Terminology within the Queer community is always a hot topic. I kind of like it. I recently attended a GLSEN training, where we spent much longer than our allotted time as a group trying to come up with definitions for the words "Gay," "Lesbian," "Bisexual," etc.
Gender, sexual identity, being invisiblized, etc. are issues that are so individualized that it is understandably difficult to come to a consensus on which words are best to describe any given person or situation.
Whether I'm tabling for the LGBTQ Coalition, or simply discussing gender with a friend, the question invariably comes up: "What does the 'T' in 'LGBTQ' stand for?"
In our organization the "T" stands for "Trans." Not transgender, and not transsexual. But why?
ASU offers an LGBT Certificate (one step below a minor). The intro class for the certificate program, SWU 194: Introduction to LGBT Studies, uses the book Becoming a Visible Man, by Jamison Green. As I began reading the book for class, I came across this passage that I enjoyed. It's not perfect, but does a pretty good job of capturing how I feel about using the term "Trans" in place of either "transgender" or "transsexual."
"To use 'transgender' and 'transexual' interchangeably is to erase both individual experience and the very different social needs of these diverse categories. For example, when health insurance administrators refer to 'transgender care,' do they mean access to hormonal and surgical sex reassignment, or do they mean the ability of all gender-variant people to obtain basic, general health care that acknowledges their gender identity without prejudice or adversity?
Incidentally, I do not claim that my definitions are the last word in these matter: I believe we are still learning, still defining, and we may have a long way to go before we clearly understand these conditions. I will use the term 'trans' from time to time to encompass both transsexual and transgender experiences in general, but I do not--ever--claim to be describing all transgender or transsexual experience at any time. Transpeople are far to diverse for that." (p 14-15)
-Joshua Judd
Co-Director, ASU LGBTQ Coalition