Having a feminist/civil rights/pride kinda moment

After watching a documentary called "Trained in The Ways of Men", a reporter brought up some good questions.
1) Are you a man or a woman?
2) How do you know if you are a man or a woman?
3) What makes you a man or a woman?
These are all very good questions. What does it really mean to be a man or a woman? Is it what society tells to be. Would I be considered "butch" or manly because I enjoy muscle cars and getting dirty, and as a child I enjoyed playing with "boy" toys and would wrestle with the boys. Why do boys have to only play with blue toys, tractors, cars, anything "masculine". But, if a boy were to play with Barbies or want to play dress up, he would be called a fag. But this is what society has trained us to do. Why can't we all just be who we are. As a child I had both "boy" and "girl" toys. I liked the boy toys better, but this didn't effect my sexuality as some in society try to speculate.
If someone were to ask me what it means to be a woman, I wouldn't quite know how to answer. My best answer wouldn't include because I have a vagina, it would be more along the lines of the majority of what I am drawn to is female in societies eyes.
Why do we associate pink with girls and blue with boys? What genius came up with that idea? That is what started it all. When I have kids and if I have a son and he says that he wants a tutu and princess heels, then that is what he will get. I'm not going to let society choose their sexual identity, I will let them choose for themselves.
Watching that documentary reminded me of how passionate I use to be about these issues and that I need to get more involved again. People need to be more educated. Children need to be more educated on sexuality and not just in the sexual intercourse part but what it means to be gay/bi/trans. We have to end homophobia and transphobia. My heart goes out to all these folks that feel like they will never belong or are always scared to admit who they are because someone might assault them and potentially kill them.
We need more resources out there for families and friends of gay and transgender people. I wish I had the resources to open a facility to teach the community and a place for LGBT people of all ages can come to talk to counselors or even to share their stories to the younger LGBT and their families.

Just think about those three questions and try to answer them as best you can. It's harder than it seems!

                                                        

                 
 LGBT Rights
Q Center

"Straight Americans need an education of the heart and soul. They must understand - to begin with - how it can feel to spend years denying your own deepest truths, to sit silently through classes, meals, and church services while people you love toss off remarks that brutalize your soul. ~Bruce Bawer "