Transgender Facts

  After seeing too many hate-filled posts about the transgender community on social media in the past few days, I thought I would share a few things about that particular community with you. Things that you may not be aware of or forgotten about. If the comments are any indication, too many of you are not aware of the lives of this less than 1% of the population. Which I find quite shocking. But remember, I'm not an expert on the trans community, just an observer sharing her observations.

  Transgender men and women live in houses and apartments. They have furniture and knick-knacks that collect dust. Beds, sofas, and televisions are common. Their kitchens have stoves and fridges. Some even have fancy dining room tables that can be set with their Grandma's wedding china on holidays or paper plates for late-night pizza. I've even heard of some who have two bathrooms and a laundry room!

  You may not be aware, but trans people have jobs. Good ones and crappy ones...just like you and me. They set an alarm, battle for a seat on the bus or get stuck in traffic daily so they can pay bills. Believe it or not, they complain as much about bad drivers and the cost of parking as you and I do. Overworked, underpaid, and underappreciated isn't foreign to that community either.

  Here's something you might be shocked to learn. Transgender people mow their lawns and shovel snow. Garages need to be organized, and garbage cans replaced or repaired. They do home renos and pick dandelions off their front lawn. And when they are finished, they've been known to sit on their deck with a cold beverage, admiring their handiwork. Shocking, I know.

  Buying groceries, cooking dinner, loading the dishwasher...all done by this community. As is washing floors, folding laundry, and shredding. They have a junk drawer in their kitchen and containers with lids that have disappeared. Too much time is wasted on their phones or bingeing Netflix series. And I'm not the only one who knows their Amazon driver's name.

  The trans community celebrates holidays, goes to weddings and funerals, and visit sick relatives in the hospital. They share Sunday dinners with their parents, laugh at Uncle Bob's lame jokes, and roll their eyes when asked for the tenth time if they are married yet. We aren't the only ones deciding whether our elderly parents need to move into care or a sibling needs to get into rehab. Sadly, they have those conversations and arguments too. 

  Could it be? Could it possibly be that trans people are just that, people? Human beings? Just like us. Do you think so? Deserving of dignity? Respect? Empathy? Could that really be true?

   If they are human beings, and it looks like they are, why do we hate on them? Or allow others too? You can dislike a single person based on an interaction with them, but their entire community? You would hate everyone! And everyone would hate you!

  Transgender people are just that, people. Some are nice, some are not. You may not understand the genetic makeup or the biological factors associated with it, but most of us don't understand those two subjects at the most basic level. Mind your own business, don't judge others, and if you cannot, then keep your hatred to yourself.

  To quote Oprah, they are living their true lives. And don't we all wish we were doing just that?

  Ang