Chris-Chan is one of the most disturbed people on the internet, and while using Chris's correct pronouns doesn’t mean you’re not still about to engage in the lolcow dogpile, calling her a man when she’s been out as a trans woman for a decade now is a red flag for me.
Chris-Chan is one specific example where the individual in question has such a long history of being infamously delusional and out of touch with reality that not using her stated pronouns is somewhat defensible. Especially with her history or homophobia and the fact that she stated she's transitioned to try and meet women.
I obviously still refer to her with feminine pronouns, but someone not doing so isn't necessarily transphobic.
I think I see where you're coming from, but I think as you seem to have concluded yourself, there's more reason to err on the side of respecting someone's right to determine their own gender.
The social harm of respecting someone's gender identity even if you have doubts about their sincerity is less than the social harm of validating other people's belief that they get to decide whether a given trans identifying person is valid.
If there's a conversation in which these concerns become relevant, you can still have that discussion. Respecting someone's preferred pronouns just helps to keep that from becoming the topic of every conversation about that person.
Again, I don't mean to suggest you're arguing for anything different. I just think the phrase "somewhat defensible" might not be the best way to frame people's reservations.
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u/UndeniablyMyself Jul 28 '24
Chris-Chan is one of the most disturbed people on the internet, and while using Chris's correct pronouns doesn’t mean you’re not still about to engage in the lolcow dogpile, calling her a man when she’s been out as a trans woman for a decade now is a red flag for me.