Power systems within Genderplay

Power Systems within my topic:
Nationalism
Sexism
Classism
Racism
Proper Gender Roles vs. Deviance

Racism comes into play actually with the whitewash(prevalence of white individuals I’m researching) of my current research. If white is a race, and everything about the patriarchy has attempted to deny white as a race, then the easy access to white resources is a direct form of educational racism. Also, racism provides a barrier between myself and individuals of color engaged in gender play, because of my own social status as a white lesbian. I have easy access to numerous other white lesbians, and a few chicana lesbians, some lesbians of mixed-ethnicities, but not on as large of a scale as the white lesbians. The status of lesbian also ties back into sexism, b/c my access is limited to mostly women. My personal sources from my own connections are limited to one white FTM, one white MTF, and two authors, both white, who are a MTF who then said fuck the gender game, lets all be outlaws, and one FTM who identifies as a masculinized female. I’m actually feeling a little limited in accurate representation because of Racism, Classism and Sexism. The only thing going for me at the moment in the intersections of my topic, is sexuality. My sexuality allows me access to other individuals who play with gender in much the same way I do. Or allows me access to persons who are willing to think about gender.

On the topic of gender, there’s another point I want to tease out of my writing: most Transgendered individuals must pass for survival. What is passing? Passing is where a transgendered person, through hormone therapy, clothing, action, voice, gesture, characteristics(some or all of these) must emulate the sex the transgendered person desires to be. This offers a complication in individual expression and stress on the transgendered person when passing is not accomplished or is not accomplished easily. FTM’s have an easier time of passing then MTF. Also, when a transgendered person is mistaken for the sex they do not want to be, it can be very traumatic, or insulting to their self esteem. It’s dangerous to fuck around with gender, or to even buy desired clothing with this extra societal expectation hanging over their heads.

How do these systems of power impact or pertain to my topic?
Nationalism: When I think about nationalism, the stereotypes jumping forward in my brain are the ultra patriotic, conservative republicans who carry guns and hunt homosexuals. A demonized view of the conservative left related to religion and patriotism.
The second one, womyn in the military, often more masculinized, stereotyped as lesbians, yet fighting to stay in their military positions. (I don’t understand why they would want to, but I respect the decision)
Then the third one is the feminist. The individuals, male, female and neither, who are fighting on picket lines, working with organizations for rights and standing up for being an American against the war, and pro-humanity. These people get a lot of flack in the mainstreamed media, being represented as more than civil disobedients, as terrorists and threats to the American way of living. Mostly, they’re threats to capitalism and labeling people as profit instead of actually looking at the human cost to do things.

Sexism comes into play immediately for the women and men who step outside of gender norms, in educational opportunities, in a career searchs, in walking through a public space or using a public bathroom not labeled UNISEX.

Classism enters the scene when an individual chooses, or happens to exist outside of gender, or is considered gender deviant(for my paper this is defined as not fitting into societal specific gender roles), as their job opportunities and social opportunities drop lower then their parents status, even if their parents already existed at poverty level.