The transgender conversation has just begun | Nina Arsenault | TEDxToronto
Rosie, through the traditional dance *kapahaka*, powerfully illustrates the history of colonization and erasure affecting Māori culture, arguing that achieving visible rights for trans women must also involve reclaiming lost cultural authority and enjoying the privileges associated with that history. The central tension explored is the shift from being viewed as "exotic" to being seen as fully integrated community members, with the speaker concluding that acknowledging the "privileges" of previous identities is key to modern trans politics. ## Speakers & Context - Speaker: Unidentified individual, performing in a new production at the Pope's Palace in Aeno, France, in 2014. - Rosie: Māori woman from New Zealand, featured performer whose cultural background informs her commentary. - The speaker discusses the evolution of visibility for trans women, moving from being treated as spectacle to asserting a political presence in public life. ## Theses & Positions - Rosie's performance, *kapahaka*, is rooted in her culture and is not learned in art school. - Colonialism and related acts took away Māori power, including language and land. - Logical reasons for not being angry about past mistreatment include focusing on the positive, as dwelling only on the negative restricts space for positive change. - The visibility of trans women in modern culture (e.g., Caitlyn Jenner, Obama's staff) signals a shift away from previous eras of objectification. - The focus of trans politics must move beyond mere bureaucratic rights (like the right to walk in the daylight) to encompass the "lived experience." - A key political claim is the desire to reclaim not just rights, but "all the Privileges" associated with former identities, including the ability to be seen and listened to without facing constant de-legitimization. - The speaker argues for viewing the trans experience through the lens of millennia of erased history, comparing it to the historical weight of slavery. ## Concepts & Definitions - **Kapahaka:** A song and dance thing specific to Māori culture. - **Privileges:** A set of perceived advantages that the speaker feels are lost or ignored when transitioning, specifically referencing the ability to be treated as a non-transgender male. - **Transgender politics:** The emerging discourse moving past basic recognition to discuss lived experience and systemic cultural acknowledgment. - **Non-transgender male/female:** An identity used as a benchmark for comparison, representing a status of accepted privilege. - **Pass:** Described with skepticism, referring to the act of presenting as a non-trans woman. ## Mechanisms & Processes - **Cultural Performance:** Rosie's *kapahaka* serves as a mechanism to convey ancestral pain, cultural memory, and defiance. - **Emotional Reframing:** The speaker utilizes logical reasoning (e.g., focusing on the positive to create space for it) as a defense mechanism against pervasive anger. - **Public Visibility:** The general increase in trans representation in media and politics (e.g., *Time* Magazine, Obama's staff) acts as a mechanism that shifts public discourse. - **Comparative History:** Comparing the erasure of trans existence to the "Heritage of slavery" frames the current struggle within a millennia-long narrative of oppression. ## Timeline & Sequence - **Summer Night 2014:** Setting for the performance at the Pope's Palace in Aeno, France. - **Age Three:** Age Rosie started performing *kapahaka*. - **1998:** Approximate time the speaker began transitioning. - **Last 40 Years:** Time frame where the public conversation regarding trans women was largely confined to parental approval, surgical procedures, and legal acts. ## Named Entities - **Aeno, France:** Location of the performance. - **Rosie:** Performer from New Zealand, Māori. - **Māori:** Culture group central to the performance and discourse. - **Caitlyn Jenner:** Public figure cited as a marker of cultural change. - **Obama:** Referenced for having a trans woman on his staff. - **Ted:** Mentioned as the person who prompted the conclusion of the talk. ## Numbers & Data - Year of talk: **2014**. - Distance from the stage: **60 feet**. - Age of *kapahaka* start: **three years old**. - Duration of transgender conversation focus: **40 years**. ## Examples & Cases - **The performance:** Appearing naked at the window of indulgence, calling out "Rosie bie." - **The comparison:** Comparing the current moment to the time when the only conversation was about "what do your parents think" or surgical procedures. - **The bar encounter:** A man confronting the speaker about having undergone a "final surgery down there," which elicits the response, "I'm bored." - **The "N-word" analogy:** Comparing the impact of using a racial slur without consequence to the current societal expectation regarding trans women's visibility, where public reaction is often disproportionately harsh. - **The privilege analogy:** Drawing a parallel between losing male privilege and losing the perceived privilege of being seen or understood. ## Tools, Tech & Products - None mentioned. ## References Cited - *Vogue*: Magazine referenced as a place where the speaker felt a momentary disconnect from her personal narrative. - *Time Magazine*: Mentioned for featuring Caitlyn Jenner. - *Phil Donu* and *Haraldo Rivera*: Examples of media/shows where trans issues were historically discussed. ## Trade-offs & Alternatives - **Focus on Rights vs. Lived Experience:** A trade-off between securing legislated rights (Parliament Hill) versus achieving lived political dignity (the ability to walk out in daylight). - **Acknowledging Privilege:** The potential trade-off of accepting a diminished status (allowing others to see flaws) versus losing the privilege of being fully accepted in one's preferred lived reality. ## Counterarguments & Caveats - The initial expectation of anger regarding past mistreatment was met with logical reasoning about choosing positivity. - The suggestion that the speaker should "stop bringing it up" regarding traumatic moments suggests a societal tendency to create a "blind spot" around pain. ## Conclusions & Recommendations - The conversation about trans women must move into "transgender politics," a discourse based on the lived experience. - The speaker emphasizes that the visible presence of trans women must be framed against the backdrop of millennia of erasure, similar to historical slavery. - Final plea: To recognize the history and the ongoing struggle, and to approach the topic with nuance, rather than simplistic binaries. ## Implications & Consequences - The failure of the public to grasp the nuances of identity and history leads to treating trans existence as mere spectacle or anecdote. - The successful integration of trans visibility implies that the community has earned the right to define its own narrative. ## Verbatim Moments - *"I'm calling to you Rosie bie."* - *"she's like a computer generated fractal live on stage."* - *"I think because Rosie's a mouy woman from New Zealand she says before I go on stage I think about my ancestors I think about what they went through I think about how they had their language taken away from them I think about how they had their land taken away from them."* - *"I think've had a quite a blessed life in fact it's it's been wonderful."* - *"The moment that changed his life."* (Note: This phrase is used by the speaker in relation to the evolution of understanding, matching the structure of the provided example). - *"I can't stand up and tell those people what I think they'd cut me off they wouldn't even hear it so that's logical reason number two."* - *"I don't know what I actually thought of Caitlyn Jenner quite honestly maybe I was like so isolated and alienated from everyone I missed my own Revolution."* - *"you're a man or you're a woman or what do I call you and what do you have between your legs and that's it for a large portion of the general population they could not get past that."* - *"I don't just want my rights back I want all the Privileges back too."* - *"I was considered AV on guard and intelligent and insightful not like oh cooky idea Nina like uh I one time heard this black comedian say that if you call a black person the n-word they pretty much have permission to like beat you up beat the hell out of you."* - *"Millennia we've been erased."* - *"this conversation has just started"*