A Short, Incomplete Guide To Cis Privilege

This was originally posted by Danielle (YES, the Danielle whose comics I keep on posting. THAT Danielle) in the comments to Why Trans Exclusion Has No Place In Feminism, when another commenter questioned whether cis privilege is actually a thing. Just in case you were wondering:

When you come out as cis to your doctor, does he have to go away and think about if he can continue to treat you?

When you try to attend school as a cis person, do they have to inform the school board and parents to make sure they’re OK with you going there?

When everyone around you uses the term “woman”, are they almost never talking about you as a cis woman, only trans women? Talking about trans women’s biology, not yours?

Do you ever bring up cis women’s issues in a women’s group and have to worry that they no longer think of you as one of them?

Do you have to dilate your vagina, if you have one, by default?

Do you get assaulted by your family members when you tell them you’re cis?

Do you look in the mirror and wonder if you look trans enough today to get through the day without someone giving you shit?

Do you even have to come out as cis, or does everyone just assume so, because that’s what the default is?

Do you find out every day that some celebrity you loved is cisphobic and thinks you’re a monster, or a joke, or both?

Do you have to wait longer for passports as a cis woman?

Are you surrounded by trans women as a cis woman, everywhere you go, talking about womanhood as if it didn’t have you in it?

Do you have to skip reading articles because they trigger memories of cisphobic violence?

YOU HAVE CIS PRIVILEGE.

FOR FUCK SAKE.

IT’S A BIGGER DEAL THAN YOU THINK.

GROW UP.

Emphasis, by the way, is mine. And seriously, if you think that this is a comprehensive list (as opposed to something that a person threw together in a comment), then it’s time to take a serious look at your own assumptions before giving the phrase “cis privilege” a googling it’ll never forget.

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A Short, Incomplete Guide To Cis Privilege
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