Final Paper - Personal Identity and Acceptance

Ian Patel

Professor Braverman

WGS 220: Gender and Pop Culture

May 9, 2016

Personal Identity and Acceptance

            With the recent legalization of gay marriage in the United States, it is clear that Americans are slowly becoming more accepting of other people’s different beliefs. Transgender people, those whose sexes do not match their genders, are gradually becoming more accepted for who they are instead of what they feel. The fact that the situation of a transgender person is not the majority still makes many people uncomfortable with the concept, but the majority of people would agree that a person should be permitted to identify as whatever gender he or she desires. In fact, society will largely allow any actions as long as it is not harmful to others. But how far will this kind of acceptance extend? Especially with the Internet these days, people are quickly generating new variants on personal identities that, at first glance, seem ludicrous to most of the population. Of the more recent, controversial personal identifications, three stand out. Transracial, a term popularized by Rachel Dolezal, is used to describe people who were born one race and feel they are actually a different race. Transableism describes people who are healthy but strongly feel they should be disabled, and are sometimes willing to damage their physical bodies to realize this sensation. Lastly, otherkin are those who claim to be nonhuman, usually in spirit but sometimes, less commonly, in body as well. Otherkin have been known to identify as all kinds of animals, including mythical beasts such as dragons, angels, and fairies. Though it is rare, some otherkin even identify as machines or inanimate objects. While most people’s gut reaction to such identities is rejection, will transracial, transabled, and otherkin people be regular any time soon in our society? I believe that, in ten years, views on people who fall into these categories will still be negative, but that they will not be as strongly rejected by society.

            “Transracial” is a term that possessed a different meaning before it was repurposed for personal identification. Previously, transracial was used to refer to families that adopted children of a different race. Adoptees in such families may feel confused as their race does not match that of their parents, leading some adoptees to identify with both races. In 2015, however, Rachel Dolezal created a new definition for the word, “transracial,” when her two white parents revealed that she was disguising herself and living as a black woman. Dolezal had decided that, although she had been born to white parents, she should have been an African-American person, and thus altered her appearance so that she could pass as a black person. She even became the president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) under this guise, but resigned once her transracial identity was revealed. Today, Dolezal acknowledges that she was born as white to white parents, but identifies as black regardless.

            Society’s initial reaction to this concept of transracial was severely negative, and I do not believe that a transracial person will be seen as acceptable in the near future. The main argument against Dolezal’s transracial identity is that it is an abuse of white privilege. As much as we might desire racial equality, there is still a serious imbalance between the races in our culture. White people do not face as many hardships as black people do, and white people tend to hold more powerful positions than black people do. Society has defined a sort of hierarchy of races that is not likely to fade soon, with whites at the top and blacks at the bottom. Dolezal made the transition from white to black and was able to tan enough to pass as a black person, but the reverse transition, going from black to white, would not be so easy physically or socially. Dolezal was able to decide to be black and claim to face and understand the same oppression that a natural-born black person knows, even though she grew up as a white child with white parents. On the other hand, a black person cannot simply decide to be white and gain white privilege and escape oppression as a result.         Similarly to how gender and sex are separated, I think we might need to separate physical race from cultural race. The very idea of switching races seems illogical to begin with since a person’s race is usually defined as a biological trait that comes from that person’s parents. “Transracial” is likely a poor term for the kind of transition that Dolezal is attempting since race is usually treated as a biological trait. While she might be physically white, she wishes to be identified as part of the black culture and be viewed as a black person. Perhaps physically changing one’s skin color is not reasonable, but choosing the racial culture in which one is most comfortable is plausible. To truly make this kind of personal identity feasible, though, I believe it would be necessary to achieve complete racial equality first. In doing so, the hierarchy that classifies races and generates concepts like white privilege would be removed, allowing people to switch more freely between races. With total racial equality seeming rather far off, though, I predict that transracial people, in the new sense of the word, will remain heavily criticized and not universally accepted for the near future.

            Transability is a situation in which a healthy person has a desire to become disabled in some form. Though there is nothing wrong with these people, physically or mentally, they have an extremely strong impression that they should have a disability. A person could wish to have any kind of disability, including blindness, deafness, an amputation, or paraplegia. Transabled people will often live out their lives as if they have the disability, perhaps using a wheelchair instead of their legs or declining to use an arm that they feel should be amputated. In some cases, transabled people’s desires may be strong enough that they either disable themselves or seek a medical professional that is willing to help them attain their preferred disabilities. Most doctors refuse perform such operations on a healthy individual, but a few will agree on the grounds that it is safer for a professional to perform an operation rather than allowing the person to damage his or her own body at home.

            While there is potential for acceptance of transabled people, there are several difficulties that will need to be overcome first, including the initial, intensely negative response to transableism. Transableism is usually viewed as insane. Most people, especially people that have disabilities, cannot understand why anyone would want to give up their healthy body for a disabled one. Many also cannot help but wonder if transabled people suffer from mental illnesses that cause these seemingly ridiculous yearnings. Overcoming this almost instinctive rejection of the idea of transability would be the first step towards acceptance, but then other concerns arise. If a person decides to live as if he or she has a disability, that person puts extra, and possibly unnecessary, strain on society. Family and friends will have to shoulder some responsibility for helping a transabled person adjust to his or her new lifestyle and limitations. A disabled person will usually generate more paperwork than a healthy person, and as a result will create more work for others in situations where disabilities are significant, like with job applications and government programs. If family, friends, and society are willing to come to terms with the additional strain introduced by a person’s resolution to become disabled, then we can take a second step towards acceptance. I think achieving acceptance of those who identify as disabled is possible, but is not likely to be accomplished in just ten years. While it is possible that society can accept the possibility of a transabled person, I do not believe that all the nuances, like whether or not a transabled person should be permitted to receive disability benefits for example, will be worked out in the next ten years alone.

            Otherkin are people who believe that they are not human, to some extent. From cats and foxes to dragons and angels, otherkin can identify with or as any type of creature, real or mythical. Most of the time these people understand that they are human, but feel they possess animalistic characteristics. Many otherkin identify with a creature, and may have dreams about their respective animals and occasionally lapse into a state where they want to behave like their animals. Often otherkin believe in reincarnation and use it as justification for their beliefs, stating that they are either reincarnations of their creatures or will become their animals in a future life. More rarely, otherkin identify as a creature, and may take part in dressing up and acting like their animals. In even more exceptional cases, an otherkin identifies as a machine or an inanimate object.

            Otherkin are frequently viewed as delusional today, but I think that there is actually potential for society to accept some of the otherkin people. The otherkin community is primarily online, so most of the criticism it faces is also online. Often this criticism is very harsh, telling otherkin that they need professional help or that they are mentally unwell. If someone declares, with complete sincerity, that they identify as an inanimate object, others on the Internet like to mimic such statements with extreme sarcasm and mocking attitudes. Additionally, otherkin’s online posts often appear in so-called “cringe compilations,” collections of Internet posts that most people balk at. Outside of the Internet, most otherkin refrain from mentioning their associated creatures (or objects) due to how people are inclined to react negatively. To people who are not otherkin, the idea of identifying as an animal seems absurd, and evokes a similar kind of appalled gut reaction that transableism does. Over the upcoming years, Internet users are unlikely to be willing to give up the “fun” they have at the expensive of the otherkin, unfortunately, but I think there is still some hope for acceptance in society. The majority of the otherkin can continue as functioning members of society, and most people are willing to cope with a few quirks in a person. If a person wants to identify with or as a nonhuman creature, the person can do so freely as long as he or she is not disrupting other people’s lives. Accepting those who are more enamored with their creatures and frequently try to act as those creatures will take much more time, I think, for people will be slow to recognize this as a legitimate path in life. As for otherkin who identify as inanimate objects, I, sadly, cannot see society truly understanding these people, at least not in the next ten years. The otherkin remain on the farthest branches of unusual self-identification types, so they will probably be one of the last communities to be accepted into regular society.

            Society’s hope is to allow anyone to do as they please as long as they are not hurting anyone else. Despite this goal, however, most people are reluctant to agree that selecting characteristics like one’s race, age, height, physical disabilities, and species is acceptable. The current young generations may welcome different kinds of genders and sexualities fairly readily, but altering these other characteristics remains abnormal. I could imagine out society becoming more willing to permit these kinds of personal identifications eventually, but total approval is still far off in the future and highly unlikely to occur within ten years.

Works Cited

The Analytical Economist. "Short White Guy Tells College Students He Identifies as Tall Chinese Woman... Their Responses Prove We're DOOMED." Allen B West. N.p., 19 Apr. 2016. Web. 07 May 2016.

"Dear Demi Sexual, Trans Ethnic,Trans Abled, Trans Fat and Other Fakers." Womanist Musings. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 May 2016.

Ford, Zack. "The Real Meaning Of 'Transracial'" ThinkProgress RSS. N.p., 17 June 2015. Web. 07 May 2016.

Justanotherkin. "Hell Is a Teenage Girl.: Funny/Sad Story about Acceptance of Older Generations." Just Anotherkin. N.p., 4 Aug. 2013. Web. 07 May 2016.

Lewis, Taylor. "Is 'Transracial' Identity Real? 11 Opinions That Will Leave You Thinking." Essence.com. N.p., 15 June 2015. Web. 07 May 2016.

McDonovan, Shae. "Pretending You're Oppressed: The New Internet Fad." Thought Catalog. N.p., 12 June 2012. Web. 07 May 2016.

McFadden, Syreeta. "Rachel Dolezal's Definition of 'transracial' Isn't Just Wrong, It's Destructive." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 16 June 2015. Web. 07 May 2016.

"Pretending You're Oppressed: The New Internet Fad." ONTD Political. N.p., 24 June 2012. Web. 07 May 2016.

Roberts, Amber. "Otherkin Are People Too; They Just Identify as Nonhuman." VICE. VICE Media LLC, 16 July 2015. Web. 07 May 2016.

Romano, Aja. "Meet the Man Who Wants to Become a Disposable Kotex Maxi Pad." The Daily Dot. N.p., 08 Apr. 2013. Web. 07 May 2016.

Ruth, Andrea. "What A Disabled Person Thinks About 'Transableism'" The Federalist. N.p., 08 June 2015. Web. 07 May 2016.

Tannehill, Brynn. "Do Your Homework, Dr. Albow." Huffington Post. N.p., 17 Jan. 2014. Web. 7 May 2016.

TheSandreGuy. "Otherkin - Heart of a Snowflake." YouTube. YouTube, 10 July 2014. Web. 07 May 2016.

This Exists. "Fictionkin; Or, Identifying Spiritually as Pikachu." YouTube. YouTube, 28 Apr. 2016. Web. 07 May 2016.

Trendsetting Essay

            During the summer of 2015, many articles appeared in the news describing how companies were firing their American employees and replacing them with foreigners using the H-1B visa program. This program allows a company to import a foreigner to work a highly specialized position which cannot be filled by any American. However, as there is no effective way to monitor companies and verify that no Americans can work a certain job, companies such as Disney, Qualcomm, Microsoft, and Intel started to abuse the program and replace American workers with foreigners, who will often work for a lower salary. Just a few days ago, Intel even announced plans to lay off a large portion of its workforce, yet is still increasing requests for H-1B visa workers. While the H-1B visa policy is necessary, especially for the computer technology industries, the program needs some kind of reformation before it can operate efficiently in the U.S.

            I sought to raise awareness about the flawed H-1B visa program by creating a YouTube video about the issue and advertising on Facebook. My video summarized the H-1B program and highlighted the concerns it presents. I also shared the video on Facebook and on a few Reddit threads, including some additional information about the issue each time. A few people shared the post on Facebook, but Reddit posts essentially failed to generate a response. My original goal was for one hundred people to view my video but, at the current time, there are only forty-four views.

            I feel that the H-1B visa program could be a popular topic, but it is difficult for it to propagate through standard social websites. As the program is somewhat complex and its flaws usually only affect workers in the computer science fields, I think the majority of people tend to neglect the H-1B program. It seems that people do not follow controversial, in-depth issues as readily as they might follow something simple or funny. While the issue certainly could gain momentum through social media, it would likely take me a long time and a lot of work to create a substantial movement. However if someone that already had a large group of followers, like a celebrity, were to start spreading concerns about the H-1B visa policy, then a trend could very easily begin.

            I think this was a good experience. It shows how difficult it normally is to simply start an arbitrary trend through the use of social media. Although I was not particularly successful in spreading the word about H-1B visas, I am glad that at least a few people know more about the program and how it is abused at present. It may not be too well know, but I think the H-1B visa program will remain a relevant topic until the government can improve the current laws.

Works Cited

Burgess, Jean, Joshua Green, Henry Jenkins, and John Hartley. YouTube: Online Video and Participatory Culture. Cambridge, England: Polity, 2009. Google Books. Google. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.

H-1B and L-1 Visa Reform Act of 2015, S. S.2266., 114th Cong., Https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/2266/all-info (2015). Print.

Harkison, Josh. "How H-1B Visas Are Screwing Tech Workers." Mother Jones. N.p., 22 Feb. 2013. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.

Molyneaux, Heather, Susan O'Donnell, Kerri Gibson, and Janice Singer. "Exploring the Gender Divide on YouTube: An Analysis of the Creation and Reception of Vlogs." American Communication Journal 10.2 (2008): 1-14. NRC Publications Archive. Web. 23 Apr. 2016.

Neff, Blake. "Intel Lays Off 12,000 People After Lobbying For More Foreign Workers." The Daily Caller. The Daily Caller News Foundation, 19 Apr. 2016. Web. 23 Apr. 2016.

Preston, Julia. "Lawsuits Claim Disney Colluded to Replace U.S. Workers With Immigrants." NY Times. The New York Times, 25 Jan. 2016. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.

Snelson, Chareen. "YouTube across the Disciplines: A Review of the Literature." Journal of Online Learning and Teaching 7.1 (2011): 159-69. MERLOT. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.

"WATCH: Fired Disney Worker Breaks Down Describing Humiliation of Training Foreign Guest Worker Replacement." Conservative Review. CR Wire, 25 Feb. 2016. Web. 23 Mar. 2016.

Week 13 – “Stressed, Tired, Rushed – Portrait of the Modern Family” Summary

             Over the years, it has become much more common for both parents of a family to work full time. This leaves any children at home alone, or with a babysitter or at a daycare service. Managing and taking care of children has not gotten any easier, but parents are having to work more and more to get by financially. In this article, a survey of parents showed some of the characteristics of parents with children, and the stress they feel.

            Interestingly, it seems that parents who have gone to college and white parents are often more stressed than other categories. Balancing the work life with the parent life is no easy feat, but it affects some parents more drastically. Most of the time, it is still on the mother to manage children’s schedules and shopping, even if both parents work. This only multiplies the stress that mothers feel. As one survey participant, Ms. Barnes puts, “You basically just always feel like you’re doing a horrible job at everything.” Many parents express concerns that they are not spending enough time with their children, and are missing out on their childhoods since they have to work. More than fifty percent of working parents report that they don’t feel they are spending enough time with their children. Additionally, when people are more stressed by the balancing act, they are less likely to feel that parenting is actually rewarding or enjoyable.

            It is still the case that the husband usually makes more money than the wife does, but women almost always do more in terms of housework and taking care of children. In 75% of families, the father still earns the same or more than the mother does. In terms of how parents spend their time at home, there has been a growing shift towards spending more time with children. Men are spending less time on their work and more time at home doing house chores and spending time with their kids. And yet, the mothers still do much more with the children. From managing schedules, to shopping for house supplies, to taking children to activities, the mother is still in charge here. Men are doing more than they used to and feel that the responsibilities are split evenly, but women continue to report that they do more. Nonetheless, parents are trying harder to work together better. The mother and father coordinate better so that responsibilities are more balanced and they can spend more time with their children. 

Week 12 - Gender Neutral Children

            Both Sasha and Storm were raised, by different families, as gender neutral children. Each of the families refused to reveal their child’s sex, and would not push their child towards either gender. For instance, Sasha’s room was colored yellow to avoid the traditional blue or pink for babies, and was offered toys that are traditionally for girls and ones for boys equally. Sasha is aware that he is a boy, but enjoys dressing up in girls’ clothes at home. On the other hand, Storm does not identify as either gender, sometimes saying “I am a boy” and sometimes saying “I am a girl.” Sasha is an only child while Storm has two older siblings who were not raised in this gender neutral environment. Storm’s parents moved toward this type of parenting after Jazz, the eldest son, seemed to enjoy more “girly” things and eventually requested to go by the female pronouns. Both sets of parents also strive to avoid normal gendered words and pronouns.

            I feel like the steps these parents take represent one extreme, where the opposite extreme would be making all toys, clothes, speech, and actions gendered towards a child’s sex. If we lived in a gender neutral society, then I would happily agree that the gender neutral approach to raising a child would be reasonable and logical. However, in the present day, it seems to me like these parents are working a bit too hard to ensure gender neutrality. For the first few years of an infant’s life, the parents are the main source of ideas about the different genders. An infant does not know anything about genders, since they are a concept constructed by society, so it is up to the parents to enable the child to decide for itself. Once the child has reached an age at which it is evident which the child prefers, the child and parents should probably stick to that gender afterwards. Ideally, the child would be able to continue with the gender neutral mentality, but our current society would probably find this strange. I would like to say that it is alright for any person of any age to do as they please, neglecting and standards we have for the genders. Unfortunately, this still does not seem plausible in our culture though.

            I would say that trying to find a balance between the two extremes would be best for parents today. If a child is physically a boy, then it is alright to start raising him as a boy. However, the child should have some exposure to girls’ toys and activities as well. I’d say the child should be allowed to play with whatever he wants, but, regrettably, should also decide on a specific gender for our society. Perhaps in the future, it won’t be necessary to identify oneself as a particular gender, but it still stands fairly strong today. 

Week 12 – “GimpGirl Grows Up” Summary

             This article discusses an organization, GimpGirl, and the surrounding culture, called the GimpGirl Community (GGC). The community was founded by Jennifer Cole in 1998 with the help of her mentor Len Burns. It was built as a place where disabled women could share their difficulties, experiences, and thoughts with other people in similar situations. Jennifer specifically wanted to create this community due to a desire to counteract the abusive situation she herself had encountered. She also wanted to have this community so that other people in similar situations could use it, and didn’t have to create it themselves. Most of the founding members of the website were teens that knew each other from DO-IT, or other similar programs, but the community quickly grew to accommodate more people. The website was particularly popular since it allowed any woman with a disability, medically diagnosed or self-proclaimed, to participate in the GGC. The name of the website itself, GimpGirl, spawns from the fact that many people with disabilities on the West Coast call themselves gimps, somewhat humorously. Jennifer wanted to reclaim the word “gimp” and repurpose it as a statement against ubiquitous demands for “political correctness.”

            In terms of technology, the GGC has been expanding over the years. What started out as just a website has evolved into a network of blogs, discussion boards, and websites, essentially becoming its own social network. The GGC has connected with Facebook, Twitter, LiveJournal, and other popular social websites to progress the community. It even joined with Second Life, a virtual world platform, to generate a place for GGC members to interact in new ways.

            The GGC still faces many difficulties, despite its success. For instance, the members are considered doubly marginalized since they are both women and people with disabilities. To help counteract this, the GGC helps empower its members by broadening their experiences through interactions with other members in similar situations. The GGC shows members that they are not alone and that they are not the only ones suffering. GimpGirl has also been criticized for its lack of face-to-face communication, and some suggest that limitations of digital communication makes the platform invalid. However, the GGC is working to overcome this limitation by encouraging a good balance between real-life and online interactions. Second Life helps to some extent, especially if avatars resemble the member’s real-life image, but members still need to understand how to manage real-life as well. The GGC helps these women with disabilities find others in similar situations and provide advice to each other, but the task of coping with and handling offline experiences still lies with each member.

Media Screening

            Traditional gender roles have long been a part of standard American and European cultures. These gender roles often favor men over women. What is more surprising, though, is that similar concepts of men over women exist across the globe, in various cultures. From the military of the United States to general society in China and India, women continue to be treated as the lesser gender, dismissing their worth and objectifying them.

            The movie The Invisible War describes the belittlement, sexual harassment, and objectification of women in United State military. The movie focuses on the numerous instances of rape, sexual harassment, and abuse of power that occurs in the military. Often, when these cases are reported, the victims are told to “suck it up” or are simply laughed at. Investigations into the reports are often shallow, and fail to produce any meaningful results. Women are often preyed upon since the traditional gender roles indicate that women are weaker, and thus more vulnerable. The vast amount of sexual harassment of women shows that the, generally male, culprits view women as people to be dominated and view them as people that are lesser than themselves. Even in the military, where the soldiers need to work well together to defend the country, women are still looked down on by their male counterparts.

            The movie It’s a Girl details an outright favoritism of sons over daughters, implying that a female child is not worth as much as a male child. In India, where a large dowry from the wife’s family is considered a necessity for a marriage, a daughter is often viewed as a liability. If a daughter gets married, the family will lose money due to the dowry, whereas if a son gets married, the family will gain wealth. In India, as well as in China, the son carries on the family name and works to provide for the family, while a daughter will just be given to another family through marriage. This system leads families to favor sons over daughters, and is especially strong in China where only one child is permitted. The tradition of giving a dowry in India and the one child policy of China have spawned this powerful preference of having a son over having a daughter. The cultures in these two countries essentially view children as commodities, and have placed a lesser value on girls. Not only does this objectify children in general, but it diminishes a woman’s worth.

            Although the environments in China, India, and the United States military are all very different, the devaluing and objectification of women is present in all of them. This goes to show the similarities that have developed in different countries due to the traditional gender roles. Many cultures around the world view women as lesser, which leads to the objectification of women and reduces women's own senses of self-worth.  

Contemporary Issues Essay

            The media tends to paint a rather negative image of women. Advertisements over-sexualize women in attempts to attract male attention and get more people to buy the products. Techniques like segmentation and subjugation only serve to further diminish a woman’s image, since they advocate that a woman’s worth is determined solely by her body. The subjugation of women, consequently, gives control over to men. Women taking back control of their own lives and bodies was a concept present in the Gloria Steinem’s discussion as well as in the Vagina Monologues.

            Gloria Steinem focused specifically on how society attempts to control reproduction, and thus control women’s bodies. Products like the pill and other methods of birth control usually put pressure on a woman to control their reproductive systems, while men are generally free to do as they please. Old cultures, like that of the Native Americans, did not discriminate between men and women. In fact, the Native Americans did not even have separate pronouns for the different genders. When the Europeans conquered the Americas, they brought over a culture in which women were considered lesser humans. The woman’s purpose in a family was to produce children, to take care of the children, and to maintain the house. The man was in complete charge of the family and was responsible for providing for the family, as well as ensuring the family name survives. Steinem advocated that women defy these gender roles that have plagued our country for centuries. We should strive for a gender neutral society, where every person has complete control over his or her life. The advertisements that subjugate women should be removed, although doing so will require significant changes in the advertising industries. The films, TV shows, magazine articles, new reports, and other forms of media that portray women as lesser than men should be phased out in favor of media that makes no assumptions and displays gender equality. Essentially, Ms. Steinem wants a culture in which women have control over themselves and their bodies.

            Of the many messages and issues presented in the Vagina Monologues, one topic was how women reclaimed control over their own bodies and lives. In general, the Vagina Monologues consisted of a series of monologues by different students, each telling a real life experience of another woman’s story and self-discovery. These monologues breached a wide range of issues, including rape, sexual harassment, female empowerment, and the media’s oppression of women. Society largely demands that women repress their sexuality, and, as a result, many women disregard their own desires completely. The monologue “The Flood” told of an older woman who, after one experience, never thought about her vagina again. Another, “Because He Liked To Look At It,” described one woman’s experience with a man who showed just how beautiful she truly was. These monologues, and others, describe society’s oppression of women and some stories of overcoming that oppression. It was an empowering experience for women, and was an event that showed how women can take back control of their own lives and bodies.