Black Americans and Transgender Identity

The term transgender refers to individuals who perceive that the sex they were assigned at birth is an incomplete or incorrect description of themselves. In the Black American transgender community, there are multiple, self-constructed identities. These vary according to the degree to which one embodies the malleability of gender (e.g., trans man, trans woman, full-time cross-dresser, part-time cross-dresser, butch). The desire or ability to align one’s physical characteristics to one’s internal experience also varies between individuals. Some transgender people may have little or no interest in hormone treatments or medical procedures, whereas others may be in different stages of transition. Although the identities and lives of all transgender people are complex, the historically disadvantaged experiences of Black Americans in the United States contribute to a ...