Cissexism: Difference between revisions

'''Cissexism''', commonly called '''transphobia''' or '''cisnormativity'', is a form of [[sexism]]. It is the belief that only [[cisgender]] people are seen as normal or right, and that transgender people are unnatural or dangerous. In action, cissexism opposes the legal rights of transgender people to transition or exist in society. Cissexism results in medical malpractice against trans people, and violence against trans people. Cissexism is harmful to all kinds of [[transgender]] people, including [[nonbinary]] people.

One form of this prejudice is casual cissexism, which often takes the form of an apparent "honest mistake," forgetting that anybody other than cisgender people exist. For example, resources on sexual health often give the idea that all women only have one kind of private parts, and men another. The resource fails to talk about the exceptions to this rule: transgender and [[Intersex|intersex]] people, and in cisgender people with medical conditions. The people who wrote the resources didn't mean to leave people out. They just didn't know any better, or they forgot. It was an honest mistake, with no ill intentions. However, it was a mistake nonetheless, which can make trouble and do harm. For trans people, that resource might be no good, or worse than nothing.

Casual cissexism is common in language, and one way to address it is by taking up [[Gender neutral language|gender-neutral language]].

Another specific form of cissexism is [[nonbinary erasure]], the common but wrong idea that there are only two genders. This comes with the expectation that everyone should fit into only one of the two parts of the [[gender binary]]. This can result in discrimination against people with nonbinary gender identities. One way this problem can be addressed is by working for [[Visibility|visibility]] and [[Recognition|recognition]] of nonbinary people.