Over the past five hundred years, our civilization has been developing extremely rapidly. On average, every 2-3 generations in society there is a change of ideals and a change in moral principles. More than once it turned out that during one century the phenomena that aroused affection in its beginning were deeply condemned at the end; and vice versa - what used to be taboo is now not just the norm, but something taken for granted.
The twentieth century was no exception. Against the background of two world wars and the collapse of the colonial system, no less serious changes took place in society. The acquisition of suffrage by women, the abolition of racial segregation, the acquisition of equality by sexual minorities - all this is the result of social reforms of the twentieth century. It would seem that in our era of total tolerance and muti-culturalism, you can safely declare yourself that you are “not like everyone else” and this will not be condemned by society.
However, this is slightly different. The struggle for the rights of homosexuals, which lasted more than fifty years, ended in their complete victory. Now, for any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation in most states, at least administrative responsibility is provided. For better or worse, opinions differ. Conservatives who advocate for "traditional" values are naturally indignant; liberals - in every possible way support such undertakings and demand even more freedom for those who in the old days in society were considered pariahs.
Such groups are, for example, transsexuals and transgender people who are part of them. If everything is clear with the former - their gender identity is completely opposite to their actual sex, then with the latter the situation is more complicated. Transgender people do not just “disagree” with their gender, they themselves cannot understand what gender they are. Many ordinary people often do not understand the deep problems of this phenomenon; the average normal citizen attributes all manifestations of non-traditionalism in matters of gender to homosexuality, but this is fundamentally wrong. In fact, only trans sexuality is a disease classified by the International Classification of Diseases system. The behavior of homosexuals is generally considered the norm, and transgender issues are not considered as something serious due to their frivolous consequences. But,if you delve deeper into the study of the problem, a number of very interesting facts will emerge that are capable of “breaking the template” among many supporters of the ideas of traditionalism.
The first myth about transgender people is that they are a product of Western civilization. In fact, the largest number is in Asia. For example, in Thailand there are several hundred thousand people living under the laws of the opposite sex. These are men who dress like women, wear makeup and have regular hair removal treatments. They work mainly in the entertainment and tourism sectors. Many believe that transgender people in Thailand are likely to have economic origins. Perhaps it is so. In a country where the competition for jobs for men exceeds several hundred people per job, they have no choice but to dress in women's dresses and participate in drag shows.
A completely different situation has developed, for example, in India. There has been a whole caste of transgender people for centuries - the so-called hijra. In addition, part of the Hijra lives in Pakistan. The total number of transgender people in India and Pakistan is estimated to be over 5 million. Not surprisingly, India was the first country to officially establish the Hijra and transgender people as the "third sex."
The second misconception about transgender people is the fact that the reason for their sexual uncertainty is their non-traditional sexual orientation. This is also not true. For transgender people, behavior in society and “in bed” can differ significantly.
Many psychologists believe that both transgender and homosexuality are not mental disorders. According to them, these people do not have any mental disorders, the only exception is gender identity. A much bigger problem is the lack of opportunities to be heard and understood. This is especially noticeable at an early age, when a person cannot understand what is happening to him, there is no one to turn to, and it is simply unrealistic to ask someone. And even if we do not pay attention to such technical problems as changing a passport when changing sex or the same entry in the passport about the "third sex", in fact, our society is not yet ready to accept equality with people of this type.
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Why is there discrimination against transgender people? Actually, the answer to this question is simple. The same reasons apply to discrimination against homosexuals, members of other races and nationalities, and people with disabilities. This is fear of the unfamiliar, ignorance and a fictitious idea of one's chosenness or superiority. We instinctively do not accept those who are somehow different either from ourselves or from some norm accepted in society. Many psychologists believe that the roots of such antipathy should be sought in our deep history: at one time, the first people killed everyone who was not from their cave. However, do not forget that this is not the Stone Age. Perhaps, if these prejudices were absent from the majority of ordinary people, no problem of "minorities" would exist at all.
And yet, modern society is gradually beginning to recognize the third sex. Nowadays the process of acceptance is moving slowly but surely. At one time, society also refused to recognize the rights of sexual minorities, but now, these issues are taken for granted. The governments of most liberal democracies recognize the human right to identify with a gender that does not match their natural appearance. Good or bad - time will tell. Not all social experiments of human society had a happy ending.