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“Describe an outfit you’ve worn that expressed the complexity of your gender.”
Someone wrote…
My gender is simple, low-key — my gender isn’t sequins and feathers, not a leather jacket or a full beard — it’s a quieter side to androgyny. T-shirt, cargo pants, big black boots, hoodie. No overtly masculine or feminine elements; nothing formal, nothing flamboyant. Muted and relaxed.
What’s your experience?
By Bobster
When Lydia Thompson and her “British Blondes” first stepped onto the New York stage in 1868, audiences went wild. Not only were they being introduced to a rowdy English version of the entertainment called burlesque, but here were women in masculine clothes playing men’s roles. The city had never seen anything quite like it.
Photos from the Victoria & Albert Museum, London
Today’s drag kings are spiritual heirs of Lydia Thompson, who became one of the biggest stars on both sides of the Atlantic in her era. Born in 1838, the daughter of a London public-house keeper, she began dancing professionally as a teenager and performed across Europe. “She was charming to look at, a good singer, a really clever dancer, and the life and soul of the scene while on the stage,” according to author Errol Sherson.
Thompson was still in her 20s when she began performing in drag regularly. She played Max in a burlesque of Weber’s Der Freischütz (1866), as Prince Buttercup in The White Fawn, as Massaroni in the burlesque The Brigand, and as Prince Florizel in another burlesque, Perdita.
Having attained fame on the London stage, she crossed the ocean to conquer America. “The eccentricities of pantomime and burlesque – with their curious combination of comedy, parody, satire, improvisation, song and dance, variety acts, cross-dressing, extravagant stage effects, risqué jokes and saucy costumes – while familiar enough to British audiences, took New York by storm,” writes Signe Hoffos.
According to GLBTQ.com, in the mid-nineteenth century this theatrical form was associated primarily with parody of high culture through puns, wordplay, and nonsense.
You can call me… D.
I identify as… genderqueer; genderfecker; a bit of both; a female man; none.
As far as third-person pronouns go, … it gets complicated. I am my mother’s daughter, but I am a dude to everyone else and a sir to some, and a boyfriend to one. I like both female and male pronouns. I don’t like gender neutral pronouns tho, I think they are hilarious and sound weird. Just my opinion, eh?
I’m attracted to… girls, femmes, girly outdoor types. Androgyny. An occasional butch. But mostly pretty girls – I recognize and accept my initial-interest superficiality.
When people talk about me, I want them to… think good thoughts, ask good questions, and not make any assumptions.
I want people to understand… I actually don’t want them to understand. I don’t mind messing with people’s minds and making them scratch their head. I don’t mind the “what are you?” questions and “why are you?” questions. I enjoy it. I don’t need anyone to understand. I just need them to respect.
About D.
I have a morbid sense of humor. It’s a professional deformation, I suppose. I’m almost done with MSc in Forensic Anthropology, enjoyed it, can’t wait to go home.
» Define yourself. «
{ If i were a boy ,,, originally uploaded by ~ B a r c a [WeAreBarca!].
You can call me… Claude!
I identify as… a Christian androgyne. I am not a man or a woman- I am both.
As far as third-person pronouns go, … call me anything you want. He, she, whatever’s comfortable. But in person, I prefer “she,” as it’s just too odd otherwise. I consider female pronouns to be neutral for me simply because I can’t change others’ opinions.
I’m attracted to… intelligence, kindness, stability, and maleness. Oftentimes this is what I strive to be.
When people talk about me, I want them to… realize what they say will probably get back to me, and they should be okay with what I think about it. I’d like it if people would say good things about me.
I want people to understand… that not everyone is the same. That not everyone fits in two tiny boxes, and shouldn’t be made to feel like a freak because they don’t.
About Claude!
I’m “in training” to be a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Still a college student. While my sex is female, I was born with a 46/XX,46/XY mosaic chimera karyotype. Meaning my sex chromosomes list me as both sexes.
» Define yourself. «
Rebecca wrote…
I normally wear just jeans and a shirt, but two things are always consistent, and they fit both as symbols and as clothes. My boots and my hat. One was my mom’s, the other was my dad’s… until they got fed up with me constantly taking them and just said ‘here, keep it.’ It sort of fits into my background too. My dad predicted that he would get a girl with mom’s looks, his personality.
He called it perfectly. So I like to think of myself as, yes, a girl, but hey, I’m my father’s child and I’m his third son too.
What’s your experience?
“Describe an outfit you’ve worn that expressed the complexity of your gender.”
Someone wrote…
I don’t understand the question about clothing expressing the complexity of my gender, because:
- I don’t see clothes as representations of my gender. I just wear whatever is comfortable and practical. I don’t understand why coloured threads are separated into sexes.
- I don’t see my gender as complex. Just because I don’t fit into stereotypical i.e. common representations of sex and gender, doesn’t mean that I am complex. It just means I’m different.
It’s a bit baffling to me that people characterise me as “male” just because I wear “men’s clothing.” It is all so perplexing! I wish I could wear whatever I wanted and people would just say “Oh, you look nice today.”
What’s your experience?
Shelby – 10, originally uploaded by Angela D. White.
You can call me… Archie
I identify as… an eccentric gay boy
As far as third-person pronouns go, … I like male ones – but sometimes, when I’m in good mood, it’s fun when random people misunderstand and call me by female ones… Only when I’m in a good mood.
I’m attracted to… body-modified guys and stylish young boys
When people talk about me, I want them to… see me as I am: an eccentric gay boy. I’m not a girl, just a delicate boy.
I want people to understand… that being gay doesn’t mean you’re a fag, and that being androgynous doesn’t mean you act as someone of the opposite sex. You don’t need to have male OR female behaviour. People should understand that you can just act as you want, and not care about gender.
About Archie
I’m a egocentric, freaky and hedonistic fashion student who loves body modifications and young male beauty. Fatally sweet, as someone said once…
» Define yourself. «
rackoo recommends…
American Apparel has the best genderqueer clothing of any chain. All of their clothing is either unisex or “women’s,” but that’s just a recommendation of course. They show most of their clothing on both female and male models, and a lot of their models are very androgynous.
This (above) is my favorite marketing video from any company EVER. It’s titled “unisexy.”
Update: Some readers have expressed disagreement with this recommendation. See the comments on this post for the discussion.
Sirmam recommends…
Play in the Gray is Planted Seeds’ first feature-length documentary. The film confronts the gender binary by following the work and individual identity struggles of the members of ALL THE KINGS MEN, a drag-based theatre troupe based out of Boston.
You can call me… Bianca or Demetri
I identify as… androgynous genderqueer intersex genderfuck
As far as third-person pronouns go, … zie, zim, zir, she, her, him, he, they.
I’m attracted to… expressionists, independence, genderfuck, intelligence.
When people talk about me, I want them to… see the person, not the sex. Realize the ideals that society places on sex, and see past that.
I want people to understand… it doesn’t matter what you’ve been through or what others define you as, but what you define yourself as and seeing the beauty in it.
About Bianca or Demetri
Balls to the wall on my poetry, strong personality, with belting words…. indispensable independence…. and yet shy under it all.
» Define yourself. «
ready for take off, originally uploaded by Darwin Bell.
Someone wrote…
I always get so confused when little kids ask me if I’m a boy or a girl. How am I supposed to answer them when I don’t know myself? I usually just tell them I’m a girl (technically, the “right” answer) because I’d rather them see that people of one sex can look like a member of the other.
What’s your experience?
Julian recommends…
Not only is the subject of this essay older, but he has amazing flair and gender-bending powers.
Photographer: Rori (Black StarrPhotography), originally uploaded by the_aidasecret.
Since 1979, the Radical Faeries have been practicing queer-themed spirituality through art, faerie gatherings (not PG-rated), and public demonstrations (and hugs!).
