That Trans Thread

[Rev. Rye]

Just to put this point into perspective for Huggy Bear, there’s a scene from Imitation of Life where the main character Sarah Jane plans to run away with her boyfriend, but there’s one flaw in the plan: Sarah Jane’s a black woman passing for white. And he’s found out. And because of this, he beats the crap out of her. He even drops an N-bomb, which is why I haven’t posted it here, but it’s easy enough to find on YouTube. “Harrowing scene from Imitation of Life”, the video’s called.

Nobody in the movie thinks this deception is justified, and even after she comes home, the adults in her life point out that it wouldn’t have happened if she stopped passing for white. But, given the prejudices against black people, especially when the movie takes place, it makes a depressing amount of sense why she kept doing it (and her mother looking like the platonic form of a Mammy stereotype doesn’t help matters.)

And, the way I see it, those trans girls not telling their boyfriends about their status as trans girls is very much the same sort of thing. Just swap out “white” for “biologically female” and you should be able to tell why they’re doing it. It’s not something I approve of, but it’s depressing how much sense it makes.