However, transgender and gender-nonconforming youth are largely ignored in mainstream media.
Where is the message for these young people? It’s nearly nonexistent. There is, quite literally, next to no mention of gender-variant youth in popular culture, nothing for them in magazines, books, TV (OK, maybe TV — but then one would have to consider whether said gender-variant youth are portrayed as mentally stable, non-stereotypical, etc.). Adults and peers often ignore these youth or make them feel inadequate or damaged.
-Catherine Oliver, “I’ll Make a Man Out of You“
As I was reading this article, I had flashbacks to my own youth. While on the one hand, my mother made an effort to let me make my own choices regarding traditionally “gendered” things (it was perfectly okay for me to play with He-Man and Ninja Turtles, though Barbie was discouraged because of being overly sexist; for some reason, I felt a weak compulsion to at least attempt some “girl things” like Barbie or other “girly” dolls and toys to try and be more “normal”), there were occasional subtle barbs below the surface. I remember the laments of “But you’d be SO PRETTY if…”, or “Don’t you see how pretty you would be/are??”, and frustrated reminders that women have the option of wearing pants, but men don’t have the same option regarding dresses, so I should take advantage of all of the options available to me (whether I want to or not). (more…)
