting to establish a social interpretation of the community.
Now, social control, according to Chambliss’ and Eglitis’ book Discovering Sociology, is the act of citizens, activist, politicians, celebrities, and groups attempt to control the perception of the populace for the sake of conformity to the social status quo and regulations (2015, pg.147). Now, when considering this information, it is easy to see there is a struggle between two groups attempting to establish dominance. For example, the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community is using the status of particular internet platforms to launch a nation acceptance platform (National Center for Transgender Equality, 2015). Consequently, the public can now associate the transgender community with an attractive, likable face, allowing easier acceptance of the new norm. Conversely, there are politicians and activist groups launching counter offenses in the means of legislation to maintain the previous gender norms in the pockets of conservative societies (WBUR Newsroom, 2016). Now, that there is evidence emphasizing social control, let’s move
onward. In summary, it is apparent that the transgender community suffers scrutiny for violations of the sociological concepts. First, the identification with a different gender identity than what a person's birth document depicts violates an age-old social norm that men are men and women are women. Next, the treatment of the transgender community highlights the cultural inconsistency of America’s ideal culture and real culture. Third, sociological concept deviance highlights that the transgender community’s association with identity instead of chromosomes violates social culture provoking retribution for this action. Next, the power struggle between conservative groups and the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community emphases the concept of social control to set specific norms in place. Finally, after considering the information about the four key sociological concepts, it is apparent that the nation is no closer to the acceptance of the transgender community than before.
The medicalization of transgender tendencies, under what was Gender Identity Disorder, was demoralizing to all transgender people. This resulted in a form of structured and institutionalized inequality that made an entire group of people internalize their problems, making them question not only their own identity, but also their sanity. Therefore, the removal of this disorder from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) in 2013 and the newest editions was important in that it shows society’s recognition and acceptance of the transgender
The great feminist theorist once said “‘Sometimes people try to destroy you, precisely because they don’t see it, but because they see it and don’t want it to exist’” (Mook 195). Support becomes very important for transgender people at the time they transition. Many families support their transgender family members, but society rejects their transition. Many people want transgender people out of their communities. The resource of knowledge seems important to transgenders because it lets them tolerate the ignorance of people. Money plays an important role when the time comes to pay medical bills. In the book Redefining Realness by Janet Mock, She relates the importance of resources. Resources should be important for transgender people because
Sociologists suggest deviance is a violation of any societal norm. Yet some have suggested deviance is a socially outmoded concept based on a Durkheim’s model of social solidarity. Therefore suggesting now it is obsolete, there is no longer a use for it in a (post) modern progressive and diverse society like Australia. According to Roach Anleu (2004) Colin Sumner was one such claimant. Sumner suggested that the sociological concept of deviance and any coherent theoretical development stagnated in mid 1970s, as no agreement on how deviance should be set never happened, therefore there was never an answer to the question, “deviant from what”? Secondly, Sumner states there is no explanation for why deviance is the chosen subject of research, instead of the norms that specify deviance. He believed it only made sense to examine deviance within the framework of social disapproval. Sumner also believed the relationships between deviance, crime, and difference to be unclear. Lastly he thought that the search for a general concept to encompass such a assorted range of activities, problems and situations was misguided because there can be no behavioural unity for such a diverse range of practices. Sumner (1994) suggested that the focus should analysis how deviant categories are constructed and managed by the power relationships that are continually changing. (Sumner 1994), (Roach Anleu 2014) Roach Anleu (2014) describe norms as reflecting some level of consensus and can be laws, rules, regulations, standards, or unspoken expectations. However, within large communities, there can be individuals, and groups whose behaviour is perceived as deviant according to the accepted norms. Those individuals and or groups may not necessarily be consider...
To conclude, I chose this article as I found the discussion point interesting and wanted to bring to more people’s attention some of the underlying discrimination that is embedded in U.S. culture. Although transgender people are in the minority, they are no less than myself. I believe strongly that they deserve the same rights and opportunities that are presented to me daily. This article is relevant to the issues of Cultural Anthropology as it addresses questions surrounding gender stereotypes, gender discrimination, gender performance as well as relationship ties and kinship.
Barbie is tall, thin, has large hips and a large chest; she is beautiful, blonde, and she loves to shop; overall, Barbie is the feminine ideal. As researchers Jacqueline Urla and Alan Swedlund acknowledge, “little girls learn, among other things, about the crucial importance of their appearance to their personal happiness and to their ability to gain in favor with their friends” (1995:281). Gender roles are both centered around behavior as well as around bodies; this poses huge problems for transgender people, as well as explanations for transphobia; society has, for so long, accepted gender and sex to be synonymous. Because of this, a person whose gender is female and whose body is (rhetorically) male is a frightening and concerning deviant to most people’s understanding of the way in which gender exists. Everything that has to do with ideals for bodies leads to problems for transgender people; whether it is, as Urla and Swedlund also commented, that “...woman’s body was understood through the lens of her reproductive functions” (1995:287), or the general idea of “norms” for body proportions. When considering women’s bodies’ main purpose to be that of reproduction, it is apparent why the concept of transgender people may be concerning; transgender women -- that is, people, assigned male at birth but who live as women -- are women whose bodies cannot reproduce in the way that women are expected to; transgender men -- people assigned female at birth but who live as men -- may still have bodies which are viewed as useful mainly for their reproductive capabilities, but which they do not intend to acknowledge or use as such. When things stray so drastically from a norm which has long been accepted with minimal thought, onlookers panic that other norms will start to change as well. Straying from this norm also
The eye opening article utilized for this analysis is titled, “Trans Women at Smith: The Complexities of Checking ‘Female’” ,written by contributing writer, Sarah Fraas on August 24, 2014 (pg 683-685). Fraas starts off by introducing the audience with a school that accepts trans women, Mills College, and talks about how glorious this decision is. The author then begins to talk about other schools not as accepting as Mills, especially Smiths College. She spews many facts and analysis on the issues trans women face today throughout the article including how transgender women are not gaining enough support to succeed, most transgendered women are neglected in school, and the fact that many have been accused of being a woman for the “wrong” reason. She also mindfully includes the image of a woman of color holding up a sign saying, “Support your sisters, not just your CIS-ters!”. The author utilizes this image to show people that we are all one whether we
In this article, Shaw and Lee describe how the action of labels on being “feminine” or “masculine” affect society. Shaw and Lee describe how gender is, “the social organization of sexual difference” (124). In biology gender is what sex a person is and in culture gender is how a person should act and portray themselves. They mention how gender is what we were taught to do in our daily lives from a young age so that it can become natural(Shaw, Lee 126). They speak on the process of gender socialization that teaches us how to act and think in accordance to what sex a person is. Shaw and Lee state that many people identify themselves as being transgendered, which involves a person, “resisting the social construction of gender into two distinct, categories, masculinity and femininity and working to break down these constraining and polarized categories” ( 129). They write about how in mainstream America masculinity and femininity are described with the masculine trait being the more dominant of the two. They define how this contributes to putting a higher value of one gender over the other gender called gender ranking (Shaw, Lee 137). They also speak about how in order for femininity to be viewed that other systems of inequality also need to be looked at first(Shaw,Lee 139).
After reading all four articles, it has come to my attention that deviant behavior is everywhere in our society, and all around the world. Different cultures have different norms and morals making things we believe are normal, deviant. Deviance can be seen in everything, sexual intercourse, rock n roll, and even so much as technology.
We live today in the societies which are shaped by rules and norms that must be follow. At the same time, people establish their own way to do things or not and when these people break or not respect the established rules, that’s is called deviance. According to Henslin “Deviance is the violation of norms (rules or expectations)”. I will define deviance as set of behaviors that are beyond the rules accepted by society or a group of people.
Living life as a transgendered person is not easy. There are very few times when someone comes out as transgender and their lives are still relatively easy to manage. There are a copious...
Within the recent years, the transgender movement has become more apparent than ever. With television shows like “RuPaul’s Drag Race”, “Keeping It Up With Cait” and “I Am Jazz”, the voices of transgender people are more public than ever. Celebrities like Caitlyn Jenner and Laverene Cox are changing the face of the movement by showing people that it is never too late to be their true selves. American laws acknowledge the rights of transgender people, but not in a positive way. These are just people trying to be their best selves.
As we all have observed, throughout history each culture or society has unique norms that are acceptable to that group of people. Therefore, to establish and come to the acceptance of these basic norms, each society must develop its’ own strategies and techniques to encourage the fundamentals of behavior, which is clear in our modern society. Most do assume that everyone in a society will follow and respect such norms. However, some tend to deviate from the adequate norms and demonstrate deviant behavior. Nevertheless, we are inclined to ask ourselves, why do people decide to violate such important standards of living?
Around the world gender is genuinely seen as strictly male or female. If you step out of this “social norm,” you could be considered an outcast. This disassociation includes, biological males/females, interssexed, and transgendered individuals. These people are severely suppressed by society because their gender identification, behaviors, and even their activities deviate from the norm. Most Americans are exceedingly devoted to the concept that there are only two sexes. Therefore, the constrictive American ideals of male and female gender identities inhibits growth and acceptance of gender expression.
In today’s society we as humans are aware and accepting of more identities than we ever have been before. Civil rights movements all over the world are advocating for everything from marriage equality, to laws protecting gender-queer people. However, it isn’t perfect. Just as there will always be racists and homophobes, there will always be people who say gender identity is a choice. Well, a study done earlier this year proves those people wrong.
Transgender women face just as much misogyny as cisgendered women, and often times more. “The worst insult for a boy is that he acts ‘like a girl.’ In a transmisogynistic society, being trans is punished and being feminine is punished, but nothing is punished more than the femininity of people who are not ‘supposed’ to be women,” concurs Max Thornton, a journalist at Advocate (Thornton). This is just one example of the misogyny and stereotyping that trans women face on a daily basis. People’s ideals of hypermasculinity nowadays creates even more of a stigma against these women than there might be otherwise. Even more so than there is for trans men, as Kortney Ziegler, another jou...