What are gender stereotypes actually? The three angles we need to consider here is their relativity, inherent moral value and an individual's relation to it.
Gender Stereotypes Are Not Universal
When people talk about gender stereotypes, they implicitly mean their own culture's stereotypes, but this falsely assumes said culture is perfectly shared between the person who talks and the person who listens. People with different upbringing will build their own stereotypes by getting affected by the culture differently, even if they are in the same cultural sphere nominally. For example, it is not hard to guess someone who grew up seeing women wearing pants for the whole time wouldn't see pants as an exclusively male clothing.What happens when people aren't thought in the same cultural sphere, then? An assumption of one culture's superiority over other starts to grow, regardless if it is even implied, especially when there is material dominance over certain culture. For example, what it means to black person when a white person talks about gender stereotypes? Black person is supposed to follow white gender stereotypes, in fact they are actively judged for doing so, which always has been one of the weak spots of white feminism.
Gender stereotypes is not static or equally shared between everyone, talking it as a homogeneous entity is not really productive.
Gender Stereotypes Are Not Inherently Evil
Removing the vagueness around gender stereotypes also makes it easier to talk about its causes and effects. Let's examine skirts for example: Why they might usually associated with femininity? They are designed without practicality in mind, especially certain kinds, and they emphasis woman as a graceful, passive and non-threatning figure, often emphasizing visual appeal for men.But what is wrong about wearing skirts? Feminists of the past often rejected it wholesale, along with "femininity" as something imposed by patriarchy. But what if a woman wears it enthusiastically? The answer that is given to this question separates reactionary feminism from the revolutionary one. Reactionary feminist thinks a woman would never accept skirt willingly, escaping femininity is the right course of action, women who don't do so are either repressed and conditioned into doing it or actively advocate for patriarchy. What ends up is such reactionary ideologies have always a type of "wrong woman" who is to be saved or removed: Housewives, "women who sell their bodies", lesbians, trans women...
As you can see, reactionary feminism cannot explain what actually wearing skirt causes. It just instead makes plentiful of assumptions of how women should think, woman's personal comfort is no importance to it. But isn't that what is all about? It's not a choice of complying with stereotypes or not, it's having full bodily autonomy and freedom from power structures to live as you wish.
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An Individual Doesn't Affect Gender Stereotypes
This is the logical mistake reactionary feminism does. The problem with gender stereotype is that they exist as stereotypes, not the behavior themselves. One doesn't validate gender stereotypes by following them as individuals, whether they do it because it's a righteous behavior or simply feels nice to do. The problems regarding domestic and emotional labor, for example, cannot be solved by convincing women out of being housewives, you need to comfort the material conditions that forces this role onto women and only women. Wearing skirt is as much as a stereotype as being short, and it is ridiculous for blaming someone for their height, but not just because it is something that cannot be changed but because "Skirts are womanly" and "Ideal woman should be short" are both taught into a person by society.One cannot escape gender stereotypes by simply rejecting certain appearance or behavior as a person either. In fact, gender nonconformity itself is a response to said stereotypes, a man wearing skirt and presenting with it casually is radical action precisely because skirt is a feminine stereotype, not because said stereotype disappears. Gender noncomformity is good because it challenges the society's perception and normalizes rejecting stereotypes, but daring actions of individuals cannot destroy them alone.
Reinforcing Gender Stereotypes
So then, how gender stereotypes are being reinforced? It starts at birth, when people are gendered based on genitals, their genitals are "corrected" when they couldn't be gendered easily, they are separated by colors based on genitals, little kids have seperated haircuts, toys, media, clothing based on -- you guessed it -- genitals. Then other customs and roles are slowly entrusted into the kid, all starting from genitals.
If someone wants to stand against gender stereotypes, they need to stop believing and making other people believe that gender roles around reproductive system is natural. This includes all the rules, including classifying people by genitals. It is not enough to simply say a man does not become less of a man by wearing skirt, but a man is simply a man because he says so, not because he has a penis. The identity completely removed from the stereotype.
Which brings us to the main question. Do trans people reinforce gender stereotypes? No doubt, some of them do believe they are righteous and should be upholded. But that's not what the question asks. It asks because most trans people seek to obtain appearance that fits the gender stereotype better, which supposedly means they all believe those stereotypes are good However, as we said, no single individual perpetuates gender stereotypes by their personal choices, a cis woman don't imply skirts make someone woman by just wearing it, so why is this different for a trans woman? Assuming they are not coerced into it, they both wear skirt for their comfort, the difference is that the comfort has deeper psychological roots in trans women.
One can realize easily by talking to trans people who most of them are harshest enemies of gender stereotypes. Most trans people really believe you don't need a vagina to be women for example. Non binary people rejects stereotypes by their very existence, gender binary is the bedrock of the gender roles. What is more defying as an individual than rejecting the whole category, after all? We still need to stress that individuals can't destroy stereotypes by their own.
This doesn't mean you can't do something against stereotypes at all. Deconstruction of gender roles is truly a massive topic, with many economical and social angles. But you can start by truly believing in radical bodily autonomy and supporting everyone living comfortably, which includes full inclusion for trans people. You can also stop blaming trans people for patriarchy.
This article is written thanks to my dearest Patrons and special thanks to: Alexandra Morgan, Laura Watson and Spencer Gill.
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