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When did you discover that you had a ” label” !
The other day , I remembered the first time that I found out that I was a “Crossdresser”. I don’t mean the act of dressing, I had been doing that for years, in private at home on the days I wagged school.
I mean the first time I read the label and knew that I was not alone in the world. I was at Wellington Airport in NZ , aged 17 in 1970 ,reading a Playboy mag. and in the “advice ” section was a letter saying how a guy had returned to his flat to find his flatmate in a tennis skirt etc and had been informed by him that the flatmate was not a gay man He was confused about this and the guy was enquiring about this discovery.
The advice was that the friend was probably a Transvestite and most were not gay etc. I had not heard the word before and realized that I too was a TV.
It might be interesting to hear when and how you ladies first realized that you had a label! -
10 Replies
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I realised that I had a label when I saw the Alfred Hitchcock movie Psycho back in the 60’s. Towards the end of the movie the police revealed that Norman Bates was a Transvestite and that he was not gay but just liked to dress up.
Further research into the “label” revealed that transvestite did in fact fit my profile quite accurately.PS I do NOT fit the other profiles of Norman! It is safe to shower when I am around.
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It was sometime in the mid ’60s on a Sunday afternoon. I was reading my Dad’s copy of ‘The News of the World’ and there somewhere in the middle pages was a story with a photo about a tranny pub stripper called Kimberly who was quite busty and very gorgeous. In the weeks and months that followed I discovered the beautful girls from Bugis Street, a married tranny from N E England called Margaret. And an East End tranny prostitute called Monica and lots of others.
It was both a relief and very exciting. I was very happy to have a label and associate myself with people like myself – even if it was the wrong label. I remember proudly writing ‘I am a transvestite’ on my school exercise book
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Quote:I remember proudly writing ‘I am a transvestite’ on my school exercise book
Wow, did anyone else read it?
My first serious realising was when I was walking through Belfast and finding a book called ‘A Year Among the Girls’ in a bookshop. This book, which I believe is still in print, was about the U.S. Trans Scene. -
I first began to explore who/what I was at about 14 in the Auckland of the mid-70’s. In those pre-internet days most of the trany stuff seemed to be fetishistic…I knew there must be more to it than that so I went to the library and read….I don’t agree with labels but I guess my answer came when I was reading Jan Morris’ Conundrum, a book about her self-discovery and transition.
Jan was John, normal and hetero not the stereotypical gay and fetishistic type. Still one of my favourite books…interesting life – among other things was an expedition member on the first ascent of Everest, now a travel writer and was last seen at Hillary’s funeral in NZ and continues to respected by those macho mountaineers.
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Quote:Wow, did anyone else read it?
Not to my knowledge. After a few days I stapled another page over the top of it Discretion being the better part of valour etc. My family were quite good a ignoring my stuff.
A bit later at age 15 I decided to run away to London. I took all my worldly possessions my record player and tape recorder to sell them at the Smithfield Marketand. I misjudged how heavy everything was and got as far as the bottom of our road. My sister helped my carry the stuff home and I swore her to secrecy. The incident was never mentioned.
A couple of years back my mother reminded me of the event when I was complaining to her about my own daughter’s teenage antics.
Fiona xx
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Just back from Mardi Gras where I carried a placard that said “GAY, STRAIGHT, LESBIAN…. THEY’RE JUST LABELSâ€Â. Reminded me of this thread – I’d been meaning to reply
My ex wife told me I must be a transvestite when I was in my 20’s. Of course I denied it! Probably muttered something stupid about a “phase”!! Surprising to reflect on the absurd things you tell yourself…
I find labels like the models boffins types use to mimic the real world. They’re great for getting your head around things because they simplify real world complexity enough for the human brain to work things out. Make predictions or see whether you think some action or other will have a certain effect and so on. I think they can help us in finding peace with who we are because they allow us to name the parts of ourselves we so often (in my case anyway) struggle with. Further, they can help communicate about ourselves to others, find literature and info on the web etc.
I have struggled to embrace the labels that actually, generally, do apply to me, but very lately have decided that the labels aren’t bad in themselves and that really, they are an accurate description of large chunks of certain parts of me. So, I guess now I’d say I’m transgender and bisexual (plus a whole pile of other stuff!) and am pretty happy about it.
Where they fall over (like the models) is when people start to believe the model or label actually IS the real world. We (all human beings) are just way more complex
There endeth the lesson.
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Labels everyone hasa label starts when we are born MALE FEMALE as we grow older then others define us on sexuality ie straight gay lesbian
then there comes our community crossdressers transexual transgender transvestite.
i am still coming to terms with the labels im given but at vampi says to me im female just enclosed or was enclosed in a male shell. Hence I SEEK HELP TO RECTIFY THIS THE BEST THAT MEDICAL SCIENCE CAN>
As long as the label helps people understand and respect us im fine with it its when its used as a put down etc it hurts but everyone is put down in different ways overweight fat to skinny short ugly sheeesh we are a ignorant judgemental world -
I found out all about labels in the sixties when I came across a medical textbook in a library. Transvestism came under the heading “perversions”. Not at all encouraging but at least attitudes have changed.
Hugs Janet -
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A bit later at age 15 I decided to run away to London. I took all my worldly possessions my record player and tape recorder to sell them at the Smithfield Market.
Fiona xx[/quote]
Smithfield Market! Wow, you went there too. I used to spend hours wandering round there. I hear it’s all changed and nowhere as interesting. You’d have to have been there to understand , that market was a fascinating place, anything could be bought there, they had book shops, musical instrument shops, pet shops. Now it’s all the plastic stuff that you get in the two dollar shops. -
I never realised that I had a label for many years, I just thought I was a little different from all around me. I was brought up in a strong Theatre enviroment and I was used to being among people who were “different”
It wasnt until I was asked to go to a “Murder Mystery” as the wife of the murdered victim that I was labelled as a tranny or crossdresser by some of the people there. I looked it up and after a lot of research I realised that the profile of Tranny fitted me perfectly. It still does and I`m proud of my healthy attitude to my stand in this universe.Ps.
I still take great delight in the memories of being a woman officially for the night, Ronnie was born, there I was out there and not a bad word from anyone. I just loved all the attention a woman gets from doors being opened to men stepping aside for me.And I did look and feel good!!!
