The transgender community has always been a part of Hawaiian society, where people who don't conform to the binary system of man/woman, masculine/feminine are accepted or, at minimum, tolerated.
Janet MockRead
I was a mixed black girl existing in a westernized Hawaiian culture where petite Asian women were the ideal, in a white culture where black women were furthest from the standard of beauty, in an American culture where trans women of color were invisible.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote highlights the challenges of navigating multiple cultural identities and societal beauty standards.
Janet Mock's quote reflects the complexity of her experience as a mixed-race black girl in a Westernized Hawaiian culture that idealizes petite Asian women, while also feeling marginalized in a predominantly white culture that often devalues black women. Additionally, it addresses the invisibility of trans women of color in American society, emphasizing the intersections of race, gender, and culture and the struggle for acceptance and recognition within these frameworks.
Themes
IdentityCultureBeautyRaceAcceptanceMarginalization
In practice
Example use cases
This quote would be powerful in a discussion about representation in media and beauty standards.
More from Janet Mock
All quotes →When you hear anyone policing the bodies of trans women, misgendering and othering us, and violently exiling us from spaces, you should not dismiss it as a trans issue that trans women should speak out against. You should be engaged in the dialogue, discourse, and activism that challenges the very fibers of your movement.
Janet MockRead
I am a trans woman. My sisters are trans women. We are not secrets. We are not shameful. We are worthy of respect, desire, and love. As there are many kinds of women, there are many kinds of men, and many men desire many kinds of women, trans women are amongst these women. And let’s be clear: Trans women are women.
Janet MockRead
Because trans people are marked as artificial, unnatural, and illegitimate, our bodies and identities are often open to public dissection. Plainly, cisgender folks often take it as their duty to investigate our lives to see if we're real.
Janet MockRead
Media gatekeepers - editors, publishers, film studios and the like - need to begin investing in talent behind the scenes, developing and resourcing marginalized voices to tell their own stories. At the end of the day, it's about the story and what will enable the audience to truly see, understand, and know the life and times of the subject.
Janet MockRead
Self-definition and self-determination is about the many varied decisions that we make to compose and journey toward ourselves, about the audacity and strength to proclaim, create, and evolve into who we know ourselves to be. It’s okay if your personal definition is in a constant state of flux as you navigate the world.
Janet MockRead
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