What is Transgender?

The term transgender has been in the news a lot lately due to the suicide of Leelah Alcorn who considered herself a transgender person although she was born a biological male. She committed suicide, according to her not on Tumblr (removed), because her parents would not accept her for who she was and because they refused to allow gender reassignment therapy as she was only 17. They also refused to refer to her as Leelah, calling her by her given name instead.

Leelah stepped into oncoming traffic and was killed.

It is a tragic story with no easy discussion. While society has reluctantly accepted homosexuals and no longer deviant, it is still behind the curve when it comes to transgendered individuals.

What does it mean to be transgendered? Basically it means that the person does not identify with their assigned sexual gender. A boy may feel like a girl inside even though he has is biologically a male — as is the case with Leelah Alcorn. Transgender is independent of sexual orientation which means even if a person who was born a male feels like a female on the inside that doesn’t mean he is homosexual or wants to sleep with other boys.

A person who is transgender may identify and non gender, pan gender, third gender, gender queer and gender neutral. Or they may identify with non of these.

People who are transgendered are not freaks and they are not perverts. They seek love and acceptance just like every other human on this planet. If you have a child who identifies as transgendered please keep an open mind, a loving heart and seek some sort of counseling.

Famous Transgendered People

Chaz Bono – Pop icon
Alexis Arquette – Actor and Musician
Carmen Carrera – Reality TV actress
Lana Wachowski – Director
Lea T – Fashion model
Janet Mock – Editor at People.com
Amanda Lepore – Transgender Icon
Thomas Beatie – Known for being pregnant dad
Marci Bowers, M.D. – First transgender woman to perform trans surgeries
Candis Cayne – Actress
Jenna Talackova – Miss Universe Contestant