C’est La Vie

similar to the way that black women are masculinized by misogynoir, east asian men often experience the opposite and are feminized by the racism they experience because having less facial/body hair and softer features than white men are signs of femininity by white cis-hetero-patriarchal standards.

if i’m being honest, this has had an pretty noticeable impact on my own transition. i’ve never really had much body hair or facial hair which means that i didn’t have to spend as much on hair removal as most white trans women. and even though my facial features are generally perceived as masculine by other east asians, white people tend to perceive me as feminine which makes it easier to pass as a woman.

in relative terms, i am able to spend the bare minimum amount of effort in order to pass. if i put on a little concealer, wear feminine clothing, and use a femme voice (something i’ve learned to do very well), i am able to pass as a woman most of the time. if i dont use concealer, wear clothing that hides my boobs, and drop my voice, then i pass a man (albeit a very androgynous one).

and this suits me just fine! i am a trans woman who has been on estrogen for 6 years but i also identify as agender and use any pronouns. im at the point in my transition where i feel comfortable with who i am no matter how people gender me and my pronouns are a reflection of the person using them and not of me. if someone uses she/her to refer to me, then they will interact with me as if i am a woman to them. if they use he/him, then they will interact with me as if im a man. if they use they/them or neo-pronouns, then they’re probably as cool as they think i am. no matter what i do or say, nothing will change how they perceive me but i am always myself no matter what people call me.

while this just sounds like an absolute flex (okay it’s a little bit of a flex), what i need people to understand is that the way that people perceive my gender is still a product of racism, even when it works in ways that benefit me.

this is why intersectionality is so goddamn important when we have conversations like this. are things hard for white trans women in america? yes absolutely. there is no question about that. but when black CIS women are misgendered and treated as masculine thanks to misogynoir, it is incredibly disingenuous to focus on white trans femininity as a marginalized identity without acknowledging that whiteness precedes marginalization. because for every ounce of effort that a white trans woman puts into her transition, there is a black trans woman who has had to put in ten times more in order to protect herself from both transphobia and misogynoir.

As the song lilts, you see Loza Blade still here waiting for Teor's return, who fought and was Thjazi's commander in the Falconer's Rebellion, a stand taken in this world by the brave and just when they realized that a world that had risen up against the tyranny of the gods had in the span of a few short generations replaced that tyranny with ones of their own devising.

the orufrey centaur saga continues, feat. qiflings and also Euini

(Note that referenced horse breeds are more about vibes than rigid categorization lol)

Mauritius Ornate Day Gecko (Phelsuma ornata), family Gekkonidae, Mauritius

for any address to twitter you can replace the “x.com” with “nitter.net” and you will be able to browse as if you have an account. Lifesaver.