“Transphobia” means fear of the other side. Remember that. “Homophobia” means fear of self (or of something similar to you). Remember that.
So, when you read a headline like, “UNIV. OF CHICAGO STUDENTS OFFENDED BY GAY ACTIVIST’S ‘TRANSPHOBIC SLUR,'” you will know to place the story in the nonsense category. (Thankfully, the publication running the piece seems to understand that the headline bespeaks nonsense.)
Note that it was a homosexual activist, Dan Savage, that offended a T-word person.
“What’s a T-word person,” you ask. Thank you. I’m dying to tell you. It really cuts to the heart of the story.
According to a first-year student and member of the LGBTQ community who asked to be identified as Hex, [homosexual activist, Dan] Savage used the slur t—– as an example in an anecdote about reclaiming words. Cox then added, “I used to make jokes about t—-ies,” audience members recounted.
Painstaking research revealed that “the slur t—–” is — hide the children’s eyes — “tranny,” of which the plural is trannies. So heinous is the word that nobody wanted to type it — hence the painstaking nature of the research.
As I was writing this, I came up with the expression “T-word” all by myself. I thought it might be original. Much to my chagrin, a commenter at the Chicago Maroon stole my thunder. His remark gives us a worrisome glimpse at the level of discourse in our American institutions if higher learning:
I can’t believe it’s frowned upon to say the N-word but saying the T-word is okay? It’s 2014 people.