BEING TRANSSEXUAL AND LIBERTARIAN: TAKING OWNERSHIP OF MY BODY

The basic principles of the libertarian philosophy are to seek to maximize political freedom and autonomy, emphasizing freedom of choice, voluntary association and individual judgment. This is why I believe that being a transsexual  woman is the most libertarian thing I could ever do in my life; and why I believe that libertarianism should appeal more to transsexual women. 

The idea that we own our bodies; that our bodies are our private property should appeal to transsexual people. This, along with the strong belief of being anti-war, was one of the key deciding factors for me on becoming a libertarian.

Individual freedom is the defining aspect of libertarianism. Being a transsexual is a radical  act of individual freedom, and being libertarian is a radical school of thought. Not only are you taking ownership of your body, but you are taking ownership of who you are.  This is who we are and we are owning it. It's nobody's business what we do with our bodies or what we put into them.  Life and the pursuit of happiness. Live and let live. We should own being libertarians just as much as we own being transsexual women.

The philosophy of individualism is the foundation of society. Libertarianism should easily attract all transgender people and gender identities. Unfortunately, I come across a lot of people who claim to be libertarian but believe that being transsexual is a “mental illness” and should not be encouraged. This line of thinking breaks to key principles of the libertarian philosophy: the non-aggression principle (NAP), and personal liberty; the belief that each and every individual is free to choose; it’s nobody’s business what anybody does with their bodies, as long as they aren’t hurting themselves. 

Libertarianism celebrates individual liberties, and being transsexual is an example of just that. Because government has acted hostile to transsexual people in the past, and still continue to do so; or more so in recent history both major parties wanting to make decisions of our lives and bodies, for better or for worse. The State continues to victimize transgender people, whether its the police profiling us as sex workers, or Donald Trump wanting to ban us from the military, or The Health and Human Services Department proposing a rule that redefines what sex means. Many government institutions refuse to allow individuals to alter gender markers, or legally change their name. Many individuals get fired from their jobs solely for being trans, forcing us to become sex workers, or other forms of incomes led by the shadow economy. Many transgender women are abused by the prison and judicial systems by being charged as men, or being in men’s prisons, often being subjected to abuse, physical and sexual assault, and solitary confinement. 

In the state of California, a defense called “trans panic”, much like the “gay panic” defense, was used in 2004–2005 by the three defendants in the Gwen Araujo homicide case, who claimed that they were enraged by the discovery that Araujo, a trans teenager with whom they had engaged in sex, had male genitalia. Following their initial suspicions about her biological sex, Araujo was "subjected to forced genital exposure in the bathroom, after which it was announced that she was 'really a man'”. The defendants claimed that Araujo's failure to disclose her biological sex was deceiving, and that the subsequent revelation of her biological sex "had provoked the violent response to what Thorman represented as a sexual violation 'so deep it's almost primal'". The first trial resulted in a jury deadlock; in the second, defendants Mike Magidson and Jose Merél were convicted of second-degree murder, while the jury again deadlocked in the case of Jason Cazares. Cazares later entered a plea of no contest to charges of voluntary manslaughter. The jury did not return the requested hate crime additions to the convictions for the defendants.

Because these are all examples of violations of personal liberties and basic civil rights, libertarians should be fighting to secure transgender rights, and libertarianism should appeal to transsexual individuals, as libertarian’s core beliefs are peace and freedom. Libertarians can play a vital role of being transsexual activists and allies. Libertarianism looks to enhance each individual person’s life, stressing freedom, dignity, individuality, and liberty. This must apply for all individuals.