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Transgender History: The Roots of Today's Revolution
A timely second edition of the classic text on transgender history, with a new introduction and updated material throughout
Covering American transgender history from the mid-twentieth century to today, Transgender History takes a chronological approach to the subject of transgender history, with each chapter covering major movements, writings, and events. Chapters cover the transsexual and transvestite communities in the years following World War II; trans radicalism and social change, which spanned from 1966 with the publication of The Transsexual Phenomenon, and lasted through the early 1970s; the mid-’70s to 1990-the era of identity politics and the changes witnessed in trans circles through these years; and the gender issues witnessed through the ’90s and ’00s.
Transgender History includes informative sidebars highlighting quotes from major texts and speeches in transgender history and brief biographies of key players, plus excerpts from transgender memoirs and discussion of treatments of transgenderism in popular culture.
Covering American transgender history from the mid-twentieth century to today, Transgender History takes a chronological approach to the subject of transgender history, with each chapter covering major movements, writings, and events. Chapters cover the transsexual and transvestite communities in the years following World War II; trans radicalism and social change, which spanned from 1966 with the publication of The Transsexual Phenomenon, and lasted through the early 1970s; the mid-’70s to 1990-the era of identity politics and the changes witnessed in trans circles through these years; and the gender issues witnessed through the ’90s and ’00s.
Transgender History includes informative sidebars highlighting quotes from major texts and speeches in transgender history and brief biographies of key players, plus excerpts from transgender memoirs and discussion of treatments of transgenderism in popular culture.
320 pages, Audiobook
First published May 6, 2008
734 people are currently reading
19348 people want to read
About the author
Susan Stryker
46 books315 followersSusan O'Neal Stryker is an American professor, author, filmmaker, and theorist whose work focuses on gender and human sexuality. She is an associate professor of Gender and Women's Studies at the University of Arizona, and is the director of the university's Institute for LGBT Studies. She has served as a visiting professor at Harvard University, University of California, Santa Cruz, and Simon Fraser University. She is an openly lesbian trans woman who has produced a significant body of work about transgenderism and queer culture.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 642 reviews
October 23, 2021
Historians believe that the Cooper Do-nut Riot in 1959 was the first modern LGBTQ uprising in the US (a decade before Stonewall). Police officers demanded identification from trans people on the streets of Los Angeles as a way to arrest them for sex work, vagrancy, loitering, and “so-called nuisance crimes” (77). It was illegal in LA for a person’s gender presentation to not match the gender shown on their ID. Gay bars would often ban trans people from entering out of fear of police persecution. On one night in May 1959, police started to arrest community members who were hanging out at Cooper Do-nuts (including the novelist John Rechy). People began to throw coffee, donuts, cups, and trash at the police, causing them to flee without making the arrests. People took to the streets and the police came and barricaded the street, making many arrests.
In April 1965 Dewey’s – a lunch counter and late-night coffeehouse in Philadelphia – started to refuse service to “masculine women, ‘feminine men,’ and people in “nonconformist clothing,” claiming that “gay kids” were driving away business. On April 25, more than 150 people were turned away. Three teenagers refused to leave and were arrested and found guilty on misdemanor charges of disorderly conduct. For the next week, community members set up a picket line at the restaurant and protested the establishment’s treatment of gender non-conforming youth.
On May 2 activists staged a site in which eventually led to the management promising “an immediate cessation of all indiscriminate denials of service” (78). The Janus Society, Philadelphia’s main LGBTQ organization, issued a statement saying: “There is a tendency to be concerned with the rights of homosexuals as long as they somehow appear to be heterosexual. The masculine woman and the feminine man are often looked down upon…What is offensive today we have seen become the style of tomorrow…there is no reason to penalize non-conformist behavior” (79).
In August 1966 trans women and drag queens were hanging around Compton’s Cafeteria in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco late at night. Because many gay bars explicitly banned drag queens and trans women, the Cafeteria was one of the only places they could hang out (especially after seeing sex work clients). The management called the police on a group of community members. A police officer came and tried to arrest a queen. She threw coffee in his face and the whole community started to throw trash and silverware at the police. Customers turned over tables, smashed windows, and led a march onto the streets. Drag queens “beat the police with their heavy purses and sharp stiletto heels” (80) as police wagons came to arrest them.
The next day, more community members returned to picket Compton’s and smash the windows again. Compton’s business declined after the riot and it closed in 1972. No mainstream San Francisco newspapers covered the story and police reports have “conveniently disappeared” (82). Felicia “Flames” Elizondo, a trans participat at the riot, exclaimed, “A lot of people thought we were sick, mental trash. Nobody cared whether we lived or died. Our own families abandoned us and we had nowhere to go.” In 2017 the City of San Francisco recognized the Compton’s Transgender Cultural District (the world’s first legally recognized trans district). To learn more about this riot watch the documentary Screaming Queensi (2005).
The LGBTQ movement in this country began as a protest against police brutality. The only way that LGBTQ people were able to secure safety and rights was through protest and direct action. It was BIPOC trans women and drag queens – the people who marginalized even within the LGBTQ community – who resisted first and secured freedom that everyone else could enjoy.
In April 1965 Dewey’s – a lunch counter and late-night coffeehouse in Philadelphia – started to refuse service to “masculine women, ‘feminine men,’ and people in “nonconformist clothing,” claiming that “gay kids” were driving away business. On April 25, more than 150 people were turned away. Three teenagers refused to leave and were arrested and found guilty on misdemanor charges of disorderly conduct. For the next week, community members set up a picket line at the restaurant and protested the establishment’s treatment of gender non-conforming youth.
On May 2 activists staged a site in which eventually led to the management promising “an immediate cessation of all indiscriminate denials of service” (78). The Janus Society, Philadelphia’s main LGBTQ organization, issued a statement saying: “There is a tendency to be concerned with the rights of homosexuals as long as they somehow appear to be heterosexual. The masculine woman and the feminine man are often looked down upon…What is offensive today we have seen become the style of tomorrow…there is no reason to penalize non-conformist behavior” (79).
In August 1966 trans women and drag queens were hanging around Compton’s Cafeteria in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco late at night. Because many gay bars explicitly banned drag queens and trans women, the Cafeteria was one of the only places they could hang out (especially after seeing sex work clients). The management called the police on a group of community members. A police officer came and tried to arrest a queen. She threw coffee in his face and the whole community started to throw trash and silverware at the police. Customers turned over tables, smashed windows, and led a march onto the streets. Drag queens “beat the police with their heavy purses and sharp stiletto heels” (80) as police wagons came to arrest them.
The next day, more community members returned to picket Compton’s and smash the windows again. Compton’s business declined after the riot and it closed in 1972. No mainstream San Francisco newspapers covered the story and police reports have “conveniently disappeared” (82). Felicia “Flames” Elizondo, a trans participat at the riot, exclaimed, “A lot of people thought we were sick, mental trash. Nobody cared whether we lived or died. Our own families abandoned us and we had nowhere to go.” In 2017 the City of San Francisco recognized the Compton’s Transgender Cultural District (the world’s first legally recognized trans district). To learn more about this riot watch the documentary Screaming Queensi (2005).
The LGBTQ movement in this country began as a protest against police brutality. The only way that LGBTQ people were able to secure safety and rights was through protest and direct action. It was BIPOC trans women and drag queens – the people who marginalized even within the LGBTQ community – who resisted first and secured freedom that everyone else could enjoy.
September 1, 2014
A history of trans people that's actually mostly about trans people?? Perposterous! Contextualizing trans history within the framework of broader human history? Now you've gone too far, Susan Stryker. Far too far.
November 29, 2014
I wasn't going to comment on this book at all, since I was already familiar with most of the material from elsewhere. I very much enjoyed reading it as a for-us (and our friends) by-us piece of loving activism excavating and preserving a body of stories in danger of being lost. As such it's a worthy journalistic project well executed.
On reflection though, my familiarity with trans histories made me insensitive to the urgency of that project. I really hope general readers pick this up, because trans histories need to be read and heard, to counter the the trans mythologies of white supremacist patriarchy, wherein, for instance, trans men don't exist, trans women are always extremely femme and heterosexual, and gender is read entirely through a paradigm of whiteness. From this perspective, Stryker's compilation of diverse individual and collective stories of struggle, survival, collaboration, campaigns, conflicts and mutual support, is disruptive in the best possible way.
On reflection though, my familiarity with trans histories made me insensitive to the urgency of that project. I really hope general readers pick this up, because trans histories need to be read and heard, to counter the the trans mythologies of white supremacist patriarchy, wherein, for instance, trans men don't exist, trans women are always extremely femme and heterosexual, and gender is read entirely through a paradigm of whiteness. From this perspective, Stryker's compilation of diverse individual and collective stories of struggle, survival, collaboration, campaigns, conflicts and mutual support, is disruptive in the best possible way.
December 2, 2024
This book is accessible and fairly short, but provides a rich overview of the history of trans people in public in the United States from the 1850s until the first Trump administration. Stryker outlines the increasing awareness of trans people and trans issues; the rise and fall of many different organizations and publications over the past century; the building of and challenges to medical resources and healthcare access. Two overarching threads are the relationship of trans activists to the wider gay, bi, and lesbian liberation movements, and the views of trans people within feminist thought. There were many familiar people and places here (Marsha P Johnson, Silvia Rivera, Compton's Cafeteria, the GLBT Historical Center, Lou Sullivan, Brandon Teena) and also many who were new to me (Vanguard, Reed Erickson, Dr Harry Benjamin, the NTCU, Beth Elliot). Definitely recommend it as a great starting place on trans history- look for the revised 2018 edition, which also has a nice audiobook.
January 30, 2023
(Note: this is a review of the 2018 revised second edition)
I do think this book does pretty well what it sets out to do even though it ultimately wasn't the most engaging read for me. If you are going to read this book -- which is specifically a history of trans social justice movements in the US focused on 1950 - 2016 -- skip the first chapter full of definitions. One: some of the definitions really suck, like the completely inaccurate explanation of polyamory as a synonym for bi/poly/pansexual (wtf) and the unfortunate description of bisexual as being attracted to two genders in a binary gender system (erg!!). Two: the definitions are not really relevant to the rest of the book, maybe only if you're brand new to queer, trans, and feminist politics? And in that case, don't start your reading with this book.
Anyway, the bulk of Transgender History moves chronologically through US social, political, economic, etc events and developments as they are directly part of trans social justice movements and as they are important to those movements. It spends a lot of time on second wave feminism, for example, but through the lens of how it intersected, allied with, and directly opposed trans rights work and theory. I would have liked similar treatment of the civil rights movement and fights against anti-Black racism, which Stryker doesn't go into in much detail.
This book feels like a conventional work of history in the way it tells a lot of dry facts, lists names of people and organizations, and reports events straightforwardly. I found a lot of the information very interesting -- like prior uprisings to 1969's at Stonewall in different cities that aren't as widely known or commemorated -- but the descriptions are brief and perfunctory most of the time, which left me feeling a bit let down. I think this ultimately is because Stryker is trying to fit a massive amount of complex history into a relatively short space.
I guess I prefer the type of in depth trans history that Morgan M Page does on her podcast, which she tongue in cheek describes as salacious gossip about trans people from the past (not about her, thank goodness). But I can't fault Stryker for not doing what she clearly wasn't trying to do. As a primer for major developments and setbacks in the fight for trans rights in the US, this book succeeds. I would recommend it as a starting point on the topic of US trans history, something which would hopefully lead you to seek out more about figures like Sylvia Rivera, Miss Major, and Lou Sullivan.
I do think this book does pretty well what it sets out to do even though it ultimately wasn't the most engaging read for me. If you are going to read this book -- which is specifically a history of trans social justice movements in the US focused on 1950 - 2016 -- skip the first chapter full of definitions. One: some of the definitions really suck, like the completely inaccurate explanation of polyamory as a synonym for bi/poly/pansexual (wtf) and the unfortunate description of bisexual as being attracted to two genders in a binary gender system (erg!!). Two: the definitions are not really relevant to the rest of the book, maybe only if you're brand new to queer, trans, and feminist politics? And in that case, don't start your reading with this book.
Anyway, the bulk of Transgender History moves chronologically through US social, political, economic, etc events and developments as they are directly part of trans social justice movements and as they are important to those movements. It spends a lot of time on second wave feminism, for example, but through the lens of how it intersected, allied with, and directly opposed trans rights work and theory. I would have liked similar treatment of the civil rights movement and fights against anti-Black racism, which Stryker doesn't go into in much detail.
This book feels like a conventional work of history in the way it tells a lot of dry facts, lists names of people and organizations, and reports events straightforwardly. I found a lot of the information very interesting -- like prior uprisings to 1969's at Stonewall in different cities that aren't as widely known or commemorated -- but the descriptions are brief and perfunctory most of the time, which left me feeling a bit let down. I think this ultimately is because Stryker is trying to fit a massive amount of complex history into a relatively short space.
I guess I prefer the type of in depth trans history that Morgan M Page does on her podcast, which she tongue in cheek describes as salacious gossip about trans people from the past (not about her, thank goodness). But I can't fault Stryker for not doing what she clearly wasn't trying to do. As a primer for major developments and setbacks in the fight for trans rights in the US, this book succeeds. I would recommend it as a starting point on the topic of US trans history, something which would hopefully lead you to seek out more about figures like Sylvia Rivera, Miss Major, and Lou Sullivan.
July 19, 2021
I thought this was super informative overall, but I wish it'd been longer. It feels like the author tried to keep this as short as possible which, considering how much history she manages to squeeze in, just made it feel very dense and academic like a textbook.
I was also confused by her defining bisexuality as "[desire] toward members of either gender in a binary gender system" and polysexual and polyamorous as "[desire] toward many people of different genders).” While this definition works for some bisexuals, bisexual attraction isn't strictly binary, and bi activists have been saying this for decades.
And I'm fine with that definition of polysexual, but doesn't polyamory involve romantic or sexual relationships with multiple (consenting) people at the same time, regardless of sexual orientation? Can't a polyamorous person be monosexual and a polysexual person be monogamous?
I was also confused by her defining bisexuality as "[desire] toward members of either gender in a binary gender system" and polysexual and polyamorous as "[desire] toward many people of different genders).” While this definition works for some bisexuals, bisexual attraction isn't strictly binary, and bi activists have been saying this for decades.
And I'm fine with that definition of polysexual, but doesn't polyamory involve romantic or sexual relationships with multiple (consenting) people at the same time, regardless of sexual orientation? Can't a polyamorous person be monosexual and a polysexual person be monogamous?
July 11, 2016
cons: published in 2008, so the language is a bit dated – in part because the movement has already changed so dramatically in the last 7 years. like– the author is clearly writing from her perspective, through her lens, in differentiating between one's "sex" (genitals) and gender. that differentiation has come under some very valid criticism in recent years (ex), and that's something to keep in mind. as much as this text is a chronicle of history, it doesn't exist outside of it, either.
pros: EVERYTHING ELSE!! this was the first text i've read that's so comprehensively summarized a movement – and still in a nuanced way! stryker traces the movement's roots back to counter-culture, the civil rights movement, gay liberation, and also details how those relationships/roots were always, always fraught – because of transphobia. i found the section on transphobia within the 2nd wave feminist movement especially visceral. that kind of gender essentialist language is still being used today by trans-exclusionary feminists.
this was a really, really great text. i'm glad i read it.
pros: EVERYTHING ELSE!! this was the first text i've read that's so comprehensively summarized a movement – and still in a nuanced way! stryker traces the movement's roots back to counter-culture, the civil rights movement, gay liberation, and also details how those relationships/roots were always, always fraught – because of transphobia. i found the section on transphobia within the 2nd wave feminist movement especially visceral. that kind of gender essentialist language is still being used today by trans-exclusionary feminists.
this was a really, really great text. i'm glad i read it.
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October 23, 2024
“When trans and gender-nonconforming lives are lived joyously and unapologetically in plain sight or their hard truths and dangers are spoken out loud, when the knowledge that comes from living those lives is channeled into music and dance, written about and written from, played with and fantasized over, when their beauty and weirdness, their sharp edges and dark recesses are creatively explored and collectively experienced, that is equally as important as heavy political activism.”
Queer History Month has been GIVING.
A little dated, but overall very, very good (check out the 2018 revised edition).
Queer History Month has been GIVING.
A little dated, but overall very, very good (check out the 2018 revised edition).
May 6, 2021
I'm gonna go ahead and start this review with the fact that I rate based on personal enjoyment, not necessarily how worthwhile a book is. I didn't realize quite how academic this book was going in and I don't usually read academic books. So I did struggle quite a bit with the overall tone and writing style.
The other main thing I struggled with was how short it was. I read an ebook version so when I initially picked it up, I didn't realize that it's only about 200 pages long. Considering it covers about a hundred years of history, that's not very much time to delve into anything discussed. It's brief and only highlights the most important moments, movements, and people.
However, that is kind of the nature of this book. It's only meant to be a short introduction to the history of transgender people in America, and it succeeds very well. I think it's a great jumping off point if you're looking to start your education and I found reading it to be quite worthwhile. I could never get through more than a couple pages at a time, but I did so much appreciate it.
So in short, maybe don't expect this to be the greatest thing you'll read, but I do think it's a good one to start learning.
Additional note: The ebook version I read had a few issues in terms of formatting. Granted I do read on my phone, so that may have been it. But I'd recommend looking for a physical copy if you're able. Still perfectly readable, though.
The other main thing I struggled with was how short it was. I read an ebook version so when I initially picked it up, I didn't realize that it's only about 200 pages long. Considering it covers about a hundred years of history, that's not very much time to delve into anything discussed. It's brief and only highlights the most important moments, movements, and people.
However, that is kind of the nature of this book. It's only meant to be a short introduction to the history of transgender people in America, and it succeeds very well. I think it's a great jumping off point if you're looking to start your education and I found reading it to be quite worthwhile. I could never get through more than a couple pages at a time, but I did so much appreciate it.
So in short, maybe don't expect this to be the greatest thing you'll read, but I do think it's a good one to start learning.
Additional note: The ebook version I read had a few issues in terms of formatting. Granted I do read on my phone, so that may have been it. But I'd recommend looking for a physical copy if you're able. Still perfectly readable, though.
December 6, 2020
This book is a U.S.-based history of gender non-conformity. And since I was born and raised in this country, reading this book had me excavating my past. Stryker has produced a fantastic short book on the subject. While I disagree with some of her characterizations (especially when she talked about music), I just couldn't stop reading. Like most books that attempt to cover everything up to the present, it got marginally weaker towards the end. I'm assuming that this is because we simply don't have enough perspective to make much sense of what's happening. I would have traded a more thorough dissection of, say, Gender Critical / TERF discourse and its odd alliance with the Christian Right than the quick run-through of all of the famous trans people and recent court cases, but that's just my preference.
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March 18, 2017This is a really good primer on US transgender history focused on the past fifty years or so and showcasing prominent figures alongside pivotal movements. Stryker does a really good job of contextualizing the political battles and the attendant conflicts/betrayals of the larger queer community and the feminist movements.
Nuanced, readable, eminently informative: highly recommended.
Nuanced, readable, eminently informative: highly recommended.
October 26, 2018
fantastic and engaging, though i’m pretty disappointed that the definition given for bisexuality in the opening chapter is the “attraction to two binary genders” nonsense
January 22, 2025
this book accomplishes its goal of contextualizing the current struggle of transgender people and providing a historical context. as the conclusion (re)states, the arc of the moral universe bends towards justice, and that is helpful to remember in a dark moment when the direction of this country for the next four years will almost certainly bring major setbacks and tragedy to the trans community.
I learned a lot about how trans issues have intersected and at times contrasted with gay and lesbian issues broadly, and how influential trans thinkers and activists paved the way for transgender people today. I learned about intersex people, and I feel that their existence almost necessarily validates the idea of a broad, dynamic, and inclusive gender spectrum — contrary to the rhetoric of our current president and other right-wing psychos. I learned that the current TERF movement sort of led by JK Rowling unfortunately has a historical basis dating back to earlier waves of feminism, and take cold comfort in the fact that it’s a minority view among feminists.
I hope to be able to learn and do more for the movement in the coming years.
I learned a lot about how trans issues have intersected and at times contrasted with gay and lesbian issues broadly, and how influential trans thinkers and activists paved the way for transgender people today. I learned about intersex people, and I feel that their existence almost necessarily validates the idea of a broad, dynamic, and inclusive gender spectrum — contrary to the rhetoric of our current president and other right-wing psychos. I learned that the current TERF movement sort of led by JK Rowling unfortunately has a historical basis dating back to earlier waves of feminism, and take cold comfort in the fact that it’s a minority view among feminists.
I hope to be able to learn and do more for the movement in the coming years.
April 10, 2023
It's hard to sum up a people's history in a few sentences so I won't try to with this review. If you want to read about militant direct actions by transgender folks pre-Stonewall, the perseverance, happiness, solidarity, comfort, creativity, and joy the transgender community adds to all cisgender and LGBTQIA+ communities alike (which we should be ashamed of not returning to transgender folks much of the time), academics and achievements, and the monumental obstacles transgender are forced to fight against every day simply to exist - then read this book.
February 2, 2025
This was an excellent introduction to not only trans history in the United States but also the broader queer movement. In the wake of all the shit happening in the world these days, it was heartening to read about generations of trans people fighting against a world that wanted to erase them. We've always existed and always will.
July 11, 2020
This should really be called Transgender History in the U.S.
August 9, 2021
Transgender History es precisamente lo que promete ser: un libro de historia trans desde el s. XIX hasta la actualidad en Estados Unidos. Escrito por Susan Stryker, profesora de estudios de Género y de la Mujer (y mujer trans), el texto comienza con un fantástico capítulo sólo de términos que se utilizarán continuamente y sus definiciones. A partir de entonces, Stryker estudia cronológicamente la realidad de las personas trans en su contexto histórico y social: desde los últimos compases de la modernidad, pasando por las dos guerras mundiales, la guerra de Vietnam, la Guerra Fría, la crisis del SIDA, hasta las últimas dos presidencias en la Casa Blanca.
El libro presta especial atención eventos de insurrección como el disturbio en Compton’s Cafeteria y Stonewall, y a los movimientos activistas de liberación, quienes han conseguido el reconocimiento de derechos de las personas trans. Lo que más interesante me ha parecido del libro es la evolución de los movimientos feministas, gay y queers, y su trans-inclusión o trans-exclusión. Desde el comienzo de estos movimientos (se dan al aumentar la población de núcleos urbanos), las luchas mencionadas convergían en metas conjuntas: sufragio, despenalizar por vestir ropa “del sexo opuesto”, despatologización de la homosexualidad y de la identidad de género diferente a la asignada al nacer (o, antes de surgir esta terminología, despenalizar una expresión de género más amplia o inhabitual). En el momento en que movimientos LGB consiguieron la despenalización de la homosexualidad (1973), muchos de estos divergieron del activismo trans (al que aún le quedaba mucho por conseguir: cambio de identidad legal, acceso a sanidad, despatologización, protección laboral, etc), y dichas comunidades LGB en gran medida optaron por normalizar y asimilar una expresión de género CIS que les permitiera vivir mejor en la sociedad.
Podría seguir escribiendo sobre el contenido del libro, pero es mejor que lo leáis directamente, porque merece muchísimo la pena.
El libro presta especial atención eventos de insurrección como el disturbio en Compton’s Cafeteria y Stonewall, y a los movimientos activistas de liberación, quienes han conseguido el reconocimiento de derechos de las personas trans. Lo que más interesante me ha parecido del libro es la evolución de los movimientos feministas, gay y queers, y su trans-inclusión o trans-exclusión. Desde el comienzo de estos movimientos (se dan al aumentar la población de núcleos urbanos), las luchas mencionadas convergían en metas conjuntas: sufragio, despenalizar por vestir ropa “del sexo opuesto”, despatologización de la homosexualidad y de la identidad de género diferente a la asignada al nacer (o, antes de surgir esta terminología, despenalizar una expresión de género más amplia o inhabitual). En el momento en que movimientos LGB consiguieron la despenalización de la homosexualidad (1973), muchos de estos divergieron del activismo trans (al que aún le quedaba mucho por conseguir: cambio de identidad legal, acceso a sanidad, despatologización, protección laboral, etc), y dichas comunidades LGB en gran medida optaron por normalizar y asimilar una expresión de género CIS que les permitiera vivir mejor en la sociedad.
Podría seguir escribiendo sobre el contenido del libro, pero es mejor que lo leáis directamente, porque merece muchísimo la pena.
October 4, 2025
In the last chapter of this book, Stryker writes “trans people have a long record of survival in a world that is often hostile to us.” This is a remarkable text that traces trans and gender non-conforming history in the United States from early America through the present. It is particularly strong in its treatment of the latter 19th century and the 20th century. Stryker shows that transness has a long historical precedent and that trans activism has persisted for at least a century. An incredible, accessible book that is a must-read for anyone interested in queer studies and history.
November 22, 2022
This is a well-researched guide to the history of the people, the issues and organizations that have shaped the US transgender community since the 19th century. It makes the reader aware of the struggles this movement has faced: attacks from all sides of the political spectrum, its people invisible for many years, marginalized and vulnerable to violence and neglect from government protection.
The book is written in an accessible language and even includes a chapter on terms and concepts that even though it reads like a dictionary it's essential for readers to understand the reality that trans* people experience.
I liked how it made me change the way I perceive transgender history. I was already familiar with gender dysphoria (GD) but I understood this to be a pathological condition or medical disorder instead of simply being another way of existing as a human. I now understand that medical institutions have a big role in dictating what's "healthy" and "sick" with deep consequences to the lives of those considered to be "sick". This on the surface it's not really an unreasonable thing, but historically the medical institutions in the US have used their status to legitimize discrimination against minorities, starting with eugenics and trying to "prove" that there is a race hierarchy with brown and black people at the bottom.
I love how the book gives you a clear path forward so that the reader themself can make history by participating in this movement. We still have ways to go, and we can improve access to health services, human rights, civic rights to employment and id services and learning the history.
I really appreciate the extensive list of resources at the end of the book I will keep that as a reference for further reading.
Overall this is an invaluable resource for me to know more about transgender issues. If you want to be in the right side of history and be an ally, I urge you to read this so you can be well informed.
The book is written in an accessible language and even includes a chapter on terms and concepts that even though it reads like a dictionary it's essential for readers to understand the reality that trans* people experience.
I liked how it made me change the way I perceive transgender history. I was already familiar with gender dysphoria (GD) but I understood this to be a pathological condition or medical disorder instead of simply being another way of existing as a human. I now understand that medical institutions have a big role in dictating what's "healthy" and "sick" with deep consequences to the lives of those considered to be "sick". This on the surface it's not really an unreasonable thing, but historically the medical institutions in the US have used their status to legitimize discrimination against minorities, starting with eugenics and trying to "prove" that there is a race hierarchy with brown and black people at the bottom.
I love how the book gives you a clear path forward so that the reader themself can make history by participating in this movement. We still have ways to go, and we can improve access to health services, human rights, civic rights to employment and id services and learning the history.
I really appreciate the extensive list of resources at the end of the book I will keep that as a reference for further reading.
Overall this is an invaluable resource for me to know more about transgender issues. If you want to be in the right side of history and be an ally, I urge you to read this so you can be well informed.
March 10, 2024
As a trans man myself, this book taught me A LOT about my own history. It does a seemingly good job of highlighting the specific issues faced by trans people of color, though I urge anyone reading to take this with a grain of salt as I'm white (as is the author) so I could be ignorant to things it may be overlooking. Overall, it's well-written and informative. I'm a mental health professional and I've recommended this book to my coworkers twice now in hopes that they will better understand the issues faced by my community.
April 24, 2021
look at me reading things unrelated to class during school ,, yay. this book was good! a very readable and introductory history of trans organizing in the USA, it was rly great! really loved the sections on the 50s and the 80s/90s since it was lesser known to me than the slightly more remembered marsha p johnson & sylvia rivera revolutionary action in the 60s and the compton cafeteria riot. also the little excerpts of diary entries and primary source materials are always so incredible ... the letters written by jenny, a transfeminine person who lived in the mid/late 1800s?? think about them all the time !! good book and again very easy to read
December 24, 2023
Reading the history of key moments in the recognition of trans people as legitimate expresses of humanity both from a scientific and political perspective was very moving. From early research and trans surgeries being burned by the Nazis to the political struggle for recognition of equal humanity, in many ways history is repeating itself in these past few years. The battle for trans rights and liberation continues. Something I personally was heartened by was the mentioning of how Christians at Glide Memorial United Methodist Church in the 60s played an important role in supporting and caring for trans people during the struggle for rights. May their lives serve as a testimony of Christ that we continue in.
December 27, 2020
A very interesting and important book
December 27, 2023
Liked quite a bit but was a little more academic than I was expecting. Learned SO much which was really what I’d hoped. Very dry read but packed full of detailed information.
May 30, 2018
Comprehensive overview of trans liberation movements with a moving final chapter.
October 1, 2024
I can very clearly tell that a lot of love went into writing this book Author Susan Stryker obviously cares very much for the topic at hand and because of that, collated such a wealth of information in this, it’s incredibly impressive.
Unfortunately the format of this didn’t work for me personally. It was very reminiscent of reading a text book (hence why it took me just over 2 years to finish this). Nevertheless, I learned some very valuable things about the trans movement.
Unfortunately the format of this didn’t work for me personally. It was very reminiscent of reading a text book (hence why it took me just over 2 years to finish this). Nevertheless, I learned some very valuable things about the trans movement.
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May 25, 2023Afgezien van een interessant verhaal over de geschiedenis van voornamelijk trans activisme in Amerika, drie (voor mij) belangrijke punten/ideeën die ik uit het boek heb gehaald:
1. Transgender-zijn niet alleen maar als “man naar vrouw” of “vrouw naar man” maar als transgressie van geslacht. Transgender-zijn als: de vrijheid nemen om buiten geslachtsnormen te leven. (Daarmee niet zeggend dat iedereen die buiten geslachtsnormen leeft zich meteen als transgender moet identificeren).
2. Over het lichaam als een vaartuig om identiteit uit te drukken. Gender-gerelateerde lichaamsmodificaties zijn simpelweg een van die manieren om identiteit uit drukken (echter, meer gepolitiseerd dan andere manieren).
“[A]lthough bodies are certainly different from one another, it's what we do with those bodies, how we use and transform those bodies, that is often even more important in making us who we are than what we're born with. All human bodies are modified bodies: they are bodies that diet and exercise, that get pierced and tattooed, whose feet get shaped by the kind of shoes they wear. Shaping, styling, and moving the body to present oneself to others in a particular way is a fundamental part of human cultures — such an important part that it's virtually impossible to practice any kind of body modification without other members of society having an opinion aboutwhether the practice is good or bad, or right or wrong, depending on how or why one does it. Everything from cutting one's nails to cutting off one's leg falls somewhere on a spectrum of moral or ethical judgment. Consequently, many members of society have strong feelings and opinions about practices deemed to be "transgender" body modifications, often disparaging them as "unnatural," even though cultivating a particular style of embodiment to express identity is something we all do in some fashion.”
3. Het voorbij moeten gaan aan het willen vinden van oorzaken of verklaringen van transgender gevoelens (ook bij jezelf). In de woorden van de auteur (zelf transgender):
“I didn't have any good explanation for those feelings when I was younger, and after a lifetime of reflection and study I'm still open-minded about how best to explain them. Not that I feel the need to explain them in order to justify my existence. I know only that those feelings persist no matter what. I know that they make me who I am to myself, whatever other people may feel about me or do toward me for having them.”
1. Transgender-zijn niet alleen maar als “man naar vrouw” of “vrouw naar man” maar als transgressie van geslacht. Transgender-zijn als: de vrijheid nemen om buiten geslachtsnormen te leven. (Daarmee niet zeggend dat iedereen die buiten geslachtsnormen leeft zich meteen als transgender moet identificeren).
2. Over het lichaam als een vaartuig om identiteit uit te drukken. Gender-gerelateerde lichaamsmodificaties zijn simpelweg een van die manieren om identiteit uit drukken (echter, meer gepolitiseerd dan andere manieren).
“[A]lthough bodies are certainly different from one another, it's what we do with those bodies, how we use and transform those bodies, that is often even more important in making us who we are than what we're born with. All human bodies are modified bodies: they are bodies that diet and exercise, that get pierced and tattooed, whose feet get shaped by the kind of shoes they wear. Shaping, styling, and moving the body to present oneself to others in a particular way is a fundamental part of human cultures — such an important part that it's virtually impossible to practice any kind of body modification without other members of society having an opinion aboutwhether the practice is good or bad, or right or wrong, depending on how or why one does it. Everything from cutting one's nails to cutting off one's leg falls somewhere on a spectrum of moral or ethical judgment. Consequently, many members of society have strong feelings and opinions about practices deemed to be "transgender" body modifications, often disparaging them as "unnatural," even though cultivating a particular style of embodiment to express identity is something we all do in some fashion.”
3. Het voorbij moeten gaan aan het willen vinden van oorzaken of verklaringen van transgender gevoelens (ook bij jezelf). In de woorden van de auteur (zelf transgender):
“I didn't have any good explanation for those feelings when I was younger, and after a lifetime of reflection and study I'm still open-minded about how best to explain them. Not that I feel the need to explain them in order to justify my existence. I know only that those feelings persist no matter what. I know that they make me who I am to myself, whatever other people may feel about me or do toward me for having them.”
December 8, 2008
This book is not exactly what I was expecting, which was both a good and a bad thing. I went into it thinking it would be a fairly general overview of trans history in the united states; what it is, is actually a somewhat more idiosyncratic history of trans social justice activism in the united states. on the plus side: i thought such a brief book would cover mostly basic info that was already familiar to me, but instead i got a wealth of fascinating info that isn't really very widely available. (i actually have an academic certificate in lgbt studies, and had never learned of the protests at Dewey's before reading this book.) on the down side: it's wayyyy to short to do a good job at what it is! also: arguably weighted much more towards MTF than FTM activism (which Stryker somewhat speciously argues is because FTM activism just didn't exist as much). and she needs to be clearer about the scope of the book: this is NOT a history of trans people in the US, more of their activism - and that leaves out a lot of lives.
Susan Stryker is an exceptionally well-informed person and I was glad to see that she wrote this book. It is a quick, fun read, and as they say, perhaps it is best to leave them wanting more.
Susan Stryker is an exceptionally well-informed person and I was glad to see that she wrote this book. It is a quick, fun read, and as they say, perhaps it is best to leave them wanting more.
May 19, 2016
Really good. I learnt a lot and it was helpful to read it in conjunction with Safe Space: Gay Neighborhood and the Politics of Violence. While this book is specifically about transgender history rather than the LGBT movement in general it talks about many of the same organisations that have been involved in LGBT activism in the US during the last 100 years. My main criticism of Safe Space was that it often didn't spend a lot of time talking about trans women and their relationships to these organisations and the mainstream movement. This book obviously did that, giving me a much better understanding of how some of these organizations failed to address their concerns and as Stryker notes several times, to understand the ways in which a transgender identity differed from a sexual orientation as well as the misconception of how they were alike.
That said, I think Safe Spaces was much better at talking about race and class as one of its main goals was to place LGBT activism within the context of shifting liberal and neoliberal policies.
That said, I think Safe Spaces was much better at talking about race and class as one of its main goals was to place LGBT activism within the context of shifting liberal and neoliberal policies.
March 25, 2016
Much better than I expected! Not terribly detailed, but does a really good job of putting people and organizations like Harry Benjamin, Sharon Stone, and ACT UP in context for their times. I also appreciated the bit at the end where the origins of queer theory are outlined, although the terminology started to go a little over my head. (I'm embarrassed to admit I used to get Sharon Stone and Susan Stryker confused before reading this book... they have the same initials, dammit. Now I won't, though, because one of the last gray-boxed "asides" is an interesting snippet of Stryker's interview of Stone.)
"Transgender history" might be a misnomer: it's unapologetically focused on the U.S. history of transgender activism in the last century. But considering that that's where the Western word/concept of transgender mostly arose and developed, the choice makes more sense than trying to sweep what the West perceives as gender variance in non-Western cultures under the umbrella, and trying to extend the term backwards in time to people who didn't live in the same world we do.
"Transgender history" might be a misnomer: it's unapologetically focused on the U.S. history of transgender activism in the last century. But considering that that's where the Western word/concept of transgender mostly arose and developed, the choice makes more sense than trying to sweep what the West perceives as gender variance in non-Western cultures under the umbrella, and trying to extend the term backwards in time to people who didn't live in the same world we do.
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