“Los periodos no son solo para mujeres”: hombre transgénero contra discriminación

Cass Clemeer, un artista de Washington, EE. UU., quiere hacer entender que las personas que menstrúan pueden ser de cualquier género.

Publicó recientemente una imagen en la que aparece sentado, con una mancha de sangre en su pantalón y un letrero que dice: “Los periodos no son solo para mujeres”, acompañado de la etiqueta #SangrandoMientrasSoyTrans.

Acompañó la imagen con un poema con el que recuerda el día en que tuvo por primera vez su periodo, agobiado por sentirse mentalmente como un hombre: “Ver que mi cuerpo me había traicionado. El punto rojo. El sello de cera. En un contrato dejado allí, roto. Una identidad de género que no era real. La mayoría de personas se ocupan de la sangre y los tejidos, y, sin embargo, mi cuerpo me obliga a rendirme”.

Y’all know I’m trans and queer, And what that means for me all around, Is something that’s neither there nor here, It’s a happy, scary middle ground. So when I talk gender inclusion, And I wrote these rhymes to help you see, I’m not tryna bring up something shallow, Periods are honestly pretty traumatic for me. See my life is very clearly marked, Like a red border cut up a nation, A time before and a time beyond, The mark of my first menstruation. So let me take you back, To the details that I can still recall, Of the day I gained my first period, And the day that I lost it all. I was 15 and still happy, Running around, all chest bared and buck, Climbing trees, digging holes, And no one gave a single fuck. I mean I think my ma was worried, So I went and grew out my locks, A sign I was normal, still a girl, A painted neon sign for my gender box. So, the day I got my period, My god, a day so proud, This little andro fucked up kid, Had been bestowed the straight, cis shroud. The relief got all meshed up in my pain, In that moment, I sat down and cried, Just thanking god I was normal, While mourning the freedom that had died. Everyone told me my hips would grow, I looked at them and couldn’t stop crying, “What’s wrong with you? You’ll be a woman!” They kept celebrating a child dying. See my body had betrayed me, That red dot, the wax seal, On a contract left there broken, A gender identity that wasn’t real. Most people deal with blood and tissue, And yet my body forces me to surrender, Cause every time I get my cycle, Is another day I shed my gender. My boobs betray me first, I feel them stretching out my binder, I send up questions, “am I cursed?” And wish to god that she was kinder. The five days it flows, I try to breathe, I dissociate, While my body rips outs parts of me, Leaving nothing but a shell of hate. The blood drips from an open wound, Of a war waging deep inside my corpse, The battle between mind and body, Immovable object; unstoppable force. #bleedingwhiletrans #menstruator #genderinclusion #mencanmenstruate #protectranskids #periodpride #genderdysphoria #menstruationmatters #ifmenhadperiods [PLEASE SHARE!]

Una publicación compartida de Cass Clemmer (@cassclemmer) el 12 de Jul de 2017 a la(s) 9:49 PDT

“Tener tu periodo menstrual cuando no te identificas como una mujer puede ser una batalla mensual, con tu cuerpo y con el mundo, que siempre te recuerda que tu identidad no es real”.

Clemeer además inventó un personaje llamado Toni, ‘el tampón’, con el objetivo de romper con el estigma alrededor de los periodos, ya que el sangrado menstrual puede hacer que personas que no se identifican como mujeres presenten un trastorno psiquiátrico conocido como disforia de género, producto de la discordia entre su identidad de género y su género o sexo asignados al nacer.

Falling out of the work week like SPLAT 💥 #tgif #weekend #workhardsleephard #selfcaretime #periodpride #menstruationmatters #menstrualhealth #reprojustice #reprohealth #periods #tampon #kersplat #sillysexed

Una publicación compartida de Toni the Tampon (@tonithetampon) el 19 de May de 2017 a la(s) 5:51 PDT

Sin embargo, los mensajes de Clemeer y de Toni no son del agrado de muchos internautas que lo tildan de “asqueroso” y “patético”. Otros no entienden el punto de su reflexión y le recuerdan que “solo las mujeres tienen periodos menstruales”.

“Espero que Toni funcione como un divertido y humorístico punto de partida para ayudarnos a hablar de periodos libres de estigma y tabú, al tiempo que reconocemos la diversidad de aquellos que menstrúan”, dijo Clemeer al diario Independent.

It’s #TamponTuesday and today we’re posting a photo of the human behind the tampon because if we’ve learned anything this week it’s that queer representation matters. So the question of the week seems to be: men who menstruate?! The answer is quite simple: people with menstruating uteruses may identify on any number of points along the multidimensional gender spectrum. There are agender menstruators, genderqueer menstruators (like me!), other non-binary menstruators, and yes trans menstruators who are men or boys. We simply seek to be inclusive of all menstruators, no matter how you identify. We have never suggested that anyone without a uterus menstruates and if you find yourself bleeding monthly from your penis, you should probably get to a medical center stat. We also try to avoid using terms that equate menstruation to femininity or “womanhood”. Not all women menstruate, and the fact that your uterus squeegees out blood and tissue every month or so does not make you inherently “feminine”, and particularly not more so than women who don’t menstruate. So there you have it folks- let’s keep our menstrual health community inclusive by affirming all menstruators. Happy #TamponTuesday! With love, Cass & Toni ***I do not speak for all trans/non binary experiences*** #queeriods #menstruators #periodpower #mhm #resist #periodcoloringbook #protecttranskids #menstruationnation #menstrualhealth #inclusivefeminism #tamponart #mencanmenstruate

Una publicación compartida de Toni the Tampon (@tonithetampon) el 14 de Mar de 2017 a la(s) 1:01 PDT