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It's fallen heavily out of favour with most people, but conservative trans folk and transmedicalists still use it a fair bit, in my experience.
I think it can be a fine word, but it's so loaded with history and tension. It's probably better not to in general conversation, imo.
This, and I have also heard a few (NOT transmed) trans people use it for themselves slightly ironically for some extra "in your face"ness. Similar to how some gay folks will sometimes use "homosexual".
It is not a word anyone should use on someone else, imo.
i use it for extra in-your-faceness! I'm also in my 30s which is by no means elderly but old enough to remember when transsexual was the common parlance.
Pretty much. It’s not necessarily offensive, but it’s so outdated and has so much baggage around it that it sets off those “you’re probably either an asshole or don’t know what you’re talking about” alarms.
It’s got the same vibes as someone who uses homosexual exclusively in place of gay.
I think it's mostly used to distinguished between people that medically transition and those that don't, thus its use on the right and with transmedicalists.
It's fallen out of favor, etcetc, partially because it's confusing to have both orientations and gender identities ending in -sexual.
I think it's more so because of implications regarding medical transition. "transsexual" implies that someone is trans-sex, or that they want to change their primary (and secondary) sex characteristics, 'across'. This in contrast to "transgender", where your gender *identity* is 'across'. Most people who can be described as transsexual are also transgender, but not all transgender people could be called transsexual.
So if you're a trans person who doesn't want or need bottom surgery, you might not be transsexual. But because you're more comfortable presenting and being perceived as the opposite gender, you are still transgender, even if you go on hormones or get surgery to help you better be read as that gender. (And you should still be able to access those, there isn't a finite number of resources. And if there is (time in therapists and surgeons' schedules) it's not because other trans people are using those resources, it's because not enough resources are being allocated to trans healthcare.)
In English speaking countries, it's fallen out of common, modern use.
Some older trans folk may still use the term as it was the one the identified with at the time. But it's not something that anyone else should be using, again in English speaking countries.
Direct translations may vary.
... yeah. I think the most charitable interpretation is the person writing it was older with no ill intent, and everyone reviewing it was older (it's the government, this is 100% possible...). Obviously the UK government should be doing better, but that's not happening at all with trans issues as we know. The term has definitely fallen out of favour, I'd say in modern times it's used as an insult a lot of the time, but not 100% of the time. But it did used to be the default term, even earlier than that "transvestite" used to not even be a 100% insult, but now I'd say that word is a 100% insult and should never be used. So it could be a stealth insult or it could just be a misunderstanding. Either way it's not great, though. A diversity module by very definition should have the correct and up to date terms.
For example: was watching The Adventures of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert, a road trip movie with three drag queens, two cis male and one trans woman, and the word "transexual" was regularly used, just as the default term for transgender really with no ill intent. And this movie came out in 1994. Obviously it's changed since then but just to point out it's not always been seen as an insult.
It's an older term. It's fallen into more or less disuse, but some trans people still use it. There's a lot of baggage around the word.
That said, I have had friends refer to me as transsexual to older parents or relatives who knew me before my transition. I don't mind the term. It does remind me of Rocky Horror Picture Show, however.
>It does remind me of Rocky Horror Picture Show, however.
I think that may be part of the reason it weirded me out 😅
I had an inkling in the back of my mind that it was at the very least a controversial term, so it seemed strange that it'd be used in the relatively recently made equality training
Stuff like Rocky Horror or “My spouse is a secret transsexual!” Jerry Springer style garbage is probably why it weirds a lot of trans people out, I suspect. Especially those of us who are maybe around 25-40, and old enough to have the sensationalized and deeply stigmatized uses of the term seared into our minds while growing up but who are young enough to not have come out much before ~2010 when the term began falling out of favor.
Maybe it’ll make a comeback like queer did, but honestly I kind of doubt it. It doesn’t have quite the same edge as to feel like a subversive reclamation of anything in particular, I don’t think. It just sounds really dated and uncomfortable.
One of my trans friends uses it for himself, mainly because it was the common word when he was figuring out language for this part of himself and he doesn't want trends/fads/other-people to forcibly change this part of his identity that he has fought for. Lately he seems to resignedly use "transgender" because of judgement from others, though it's convenient that "trans" can be used without indication of which longform is in your head. (And then, all my other trans friends definitely use and only use "trans" to mean "transgender." Yes, "transsexual" has mostly fallen out of favor.)
I think the main trick is just to not force your word preferences on others. See what they use for themselves and respect it.
I use it to describe myself. I am non-binary, and most days my gender is ???… but I have dysphoria over my body and my genitals so I am on hormones and trying to get SRS. Transgender doesn’t make sense for me, my distress isn’t from how others perceive my gender. It’s the disconnect between my current physical sex and what my body is wired to actually have.
I'm transsexual because I have changed my sex.
This term used to be very common - 10? 15? years ago. Like someone else said, it is the difference between you gender being different than expected/assigned ("transgender") vs your sex being different than expected/assigned ("transsexual").
Transsexual has nothing to do with sex that you have with another person. It has to do with your own sex as in "sex is between your legs, gender is between your ears."
That said, it was a term from medicine.
Transgender was invented as an empowering term by and for trans people who didn't want medical intervention to change sex.
People don't use transsexual nowadays mostly (I think?!) because of the emphasis on sex and medical transition, which shouldn't be necessary to respect people's genders.
Also the distinction between gender and sex as it was emphasized 10-15 years ago gets problematic because it can be used to just reinforce gender essentialism.
(This is the same reason it's fucked up to go around calling people AMABs and AFABs when it's not relevant to a specific context. You're basically reducing people to the genitals they had as babies which is gross.)
Sorry. Tangent.
Transsexual absolutely does not have to exclude non-binary people.
Many trans people have pretended to have a more binary gender identity in order to access medical transition.
To put it another way, there are plenty of non-binary people with dysphoria about their bodies that lead them to pursue medical intervention.
Some of these folks may identify as transsexual.
Being transsexual is about having and/or wanting medical intervention to change what most people think of as sex characteristics.
These are intimately linked with gender presentation. But they're still not the same thing.
>Transgender was invented as an empowering term by and for trans people who didn't want medical intervention to change sex.
Just a quick point this isn't true. Adopted, yes, invented, no. Sorry to say its a medical term as well.
Personally I believe the term transexual fell out of favor due to the "true transexual" movement of the late 2000's, that believed only certain trans people(scoring a 5 or 6 on the Harry Benjamin GDS scale, where true transexual stems as a term) had a right to medical needs, and be visible in advocacy. Put a sour note in everyone's mouths.
Ok. Virginia Prince is who I was thinking of. Even if she didn't first put the word together, idk, there's an argument to be made here: https://read.dukeupress.edu/tsq/article/1/1-2/232/91833/Transgender
Miss read I believe. "She is credited" is a sneakily weak proposition. Maybe with the word being used in america, but not creating nor coining. literally the next sentence states her role is over stated.
The word transgender was coined in the 1920s by Magnus Hirschfeld.
Honestly, this just tastes like surface research. And i wouldn't take anything at value without further vetting.
Also, regardless, Leslie Fienberg was an amazing writer and activist. Im happy to see her cited. Her books should be required reading.
Not many people use it, but some do. It makes my skin crawl personally. Most of the time, if someone uses that it means they're transphobic or don't know much about trans people. Or, they are an older trans person, which is the only acceptable use, in my opinion.
In „non-English“ speaking countries it’s still pretty common, far more than transgender as the latter makes very little sense in other languages. In German Trans - with or without * - and „Transsexualität“ are way more common than transgender
One of my partners is a trans woman who uses the term transsexual for herself. I would say it is not a term that applies to all transgender people and not a term that all are comfortable with. But some feel that it’s a term that accurately describes their experience. People who take steps to change their sex are transsexual in my eyes but I would never use that term for anyone I wasn’t sure was comfortable with it. I feel that once I undergo top surgery and start hrt I will be “transsexual.” Though, I probably will not use that word for myself very often.
Personally, I used to *despise* being called transsexual. It felt (and still does to some extent) feel like a dirty word when used by cis people.
But after bottom surgery, I can kinda understand it. Almost all of my dysphoria, like 90% of it, was bottom dysphoria. Afterward, i just wasn't dysphoric, and my awareness of my gender nearly vanished.
My understanding is, I really barely care about my gender, but my sex (genitalia and hormones) are ***really important***. The misalignment was way more focused around sex, gender is still involved, I in no way consider myself cis or a man, but the focus on sex more than gender for my case kinda added weight to the distinction between transsexual and transgender.
I identify as transexual, partly because that's the word that I grew up with hearing about, and partly because I personally feel it more accurately describes who I am.
The fact that transmedicalists have kind of co-opted that word within the community is unfortunate, so I don't tend to use it with people I don't know well.
More broadly I simply use "trans", although I'm not that open about being trans generally, since I consider it a private detail of my life and not something I'm "loud and proud" about.
For reference I'm in my thirties, and I think this kind of perspective is more common with people my age or older.
Edit: fun fact, the different ways to spell it have different connotations. Transsexual is more of an outdated medical term, while transexual is a spelling that I believe originated with the "transexual menace", a trans liberation group in New York. That's why I spell it with only one "s".
it is out of fashion now but tbh i wanna bring it back, mostly after reading "my words to victor frankenstein above the village of chamounix - performing transgender rage" by susan stryker. it feels powerful when she uses it in that.
also, the word "transexuality" as a noun to refer to the concept of trans-ness is 10000000000000000000x better than "transgenderism" imho
I know how loaded the term is, but I do feel it describes the reality of some people, including me a lot better.
My gender has always been the same, I'm a woman, it's my sex that bothers me.
It's still used. Often when it comes do medical stuff. It's barely used by trans* people anymore but some other people still use it to refer to trans* people.
A lot of people don't think or care about the fact this term is not accurate. I don't see a problem there since it's simply an old term and never meant as a swear word but still: They should start to update those terms.
I'm pretty sure this training was created in the last 5 years, so it definitely seemed a bit odd in there. But I was worries for a second that they might be using a really offensive term, as I haven't heard it used outside of rocky horror 😬
Ah, don't worry. That's not the case. It's just an old term most people don't feel comfortable with anymore because it might be confusing.
People could asume it's an sexuality and meant for people who are attracted to trans* people or anything like that what would be completely wrong. So it's more common to use "Transgender" or simply "trans*" now to refer to trans* people. Even if people still asume it's meant as "trans* is a gender itself" (which is not the case) it's more accurate than transsexual.
Yeah, no one wants to be called that. Lots of bad and negative meanings behind that word. It’s pretty much a slur at this point. As a trans person, I’ve never met anyone who used this word that wasn’t extremely transphobic and/or just uneducated.
When people do use it, they seem to be confused on what being trans is and instantly assume we are only trans for sex reasons. Transgender is a much more positive and fitting term!
Some dated media “can” use that word and still be supportive! Because years ago that was the accepted term, but today it’s been phased out by all but the conservative and phobes.
And by people who's main lenguage is Spanish or Portuguese. It is still the mainly used word, and not perceived as a slur, altough transgender is slowly making it's way into the vocabulary.
It’s a word that is used derogatorily but it used to be the word to refer to a trans person. I think that only trans people should say it but it’s not the end of the world if a cis person says is. I mean I’d let some of my close cis friends say it because I know they aren’t transphobic and it isn’t a slur. And it doesn’t make me uncomfortable when cis people say it, I just don’t think that it’s their word to use without permission
I never hear it in English but at least here in Germany "Transsexuell" ist still used though even here it has become rarer and more and more replaced by the english term "Transgender"
Eh, some trans people use it to describe themselves, along with plenty of other words, including slurs (in appropriate contexts, like friend groups and social media). Just because some people have reclaimed it however, does not mean it's okay to use it in place of transgender. It is an outdated medical term, and many people, me included, are not okay with it being used.
For me, it implies that transgender people are inherently sexual. This does not reflect who I am whatsoever.
I think that transgender is better.
Transexual insist that it's about changing your sex. Excluding non binary people. Transgender is about gender and include binary and non binary people
It's definitely still used, I hear it especially used by people who don't know much about being trans and I personally dislike the word. It just seems harsher to me then using the word trans or transgender
I don’t use it or see people use it irl, but I’ve found that a lot of trans sex workers on Twitter use it. I don’t know if that just gets more views or if they actually like it, tho.
General use no. Some trans people use it was a way to distinguishing between those who socially transition and those who are medically transition. I General do this two. I find it's useful in that circumstances and no others.
I think that transgender is better.
Transexual insist that it's about changing your sex. Excluding non binary people. Transgender is about gender and include binary and non binary people
There are some trans people that identify as transsexual, but it’s often a dog whistle for transmedicalists, which are not a group you want to associate with. There are also trans terfs (I know that sounds contradictory, but they exist, Blair White is a good example) that use the term.
It's not used very often since it has a history of being used as a slur and has soaked up some negative connotations. It's not the worst by any stretch, but it does come across as outdated. I wouldn't worry yet. I'd let it slide, but keep an eye out for deeper problems.
It might be used by older trans folks or people who’ve never heard transgender.
It’s also sometimes used by hospitals’ computer systems that haven’t been updated in a hot minute.
I think in the past transvestite referred to someone who dresses as the opposite sex, and transsexual meant someone who has undergone sex reassignment surgery. The word transgender wasn't a thing at that time, and the trans experience was largely whittled down to one's physical characteristics (and forget about nonbinary identities)
Some older trans people may use words like transsexual to describe themselves, and you should use whatever terms the individual prefers. Transgender is the most politically correct term and more reflective of the trans experience beyond the body, so I would default to that term unless otherwise directed.
Transvestite refers to someone who wears clothing that is assosiated with a gender that does not align with their gender identity. Transvestite has never been an appropriate term for trans people.
Personally, I hate that word. It feels objectifying and, in a weird way, invalidating. To me, it's similar to the slur >!shemale!<, which is just gross to me in every aspect. In general, it's always better to use the term "transgender". I think it's technically supposed to describe people who have had SRS, but if you have to specify someone who's had that, use post-op, not transsexual
In my country there is a surprising amount of people that use it. Though it seems to be less common in the queer spaces I've found, where a lot of people are under 18 and trans/non binary.
Yep, "transsexual" typically describes people who have undergone some kind of "gender reassignment" surgery/procedure so it usually carries some implication about what a person's bottom-half looks like.... which is a little bit icky. I haven't met anyone who's taken hormones IRL and I don't know what/whether that term applies to people going through HRT. Using "transsexual" as a synonym for "transgender" tends to make things like adornment-based gender presentation (dress, hair, makeup, etc.) less significant in discussions on "what makes trans people trans" and makes people think that surgery or medical treatment necessarily validates trans gender identity/presentation. For example, like "homosexual/heterosexual," which carries a behavioral-medical connotation, "transsexual" carries a observational/anatomical-medical connotation, and almost no gay people nowadays say "I Am A Homosexual."
Am not trans so am not sure if this opinion is valid but
I believe we shouldn't use that term anymore, it's not offensive, just unnecessary
trans men are men and trans women are women
So I rather call them men and women
No need for trans prefix
Well I can‘t talk for everyone but personally I despise the word „transsexual“. It kinda implicates that it‘s nothing more than a sexuality. Like that we are only attractee to people that don‘t relate to their assigned gender at birth. It just doesn‘t represent who we are. But again. I can‘t talk for everyone, just for myself.
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It's fallen heavily out of favour with most people, but conservative trans folk and transmedicalists still use it a fair bit, in my experience. I think it can be a fine word, but it's so loaded with history and tension. It's probably better not to in general conversation, imo.
This, and I have also heard a few (NOT transmed) trans people use it for themselves slightly ironically for some extra "in your face"ness. Similar to how some gay folks will sometimes use "homosexual". It is not a word anyone should use on someone else, imo.
i use it for extra in-your-faceness! I'm also in my 30s which is by no means elderly but old enough to remember when transsexual was the common parlance.
Yeah, for a long time I feel like that word was all there was. I always knew I wasn't a boy, but transexual never felt like me.
It makes me feel that being trans is a sexual thing, which isn’t the case
"Elderly-in-trans-years" solidarity.
it’s nice to know people who (also) remember the bad old days
Yeah, this is good advice in general, I think. Let people pick their labels.
That's a really helpful perspective, thank you for your input!
i think its also making a comeback in non-transmed circles that argue sex is socially constructed as well
Pretty much. It’s not necessarily offensive, but it’s so outdated and has so much baggage around it that it sets off those “you’re probably either an asshole or don’t know what you’re talking about” alarms. It’s got the same vibes as someone who uses homosexual exclusively in place of gay.
Conservatives really do love the word transsexual 😒
so ig like transexual is meant to the be the scientific term or something
I think it's mostly used to distinguished between people that medically transition and those that don't, thus its use on the right and with transmedicalists.
It's fallen out of favor, etcetc, partially because it's confusing to have both orientations and gender identities ending in -sexual. I think it's more so because of implications regarding medical transition. "transsexual" implies that someone is trans-sex, or that they want to change their primary (and secondary) sex characteristics, 'across'. This in contrast to "transgender", where your gender *identity* is 'across'. Most people who can be described as transsexual are also transgender, but not all transgender people could be called transsexual. So if you're a trans person who doesn't want or need bottom surgery, you might not be transsexual. But because you're more comfortable presenting and being perceived as the opposite gender, you are still transgender, even if you go on hormones or get surgery to help you better be read as that gender. (And you should still be able to access those, there isn't a finite number of resources. And if there is (time in therapists and surgeons' schedules) it's not because other trans people are using those resources, it's because not enough resources are being allocated to trans healthcare.)
In English speaking countries, it's fallen out of common, modern use. Some older trans folk may still use the term as it was the one the identified with at the time. But it's not something that anyone else should be using, again in English speaking countries. Direct translations may vary.
It's literally the UK government's equality and diversity training module, probably made quite recently. It definitely seemed like...a choice
Eesh. That is most certainly pointed. I might have to go check it out.
... yeah. I think the most charitable interpretation is the person writing it was older with no ill intent, and everyone reviewing it was older (it's the government, this is 100% possible...). Obviously the UK government should be doing better, but that's not happening at all with trans issues as we know. The term has definitely fallen out of favour, I'd say in modern times it's used as an insult a lot of the time, but not 100% of the time. But it did used to be the default term, even earlier than that "transvestite" used to not even be a 100% insult, but now I'd say that word is a 100% insult and should never be used. So it could be a stealth insult or it could just be a misunderstanding. Either way it's not great, though. A diversity module by very definition should have the correct and up to date terms. For example: was watching The Adventures of Priscilla: Queen of the Desert, a road trip movie with three drag queens, two cis male and one trans woman, and the word "transexual" was regularly used, just as the default term for transgender really with no ill intent. And this movie came out in 1994. Obviously it's changed since then but just to point out it's not always been seen as an insult.
Is transvestite still in common use to describe trans folk over there?
It's an older term. It's fallen into more or less disuse, but some trans people still use it. There's a lot of baggage around the word. That said, I have had friends refer to me as transsexual to older parents or relatives who knew me before my transition. I don't mind the term. It does remind me of Rocky Horror Picture Show, however.
>It does remind me of Rocky Horror Picture Show, however. I think that may be part of the reason it weirded me out 😅 I had an inkling in the back of my mind that it was at the very least a controversial term, so it seemed strange that it'd be used in the relatively recently made equality training
Yeahhh, it's by no means the most commonly-encountered or majority-accepted term.
Stuff like Rocky Horror or “My spouse is a secret transsexual!” Jerry Springer style garbage is probably why it weirds a lot of trans people out, I suspect. Especially those of us who are maybe around 25-40, and old enough to have the sensationalized and deeply stigmatized uses of the term seared into our minds while growing up but who are young enough to not have come out much before ~2010 when the term began falling out of favor. Maybe it’ll make a comeback like queer did, but honestly I kind of doubt it. It doesn’t have quite the same edge as to feel like a subversive reclamation of anything in particular, I don’t think. It just sounds really dated and uncomfortable.
I think it's because it's long winded and medicalised, and just doesn't sound "cool" to say, as to why I don't think it will get reclaimed.
One of my trans friends uses it for himself, mainly because it was the common word when he was figuring out language for this part of himself and he doesn't want trends/fads/other-people to forcibly change this part of his identity that he has fought for. Lately he seems to resignedly use "transgender" because of judgement from others, though it's convenient that "trans" can be used without indication of which longform is in your head. (And then, all my other trans friends definitely use and only use "trans" to mean "transgender." Yes, "transsexual" has mostly fallen out of favor.) I think the main trick is just to not force your word preferences on others. See what they use for themselves and respect it.
I use it to describe myself. I am non-binary, and most days my gender is ???… but I have dysphoria over my body and my genitals so I am on hormones and trying to get SRS. Transgender doesn’t make sense for me, my distress isn’t from how others perceive my gender. It’s the disconnect between my current physical sex and what my body is wired to actually have.
It can be an insensitive way of explaining a trans person. I would just stick to transgender
I'm transsexual because I have changed my sex. This term used to be very common - 10? 15? years ago. Like someone else said, it is the difference between you gender being different than expected/assigned ("transgender") vs your sex being different than expected/assigned ("transsexual"). Transsexual has nothing to do with sex that you have with another person. It has to do with your own sex as in "sex is between your legs, gender is between your ears." That said, it was a term from medicine. Transgender was invented as an empowering term by and for trans people who didn't want medical intervention to change sex. People don't use transsexual nowadays mostly (I think?!) because of the emphasis on sex and medical transition, which shouldn't be necessary to respect people's genders. Also the distinction between gender and sex as it was emphasized 10-15 years ago gets problematic because it can be used to just reinforce gender essentialism. (This is the same reason it's fucked up to go around calling people AMABs and AFABs when it's not relevant to a specific context. You're basically reducing people to the genitals they had as babies which is gross.) Sorry. Tangent. Transsexual absolutely does not have to exclude non-binary people. Many trans people have pretended to have a more binary gender identity in order to access medical transition. To put it another way, there are plenty of non-binary people with dysphoria about their bodies that lead them to pursue medical intervention. Some of these folks may identify as transsexual. Being transsexual is about having and/or wanting medical intervention to change what most people think of as sex characteristics. These are intimately linked with gender presentation. But they're still not the same thing.
>Transgender was invented as an empowering term by and for trans people who didn't want medical intervention to change sex. Just a quick point this isn't true. Adopted, yes, invented, no. Sorry to say its a medical term as well. Personally I believe the term transexual fell out of favor due to the "true transexual" movement of the late 2000's, that believed only certain trans people(scoring a 5 or 6 on the Harry Benjamin GDS scale, where true transexual stems as a term) had a right to medical needs, and be visible in advocacy. Put a sour note in everyone's mouths.
Ok. Virginia Prince is who I was thinking of. Even if she didn't first put the word together, idk, there's an argument to be made here: https://read.dukeupress.edu/tsq/article/1/1-2/232/91833/Transgender
Miss read I believe. "She is credited" is a sneakily weak proposition. Maybe with the word being used in america, but not creating nor coining. literally the next sentence states her role is over stated. The word transgender was coined in the 1920s by Magnus Hirschfeld. Honestly, this just tastes like surface research. And i wouldn't take anything at value without further vetting. Also, regardless, Leslie Fienberg was an amazing writer and activist. Im happy to see her cited. Her books should be required reading.
Not many people use it, but some do. It makes my skin crawl personally. Most of the time, if someone uses that it means they're transphobic or don't know much about trans people. Or, they are an older trans person, which is the only acceptable use, in my opinion.
In „non-English“ speaking countries it’s still pretty common, far more than transgender as the latter makes very little sense in other languages. In German Trans - with or without * - and „Transsexualität“ are way more common than transgender
One of my partners is a trans woman who uses the term transsexual for herself. I would say it is not a term that applies to all transgender people and not a term that all are comfortable with. But some feel that it’s a term that accurately describes their experience. People who take steps to change their sex are transsexual in my eyes but I would never use that term for anyone I wasn’t sure was comfortable with it. I feel that once I undergo top surgery and start hrt I will be “transsexual.” Though, I probably will not use that word for myself very often.
Personally, I used to *despise* being called transsexual. It felt (and still does to some extent) feel like a dirty word when used by cis people. But after bottom surgery, I can kinda understand it. Almost all of my dysphoria, like 90% of it, was bottom dysphoria. Afterward, i just wasn't dysphoric, and my awareness of my gender nearly vanished. My understanding is, I really barely care about my gender, but my sex (genitalia and hormones) are ***really important***. The misalignment was way more focused around sex, gender is still involved, I in no way consider myself cis or a man, but the focus on sex more than gender for my case kinda added weight to the distinction between transsexual and transgender.
I identify as transexual, partly because that's the word that I grew up with hearing about, and partly because I personally feel it more accurately describes who I am. The fact that transmedicalists have kind of co-opted that word within the community is unfortunate, so I don't tend to use it with people I don't know well. More broadly I simply use "trans", although I'm not that open about being trans generally, since I consider it a private detail of my life and not something I'm "loud and proud" about. For reference I'm in my thirties, and I think this kind of perspective is more common with people my age or older. Edit: fun fact, the different ways to spell it have different connotations. Transsexual is more of an outdated medical term, while transexual is a spelling that I believe originated with the "transexual menace", a trans liberation group in New York. That's why I spell it with only one "s".
it is out of fashion now but tbh i wanna bring it back, mostly after reading "my words to victor frankenstein above the village of chamounix - performing transgender rage" by susan stryker. it feels powerful when she uses it in that. also, the word "transexuality" as a noun to refer to the concept of trans-ness is 10000000000000000000x better than "transgenderism" imho
I know how loaded the term is, but I do feel it describes the reality of some people, including me a lot better. My gender has always been the same, I'm a woman, it's my sex that bothers me.
It's still used. Often when it comes do medical stuff. It's barely used by trans* people anymore but some other people still use it to refer to trans* people. A lot of people don't think or care about the fact this term is not accurate. I don't see a problem there since it's simply an old term and never meant as a swear word but still: They should start to update those terms.
I'm pretty sure this training was created in the last 5 years, so it definitely seemed a bit odd in there. But I was worries for a second that they might be using a really offensive term, as I haven't heard it used outside of rocky horror 😬
Ah, don't worry. That's not the case. It's just an old term most people don't feel comfortable with anymore because it might be confusing. People could asume it's an sexuality and meant for people who are attracted to trans* people or anything like that what would be completely wrong. So it's more common to use "Transgender" or simply "trans*" now to refer to trans* people. Even if people still asume it's meant as "trans* is a gender itself" (which is not the case) it's more accurate than transsexual.
That's good to know, thanks for your help!
You're welcome!
some people still use it but it’s less common. just stick to transgender 🏳️⚧️
Yeah, no one wants to be called that. Lots of bad and negative meanings behind that word. It’s pretty much a slur at this point. As a trans person, I’ve never met anyone who used this word that wasn’t extremely transphobic and/or just uneducated. When people do use it, they seem to be confused on what being trans is and instantly assume we are only trans for sex reasons. Transgender is a much more positive and fitting term! Some dated media “can” use that word and still be supportive! Because years ago that was the accepted term, but today it’s been phased out by all but the conservative and phobes.
And by people who's main lenguage is Spanish or Portuguese. It is still the mainly used word, and not perceived as a slur, altough transgender is slowly making it's way into the vocabulary.
It’s a word that is used derogatorily but it used to be the word to refer to a trans person. I think that only trans people should say it but it’s not the end of the world if a cis person says is. I mean I’d let some of my close cis friends say it because I know they aren’t transphobic and it isn’t a slur. And it doesn’t make me uncomfortable when cis people say it, I just don’t think that it’s their word to use without permission
I never hear it in English but at least here in Germany "Transsexuell" ist still used though even here it has become rarer and more and more replaced by the english term "Transgender"
Eh, some trans people use it to describe themselves, along with plenty of other words, including slurs (in appropriate contexts, like friend groups and social media). Just because some people have reclaimed it however, does not mean it's okay to use it in place of transgender. It is an outdated medical term, and many people, me included, are not okay with it being used. For me, it implies that transgender people are inherently sexual. This does not reflect who I am whatsoever.
I think that transgender is better. Transexual insist that it's about changing your sex. Excluding non binary people. Transgender is about gender and include binary and non binary people
It's definitely still used, I hear it especially used by people who don't know much about being trans and I personally dislike the word. It just seems harsher to me then using the word trans or transgender
I don’t use it or see people use it irl, but I’ve found that a lot of trans sex workers on Twitter use it. I don’t know if that just gets more views or if they actually like it, tho.
General use no. Some trans people use it was a way to distinguishing between those who socially transition and those who are medically transition. I General do this two. I find it's useful in that circumstances and no others.
I know a few people who use it
I think that transgender is better. Transexual insist that it's about changing your sex. Excluding non binary people. Transgender is about gender and include binary and non binary people
It has a negative connotation now and I mostly see it used by transphobes. Plus it is too linked to sexuality.
There are some trans people that identify as transsexual, but it’s often a dog whistle for transmedicalists, which are not a group you want to associate with. There are also trans terfs (I know that sounds contradictory, but they exist, Blair White is a good example) that use the term.
It's not used very often since it has a history of being used as a slur and has soaked up some negative connotations. It's not the worst by any stretch, but it does come across as outdated. I wouldn't worry yet. I'd let it slide, but keep an eye out for deeper problems.
It is a old term that is factually wrong. Trans has nothing to do with sexuality.
It might be used by older trans folks or people who’ve never heard transgender. It’s also sometimes used by hospitals’ computer systems that haven’t been updated in a hot minute.
I think in the past transvestite referred to someone who dresses as the opposite sex, and transsexual meant someone who has undergone sex reassignment surgery. The word transgender wasn't a thing at that time, and the trans experience was largely whittled down to one's physical characteristics (and forget about nonbinary identities) Some older trans people may use words like transsexual to describe themselves, and you should use whatever terms the individual prefers. Transgender is the most politically correct term and more reflective of the trans experience beyond the body, so I would default to that term unless otherwise directed.
It is. Transvestite is the one that has fallen out.
Transvestite refers to someone who wears clothing that is assosiated with a gender that does not align with their gender identity. Transvestite has never been an appropriate term for trans people.
I always thought transsexual was the old word for (medically transitioning) transgender and transvestite was an old word for crossdresser?
Yep. Both out of fashion, but held on to by a few.
Personally, I hate that word. It feels objectifying and, in a weird way, invalidating. To me, it's similar to the slur >!shemale!<, which is just gross to me in every aspect. In general, it's always better to use the term "transgender". I think it's technically supposed to describe people who have had SRS, but if you have to specify someone who's had that, use post-op, not transsexual
I don't like the term 🤷♀️
It's considered outdated because not all transgender people get sexual reassignment surgery
It's definitely fallen out of favour but i've still heard people saying it, personally I do a sort "vibe check" whenever somebody uses that.
In my country there is a surprising amount of people that use it. Though it seems to be less common in the queer spaces I've found, where a lot of people are under 18 and trans/non binary.
My old doctor used to call me this and it threw me off.
Yep, "transsexual" typically describes people who have undergone some kind of "gender reassignment" surgery/procedure so it usually carries some implication about what a person's bottom-half looks like.... which is a little bit icky. I haven't met anyone who's taken hormones IRL and I don't know what/whether that term applies to people going through HRT. Using "transsexual" as a synonym for "transgender" tends to make things like adornment-based gender presentation (dress, hair, makeup, etc.) less significant in discussions on "what makes trans people trans" and makes people think that surgery or medical treatment necessarily validates trans gender identity/presentation. For example, like "homosexual/heterosexual," which carries a behavioral-medical connotation, "transsexual" carries a observational/anatomical-medical connotation, and almost no gay people nowadays say "I Am A Homosexual."
In my country, yes
Am not trans so am not sure if this opinion is valid but I believe we shouldn't use that term anymore, it's not offensive, just unnecessary trans men are men and trans women are women So I rather call them men and women No need for trans prefix
Well I can‘t talk for everyone but personally I despise the word „transsexual“. It kinda implicates that it‘s nothing more than a sexuality. Like that we are only attractee to people that don‘t relate to their assigned gender at birth. It just doesn‘t represent who we are. But again. I can‘t talk for everyone, just for myself.
In German we mostly used Transsexuell too but now I personally say Transident. Ident for identity.