Gender is a social construct means gender is like a blueprint of who one can be identify as. What people believed and have been taught over the years is that gender is only two and not more. In reality, there’s more than one and people can identify as anyone/anything they want because it is their choice. Our choice to identify ourselves is taken away, our first ever right once we enter this world. Even before, because doctors identify us either as boy or girl through sex.

From Boy’s Don’t Cry it triggered a moment of when I was taken advantage as the character Brandon did. Without giving much details, it’s a time I like to forget and not remember. It makes me feel sick to my stomach that any producers would even agree to sign this off to be shown in theaters. It’s horrifying and I bet it was more horrifying for women transitioning as a man. I don’t understand why abuse is presented so much in movies and shows, it’s horrible and it gives the idea that people should, could, or will do so if you are anything the social media doesn’t speak about. It creates an unsafe environment and creates false narratives. I still react the same, abuse will forever get the same reaction out of me. An outburst, because why do people have to struggle so much growing up than to deal with men or women taking advantage of us then us not even getting justice or people believing the victims. What’s worst is other people degrading those victims, making fun of them, conveying there is no possible way that it happen, and completely shutting them down.

The media has influence my own perception of my gender through body images, it has influence my looks on my image. Especially growing up, when boys would be more interested in girls with chest and a bigger lower half, than I had. Some girls were early bloomers so personality was over looks, which never stood right with me. Entering high school I felt invisible, in my own bubble till I started gaining attention through personality and through my looks. Which was shocking to me because I already believe I wasn’t pretty enough for boys to notice me. So the spotlight and me did not boat well at all and since I never paid attention to the attention given to me, girls who I believe always had the attention felt threaten. I became a target and adding to the factors of me having a personality of my own. Meaning I was my own person and I wasn’t seeking validation from anyone, It attracted more people to my space. I also made friends easily, so certain girls hated that. People in my high school thought I was being oblivious on purpose, when truly I was genuinely confuse.

I realized not so long ago, I always had real beauty, I let social media and others put me down because of what THERE image of beauty is. Natural beauty isn’t consider beautiful and when it is, it’s seen as a threat. (I don’t understand why) I think it goes back to ages ago. Which I have seen so much in music and movie history, + so much more. Where women have gone through drastic measures to change their bodies and faces to the point of unrecognizable. Now, that women are realizing beauty is within and any beauty is acceptable, some women who made measures feel threaten, or feel the need to put down women who don’t want to change their appearances because they feel comfortable in their own skin.

I am not sure how to explain how I preform my gender but here goes, the way I understood this question was how I am as a women. How I identify myself as women, and I feel like I show I’m women through my strengths, my hustles, and not to sound cheesy but through my beauty not through looks but my beauty within. How I flourish and encourage other women to feel beautiful. In my opinion, women should stick together, grow together, we relate, and we’re the only ones who can truly understand each other, so why aren’t we our biggest allies?

Real man/Real women, I think what makes a man a man is how he treats people, especially women. A man in my opinion is someone with strength, drive, and respect to not only himself but to everyone else around him. Someone who lends a hand when asked or not asked. Same goes for a women. In my perspective, body does not make man or women. I use to think that before because that is what I was taught but no one really knows what makes a man or makes a women. It is theories and opinions!! People are so entitle in claiming they know what makes a women women or what makes a man a man but no one does but the person themselves. This does not go for all cases though, because sometimes what I have said can be used as an excuse to kill, rape, steal, and so much more awful crimes done to others. People can say oh but I am the writer of my story and claim myself a real man for taking what I want when I want.

In my opinion, it does not work like that, I am no one to say what makes a man a man but what I feel and say what a man is, it’s my own opinion. Some may stand for it and others won’t. I don’t when what makes a women always goes back to man. Why is it said that what makes a women, women is when she’s married, has sex with a man or has children? It is gross in my opinion, I am women! No matter my experiences with man or if I have children or not, or if I CAN have them. The double standards are insane.

In the Netflix documentary “Disclosure” it is revealed to us how the transgender community is depicted throughout Hollywood films, movies and television shows since these individuals express a different gender identity than what is considered the norm. I recognized many of the trans and non binary cast members who are actors, activists, writers, and producers from other media. Most of what the documentary consisted of were a variety of examples from films and tv shows throughout history of both the positive and negative representations of transgendered individuals in which some of these cast members were a part of. It seems like at the time American society had the wrong interpretation of the transgender/queer community and continuing to wrongfully mock their identity, which made these individuals feel humiliated, oppressed and marginalized from the public. I couldn’t imagine how these individuals had felt to be exposed from hiding their private parts and being rejected from those who were not comfortable with their identity especially being different from their assigned sex. Some films and tv shows saw it as an opportunity to express violence, discrimination, murder and aggression toward transgender and nonbinary individuals who were targets of transphobia and apply it as a trend. Mainly black trans women were more at risk of hate crimes and being fatally killed in real life due to their intersectionality as they struggle through multiple social identities and being a part of minority groups. Racism, sexism, unemployment and poverty also made them more of a victim, creating a stigma around the violence they were faced. It’s not fair that their lives are being taken away by individuals who feel uncomfortable and intimated by the way a trans person may carry themselves in society that isn’t fully accepting of their identities. This is why the LGTBQ community felt confident, proud and comfortable together during their nights at the balls where they expressed themselves in an environment that wasn’t limited to just one category or identity. An example of this comes from both “Pose” and “Paris Is Burning”. 

      Trans individuals gained their influence through different roles of characters in films or shows that were closely related to what their own lives reflected and what they felt was personal to them. It was important that the actors/actresses who starred as trans characters associate themselves as trans in their natural state because it doesn’t seem authentic that a cis person is being the face of a community they don’t belong to. It doesn’t give credit or respect to those who actually identify that way because their transition is more than just putting on and taking off a costume for the money and fame. Instead trans individuals would rather have their lifestyles expressed in a way that they can truthfully share their experiences to help others understand their worth in society just like regular human beings. 

      In Glory’s snapshot it seems like Laverne Cox is an inspiration for those within the LGTBQ community. I feel like this is great that Laverne serves as an idol that is not afraid of embracing her identity and advocates in supporting the lives of other trans and non-binary individuals to love themselves. I remember first seeing her character as Sophia on the Netflix series “Orange Is the New Black” and the reason she was in prison was for credit card fraud in which she was trying to pay for sex assignment surgery. This meant that her story in the series may have been closely related to her personal life due to gender transitioning as a trans individual.