Much of the language associated with trans people in the media we, as trans people, find actively hurtful. This is not about anyone’s ‘right to offend’, but has to do with talking about each other in accurate, compassionate terms. ‘She/he’, ‘shemale’, ‘tranny’ and the like, are out. ‘It’ is just cruel. ‘Sex change’ really doesn’t describe the transitioning process. The language we use about trans people frames the way we treat trans people in our societies. So, if you want trans people to be treated fairly and equally, start with the words you use.
You so often can’t tell by looking – what our pronouns are, what our histories are, how we describe ourselves – so don’t try. Making assumptions is generally a rubbish way of interacting with other humans.
