In a perfect world...

We are all aware of the prejudice and intolerance that exists in society. Too many people believe that anyone different from themselves is somehow inferior, not deserving of the same rights and protections as themselves. We decry their bigotry, their smug dismissal of others. We, of all people, should be tolerant and accepting of diversity in our community.

Yet sometimes, we don't do so well ourselves.

Every group under the transgender umbrella seems to have a few individuals that dislike anyone unlike themselves: straight crossdressers bashing gays, transsexuals disliking crossdressers for creating a public perception of us as 'men in dresses', and drag queens making fun of transsexuals for not knowing how to do their makeup!

Even among transsexuals, there are rifts. At any gathering you'll hear it: "Older girls are overly concerned with clothes and appearance." "Young transitioners have it too easy." "Non-ops aren't truly TS; if they were, nothing would keep them from surgery." "Why in the world would you want to be a woman if you aren't attracted to men?" "And what's the deal with the Female to Male transsexuals; don't they realize they've got it made?"

Some of the differences are understandable when such diverse groups of people are lumped together under the banner of 'Transgender'; it's not surprising that straight crossdressers don't want to be considered gay, or that transsexuals don't want to be thought of as crossdressers. Everyone resents being labeled as something they're not.

The answer, however, is not to wish that all those others would just go away, to invalidate their lives and try to exclude them from the community. Rather, it is to try to promote understanding of our diversity among the public; to make them see that not all transsexuals work in porno films and go on Springer; that not all crossdressers hide in the closet and masturbate every time they put on a pair of panties, and that transgendered people come in all varieties: male and female, gay, straight, and lesbian, bisexual and asexual, short and tall, loud and quiet, shy and exhibitionistic.

In other words, that we are a lot like them.