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Say it one more time.
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(laughter)
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Non-bi-na-ry. (laughter)
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Sorry. (laughter)
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(laughter)
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3, 2, 1? (laughter)
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When we think of the word gender,
a whole lot of images rush to mind.
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Most of us are taught the idea--
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That people are born a boy or a girl.
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And we're expected to act a certain way
based on what's between our legs.
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But that actually isn't true for everyone.
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It totally ignores the huge
and amazing world of people
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who are trans and gender diverse.
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And that's what we're going
to dive into in this series.
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Being trans, gender identity,
and what it's all about.
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Welcome to Trans 101.
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Traditionally, we tend to think of gender
as decided by the body we're born in.
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People are usually assigned
female or male at birth.
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But bodies and gender
are actually pretty separate things.
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Gender is basically part of someone's
internal sense of self.
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It can be male, female,
neither, a mix of both,
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or exist totally outside of that.
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A person's relationship with their gender
can also change over time as well.
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The gender we're assigned at birth
usually gets reinforced
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by the people around us over our lives.
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Hearing things like, "Be a man"
or "You're such a girl" --
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Can feel like we're being told
who we're supposed to be.
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Most people feel comfortable
with the gender they're assigned.
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But for some people, that label
never quite fits and doesn't feel right.
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That's what's called being--
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TRANS-GENDER! (laughter)
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You've probably heard the term transgender
or even gender-diverse.
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That's when your gender
doesn't entirely match
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the one you were assigned at birth.
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A lot of people use trans for short.
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That could mean the gender
you were assigned felt meaningless,
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restrictive or altogether
just didn't quite fit.
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That might seem like
a pretty broad definition,
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and that's because it is.
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And the most important thing
you need to know?
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There's no one right way to be trans.
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There are a lot of different ways
people might identify.
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It's not about knowing every single one.
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But rather, being open
to difference when you encounter it.
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And also keep in mind that gender
and sexuality are largely separate things.
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Lesbian, bisexual, asexual, gay,
and straight are a few different examples.
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But we're all those things
in addition to being trans.
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They're not the reason we're trans.
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I think for me there's this expectation
that I transitioned because I like guys
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and wanted to get with them more easily.
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Actually, I'm a super gay lesbian.
(laughter)
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When we talk about gender identity,
people often think of two opposing groups.
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A binary of female and male.
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And that when you're trans,
you go from one to the other,
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but there's a lot more to it than that.
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Putting it simply, non-binary
is an umbrella term people use--
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To describe gender that doesn't fit
squarely into male or female.
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And this can include people who feel
that their gender is a mix of both.
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- Changes often.
- Or is something totally separate.
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Or have no strong sense of gender at all.
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Different people might use
more specific terms
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to descrie their gender,
whilst others use non-binary.
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And trans people who aren't non binary--
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Who identify as strictly male or female--
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Might describe themselves as binary.
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There's also a term for people
who aren't trans, that's cisgender.
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Cisgender is a way of saying, "Not trans."
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You might also have heard it
shortened as cis.
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Being cisgender is when
the gender you identify as,
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totally matches the one
you were assigned at birth.
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The term comes from Latin,
meaning, "On the same side as,"
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and is used in contrast with trans,
which means, "On the other side of."
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It might be a new word to get used to,
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but it helps avoid a contrast
of "trans people" and "normal people."
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And instead, just recognizes
that being trans or cis
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are just different ways to be.
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So if you're cisgender,
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this is a great word to add
to your vocabulary.
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Transitioning is when someone takes steps
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to socially or physically feel
more aligned with their gender identity.
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First is social transitioning.
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Social transitioning involves
how we interact with people.
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Such as coming out as transgender--
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To ask people to use different words
and pronouns to describe use--
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Or changing the way we interact
with gendered spaces,
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like the bathroom we use.
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Physically transitioning often involves
a person altering their appearance--
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To what feels right for them.
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Like clothes, makeup and hair--
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- Or seeking medical support--
- Which can involve hormones or surgery.
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Transitioning isn't about
appealing to other people--
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Or necessarily trying to look
like a cisgender person.
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It's about a trans person
doing what feels right for them.
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And what that means
for each person is different.
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It's also important to know
that transitioning isn't instant.
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There's a tendency to think
of transitioning as something automatic,
-
like there's a fairy godmother
who'll pop up
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and magically change EVERYTHING!
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- Transitioning is a gradual thing.
- And everyone's different.
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No two people transition the same way.
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A trans person's identity isn't defined
by the way they do or do not transition.
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So if someone doesn't feel
transitioning is for them,
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that's totally cool too.
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Gender dysphoria is an intense discomfort
a trans person may feel--
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About physical attributes or the way
that they're gendered by others.
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Gender dysphoria can be on a social level,
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a physical level, or even a purely
emotional level.
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Dysphoria can be really
overwhelming sometimes.
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Having to live with a body
or expression you're not comfortable with
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can really impact the way you're living.
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Trans people find different ways
to alleviate dysphoria.
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And the positive impact
that can have is enormous.
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Like transitioning, having dysphoria
doesn't make someone more or less trans.
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And is not something
all trans people experience.
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There will be a lot of new words.
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We often hear things like,
"That's grammatically incorrect."
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- "Is that a real word?"
- Fine! You got us!
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We couldn't get any store-bought,
brand name words.
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So we had to go with "garden-grown."
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They're twice as nutritious!
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In reality, all language evolves
at a community level.
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Every. Single. Word.
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For trans people,
we're developing language
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that describes who we are.
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Because in the past, either
a lot of the words haven't existed.
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Or those that have, have been created
by people outside the trans community.
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And don't always reflect our experiences.
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When you're talking about
gender and bodies,
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talk about what you actually mean.
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"People who have uteruses,"
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instead of "Women,"
when talking about bodies.
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Because some trans guys
and non-binary people have those too.
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Or if you're talking about being a woman,
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avoid things like, "People with vaginas"
and just say, "Women."
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Because not all women have those.
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There's also never a need to say "he/she"
when talking about a group of people.
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"They" will do just fine!
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It's shorter, less clunky,
and more inclusive.
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Using the right language
makes trans people feel included.
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And it's actually more accurate as well.
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Learning this stuff
so you can be more informed
-
is a pretty awesome thing to do.
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So if you found this video helpful--
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Share it online so it can reach
even more people.
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And if you want to know more,
check out the rest of Trans 101--
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Full of even more awesome videos
about gender diversity.
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