Normalization can tip the scales toward hatred or acceptance. When folks see more people (especially those with influence) targeting a certain group for harassment and abuse, they will feel more inclined to join in. If those same people see others accepting that same group and treating them as “normal,” they will be more likely to join in that way. It may seem simple, but the people who want to tip the scales toward hatred are very good at anti-normalization, and the effects could not be clearer.
The nonsense issue of transgender women potentially assaulting women in restrooms was at the front of Donald Trump’s campaign for president and it f***ing worked despite being complete horses***. If transgender women were assaulting women and girls in restrooms at the rate Republicans claim it would be national news every day. Instead, they don’t even have a case they can parade around ad nauseam to damn trans people writ large. Regardless, their false attacks have dominated news cycles to the point that a young woman shot and killed herself, a fellow student, and a teacher on Monday, and conspiracies about whether or not she was trans were so pervasive the Sheriff in charge of the case had to ask people to keep their biases out of the case.
The othering of trans people is insidious, effective, and wildly dangerous. That’s why normalization is so important. When people are shown that Trans people are people and not some malevolent force but instead just people like you and me, it goes a long way. And it’s been happening in recent years! Surprisingly, one instance that comes to mind involves Netflix. Rocko’s Modern Life: Static Cling dropped on the service in 2019 and featured a character who had transitioned. The characters didn’t make a big deal about it. It was just something that happened because it is something that happens.
That’s a key aspect of the fight against trans people. It is an attempt to deny their existence. So, when Disney makes a cartoon intended for children and decides to include a transgender character and storyline portrayed by a Trans actor, that’s great! When they backpedal at the last second, that is very very bad. Win Or Lose is set to debut on Disney+ and the company revealed this week that they would be cutting a transgender storyline with the most eye-roll-inducing excuse possible. A statement read, “when it comes to animated content for a younger audience, we recognize that many parents would prefer to discuss certain subjects with their children on their own terms and timeline.”
Excuse me while I call absolute horses*** on that excuse. For starters, if people’s very existence makes parents nervous about a conversation they have to have with their kids, that’s on them. Trans people are not some confusing mystery the simple knowledge of which will send children down paths of sin and debauchery. Second, since Hulu merged with Disney+, I’ve had to explain horrific things like Ryan Murphy to my kids as they are forced to witness imagery from American Horror Story while I attempt to pull up Bluey. I doubt very much that Disney is concerned about conversations parents are having as they are caving to the culture-crazed administration about to take office.
One of the worst parts is that there is a woman at the center of this who saw a dream snatched away from her. Chanel Stewart saw a call for a transgender girl to voice a transgender character on a show all the way back in 2020. She was, of course, static. “I was exactly what they wanted to a T, and that’s why it felt so right. It felt just so right,” Stewart explained to Deadline. “I immediately asked my mom if I could do it, because I just felt like if I don’t do this, it wouldn’t make sense. You know what I mean?” Entertainment companies were doing a lot of stuff like this four years ago, and to see them go mask off recently has been troubling at the very least.
Stewart landed the role and entered into it with pride. “Oh my God, it was crazy,” the now 18-year-old Stewart explained. “I wore it as a badge. I wore it with pride. I wore it with honor because it meant so much to me. The thought of authentically portraying a transgender teenage girl made me really happy. I wanted to make this for transgender kids like me.” Yes! You can’t be what you can’t see, and if you literally don’t see yourself at all, it’s easier for a**holes to tell you you don’t exist. “I was very disheartened,” added Stewart, reflecting on her character’s identity being removed. “From the moment I got the script, I was excited to share my journey to help empower other trans youth. I knew this would be a very important conversation. Trans stories matter, and they deserve to be heard.”
To make matters worse, it appears that Stewart’s character will be cis on the show now. They’ve erased the very identity she was hired for. “It’s just that my character would now be a cis girl, a straight cis girl,” she noted. “So yeah, that’s all they really told me and that I was still a part of the show.” Regardless, Stewart is proud that she was chosen in the first place, and no one can take that from her. “I’m definitely one of the first [transgender girls] to do this!” said Stewart. “It’s a true honor to be a part of queer history.”
Ideally, people push back on the unfettered hatred which has driven anti-transgender f***s. That’s going to be harder if the people who control what we watch chip away at representation. Regardless, transgender people exist, they aren’t going anywhere, and they deserve our support.