- Ciera Thomas
Can Trans-women be Misogynistic?
Recently, Nikita Dragun, a trans-woman beauty influencer, and as of late, popstar released a single titled “D.I.C.K.” This song stirred a lot of controversy in both the cis-gender women, gay, and transgender communities. However, it wasn’t only the song that ruffled feathers but rather what transpired afterward.
Controversy isn’t anything Dragun isn’t used to. She has a past of racism, cultural appropriation, black-fishing, rude behavior, and a string of unsettling tweets she made when she was a teen. Despite that, she still has an enormous following (9 million on Instagram), tremendous support, and career opportunities even after being “canceled.”
Dragun’s music video had implied that multiple women stole her style, and in the video, the work “D. I. C. K” was stamped on multiple pictures of celebrities and influencers, one, in particular, being a rapper named Asian Doll. She was not very pleased about it because she felt that it implied that she was a man or masculine, especially considering colorist comments she has gotten before that linked her dark skin to masculinity. She retaliated and accused Dragun of stealing black culture and trying to look and act like a black girl. Dragun responded that her video was supposed to show that trans women set the trends for cis-gendered females. She later said that “black TRANS women and black GAY people gave the culture” and that she’s “never seen a cisgender female even come CLOSE to looking how [her] sisters look.” People called out Dragun for her shady acts and degrading comments towards cis-gendered women. But Asian Doll got the most flack for misgendering Dragun. A long dispute amongst both communities followed and begged the question: can trans women be misogynistic?
Of course. Anyone can be misogynistic, including women. If you have hatred or prejudice for women, you are a misogynist. One of the many quarrels cis-gendered women have with transwomen is that they reduce us to objects, specifically objects of pleasure for men and nothing more. If you look back at Dragun’s comments, she always refers to cis-gendered women as females and trans-women as women. It is very demeaning to call women females because it not only does it reduce us to objects, but it is purposely done to show disrespect. There is a slew of other problems cis-gendered women have with trans women such as attacking cis-women bodies, trivializing plights of biological women, and/ or projecting their problems with transphobic men onto cis-women.
How can transwomen be misogynistic? There is the argument that transwomen have internalized misogyny during their younger years as boys. Sexist beliefs and values don’t get washed away after you transition. If anything, it becomes a result of their insecurity and is masked as typical cattiness all women harbor (eyeroll). Unfortunately, resentment in the form of misogyny is rarely talked about in the transwomen community. It could be because they are in denial, or because doing so one has to acknowledge their differences as a trans woman, and this recognition may lengthen the gap between cis-women and transwomen relationships.
Everything that I have listed is the worst of the worst from trans-women. Of course, not all transwomen are misogynists just like how not all women are transphobes. I really just want us all to get along, respect one another, and treat each other with dignity. And, I also, want to bring awareness to the misogyny within the transwomen community that is never discussed. We need to have more conversations with one another. Maybe then we can dissipate the tension between the two groups.