Tenzin-Reflection #2

I would like to reflect on today's class discussion. Before this, I had little knowledge on the subject of Transgender. From the readings, I realized how much of a social construct sex and gender is in our society. The biological status of sex  binds us into a social contract from birth, right from the very beginning. It was a mind opening experience when I began thinking about the arguments of the readings and slowly becoming convinced that being assigned a sex was the thing that was abnormal and more so the gender expectations that exists in society. Individuals should have the right to assign their own sex as they identify. My first experience, that made me reflect on the meaning of gender was with my friend who I went to Elementary school with. This was about 2 summers ago. I hadn't seen her in a few years but she was around for the summer. We got together and I noticed her mustache. I didn't say anything but just thought to myself 'oh hey she has a mustache...that's new'. We went around the city catching up. Her mom called her on her cell phone and wanted to talk to me. Ella reluctantly handed me the phone, embarrassed and giggling. I answered 'hello' and me and her mom exchanged pleasantries. She also begged me to convince Ella to cut the mustache. She was missing the beautiful daughter that was hiding under the mustache. It was an awkward moment because I was involuntarily put in the middle of this back and forth argument. But i felt sympathy for the mother because she was unhappy. Ella explained to me that gender was something she did not believe in. She thought it was just bullshit. What it was was social constraints. She could act and present herself in the way she wanted to more easily if importance wasn't placed in such things.