A transgender woman in the FFQ: “Judge by deeds, not by the gender at birth “

Photo Martin Alarie
Marie-Pier Gosselin

Marie-Pier Gosselin, special collaboration

Saturday, December 9, 2017 05:00

UPDATE
Saturday, December 9, 2017 05:00

Look at this article

Open letter in response to the opinion article of Denise Bombardier ” A transgender chaired the FFQ “.

In his article entitled ” A transgender chaired the FFQ “, Denise Bombardier issues about biting on the capacity of understanding of the transgender women on the condition of women through the election of Gabrielle Bouchard, the president of the Fédération des femmes du Québec (FFQ). Can’t they, transgender women, since they have been raised according to the social norms of the male, understanding intrinsically the complexity of differences between men and women and the status of women ?

Of course, Denise Bombardier touches on the subject of the more familiar language used by Gabrielle Bouchard in public discourse, but, failing to suggest or make constructive comments about the platform of the new president of the FFQ or in the way in which it expresses itself, it is critical first and foremost its identity as a transgender woman. Can’t they understand on a whole other level of the unique challenges that women face every day ? Can’t they add their voice and perspective to our movement used to promote all the women ?

Beneficial for all

Also, I do not see anything mind-boggling to a future where gender is superfluous. It has, however, been proved that in the companies putting up projects or institutions where gender stereotypes are outdated, where education, for example, is done without the barriers of the gender binary, as the children thrive more, as is the case in Sweden, as in societies that are more gendered.

Several studies also show that gender is more complex than the binarity, in contrast to our historical understanding of it. The day where gender stereotypes will be exceeded will be the day when our society will allow each individual to exploit his or her full potential. It will be beneficial for all.

While we are in an era of change, the French language will need to evolve with society and its problematic aspects will have to change in their turn. In effect, the specification of the kind of common names creates, at best, confusing and, at worst, a deep sense of ostracisation among non-cisgenres. A person cisgenre is a person id to the same gender assigned at birth, so people with non-cisgenres are those not identifying as well or not falling into a given box of the binary scale of gender.

Inclusiveness

In addition, the rule of the male carrying it away, still on the female also reinforces the idea of male superiority and contributes to the plight of transgender people. Gabrielle Bouchard is not, therefore, hate when it discusses the adoption of new words to replace terms like “mother” and ” motherhood “, regardless of the emotional charge attached to them. It demonstrates inclusiveness by encouraging this discussion as it includes the complexities of the human condition, and not only of the status of women.

I therefore invite Denise Bombardier, as well as any other woman, of birth or of mind, to criticize Gabrielle Bouchard, depending on the actions and words that she will ask the president of the FFQ, and not on the basis of the gender to which she was assigned at birth. It is a call to human decency and no delusions of a mind cracked.

In the words of Simone de Beauvoir, ” one is not born a woman, one becomes one “.

Marie-Pier Gosselin is a student in script Writing and Creative writing at the University of Montreal. She is an advocate for feminism and the cause of LGBTQ.