In Thebes, the origin story of Atum the Creator involved Earth and sky's division into Seth & Nephthys, a third gender; both non-binary, by nature.
In Greek and Roman antiquity,
there ruled a Goddess named Cybele,
whose followers transitioned, famously, from male into females.
Ugandans, once upon a time, raged against restrictive gender norms, as priests and Teso tribesmen preferred prints made for the women in their homes
Adoration filled the eagle-eyed Indigenous tribes in pre-colonial times,
as they celebrated sacred two-spirits who enhanced their lives.
Hijras have existed, in India, for as long as the festival of lights,
but it wasn't until this century
that they earned economic rights.
When Joyita Mondal was elected India's first transgender judge, bangles clinked in thunderous applause. Determined to aid her sisters, she abolished trans-exclusionary laws.
Throughout the his and hers-tory
of the world to date,
of the world to date,
our gentle, gender variant friends
were visible, and loved.
It wasn't until religion won that
they were forced into prisons.
What good is false piety,
if all it does is inflict pain?
Why can't these wicked men
see their prayers are pointless,
when their palms are stained with blood?
To this day, we sidestep around inclusion in our own communities;
safe spaces only for some,
as they centre on cisnormativity.
Like false apostle wrestlers
who rarely sit and listen,
we landed in a sea of thistles,
silenced like the 'T' in 'LGBT',
and 'whistle'.
Somehow, over the muffled screams,
we have the nerve to call our cultures civilized, when just last year alone, the U.S of Assassination claimed twenty-five innocent trans-lives.
When trans-people of colour were disproportionately targeted in these attacks, when will we learn to love instead of separating white from black?
Until our politics are stripped of poisoned prejudice,
gender nonconforming folx can only
live in fear of further violence.
Unless our sisters have access to
healthcare, housing, and are gainfully employed, we cannot pretend there's progress until discrimination's been destroyed.
Give them power through our platform;
lift them up so they can stand alone;
make them feel like mighty Marsha P.
starting revolutions with a single stone.
We mustn't forget race and sex were never choices that we consciously made.
Let us fight for our most vulnerable, and
amplify their muted voices that fragile men forbade.
Let us resist until they return to their rightful places next to us once again. This civil rights movement demands the overdue acceptance of our global trans-families and friends.
We will not evolve until they can be seen without also being afraid. Only once their suffering will finally end, will we ever be able to appreciate their truth, and their transcendence.
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