Navigating Myths

Myths, misconceptions and stereotypes exist for all marginalised and minority groups, and learning where those myths come from and how to live beyond them can be a really valuable thing.

Myths about trans people

• all trans people have or must have gender dysphoria

• all trans people have had, or want surgery

• all trans people take, or want to take hormones

• trans people are really just gay

• non-binary people aren’t real, or are really a binary gender

• only young people are non-binary

• being non-binary = being androgynous

• trans people either don’t have sex, or are hypersexual

• trans women always are or want to be feminine, and trans men always are or want to be masculine

• all trans people have always known they were trans, or known since a point early on in their lives

While some of these might be true for some trans people, there is no statement that can apply to all trans people other than “is a different gender to the one they were presumed at birth.” Everything else is a personal experience and decision.

No matter our relationship to the ideas or concepts above, it’s worth reflecting on and connecting with who we are in the ways that work best for us, whether they’re aligned with, or outside of, the dominant narrative of what the trans experience might be. Our page Am I Trans Enough? explores some of this in more detail.

There are also a lot of specific myths about trans women, particularly about what being a trans woman ‘means,’ how this impacts cis women and the harm we do simply by existing. This article by Everyday Feminism examines why these myths are not only untrue but also harmful for all women.

While there is no one right way to be trans, there are absolutely dominant narratives and experiences that many trans people share. These might be needing hormonal affirmation, feeling gender euphoria about a particular thing, or being and appearing a binary gender, or many more things. Wanting to be affirmed by these narratives is totally okay, but it’s important to make sure we’re not making these narratives seem like the only option or path for other trans people.

An example is that while it’s a dominant narrative that dresses are worn by women, just because this is common doesn’t mean that options outside of it are wrong or bad. Men who wear dresses are men, and non-binary people who wear dresses are non-binary. Our relationships to the expectations we face as individuals and communities can be complex and nuanced, and that’s okay.

Fabric doesn’t have a gender, people do.

Even today, stereotypes about trans people are a major contributor to stigma and dysphoria. In TV and film, stand up comedy, pornography, and other media, depictions of trans people are often far from reality.

GLAAD found that over a ten year period, the way trans characters were represented on TV were pretty awful, with 40% of trans people cast as victims, and a significant number as murderers or villains.

The way stereotypes interact with real life is complex, too. While some trans people are sex workers or have a history of sex work, media has often portrayed trans sex workers as a form of joke or to indicate they are less deserving of respect or justice than cis people, or people in other jobs. This is compounded by negative stereotypes about women, people of colour, and First Nations people.

Instead of showing the breadth of experiences that trans people have, these characterisations paint a narrow picture of what trans lives are like, which contributes to stigma as these are often the first images or ideas a cis person will associate with trans people, rather than having the opportunity to consider the complex and wonderful lives, and experiences of all trans people.