🎀 Seryph (She/Her)

I use local libraries and bookstores mostly. When I’m reading comics/manga/big publisher fantasy I tend to pirate until I know that I like the series to justify the purchase. For theory I use a mix of the usual Marxists.org alongside my uni library, libgen, and Iskra’s pdf versions of their books. I also read a lot of visual novels, usually pirated until I know I like them.

I’m currently rereading two things: The Hobbit as a bit of a comfort read, and Sekien no Inganock since I never got around to finishing it and I found its steampunk mutants setting cool. Unfortunately I forgot that its first chapter’s villain is a transphobic stereotype, so I haven’t continued it for the past few days. Although I’ll probably push through anyways cuz the vibes are so good.

For theory I’m taking a bit of a break now that my exam season is done before I restart reading theory again.

In my experience a lot of the “haha genocide” types just don’t play the game super often, which makes sense since genocidal empires are by far the least interesting playstyle.

That’s great! I hope that you feel comfortable to be your authentic self soon.

They’re a man or woman now

This is why, this statement means that you don’t view trans people who haven’t “finished transitioning” as their actual gender. This is a transphobic and pretty reductive understanding of how transition works (albeit one that some trans people hold themselves, usually transmeds). I won’t write an entire essay on why but here’s just a small bit to chew on: consider that a “finished transition” is very different from person to person and some people might never consider it finished. Some people only want to socially transition, others have to medicate for their entire lives, both could consider reaching their ideal state “finished” or they could consider it a continual work in progress.

Also,

This isn’t defense, this behavior actively makes things worse for trans people.

The idea that pointing out someone’s transphobia will somehow support the transphobes is laughable. If being called out is seriously enough to make someone stop supporting trans people then their support was conditional and only surface-level.

Staying civil, as you suggest, is what actually helps conservatives since it allows their views to go unchallenged when their views are bad and should be challenged. Part of this includes challenging people who may think they are supportive but harbour transphobic beliefs that they haven’t analysed fully. And these wrong beliefs can have actual harm. As a simple example, there are a lot of “allies” who say that trans people are their gender but not their sex, which is a belief that can harm trans people when brought into a medical context where our bodies are (if on HRT) closer to those of our actual gender than to our AGAB.