Tuck Woodstock interviews trans and non-binary people to “get a little bit closer to understanding what the hell gender is”. I learned so much about gender, and a lot of the episodes made me think. It’s really nice.
Transcripts available at genderpodcast.com/listen.
Warning, Tuck changed their name in 2020 so in the first three years of the podcast they present themselves under their deadname. The descriptions have been changed but not the episode contents of course.
different states’ approaches to legally changing your gender
“it’s hard when you’re just trying to figure out what makes you cosy in the world and then be presented with options that seem irreversible [like laser]”
“is it a thing that you want for you, or is it a thing you want society to notice for you; doesn’t society need to go through all this?” (Yes thisss)
Episode 27, with cis (!?) writer Gaby Dunn.
Her relation to gender felt so close to mine: doesn’t conform to traditional gender roles/expression (she doesn’t dress femme), sometimes is surprised when included in the “ladies” group, might be non-binary who knows.
They also talked about:
top nudity being not illegal but still not welcome
getting financial advice from friends (Gaby hosts the Bad With Money podcast)
being fat steers your body away from traditional gender expressions, so it can be “easier” to experiment with your gender since you don’t fit in anyway
it’s good to diversify your “visual food” (the representation you see) so your brain understand that different types of body are fine
they also talked about decolonizing gender (we think that Western norms are the only way to live gender)
if they use “she/they”, 99% of ppl will use “she” cause it’s easier, so try to use “they” so that this facet of their identity isn’t erased
see how they refer to themselves
it’s fine to now and then check up on someone’s pronouns!
Meredith also talked about being trans in a journalist staff, and gender traditions in the Philippines.
summer camp for trans and non-binary kids, and how it changes lives
the experience of being trans and Latina in Latin America
activism and what we can do without being overwhelmed (for instance: ask questions when someone posts something offensive, wonder out loud why a racist joke is funny…)
Take good care to not force beauty standards on people that come for a wax: everyone is on their own journey, wanting hair waxed on one place doesn’t mean wanting a wax on another place.
Being a drag king allows them to play with and understand what is seen as masc/femme. “What if I have a mustache? What if I make it feminine?”
Different regions have different syntaxes and use for words, so some people really have a hard time with the singular they because it’s really not how they talk!
Some (Canadian?) French users use English as a gender-neutral language.
If you think you’ll mess up someone’s pronouns: speak slowly.