Finnoula Hughes, Activist
How are you feeling today?
This is my first year out as trans at Pride so I’m just feeling independent and incredible
Did you get the procedure done?
So that’s the thing, questions like that are not appropriate to ask trans people. Most trans people are uncomfortable about speaking about that. Being trans is just identifying with a certain “gender” you weren’t assigned at birth with.
A lot of people don’t know “trans” etiquette and what’s appropriate to say to trans people about their sexuality and how you react to them so that was my mistake by asking you. There needs to be some vulnerability. A lot of people who are straight don’t understand it fully, like even my gay friends who haven’t transitioned don’t understand it as much as a trans person would
Definitely
I think trans people need to come together and build a community where they can set the tone of what’s appropriate for how society reacts to the “embodiment” of what being a trans person is
Correct. There are organizations. The Commission on Human Rights which is a New York City agency actually does trainings on how to talk and acknowledge trans people and things to ask and not to ask.
What’s something you’ve been asked (besides what I asked) that you were very offended by?
I feel like people always say “you don’t look like you’re trans, because I’m a trans woman so mostly just being mis-gendered a lot and being called “him”
So you think these new pronouns are very important?
Defintely. That’s why they exist. Because some people don’t look like the gender they identify with
