B.R. Sanders identifies as a transgender woman who wants her three-year old son to be a queer like her so she can “have a way to bond with him,” she wrote in an op-ed published Wednesday, June 28, 2017.

Sanders is in a polyamorous relationship and raises her son, Arthur, with her queer partners Jon and Samantha. She says Arthur was born a female but decided at age three that he wanted to be a boy. Sanders explained that when Arthur started presenting himself as a boy, she allowed the child to be whomever he wishes.

Sanders is not uncomfortable identifying as queer. She speaks from her perspective and believes that all genderqueer parents want their kids to be just like them. While she will accept whoever her son becomes, Sanders feels it would be strange if Arthur decided to be straight. She is not alone in her beliefs.

Sally Kohn, who is lesbian, contends that genderqueer parents want their kids to be just like them. Kohn explains she hoped her daughter would be a lesbian. She added that she feels it is normal when genderqueer parents want their kids to be just like them, according to the article Kohn wrote for The Washington Post.

Genderqueer and Transgender Explained

Gender identity refers to a person’s private sense and subjective experience of their own. A person who identifies as genderqueer typically feels that their gender identity is not categorized as either. They do not feel that the gender assignment, typically done at birth based on the infant’s external genitalia, applies to them.

Genderqueer is a relatively new term that is used by a few different groups. Some people identify as genderqueer because their identity is androgynous, says Laura Erickson Schroth.

Some genderqueer people see themselves as a combination of feminine and masculine. Others see themselves as neither. Some genderqueer folks, like Sanders, see themselves as transgender and some do not.

Whereas, most transgender people choose to live their life opposite of their sexual assignment. Transition refers to the process of adopting a social and personal identity that corresponds with that they see themselves as. Some choose to medically alter their genitalia and some do not.

Written by Tanisha Jones
Edited by Cathy Milne

Sources:

The Washington Post: I’m gay. And I want my kid to be gay, too.
Daily News Caller: ‘Genderqueer’ Parent Hopes Her Son Turns Out ‘Queer’
The New Times: Answers About Transgender Issues
Merriam-Webster: Genderqueer

Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Matt Buck’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License