There are many parallels between transgender and disabled experience. Our bodies are medicalized and modeled as deviations from an idealized body — a platonic ideal “able” or “cisgender” existence — and the further we deviate from that ideal, the less acceptable we are in society. We rely on a system of gatekeepers and are often coerced into fulfilling unnecessary and biased expectations if we want to receive care. We are conditioned to strive for normalcy— a body with a disability is expected to strive toward able-bodied ideals just as a transgender person is expected to strive toward patriarchal expectations — and we are punished for deviating from a value system that demands compliance.
My first piece with Buzzfeed is up today! Check it out here.
