Transgender persons are individuals with different sexual notions and perceptions contrary to the sex they were born to or born with. They are mostly referred to as transmen which is a female who prefers to be seen as referred to as a man, or a transwoman, who is a man but prefers to be called a woman. There are some questions that are not appropriate to ask transgender people due to their sensitivity. Read on to find out more before date a transgender girl on the web.
What was your name before/birth name?
Honestly, it’s not something you need to know. For some reason, people are obsessed with transgender people’s birth names, which stem from a past in which they were forced to adopt identities that didn’t suit them. If someone introduces themselves as John or Jane, that person is John or Jane.
Have you stopped to wonder what difference it makes to you if you know the person’s birth name?
Did you have the operation?
You don’t need to go around asking transgender persons if they go through an operation to alter their sex or genitalia to that of the gender they want to be associated with.
Not every transgender person goes through such. It is a psychological orientation that has nothing to do with biological or physical appearances, and most trans persons are comfortable with their bodies. The only difference would be what attracts them sexually. So next time you meet a trans person, try not to ask them this question.
Do I refer to you as he, she, it, or they?
How we refer to transgender persons is actually very important while conversing with a trans person. They take pride in the pronouns used to refer to them. So don’t go around asking a trans person what they prefer to be called.
Refer to them as you feel appropriate. For instance, when referring to a transman, use the pronoun “he” and the pronoun “she” when referring to a transwoman. If that’s not convenient for you, call the person by the name they go by.
How do you have sex?
Who even goes around asking people how they have sex? There are no set rules or guidelines on how people should have sex. This does apply to transgender persons too. Besides, sex is something done in private between two or more parties with consent.
This means that a transman would use his vagina to have sex if he does have one. So also a transwoman if she wants to use her penis. How they go about it is totally their business and only theirs. Keep that in mind.
Are you sure you aren’t just super gay?
A person’s sexual orientation is a reflection of who or what they are sexually attracted to. It could be the same sex, straight, bisexual, or pansexual depending on what attracts the individual.
For transgender persons, one cannot just point out whom or what they are sexually attracted to, as they are open to an array of sexual possibilities. A transman can be attracted to women and in this case, we can say he is straight. If a transman is attracted to men, we can then call him “gay.” And if he is attracted to both males and females, then we can refer to him as “bisexual.”