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I’ve been listening to all the discussion about Harry Reid’s comment about Obama, and those who are calling it racist and those who are not. And somewhere within all that noise, there is a growing (hopefully) discourse about structural racism. The ways in which our very systems of thought and organization perpetuate racial inequality. Someone interviewed put it this way- when will we be able to turn the discussion to what is racism, instead of talking about if some set of words is racist?

In the area of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and queer rights, the same type of thing happens. Without difficulty, we can name actions as hate or homophobic, but we so often fail to see the underlying pervasive structural systems that generate these inequities. We are left throwing criticisms at people, who may be guilty of saying or doing things, but fail to convict the system within which they are operating. Foucault had it all right. It is a shame that he has fallen out of favor (and was a real bitch to try and understand anyway).

The linked story is one that demonstrates this underlying system of thought:

Japanese Trans Man Is Told His Child Is Illegitimate.

It will be easy for most to simply cry out that the officials have acted wrongly in denying this father and mother the right to name this as their child. This child is not illegitimate, but has two loving parents. If every other element of the story were exactly the same, except that the father had been born with male genitalia, the outcome would have been different.

But the more important story here, especially for GLBTQ activists, is to see the underlying structural issue. Look at the way heterosexism is “built in” to the system. Look at how much the notion of “Family” is a heterosexist construction?

This way in which the very systems of our are systemically biased towards traditional gender roles, and patriarchal power systems is why the fight for GLBTQ rights is so difficult. Worth fighting? Yes, to be sure! But in that struggle, it is critical to not allow the frustration of it to cause you to give up and stop fighting for what is right.

Read the attached story, it is a good read, and let me know what you think- are we struggling against bad people, or a systemic system which is biased towards heterosexism?

Gay Community News : Japanese Trans Man Is Told His Child Is Illegitimate..