Never underestimate the power of stupid

I'm not sure why, but on Friday at going home time, so many people and cars clog the streets I can't help but think of rats escaping a forest fire. The buses have standing room only. The herds of people swarming the crosswalks migrate like wildebeest on the Serengeti - mindlessly lost in their group identity, focused but still slightly jumpy as though a lion might ambush them at the corner. Friday night commuters are so glazed over tired, I am convinced donating pints of blood is the primary economic activity in this city.

I decided to liven things up a bit by wearing my goggles on the bus. I know it seems rather infantile, but I was really trying it more as a cultural/psychological experiment. You know... for science.

The elevator ride came first. I positioned myself at the back with a big grin. Two people got in on the long descent to the street. They ignored me and Ricardo who was turning purple from trying to contain his laughter. Dignified they both just stared at the elevator door intently, desperate to escape that dreaded question "why?"

In the streets, the commuter zombies were so lost in their cares that few noticed how stupid I looked. Every once in a while someone would see me though... You could read the internal dialog on his face... is he? He is. Why? What on earth? One young lady passing in a bus pointed me out to her friend. Another older woman just burst out laughing.

In the darkening gloom after a wearying day, I'm glade I was able to send at least one person home with a chuckle...

The Travesti Who Could

In the previous post, I noted the grim reality that most travestis end up working in prostitution. However, Ricardo told me about a case in the Northeastern state of Ceará about a travesti who managed to graduate from college and even pass the rigorous public exam to work in the school system as a teacher. I looked up the story written by Kalima Fernandes in the January 4th, 2009 ed. of the Folha de São Paulo.

It was so inspiring, I thought I'd share the main points with you. João Filho, or Luma as she prefers to be called, is the first travesti to enter into a doctorate program in Brazil. She also works in the school system managing 28 schools in 13 districts of the state.

Luma is the child of illiterate poor parents. She chose to study to support her family instead of entering into prostitution. In the school system, she was the constant victim of ridicule and physical violence. She tells the story of once running to a teacher for help after being assaulted by a classmate only to be told, "Good job, and who was it who forced you to be this way?" She remembers that the persecution would only diminish around exams when her classmates would ask her for help with math.

Upon graduating, despite her exemplary performance and grades, she was singled out to be monitored for a over a month by the school director. Another attempted to block her assignment all together. In the classroom, she often would face ridicule from her own students.

Now, as she continues her doctorate research, there is no questioning that she is highly qualified. Apart from her professional performance, her own truly heroic struggle against intense discrimination and ridicule to obtain an education and a respectable job is a testimony to her strength of character. Hopefully, her courage will open the doors for other young travestis in education and provide new opportunities away from a life on the streets.

Why face all this grief? Why come out of the closet?

Integrity.

Do what they will, no one can rob you of your freedom and dignity if you are true to yourself.

You go, girl.

Gender B-b-b-b-bender!

I finally trusted someone here to crop my increasingly unruly mane. That person was the oh so fabulous travesti who reigns from her beauty parlor on the north shore of the lake.

When we walked in the door, I met a large black woman. Everything about her physical appearance was somewhat contradictory. Her feet were huge, but beautifully manicured. Her face had the strong jaw of a man, but was framed by elegantly styled long hair and softened with makeup. She served us coffee and we chatted for a while. She went out of her way to make me feel welcome and to cut my hair... I couldn't help feel she was trying to search out my impression. Is he okay with me?

While I never got breast implants, began dressing in women's clothing, adopted a woman's name and started wearing make up, I do empathize. Being known as gay also tends to put you on edge around new people you're not sure will accept you. Fortunately, for me I just don't care anymore what people think (most of the time). But then again, I have it easier than my hairdresser.

People might forgive an alternate sexual preference, but mess with their concept of gender roles and boy do they get uncomfortable! Man = this. Woman = that. In fact, we often praise people for having characteristics in line with our ideas about gender. "He's so strong and manly..."

Now to clarify, travestis are not transsexual women, nor are they cross dressing men. In America, we like dualities: man v. woman, right v. wrong, gay v. straight, Republican v. Democrat, white v. er... well, not white. Travestis are more like the Libertarian party of gender. Americans might manage to recognize their existence, but they aren't really sure what to do with them on election day.

To explain: men who have sex with travestis are not considered homosexual; however, travestis generally are biologically male with varying degrees of modification. We don't really have a way to work them into our rigid Anglo categories. Nevertheless, many other cultures do have a parallel third gender. Take the Berdache or "Twospirits" in Native America or the Hijra of South Asia. While in Latin America and South Asia, these people are often forced into prostitution due to a lack of opportunity in the formal job market, this is by no means always true. Take my hairdresser for example. Really they're fairly common in Brazil...

In fact, in Native American cultures, these people were often high status individuals performing certain roles in society such as medicine and religious rituals. Unfortunately, in all these cultures the Anglo idea of fulfilling a gender role equaling morality has taken hold and resulted in intense discrimination. Or maybe it comes from the familiar case of economically empowered straight men sitting at the top of the heap. Whatever the reason, violence against travesti prostitutes is often horrific. Their HIV infection rates tend to be much, much higher than the rest of the population. No wonder they have the reputation for being fighters... you don't want to mess with someone backed into a corner.

p.s. Watch this movie!