#fivegenders

The Five Genders of the Bugis

South Sulawesi's Calalai, Calabai, & Bissu

  The Bugis of South Sulawesi have a detailed system of gender identification which has been described by one young Bugis as “one of those puzzles that doesn’t mean anything until you put all the pieces together” (Graham, 2004, p. 109). Indeed there are five distinct gender identities specified in Bugis society, which include: makkunrai (woman), calalai (transgendered female) bissu (androgynous priest), calabai (transgendered male), and oroané (man). The determination of individual gender is composed of many elements and is conveyed by Graham (2004) as a holistic consideration of physical, spiritual, social, and sexual attributes.

~

The physical body is very important in determining gender. A person’s sex determines their potential to procreate and as males can never be women or calalai and females can never be men or calabai the matter is not taken lightly (Davies, 2006). As for the other factors, in many ways an individual’s spirituality, sexuality, and preference for typical male or female social roles, will first clearly determine what they are not, since the categories of ‘man’ and ‘women’ are extremely strict. As Davies (2006) describes: A woman is female-bodied, heterosexual, married, a mother, and dressed modestly and appropriately (e.g. her sarong is tucked-in rather than rolled down like a man’s). A woman acts demurely, speaks politely, is refined and reserved, and identifies and is identified as, a woman ... A man is male-bodied, heterosexual, married, and a father. A man is assertive and aggressive and controlled (p. 4-5). Those unable or unwilling to conform to these rigid categories are thus excluded and necessarily relocated in another gender category - quite likely calabai or calalai depending of course upon your physiology.

~

After analyzing Stephanie M. Wildman and Adrienne D. Davis' "Language and Silence: Making Systems of Privilege Visible," I realize that people do, in fact, take things for granted. The authors of this piece ties race with gender and explained how certain groups are at an advantage when compare to others. On page 110, Wildman and Davis pointed out that "heterosexuality is portrayed as the norm," therefore those who are straight will not face discrimination because of their sexual orientation. On the other hand, homosexuals are at a disadvantage for the reason that society view gays' and lesbians' relationship as "unacceptable, "unnatural," and/or "different" and their sexual orientation is not as common as heterosexuality. The "majority rule" applies to this case because the LGBTQ community often experiences hate crimes, discrimination at home/work/school, etc.

In the beginning of Peggy McIntosh's "White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack," the author stated that women are not as privileged when compared to men. However, men agree "they will work to improve women's status...but they can't or won't support the idea of lessening men's." In my opinion, I think the privileged group is used to having advantages over others that they do not want to give up factors that makes their lives easier. From my experiences, #46 ("I can choose blemish cover or bandages in 'flesh' color and have them more or less match my skin") on the list is extremely true because everytime I go shopping, I always see light colored bandaids.

"The Male Privilege Checklist," by Barry Deutsch is an article describes advantages that males have. I found some points in the checklist to be interesting, such as "9. If I choose not to have children, my masculinity will not be called into question," which is extremely true (Deutsch 15). Furthermore, the author mentioned that "several critics have...argued that the list somehow victimizes women" and I agree with him that it does not "victimize" females for the reason that both sexes have their advantages and disadvantages (Deutsch 14).