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Celebrations and Observances

Sophie Lynne | Apr 10, 2023

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It’s Easter, Pesach, and Ramadan, all at the same time. All of these observances involve sacrifice of some kind.

While we’re not sacrificing live animals or fasting during the day, transgender people who transition sacrifice as well. Often, they sacrifice their family life, jobs, relationships–all on the altar of being authentic and living the Truth of their lives. Too many sacrifice life itself. Then there’s the torrent of right-wing hate focused on us right now. How many rights must we sacrifice as well upon the altar of right-wing hate?

Easter marks the end of Lent, during which observant Christians deny themselves something of their choice for forty days. In a way, Easter reflects the resurrection of that sacrifice back into their lives, mimicking the sacrifice and resurrection of Jesus.

Resurrection. In many ways it’s a rebirth, and isn’t that what transition is all about? We sacrifice our old selves to be reborn anew in our proper gender.

Yeah, that’s a pretty clumsy metaphor, especially since Easter was originally a pagan fertility holiday (hence the rabbit and eggs and chicks as symbols). Maybe all the torrent of right-wing hate and the over 400 anti-trans bills introduced this year in state legislatures is getting to me. I saw a meme in a Bud Light thread yesterday that said “I approve of what 41% of transgender people do”. That’s suicide folks.

Make no mistake, they want us dead, gone, out of their lives. No resurrection. All we have to defend against this is each other. That doesn’t mean a “Transgender day of Vengeance”- the very idea is stupid. They have the guns and the numbers. No it means we support each other, and tell each other’s stories to anyone who will listen–an oral tradition passed from transgender person to transgender person, like the seder. (Yes, I know that’s written now, but it wasn’t at first.)

Someday, being transgender will be no big deal. I hope we live to see it.

Be well.