re: #235 Nyet

Sure, the cases are not causally symmetrical - when a person with light skin self-identifies as black, it’s an issue of socialization rather than innate drive.

But if the end result is analogous…

The end result is not always analogous. It’s only analogous for a ‘passing’ trans person who conceals their original biological sex. In my experience, this is rare, most of my trans friends are open about having been born with the biological sex they were. It is generally important to them to identify in that way, in order to make others aware of the issue of transexuality.

If she had been honest about having been white, but identifying as black—well, like I said, I don’t think it would be accepted in the US, but it’d be a lot more analogous.

Now, there definitely are trans people who completely ‘pass’, and consider their original biological gender irrelevant and conceal it, without being dishonest, just completely invested in their gender identification. In that case, the analogy is there. I’m just saying when you open up the trans issue as an analogy you’re adding in a whole other spectrum of issues that will just be confusing rather than clarifying. As part of a discussion it’s interesting, but the analogy doesn’t clarify the situation.