University Living as the Third Gender :: Journalism Journalistic Essays

University Living as the Third Gender In Thailand, they are called Kateoy or â€Å"Ladyboys.† In Burma, they are the Hijra and have the power to bless a child with fertility or curse it with impotence. In America, they are called transgendered, but the definition of the word is hard to pin down. â€Å"There are as many ways to be trans as there are trans people,† said Michael*, a 21-year-old Newton resident to Northeastern University’s bisexual, lesbian, gay, straight, transgendered, queer and questioning alliance (NuBiLAGA) meeting on Nov. 18. But Michael, who was born a female but now lives as a male, has his own definition. â€Å"A transgendered person is someone who does not fit with or identify with the gender identity or gender roles assigned at birth,† Michael said. The American Heritage Dictionary defines transgender as â€Å"Appearing as, wishing to be considered as, or having undergone surgery to become a member the opposite sex.† While often confused with cross-dressers who masquerade as the opposite sex on occasion, transgendered persons wish to permanently live as the opposite gender. Some opt to have surgery to match their anatomy with their lifestyle, some do not and just adopt the mannerism of the opposite gender. Scientific statistics and studies on transgendered persons border on non-existent. Since transgendered people often identify simply as male or female, it is difficult to get an accurate count of the trans population using official censuses which don’t denote â€Å"biological male/female† or â€Å"cultural male/female.† Transgendered people also cannot be included in counts of the gay and lesbian population, because if a person was biologically female, but identifies as a male and is attracted to females, they would consider themselves heterosexual and not a lesbian. As Michael addressed the group, his partner, Bailey*, a 21-year-old female to male transgendered resident of Jamaica Plains, drew four parallel lines on the dry erase board. One by one, Michael explained the significance of each line: sex, gender identity, gender expression and sexual orientation. The visual is what Michael uses to distinguish to people the differences between the terms and how each can function mutually exclusive from the others. He explained to the group that sex is dictated by chromosomes and genitalia. On one end of the spectrum is male, on the other is female and in the middle is intersex, commonly referred to hermaphrodite. On the gender expression line, Michael and Bailey created a spectrum from masculine to feminine, with androgynous or gender neutral in the middle; sexual orientation often divided between attraction to men or women.