I first heard about this story on Elliott in the Morning on DC101 2 weeks ago and it opened the topic about transgendered people.
I then taped, well DVRed, the interview on Oprah.
AND(!) I read the People magazine article on the guy (the subscription has been an ongoing gift from the in-laws since my first birthday with them).
So, what do I think? I think that this is a pregnant woman. I'm not trying to spark a debate or anything but it kind of irritates me that there is so much media hype behind this. Yes, this person is legally a man and lives his life as a man but he still has a vagina, ovaries and a womb. It's a fuzzy line. So why are people making such a big fuss?
I actually thought their story was a little touching. His wife couldn't bear children so he is. And as his wife joked on Oprah, there are probably plenty of women who'd love their husbands to bear the responsibility of pregnancy.
Maybe this story is sticking out to me because I've been thinking about having kids a lot lately. I don't think I'm ready but it's been popping up in my mind much more than it did a year ago. And for a long time, I was a subscriber to the belief that if one could not bear children that it was perhaps God's (I can't even believe I just typed that) intention that you don't have children. Perhaps you should adopt. The idea of in-vitro fertilization or surrogates just seemed like it was tampering with what nature had intended for you. You should not have to inject yourself full of hormones to have a baby. There's nothing natural about that.
But now that I've been thinking about it more and more... would I do the same? I stand on my soapbox about the overpopulation of the world and how we're quickly depleting the world's natural resources. I roll my eyes at the turds in my area who are popping out children left and right with no financial stability, no known father of the child and in no position to raise children in general. But then... what about me? Could I adopt? Would I go through the ordeal of hormone shots and whatnot to have my own biological baby?
I don't know. As I get older, my views on a lot of things have changed.
Regardless, I'd like to think that world views are also changing. I mean - look at the presidential race. Without getting too in depth about this (because really - I'm sick of politics right now) - we have a black man and a woman running to become president. I love it! And even though everyone's jumping on the "being green" bandwagon, I love that people are actually starting to think about their carbon footprints. I love to think that we're evolving as a society.
So, it was pretty sad to read that the guy's brother viewed this baby as an "abomination". Why? I'd much rather see a baby grow up in a household with a loving family than with some of the fuckwits around me that hang a "Scarface" blanket in their front window as a curtain. I also fully support gay/lesbian couples adopting children. Why do people have such a problem with this? Homosexuality isn't a disease that you can catch. You don't decide to fuck someone of your own gender because you learn to from example.
Wow, why am I on a soapbox today? Basically I'm trying to say that the pregnant man is really just a pregnant woman with a beard and no breasts. Biologically - a woman is pregnant. So what's the big deal? People don't even bat an eyelash when a lesbian couple gets pregnant. I hope that as a society we can accept this change, embrace this change even and just focus on the idea that a baby is being brought into a good environment with people who want her and will take care of her.
**update**
I can't end my post all warm and fuzzy. So let's talk about transgenders. One of my favorite shows awhile ago was Transgeneration about transgendered college kids. They featured 2 female to males and 2 males to females. It was really fascinating. Only one really went through and had the surgery (male to female) and one of the things she had to do for awhile was sit with a dildo inserted into her new hoo-ha to break it in. Fascinating.
I just can't imagine what its like to feel completely disconnected from my reproductive/sex organs. Can you imagine hating your vagina? Hating your wang? I mean, there are times I complain about my period but would I take testosterone to stop it? Nah... I don't want a mustache.
5 comments:
great post. i felt myself nodding the whole way thru. i don't see the big deal and frankly, would much rather see a child in their home then in the home of some of the people making a fuss.
While I am also supportive of gay adoption, I don't see the big deal that a woman is pregnant. She can call herself a man, or that she is a man trapped in a woman's body, but biologically she is still a woman. If I went through life as a woman (which is a staggeringly frightening premise) and still had my cash and prizes intact, would it make national news if I had a raging erection for several days? Seriously, would People magazine say "Baltimore Woman Has Gigantic Erection" on the cover and have a big picture of me in drag pitching a tent? This is not news. It is called biology.
It is a fuzzy line. Because really, sex and gender are different. This person, biologically, I guess is a woman. But he identifies as male. So biologically a woman's reproductive organs made him pregnant, but he's still a pregnant male. It's all very confusing, but that's why conversations like these are good.
I would like to add that on Oprah, (s)he mentioned that he actually has a small penis - her clitoris grew into a small penis from the hormones and he can have intercourse with his wife. I bet you really wanted to know that info. How would you like to be that doctor delivering that baby!
i thought i was the only one who watched transgeneration! great show. i hope they do a second season.
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