A recent comment reminisced about going back to an earlier time when transgender people could function under the radar.
I admit that sometimes this sounds appealing. It’s exhausting to see frequent tweets from powerful and influential people about the DANGERS that our community creates. As we become more integrated into society this kind of attention will increase. It’s a double-edge sword. For every accomplishment a gender non-conforming person achieves there will inevitably bring criticism.
What can be very frustrating is the way a news story can be spun. In May of 2023 a transwoman ran in a London marathon in the women’s category. Because, you know, transwomen are women. The headline in the New York Post reported “Trans runner beat 14K women in London Marathon after running NYC as a man”.
For context, people sometimes change their gender. At point some women identified as male. It’s not a surprise if a person does A THING at one point in their life and then they change their gender identity and then they do SAME THING but now they identify as a different gender.
The article admits that the runner in question was required to register for the New York marathon as the gender that is on their passport. It doesn’t sound like the runner was gaming the system. It sounds like they were adhering to the rules of the race.
For even further context, yes, I suppose the runner did beat 14k other women, but as reported by The Advocate, there were more than 6,000 women who finished ahead of the trans woman, Glenique Frank — she came in 6,159th in the women’s category.
I think when adding context, which I feel is part of reporting responsibly, the story takes on a different shape. But I suppose “runner places 6,159th in marathon” isn’t as alarming or clickbaity as “Trans runner beat 14K women in London Marathon after running NYC as a man”.
This is an example of someone in our community who achieved something but the accomplishment was overshadowed by a non-existent controversary. It’s kinda like when gender non-conforming people volunteer to read to kids at a library. The story isn’t about literacy anymore, it’s about PERVERTS.
I suppose these two examples are just efforts to push us back under the radar. We are allowed to exist (for now) but heaven forbid we are allowed to be a part of the world.
And yes, I know a few people in particular are going to be SO MAD about this post and I look forward to being inspired by your comments and emails.
If you long for the days when we were under the radar I have good news for you. Too much of the world wants the same thing. The way things are heading you’ll probably get your wish.
Of course, soon being under the radar won’t be enough for them.
It is heartbreaking and exhausting and demoralizing to see the hate and the spin and the legislation. But going back under the radar isn’t going to stop that. If we go under the radar, they are just going to come after us under it. It’s not enough for some that we stay home, some people want eradication.
I am intentionally posting these thoughts on Transgender Day of Visibility.
From glaad.org:
Each year on March 31, the world observes Transgender Day of Visibility to raise awareness about transgender people. It is a day to celebrate the lives and contributions of trans people, while also drawing attention to the poverty, discrimination, and violence the community faces.
This is a day, like everyday, where we should hold our heads high and soak in the sun, as opposed to the shadowy darkness that being under the radar provides.
I don’t think we will get the acceptance and equality we deserve in our lifetimes. And I know it feels like this is very much two steps forward and one step back (or even the opposite). But we are making progress. We just need to stick together.
I sometimes feel that acceptance is too much to expect and that I would simply prefer to going back to being ignored. The radar, like I said, sounds appealing. But I think doing so would take away all the rights and victories and progress that gender non-conforming activists achieved before us. If we go back, it’ll be even harder to go back to where we are even today. It’ll be that much more difficult to get to where we deserve to be.
We have history on our side. We have momentum.
Just keep going.
Love, Hannah
p.s. I know that today is also Easter and one of the holiest of day for the devout. I am not a Christian and I don’t celebrate the holiday and have nothing but respect for those that do. For those who mark this day as the resurrection of their savior I would like to wish you a happy Easter.
Hannah McKnight 
The job of a writer is to get people to think. Although topics can be controversial, if they generate discussion, it sets the stage for increasing our understanding of each other. Doesn’t mean we will like it necessarily, or agree with everything that is being said, but does bring us a little closer together.
Thank you for acknowledging the Holiday Hannah. I believe in Christ and that God exists, however, I do not subscribe to the hate rhetoric that “man”, not God, wrote into the Bible to serve their own purposes.
Although the Bible was inspired by the teachings and love of Jesus, and captured much of his Word, there are individuals that believe the Bible is the word of God verbatim which I don’t believe to be true. Think about modern day and how everyone puts their own spin on what they heard or believe to be true to fit their own agenda, or what I would call free will which is often plagued with selfishness and fear.
Over 2024 years ago, the only way to communicate was by word of mouth and written documentation. Records were kept using paper and pen which were held by men to document events based on their interpretation. Can God speak to us? Sure! But everything that floats through my head is not always Gods will for me….thank goodness! There in lies the problem. Self will is often times masked as God’s will. We are all of Gods children and there is a plan and purpose for us all. We were not created just to be punished. Jesus loved the poor, the destitute, the sinners no matter what. For those that don’t have a good grasp on sin, it consists of Pride, Anger, Greed, Gluttony, Envy, Lust, and Sloth. In any given day, if I take a true and honest look at myself (which some of us are not able to do), I am exercising one if not more of these sins. For me, sins simply are things that ultimately bring me pain and cut me off from connection with God. The good news is God never leaves my side.
I do not attend church on a regular basis except usually to celebrate the birth and resurrection of Christ based on my own beliefs. One does not have to go to church to believe or have faith. One does not have to be part of a specific denomination to get to know God. One does not have to be a Christian to find or see God working in their lives. And when I refer to working in our lives, this should not be construed as giving me everything I want and certainly does not mean I will not have pain and darkness on my journey. It means God is there no matter what. No matter what!
God doesn’t care if I am a CD, on the LGBTQ spectrum, how I vote politically, who I love, how much money I don’t have, what religion I follow, how many times I walk into a place of worship, or even if I believe in God at all.
God cares for all of us and is there for us to have a relationship with if we choose. I came to believe not through my parents, not through church, not through a political party, but through my own living experiences where I can go back and see where behind pain in my childhood and life struggles, God was and is always there whether I turn my back, stop praying for a month, or am simply not paying attention to what is around me.
Beyond the love and presence of God which is around me and inherently in my heart, I don’t need to define, see, or understand God, it is just comforting to know God is there. God is vast. God is the Universe, the planet, in matter, in all living creatures. God works through people, pets, and nature.
Try to live a little more and hate a little less today. Hate breeds hate. At the core of hate is fear. Jesus was not afraid when he was crucified.
Please know that I am not here to try and convert anyone into believing anything. I simply wanted to share my hope and beliefs on this Holy day.
Nadine
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I appreciate that you’re trying really hard not to be incendiary in your post, Hannah. So let me do that for you.
Trans Day of Visibility is a more legitimate holiday than Easter. We have more reason to celebrate it than Christians do to celebrate a holiday they stole from Pagans.
Let’s start with Easter, which was originally a Pagan holiday to celebrate the spring equinox. They didn’t even change the name and iconography, those lazy Christians! The Pagan festival was called Eostre, named after the great northern goddess symbolized by a rabbit. Part of the ancient custom was to exchange eggs. The resurrection part of it can be traced all the way back to Horus being resurrected in ancient Egypt. Just Google it and you’ll see that EVERY Christian holiday was stolen from another religion (usually the Pagans) as a recruiting tool to get more followers. Because more followers means more money and more power for the leaders of that religion.
Wait, what did she just say? Yeah, that’s right. Religion is about money and power and nothing else.
Ask any anthropologist and they’ll tell you: Religion was invented by prehistoric people to explain why all the really nasty animals came out at night. “It must be because that big angry ball of fire in the sky went to bed and stopped watching what we were doing!” But it didn’t take long for those people to use it to their advantage: “The big angry ball of fire in sky told me that it wants YOU to go after the animal with sharp teeth and claws in that cave. Why did it talk to me? Because I’m special, and you’ll be special too if you go kill that thing.”
Religion was a lie invented by primitive people to help justify fear, and co-opted by greedy people to turn others’ fear into wealth and power. That was just as true 500,000 years ago as it is today. Believing in God today is no different from believing that the big ball of fire in the sky keeps the scary monsters away. Actually, in one sense that’s not true. The big ball of fire in the sky actually exists. God doesn’t. Meanwhile, gender as a spectrum, not as a binary, has been very real for just as long.
Yes, the words “male, female, trans, non-binary,” and so on are modern labels. As are the delineated definitions of each. But human societies and cultures have always existed with people who fall between the two ends of the spectrum. The fastest way to make my point is to go back again to ancient Egypt, where there are writings about a third gender category from 3,200 years ago. I’ll remind you that 3,200 years ago pre-dates when some cultists got organized and started stealing ideas from other cults and called themselves “Christians.”
What’s different in modern times versus the past is that the Cult of Christ is the dominant religion in the world, and the people running that cult have decided that attacking people who don’t fit their binary definition of gender are the enemy. They don’t actually care what anyone wears or who they have sex with. It’s just another way to assert their dominance, peacock their superiority, and raise more money to increase their wealth and power.
Celebrating Easter is like cheering for a lie while throwing money at people who already have more money than you’ll ever understand. Celebrating Trans Day of Visibility is cheering for humanity itself, with the side benefit of telling religious leaders to go fuck themselves.
Sophie
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❤
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Thank you for sharing your perspective. The origins fascinate me so I would like to learn more. What you are sharing would not surprise me as I do have an open mind. With that said, God does exist in my life of which I do not pay money, give power to anyone, or position my beliefs as the end all. All I have to know is there is a greater power or higher power if you will that created all of this, and we, and our finite little minds, are not it.
Whether we call ourselves Pagans, Christian’s, Jews, or any other religion, God really doesn’t care.
Rock and Roll came from African Spirituals, but it still brings joy and happiness so really don’t care about the origins.
Nadine
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Wow! And on Easter of all days. Might have been simpler to say you don’t believe which is okay. But to try and disprove the existence of God with a few statements based on some historical information that although might be worth exploring, you move head on into denouncing God for all religions. That is quite an arrogant position for a measly human being. I might not agree with a specific teaching of faith, but I know it helps people live their lives. I certainly wouldn’t show up to a place of worship and say to their face that they should go fuck themselves! You might want to search your feelings more as the anger, hurt, and pain is a convenient way to try and be better, unique, or perhaps be a victim. Great way to alienate oneself from the World, dress it no dress.
Hannah,
If you are going to like a persons view that is subscribing to hate towards God and others that believe, please don’t wish everyone a Happy Easter and then clap your hands for something so naive.
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Easter falls on a different day each year. Transgender Day of Visibility has been on March 31st since 2009.
I posted this on Transgender Day of Visibility which is the same day that Easter happens to fall on this year. Easter is celebrated on the Sunday following the first full moon after the spring equinox. Next year Easter falls on April 20th,.
I never said I didn’t believe in God. My wishes were sincere and were well intentioned. This post was about our community moving forward. There was nothing about God in this post until I wished those who celebrate a happy Easter.
Maybe read the post again? Hope this clears things up!
Love, Hannah
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You are correct. You did not state that you were an atheist. Just stunned me that you would “like” the ranting post about how religion came to be and the dismissal of anyone who is religious. As one of your readers pointed out, I probably let anger get the best of me. My beliefs are very personal to me and always bothers me to see any of us go out of our way to not just have a different belief system, but to discredit others. Probably why many don’t discuss religion or politics. Too bad we can’t share differences anymore in this country. I would think based on our first hand experience with alienation that we would be better than that.
Still respect what you bring to the table. My apologies for lashing out.
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I didn’t think it was a ranting post. I love history and everything has a history, even religions and holidays. I loved learning about the origins of Easter, and my “like” was not an endorsement of any religious beliefs.
Love, Hannah
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This is the second recent blog about acceptance you have shared. I have given up on expecting people’s better angels to guide them. I would love acceptance for myself; the LGBTQ+ community; migrants; and on and on and on.Rather, it seems hatred and intolerence are growing ever stronger. Yes, strong words I know and maybe it is because I simply didn’t see it before but that is how it seems to me.
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Hi Hannah,
This is another excellent post. The topics you address, especially the matter of religion, will, of course, bring forward the views of those to do believe, and those who do not believe.
Sophie’s comments about the history of many western holidays are factually accurate. Do some easy historical research to confirm this.
Sophie’s comments that religion is about money and power are also factually accurate if referring to the institutions of organized religion. Again, do some easy historical research to confirm this.
The catholic church, for example, is a stunningly powerful and money gathering institution that has wrought death, torture, and abuse upon vast numbers of people.
Zen Buddhists, in contrast with say the catholic church, have not killed, tortured, or abused their adherents.
An individual religious person may not think that their participation in the organized institutional religion of their choosing has anything to do with money or power, but the superstructure of that organized religion is without question substantially about money and power.
Person A believes in some god.
Person B does not believe in any god.
They have very different views of how the world works.
Which one is correct? HAHAHAHA. They each think they are correct.
An intelligent way to proceed with one’s life is to try to understand what one encounters by asking for evidence for any claim. Living on this planet for many years now I believe that I see fairly clearly how things work. This leads to my view of the world. I have no concerns about what I believe: it all seems pretty obvious to me. Just look around people, just look around.
Evidence and probability are two foundations of rational thought. How do you know something? What do you accept as evidence, or proof, of a claim?
Have a good evening Hannah,
Best to you,
Marissa in Ohio
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I don’t feel like my post was a “rant,” but that’s a subjective term so I won’t argue with that. I will, however, argue with some of the other comments above.
I have no interest in disproving the existence of God. I feel no responsibility to do so. I would argue that the burden is on the believer to prove that such a being does exist in spite of all of the natural evidence to the contrary.
To call me a “measly human being” is an empty insult. Telling someone who doesn’t believe in your God that your God is greater than they are is kind of like saying that Captain America wouldn’t like me. I’m not worried about what fictional characters might think about me. Just be honest and tell me that you were offended because I challenged your belief system. The fact that you’re so upset about it tells me that I did a pretty good job challenging it, too. So… mission accomplished. Thanks for that affirmation!
I also did not advocate for walking into a church or synagogue or mosque or temple or anywhere else and telling everyone to go fuck themselves. I said that celebrating our right to exist is how we can all take power back from those who wish to horde it, albeit with colorful language.
“Too bad we can’t share differences in this country. I would think based on our first hand experience with alienation that we would be better than that.” I always find it very funny when a religious person laments our collective inability to share differing opinions and perspectives in response to someone disagreeing with their belief system. If this discussion isn’t sharing differences, when what is? But you know what isn’t funny? Equating the suffering of people in the LGBTQ community to the biggest, strongest, most dominant, and most powerful religion in human history. Don’t you dare pretend that Christianity isn’t directly responsible for causing a significant percentage of that suffering. Shame on you.
Lastly, when people talk about tolerance it makes me sad. We should not be advocating for tolerance. Tolerance is not what we’re here for. At least, it shouldn’t be. When I hear that I think of this quote from Ann Northrop:
“Don’t tolerate me as different. Accept me as part of the spectrum of normalcy.”
Happy International Transgender Day of Visibility, everyone!
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Hi All,
I see we have a very spirited discussion underway. I knew there were differences within the transgender community, but Holy Hannah! Sorry Hannah, no disrespect…..just one of my sayings.
First and foremost, I neglected to say Happy International Transgender Day! As I am relatively new to coming out, I was not even aware of the celebration day. Still learning.
Regarding the banter, please know that my sharing of my particular beliefs and views of God and faith are mine. I felt the need to share my thoughts this morning as faith and my belief in God have been an important part of my life and quite frankly, part of how I have come to accept myself and find the strength to come out.
At the risk of throwing gasoline on the fire, many confuse God with religion. Religion is man made; God for me is spiritual. I agree with Sophie’s comments about money, power, and the corruption of the Catholic Church. There is no doubt that there has been a lot of hurt inflicted on not only the LGBTQ community, but many others throughout history. The Catholic Church for centuries ran the thrones of countries, supported grueling wars against nations to secure land and power, and executed anyone who had different beliefs. Although some of this power still remains, the Catholic Church has lost many followers over recent decades.
Where I disagree with Sophie and others is the idea that unless you can see something or prove its existence, then it must not be true. I am happy to say that I have faith and don’t need to convince or prove it to anyone. That doesn’t make me right or wrong. It’s just part of my journey and my life.
Hi Sophie,
I am truly intrigued to learn more about your comments as I stated earlier, but my sharing of faith and a belief in God obviously sparked something within you to react so strongly. Although I don’t agree with the choice of some of the words that were used in the other comments, it is obvious to me that you went out of your way to stir the pot and not just challenge other’s beliefs, but ridicule people for them. It’s one thing to engage and debate with others, but that was not your intention. You personally attacked other people just because they have a different point of view. Sadly, that kind of behavior hurts all of us. I don’t know you or what you have gone through. I know the hurt the Catholic Church is doing to our community, but it’s important to keep perspective and not discount any of us that do have a different belief than yours. It doesn’t negate your belief, it just means we see things differently.
I have always believed that at our core we are more alike than different. If we spend our time purposely trying to start arguments instead of understanding each other, then what are we hoping to accomplish? Look at where that is getting the World today. A world that we are a part of. You said this is not about finding common ground in all of us. If not, then all we are going to get is a fight where nobody wins. Please know I don’t judge you or think any less of you as a person if you do or don’t believe in God, religion, or any other belief system you may have. But I do know love, not hate or attacking others beliefs is the key to happiness. Many of us are suffering and need each other’s support. I learned something in recovery a long time ago. We all have different experiences, backgrounds, stories, and beliefs. Wr all go hear on different paths, but we are more alike than we care to admit. All of us can learn from one another. Open mindedness is a key to growing and getting better. None of us have all the answers. As a problem drinker, and an alcoholic, I needed something greater than myself to recover. That power was of my own understanding and nobody told me what it had to be. That grew into my own concept of God which I still have a working relationship with today.
That was my experience which nobody can dismiss, dispute, take away, or deny. I feel so fortunate and so strong about the help that God gave me that I would never want to deny anyone an opportunity of coming to believe in a God of their understanding because I was out proclaiming the non existence of God. Again, not church, not religion.
I have rambled on enough. I hope cooler heads can prevail as we have a responsibility to demonstrate kindness and compassion in our community regardless of our differences.
Stay well everyone and my apologies for stirring up quite the discussion 🙂
Nadine
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Hello Hannah i hope your Mom is feeling better and doing well
Luv your stories keep writing helps me to stay on a journey
Michelle
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