A common problem with this approach is that:
Trans women routinely show up to events and spaces that are classified as for women, and will be turned away at the door or kicked out if they donāt 100% pass.
Trans women will go to these spaces/events, and learn that the working definition of woman isĀ ācis womanā, whether in rules for entry, or in how the space and the dialogue within operates. When trans womanhood isnāt considered to have valid experiences of womanhood that donāt also overlap with cis womenās, that absolutely excludes us. For instance, a lot of my cis lady friends feel that having had periods, and pregnancy are prominent experiences of their womanhood, and thatās valid enough, and itās fair for discussion to reach those experiences. But if Iām not allowed to remark on how my body provided prominent experiences of womanhood as well while growing up? Then thatās going to send me a clear message that my womanhoodās not acceptable. And sadly, thereās not a lot of cis women out there willing to accept my bodyās female, each and every bit of it, and that it can have played a part in my experiences of womanhood.Ā
Trans women will gain access to these spaces/events only to be harassed and treated in hostile ways by those in attendance
Trans women will go to those spaces/events only to find trans men and transmasc nb folks in attendance, which 99.9% of the time means weāll be treated as men/male, or more of men/male than the trans men/trans masc folks, that weāll be treated as outsiders to womanhood rather than insiders in contrast to trans men and transmasc nb folks.Ā
TheseĀ āwomenāsā spaces/events can be named after things that trans women do not necessarily have, like vagina/vulva/uterus-based slang/terms, or XX chromosomes, or whatnot. This sends a clear message that those of us without those traits are not welcome, especially when not specifying trans woman-inclusion, since most folks who do this are essentialists that equate womanhood to those traits.
In short, thereās too much cissexism, so making it clear that trans women are welcome can send us a clear signal that our time is less likely to be wasted, that itās more likely to work out, that those involved are more likely to have done some processing of cissexism and transmisogyny in order to declare themselves inclusive to us, etc. etc.
Ideally, just sayingĀ āwomen-onlyā orĀ āwomenās spaceā or whatnot would be sufficient. Sadly, in practice, thatās justā¦not how things go down. We are women, but most donāt accept that. Most peopleās working definition of āwomanā is effectively ācis womanā, or people they perceive to be cis women.
