Judith Butler Quotes

Gender assignment is a "construction" and yet many genderqueer and trans people refuse those assignments in part or in full. That refusal opens the way for a more radical form of self-determination, one that happens in solidarity with others who are undergoing a similar struggle.

People who don't have gender dysphoria aren't going to catch it by watching me dance on television.

Nature chooses who will be transgender; individuals don't choose this.

I grew up in a commune where no one considered me female, particularly.

Being a parent of a boy who wants to wear sparkles and grow his hair long - especially when you don't know where it's all going to go - it's hard stuff. I'm not being politically incorrect in acknowledging that, am I?

I want parents out there to know that it's totally natural for kids to make believe and play games. It does not mean your child is going to be transgendered. And even if it were true, why is it such a horrible thing?

Society doesn't tell you that you can be trans.

There were definitely songs in the past that were me dealing with living this gender dysphoria, and sometimes they were really direct and no one picked up on it - but oftentimes, they were more veiled in metaphor.

I believe that I am transgender to help people understand differences. It allows me to gain perspective, to be more accepting of others, because I know what it feels like to know you're not like everyone else.

I think that it's important to say that trans people exist, and we are valid, whether we choose to transition or not. It's really up to anyone to decide what is going to make them feel the most like themselves.

We are on the forefront of a revolution in which identity and expression will take priority over the labels assigned to us at birth; in which self-identification will take priority over perception; in which gender will fall away entirely.

I think one of the biggest misconceptions is that only gender non-conforming, non-binary, or trans people have a gender identity. But the truth is, everyone has a gender identity.

I spent so many years not understanding my own gender identity and not having the language for it, and not having those conversations, that now I'm so eager to talk about it. Then I learn more about myself and other people.

I think, for all trans people, it's not our only defining feature, but it is a defining feature.

When I was growing up, I didn't know of anybody who was trans. There was always, like, this shame, anxiety thing around all of that, even if I wasn't actively expressing it.

Transgender doesn't need to imply loud.

Being a woman is an option, being trans is an option, and they're options that appeal to me. We need to listen to people - not labels, not semantics.

Some people's gender identity conforms to the sex they were assigned at birth, and some people's identity doesn't. That realization was certainly very freeing for me - and could be very freeing for other people.

I'm the youngest of four siblings and the baby of the family. My family just treated me like anyone else growing up. They taught me that everyone has a special and unique trait about them, and that mine is that I have a girl brain and a boy body.

The transgender community has always been a part of Hawaiian society, where people who don't conform to the binary system of man/woman, masculine/feminine are accepted or, at minimum, tolerated.

Trans people are not a monolith.

If someone's OK with being the 'transgender girl,' that's fine, but that's not me.

I spent so many years not understanding my own gender identity, not having the language to talk about it, and not feeling safe in many environments to talk about it.

Sexuality is who you want to be with. Gender identity is who you want to be in the world.

It's OK not to understand the whole trans thing. That's alright. My dad didn't understand it. I still don't know everything. What's important is you sort of educate yourself on your own time, but you have to respect it on everyone else's time. Because no one should have to wait for equality.