1. Unpacking Cisgender Privilege—
Becoming An Ally to
Trans Communities
Workshop: Derek Siegel
Special Thanks to: Ryan Durgin, Ali
Martin, and Seonmin Han

2. Contact Information
Derek Siegel
American University (Class of 2015)
B.A. Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies
ds4176a@student.american.edu

3. Roadmap
Intro. Trans Identities
How to be a Trans Ally
Defining Privilege
Cisgender Privilege

4. So what’s transgender?
What’s cisgender?
Basic Vocabulary!

5. “Sex” vs. “Gender”
• Sex is biological  Based off of
genitalia, hormones, chromosomes, etc.
• Sex is assigned  We are given a sex at birth
• Sex is a spectrum, not a binary:
-Male, Female, and Intersex
• Sex can also be social  Categories between
male and female are subjective

6. “Sex” vs. “Gender”
• Gender is social. Roles and expectations
associated with masculinity and femininity
differ across cultures.
• Gender is internal. We are the only people
who can understand our gender.
• Gender is a spectrum:
– Man, Woman, Genderqueer, Trans, Fluid

7. Gender Expression
• Gender expression is external.
-How external characteristic and behaviors
are perceived by other people.
• External gender expression doesn’t determine
internal gender identity.
-We shouldn’t make assumptions
• Gender expression is a spectrum:
– Masculine, Feminine, Androgynous

8. “Transgender”
• Trans or transgender identities broadly include
people whose gender identity and expression don’t
match up with the expectations associated with their
assigned sex.

9. “Cisgender”
• “Cisgender” refers to people whose gender identity
and expression matches with expectations associated
with assigned sex

10. Why is “cisgender” important?
• Having a specific word shows that cisgender
isn’t normal or better. It’s just cisgender.
• Cisgender = “cis”

11. A (Brief!) Introduction to
Trans Identities

12. Trans Identities
• Trans is a diverse range of identities
• Use of “trans” vs. “transgender”
– Transsexual
– Transgendered
– Trans*
• Trans is not a sexual orientation
Trans people can be straight, gay, bisexual, etc.

13. Trans Identities
• Trans does not always mean somebody is
physically changing their body
Because gender is internal, identifying as a certain
gender doesn’t tell us anything about anatomy.
You don’t have to transition in order to be trans.
For some trans people, being a woman with a penis
makes perfect sense

14. Trans Identities
• Why might somebody “transition” their body?
-May be an important step in feeling comfortable with
their body
-Passing  Being read as the “correct” gender
-May be a matter of physical safety

15. Trans Identities
• Some trans people may want to transition to
another gender category.
– May use the words “transman”(FtM) or
“transwoman” (MtF)
– May transition completely and use the words
“man” or “woman”
– May refer to themselves simply as “trans”

16. Trans Identities
• Genderqueer  May describe someone
whose gender doesn’t fit into the box of
“man” or “woman”
• Genderfluid  May include moving between
genders. Gender isn’t fixed.
• Some people may even identify as having
multiple genders or no gender at all
• Some people just don’t like labels!

17. Trans Ally Tip
• Self-Authorship  Each individual is the only
person able to articulate their own gender.
– When somebody discloses their gender identity to
you, there’s no need to question them.

18. PRONOUNS!
(Say my name, say my
name)

19. Pronouns Source: web.mit.edu
Gender
Neutral They Their Their Theirs Themself
Pronunciation:

20. Pronouns
Use that in a sentence?
She forgot her lunch money.
He forgot his lunch money.
Ze forgot hir lunch money.
They forgot their lunch money.

21. Pronouns
• Pronouns are part of our identities
We wouldn’t want somebody calling us the wrong name
• When somebody “comes out” as trans, they
might go by a new name or set of pronouns to
better reflect their identity
-Somebody may go through several sets of pronouns (or
names) before they settle on ones that fit
-Pronouns/names may be different than what we assume
about someone based on their gender expression

22. Pronouns
• May be “out” to different people, so could use
different labels depending on location
• If you don’t know somebody’s gender
pronouns, using their name or “they” is
always a good choice
• SELF-AUTHORIZATION! Nobody has to justify
their gender pronouns

23. Trans Ally Tip
• Call people by the name and pronouns that
they want to be called
-Sometimes we’ll slip up
-Mis-labeling somebody sends the message that you
don’t think their identity is “real”

24. Roadmap
Intro. Trans Identities
How to be a Trans Ally
Defining Privilege
Cisgender Privilege

25. Cisgender Privilege –
What is “privilege” and how does it work?

26. Understanding Cisgender Privilege
1. Our society puts a higher value on cisgender
people than trans folks (hierarchy)
2. Cisgender people are systematically privileged
by social institutions
3. Transphobia maintains this hierarchy and allows
cisgender people to continue benefitting from
their privilege

27. Hierarchy
Cisgender (Dominant/Privileged/Normative)
---------------------
Transgender (Marginalized/Oppressed/Non-normative)
1. Separates “cis” and “trans” into two categories (when
they are not really even neat categories)
2. Place a higher social value on “cisgender”
Man White Able-bodied U.S. Citizen
----------- ---------------- ---------------------------- -----------------------
Woman Person of Color Person w/ Disability Undocumented

28. Privilege
• Privilege is a sociological term that refers to
unearned systematic advantages that benefit
one group of people over another
Systematic  Ways we are treated (structurally
and culturally) not for our merits or actions as
individuals but for how others perceive our
social identification
-Privilege is received by the “dominant”
group in each hierarchy

29. Privilege
• Refers to how we are treated by social
institutions (media;
educational, religious, and political systems)
– Ex 1 : White Standards of Beauty
– Ex 2 : Gendered Access to Characteristics
• Privilege is invisible
• Privilege doesn’t automatically make you
happy or successful

30. Privilege
• Intersectionality  We all have many
identities (race, gender, class, etc). These
identities can only be understood in relation
to one another
– For black women and white women, gender is
experienced differently
• People can be both privileged and
marginalized

31. Transphobia? What’s That?
• Transphobia  Intolerance and discrimination
against people who are gender variant (fit
outside binary or transgress our expectations)
-Individual  Bullying in school
-Institutional  Not having trans-specific
protections in school anti-bullying policies

32. According to the National Center for Transgender
Equality’s 2011 Survey “Injustice At Every Turn” :
• 41% of respondents reported attempting suicide
at least once in their lives
• In K-12, there were alarming rates of harassment
(78%), physical assault (35%), and sexual violence
(12%)
– Almost 15% of respondents dropped out
• Respondents experienced double the rate of
unemployment
• 26% reported that they had lost a job due to
being trans. 50% reported harassment at work

33. According to the National Center for Transgender
Equality’s 2011 Survey “Injustice At Every Turn” :
• 19% reported having been refused a home or
apartment
• 52% of respondents reported being verbally
harassed or disrespected in public (retail,
restaurants, transportation)
• 22% have been harassed by police
• 19% have reported being refused medical care

34. Transphobia
• When trans people are institutionally and
systematically marginalized, this intolerance
and hatred becomes “normalized.”
– Maintains the hierarchy  there’s so much
intolerance and hatred that we start to think that
maybe trans people are less valuable

35. Understanding Cisgender Privilege
1. Our society puts a higher value on cisgender
people than trans folks (hierarchy)
2. Cisgender people are systematically privileged
by social institutions
3. Transphobia maintains this hierarchy and allows
cisgender people to continue benefitting from
their privilege

36. What Would You Do?
You’re excited about this whole “cisgender
privilege” thing. When you explain it to your
sister, however, she says:
“I don’t have privilege. I’m a lesbian/Latina/girl”

37. Roadmap
Intro. Trans Identities
How to be a Trans Ally
Defining Privilege
Cisgender Privilege

38. Cisgender Privilege Checklist
1. Language
2. Gender Authenticity
3. Institutional Support
4. Health and Finance

39. Language
• My gender is not excluded from everyday
language. When it is, there are many people
around me who can understand the feeling.
-Language we use on everyday basis is very gendered
(pronouns, waiter/waitress, actor/actress)
-Leaves out identities that do not conform to the
gender binary

40. Language
• I have never had to consider breaking down
the construction of the gender binary
(outside of an academic setting).
-Beyond Pronouns  Gendered sports
teams, bathrooms, clothing, classroom, etc.
-Cisgender people don’t need to examine the binary
because they fit comfortable within these categories

41. Gender Authenticity
• My gender identity, when conveyed to
others, is seen as legitimate and authentic.
-Cisgender men and women feel entitled in claiming
gender identity
-We scrutinize trans people’s
“personality, expression, and physical body” for flaws
that would indicate their deviance from “real” gender
identities (Serano, 172)

42. Gender Authenticity
• I have access to a broad definition of gender
that is not limited to my genitalia.
-Obsession with genitalia undermines legitimacy of
trans identities and it’s dehumanizing

43. Trans Ally Tip
• Don’t engage in “what’s down there?”
discourse.
-While you might be curious, you would never
ask a cisgender person about their genitalia
-Conflation of “sex” and “gender”

44. Institutions
• I expect first-response teams like the EMS or
the Fire Department to not refuse service
based on my gender identity.
-1% of trans people reported being physically attacked
in the emergency room because of their gender
identity or expression (NCTE)

45. Institutions
• I do not have to "teach" doctors how to care
for my body.
-50% have to educate their medical provider about
transgender care (NCTE)
-Doctors don’t always know how to treat
(Mammograms or Prostate Cancer)
-Objectification
-Refusal of health care coverage for unrelated issues

46. Institutions
• I do not have to "teach" law enforcement
officers my rights to express my gender as I
choose.
-Cisgender men and women are more likely to feel
comfortable contacting law enforcement
-22% of trans people report harassment by police officers
due to bias; 38% for trans people of color (NCTE)

47. Institutions
• Public restrooms are readily available for me.
-Restrooms alienate people who don’t adhere to
the binary
-The problem of “bathroom policing”
-Gender Neutral Bathrooms & “Bathroom Talk”
-Trans people need to pee too!

48. Institutions
• I can relate to representations of gender
identity and expression in the media.
-As if trans people don’t exist, and if they do they are
nothing more than crime victims
-Media shapes popular perception of identities

49. Health and Finance
• I can't imagine spending months and
thousands of dollars on a therapist so they
can tell me something I already know.
-Medical model of trans identities: “sick and sane”
discourse (Gender Identity Disorder)
-Pathologizing of trans identities

50. Health and Finance
• If I am physically healthy, I don't need to
consider undergoing surgery to feel safe and
legitimate.
-Passing as a means of safety and legitimacy
-Financial burden of surgeries (cosmetic)
-Health risks involved in “pumping” silicone
breast implants and street hormones

51. THE ULTIMATE PRIVILEGE
• I don’t have to acknowledge cisgender
privilege and transphobia if I don’t want to.

52. We’re Almost Done
• Why is it important to study “privilege”?

53. Let’s Make Connections
Hierarchy
Cis Privilege
Transphobia
57

54. Normalization
Hierarchy
Cis Privilege
Transphobia
NORMAL! NORMAL! NORMAL!
58

55. What To Do With This Privilege
• Navigate the tension between taking
responsibility for our privilege without feeling
overwhelmingly guilty:
-Educating ourselves and other people
-Being an ACTIVE ally to trans communities
-Calling other people out on their privilege
(being productive and generous)
-Embrace other people calling you out on your
privilege