Frequently Asked Questions

Many of these are made up (based on what I think people might ask) because not many questions have been asked yet. If you want to ask a question, please email me at us@truetranssexualfront.org.

What's the difference between "transsexual" and "transgender"?

"Transsexual" is the original term, and it refers to someone who has "gender dysphoria" and either is socially and medically transitioning, has transitioned, or desires to but cannot for some reason. Gender dysphoria is the (typically crippling) depression/distress resulting from an innate need to be the opposite sex from which they were natally assigned. However, "gender dysphoria" is, understandably, a controversial term in transmedicalist spaces, so I will just be saying "sex dysphoria" going forward, or even just "dysphoria" if the meaning is obvious in that context. While biological sex cannot be changed all the way (yet), you can get pretty close; transsexuals will get sex reassignment surgery (SRS) if possible, which refers to the surgical construction of a new set of genitalia of the sex they are transitioning to using tissue from the old set (and sometimes other parts of the body). Both sets of genitalia are homologus, which means that they're both made of the same tissue. For women, it tends to be unnoticeable (as in, it looks like the genitalia of any other woman). For men, it varies a lot more, but they can still get very good results and women can still get very bad results, which is why it's important to do research on the surgeon, such as by checking their results and reviews. It is not considered "radical gender ideology" (transgenderism) or at least not by us because radical gender ideology only hurts us. Contrary to popular belief, it does not refer to a "transgender" person who has had sex reassignment surgery.

"Transgender" was coined in the 1960s, but it only became mainstream in the 1990s, which is when it started to be used as an umbrella term that also included trans-identified people who don't have dysphoria (thus are not actually transsexual), and sometimes even crossdressers and drag queens. Typically, transgender excludes transsexuals who don't want to use the term, but this website will refer to any transsexual as "transsexual" even if they call themselves "transgender" for clarity. This website will use "transgenderism" to refer to the ideology that anyone can be whatever gender they choose (of which there are apparently infinite) with no need for dysphoria, especially when it is done in a way that harms the public image of transsexuals (which is 99% of the time), and it's generally synonymous with "radical gender ideology".

I encourage any other transsexual who is reading this but still uses the word "transgender" for themselves to stop doing so. Also, please remember that not all transsexuals are like us, and many transgender people will use the term "transsexual" even though they are not transsexual.

Is there a name for the ideology / belief system you follow?

Yes, and it's called transmedicalism. "Transmedicalist" is a wide spectrum, but it generally refers to someone who believes that you need dysphoria to be "trans" (sometimes "transsexual" is used, and sometimes "transgender" is used). A common variant is what I will call neotransmedicalism, in which supporters typically believe that "transgender" should be the word used, and they believe in two non-binary genders: duosex and nullsex, and they believe that it's possible to have "non-binary dysphoria". Another variant is "radical transmedicalism" (although it's very possible that that name was made up by a neotransmedicalist who doesn't like it), which is more like what we believe in. When I say "transmedicalist", I am generally talking about radical transmedicalists.

What does "True Transsexual Front" refer to?

It's just a play on words of the pejorative "true transsexual scum" that transgenderists use to refer to transmedicalists. We are transmedicalists and we're not ashamed of it. We do not actually condone violence; this group is for spreading awareness and pushing for law reform, not hurting people who don't agree with us.

...what is a woman? *snickers*

A woman is just an adult human female.

More than 99% of the time, that means a human being who was born female. However, it is complicated. For instance, some women are born intersex, where they might have weird sex chromosomes (for instance, XY chromosomes) or they might be missing part of their reproductive system (such as the uterus) / those parts may not work. One could say that they are sometimes an exception (as in, they technically don't fully meet the definition anymore but are still considered women, and thus are women for all intents and purposes), especially if the condition is so bad that their genitalia wasn't even recognizable at birth. Also, transsexual women who have not had sex reassignment surgery are generally exempt from needing to meet that definition as well, especially if they already pass anyway, and passing transsexual women who have had SRS are generally considered female, even biologically in a sense (even if they are obviously not as female as other women, as they lack any reproductive system since their male ones are gone and it's not possible for them to get female reproductive systems yet). Vice versa for men; a man more than 99% of the time refers to someone born male, but being born with a severe intersex condition may complicate things, and transsexual men are generally still considered to be men.

In linguistics, "female" tends to be synonymous with "woman" (or "girl" if she is still young). Thus, "transsexual women are female" is generally considered a true statement, but "post-SRS transsexual women are biologically female" is much more complicated; while it's half-true, it's also half-wrong unfortunately, until technology progresses to a point where we can transition "100%". The same applies for men.

I'm not transsexual. Why should I accept transsexuals?

Just because you're not something doesn't mean you shouldn't accept that thing. Additionally, while the main goal of this group is to help us transsexuals get our public image and rights back, we are also opposed to transgenderism.

Are you guys reactionaries?

Some of us, maybe! The True Transsexual Front is generally inclusive of anyone who supports the fight for the future of transsexuals as long as you do not spread hate in your activism.

Do you support transsexual minors medically transitioning?

Yes. Transsexual minors are still transsexuals and thus still experience sex dysphoria, which they should not be forced to suffer through. In fact, support for transsexual minors is an integral part of our movement; otherwise, it makes it look like it's a choice that only adults can make, which simply isn't true; it's hard to consider transitioning a choice when the only other option is mental anguish.

Are heterosexual transsexuals LGBT?

No. Or at least not in my opinion; the "T" in "LGBT" stands for "transgender", not "transsexual". An androphilic transsexual women is straight, and same for gynephilic transsexual men.

To you, does autogynephilia include homosexual transsexual women?

No. We generally don't fully believe in Blanchard's theory of transsexualism (however that's not to say that it's all garbage). In my eyes, an autogynephile is a man who is sexually attracted to the thought of himself as a woman, and that's all there is to it. Transsexual and non-transsexual men alike can be autogynephilic, while women cannot be.

You keep alternating between first-person singular (I, me, myself) and plural (We, us, ourselves). Are you having a stroke?

No. When I say "I", I'm referring to me, the person writing this. When I say "we", I'm referring to all of us, or just the group itself.