What is the future of the genre?

The legends of Juchitán de Zaragoza, a small town located in the south of Mexico, tell that Saint Vincent walked the world with three sacks. In one he kept male seeds; in the second, the female ones; and the latter contained a mixture of both. When passing through the region where the municipality is located today, the third bag would have torn, thus creating the muxes, people born with male biological characteristics but who throughout their lives assume a female identity. In Juchitán, the muxes are respected and recognized by the community, where they play social roles traditionally assigned to women, such as taking care of the home and children.

The existence and acceptance of a third gender, however, is not limited to these Mexican people. In South Asia, especially in India, live the hijras, whose origin is also associated with religion. It is believed that they are capable of attracting fertility and other blessings, but they can also curse anyone who opposes them or refuses to pay for their services. Therefore, their presence is both desired and feared at weddings and baptisms, which they attend even if they have not been invited. For centuries, hijras maintained a certain status in Hindu society, but with the invasion of British imperialism, they began to be persecuted. Relegated to the lowest rung of the social hierarchy, today they form a marginalized group.

Muxes, hijras, or even the two-spirited (two spirits, in free translation), from the indigenous tribes of North America, prove that, contrary to what it seems, the existence of multiple gender identities is not a contemporary phenomenon. “History shows that we are not inventing, it proves that it is something ancestral. We are reverberating what is natural”, comments the singer Linker during the photo shoot for this article.

It is true, however, that many terms that we have never heard before are becoming more popular. To understand them, however, it is first necessary to understand the concept of gender. According to the researcher Flavia Novaiswho dedicated her master’s degree to gender and sexuality studies at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, the term was coined within feminism with the aim of proving that biological differences did not by themselves determine the inferiority of women in society.

Thus, the difference between gender and biological sex was established, the first being constructed by living in society and the second referring only to the genital organ with which one is born. Gender identity, therefore, is nothing more than the way someone sees themselves. Let’s take as an example a person born with female genitalia who, throughout life, recognizes herself as a woman. She is cisgender, that is, her identity is aligned with her biological sex. When the opposite occurs and there is incompatibility between the two aspects, it is a trans person. Which doesn’t mean that person will exclusively identify with the opposite gender. But we’ll talk about that later.

everything is construction

Often associated with the social roles that men and women play, the construction of gender identity does not occur instantly at a specific moment in life. “Research in the area of ​​psychology determines that, from the age of 2, children are already able to perceive the differences between boys and girls. Gradually, as they interact with other people, they become aware of their belonging to a certain identity”, explains Flávia, who also works as technical coordinator at the NGO Somos, in Porto Alegre, whose focus for 17 years has been on issues related to gender diversity.

The way of your self

Full of mishaps, the identity journey is tumultuous from the first moments. Imagine, then, facing it before the scrutinizing eyes of thousands of people. “It was traumatic”, summarizes Liniker. The singer from Araraquara, in the interior of São Paulo, is 24 years old. At 19, she saw her transition coincide with the emergence of the band Liniker and the Caramelows on the Brazilian music scene. However, more than her indisputable talent, it was her appearance that attracted attention. “My artistic development process was mowed down because people wanted to sensationalize me and create stories to shock. I don’t want to shock, I just want to be me, ”she vents.

Gradually, the invasive comments changed tack, starting to police her femininity as a trans woman. In a show at Circo Voador, in Rio de Janeiro, where she performed in jeans, Liniker heard that it was preferable for her to wear a skirt. “The representations of our existence are very plural, we are much more than masticated information.”

Who knows this well Cup, 23 years. Biologically a boy, he had his masculinity imposed since childhood, but he did not recognize himself in the characteristics attributed to his sex. “It turned out that I always questioned gender without knowing I was doing it. I didn’t feel like fitting in because I didn’t see the point in it,” he says. In his research on the subject, he discovered non-binarity and realized that he didn’t need to stick to a gender to build his identity.

Non-binary people are people who go beyond the male-female dichotomy, not fully identifying with stereotypes of masculinity or femininity. Inserted in transsexuality, non-binarity works as an umbrella term and shelters a variety of identifications that depend on the individual perceptions of those who recognize themselves as such. Cup, for example, defines herself as agender. In other words, he does not identify with any gender.

“For me, being agender is more than just a label; it is a way of not having my existence defined or limited by people and society. It’s taking ownership of who I am,” she declares. As an agender person, you can make your choices without depending on masculine and feminine standards, based on what you like and what will do you good. These classifications are related to feelings and identity and have nothing to do, in principle, with the biological question, in which intersex people appear, for example – people who have hormonal, chromosomal or other alterations that make it difficult to determine their sex.

From Sao Paulo, Gi Morales, 26, underwent a similar process. To meet expectations, she performed the genre that had been imposed on her without knowing that there were other possibilities. “Over time, sustaining that role became exhausting. I was on a constant quest for approval and I never felt good about myself,” she reveals, emphasizing the use of the term in its neutral form.

Fifteen years of therapy with different professionals helped to deal with some of these feelings, but many of her questions remained unanswered. His horizons finally expanded when he started seeing a psychologist who specializes in the LGBT+ public. Now she no longer feels guilt or difficulty explaining who she is: a gender fluid person. From English genderfluid, the term represents those who flow between genres, being free to decide to express themselves in the way they feel most comfortable at the moment. “After all, each human being is unique and changeable, having different facets”, reflects Gi.

structural neglect

The freedom so prized by Cup and Gi finds barriers in prejudice. “We live in a society that is extremely aggressive against what is outside the norm. People oppress, attack and discriminate based on how they read about others. So I find myself very limited on how to express myself in certain environments. I feel like a target,” confesses Cup, who is most comfortable in places like college where she doesn’t have to police her actions. “But if I go downtown and need to take public transport or even an app, I feel like I have to cut myself short. It’s sad to say this, but I don’t want to be a statistic,” she says, referring to the murders of transgender people in Brazil.

There is no government survey that gathers this data. In fact, in the censuses published by the IBGE to date, there is not even a quantification of the totality of this portion of the population. It is up to NGOs and LGBT+ groups to account for deaths based on what is exposed in the media and often inaccurate police records. Even so, we are the country that most kills transsexuals in the world. In 2019 alone, there were 124 murders, according to monitoring carried out by the National Association of Transvestites and Transsexuals. The real number, however, may be much higher, since many cases are not reported.

There is also a lack of support from the State to guarantee basic rights, such as access to health. Grazielle Tagliamento, a psychologist at the Center for Excellence in Gender and Sexuality (Ceges), in Curitiba, explains that the difficulties range from structural aspects of the services to the care provided. People who have not rectified their civil name and gender in their documents often face resistance from professionals to use their social name when filling out forms and even during customer service.

“In the specific case of trans men who underwent rectification, there are obstacles to gynecological consultations and exams, since the scheduling and referral systems of the municipalities do not allow them to access this service, as well as professionals who refuse to assist them”, he says. Is it over there. Not to mention that many lack technical knowledge about the health of transgender people – which reduces the effectiveness of care – or treat transsexuality as a mental disorder, perpetuating stigma and discrimination. “Without full and quality access to health services, trans people are more vulnerable to illness”, says Grazielle.

She also points out the fact that, in addition to being few, public policies aimed at this population are not permanent, since, as they are ministerial ordinances, they can be revoked at any time. And, although the National LGBT Integral Health Policy, instituted in December 2011, provides for a professional qualification, in practice such training does not occur. “Thus, there are professionals without technical competence for this service and who are based on personal beliefs, distancing trans people from health care practices.”

Discrimination impacts survival from every possible angle. A survey carried out in 2016 by the Brazilian Association of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals, Transvestites, Transsexuals and Intersex (ABGLT) indicates that 73% of LGBT+ students have already suffered some type of verbal aggression in the school environment and 36% have been physically assaulted. The constant episodes of violence end up motivating school dropout. Without adequate training, this portion of the population is limited to lower-paid jobs. That is, if you can overcome the hiring challenge. Cup says that non-compliance with the cisgender standard is a major factor for companies to refuse. “And, even when we are hired, there is no support for permanence. I know cases of people who suffered transphobia at work and resigned for not…