Gender Identity Draft
My culture and background had a huge impact on my gender identity. I am a black middle class woman, born and raised in Jamaica. I am a cisgendered heterosexual woman. Being Jamaican I was sheltered from the idea that there could be other genders outside of male and female. When sexuality is spoken about in my country anything that is not heterosexual is looked down upon. Growing up around Christians I was taught that homosexuality is a sin. Even around non Christians they I found that they would cite the Bible as an excuse to be homophobic. Coming to America was an important way for me to unlearn these harmful rhetoric.
My first learning experience was meeting a gay person in middle school. We became friends and I was able to ask as many questions as I needed and I learned so much. My assumptions were quickly disproven and I was able to become open and accepted. What was really sad was that although I saw that homosexuals were becoming more accepted transphobia wasn’t as easily accepted. I soon learned to be an ally to all members of the LGBT+ community. I used resources such as social media to learn more about these marginalized groups and accept them for who they are.
Growing up Caribbean there were gender roles placed on me from such a young age that I couldn’t handle. I was expected to know how to cook and clean. My family preferred that I spent more time inside than outside. I was told that it wasn’t ladylike for wearing pants to church or to sit with my legs open. I remember an elderly woman in Jamaica telling me it was a sin for a girl to whistle. A lot of these things really bothered me as a child especially seeing the boys in my family get the freedom to really express themselves. Even during school I experienced this hardship. I was very outspoken and liked to talk a lot a a child and I was often punished for it because it isn’t ladylike. As I grew older I started to rebel against these stereotypes until my parents finally saw how unfair these expectations were.
I believe that a number of things contribute to ones gender identity. How they grow up and the culture they see around them can influence this. One thing that I strongly believe that someone should be able to express themselves however they choose to. I hope we get to the point where society accepts everyone for who they are. I plan to continue to learn and teach others around me so they can unlearn their ignorance and accept people for who they truly are.
Discussion Board #1
Hello class! My name is Shamarra Ivey. My major is Communication Studies. I will be graduating from BMCC in Fall 2020. I hope to attend a four year college after this and earn my bachelor’s degree in Communications eventually moving on to a master’s degree. I was born in Jamaica and lived there for about half my life.
I really enjoyed watching these eight videos. I think a lot of them shows how society influences us ad shapes our perspective on a lot of topics from a young age. The video that resonated with me the most was “Young Soul”. As a Jamaican woman I was taught the harmful thing that is homophobia. Growing up in Jamaica gay men were especially despised. I would often hear that it’s because the Bible said it is a sin especially from people who weren’t religious. As a black woman I know what it is like to be marginalized. Thankfully as I got older I overcame the hateful ideologies that were enforced upon me and learned to love, accept, and embrace the LGBQT+ community.
My personal experience with gender is growing up in a Jamaican household I was always expected to learn how to cook because I’m a woman. I was told crazy things by some Caribbean people I encountered such as: I’m not going to be able to get a husband if I can’t cook, or that my husband would cheat on me for not being able to cook, or even going as far as to say I would get abused for not being able to cook. People expected me to fit into traditional gender roles as a woman such as doing the cooking and the cleaning. My mother and grandmother tried to instill a lot of these things in my. My sister and I were expected to do the inside work while my brothers were supposed to do the outside work. However, I protested this and luckily I was able to escape from these stereotypical gender roles. Putting up a fight against this allowed me to grow so much and experience new things outside of my gender. I never learned how to cook because of this but I’m still happy I stood my ground. The day I learn to cook it will be for myself and not for the purpose of finding a husband. For the past few years my family members has not suggested any of these stereotypical roles to me which I’m grateful for and can only assumed they’ve also grown along with me.
Reading Journal #1
I understand the concept of gender as evolving as the text mentions. Prior to 2016, I never would have thought there could be more than two genders. Luckily I grew and learned to accept things. I don’t think that gender should just be two categories or that “traditional gender roles” should be something normalized.
The text mentions different conceptualizations of gender. The one that I grew up on is Gender as Equivalent to Sex. Before I started to understand more I was taught that your sex is automatically what your gender is. If you are born with one thing then that defines your gender. As I started to become more educated I started to agree with the conceptualization of Gender as Separate from Sex. This is how I was able to understand how trans gendered people are able to identify themselves. It makes a lot of sense to me that you can be born one sex but identify as a completely different gender. “Gender is a social construct” has been a statement that has been drilled in my head for the past four years and I believe it is 100% true. Our perspective on gender in the beginning is shaped by the society we grew up in. As the world gets more progressive I do believe that it is our responsibility to educate ourselves further and to accept people for whom they really are.
The gender binary definitely is something that limits us in my opinion. I think it stifles opportunities and mental wellness for people of all genders especially those who do not fit into the two sexes. There is a lot more to learn when it comes to gender and I will do my best to get more knowledge this way I can accept people for who they are.
