What Really Drives Transphobia: The Fears of the Fearful

Transphobia is fueled by the fears of the fearful, as are most kinds of bigotry. The fearful are people who want to protect themselves from the unpredictability of life by retreating into some kind of imaginary "normalcy."Any person who does not follow the rules given within this "Fortress of Normalia" is seen as a threat who must be eradicated. 

If we want to understand transphobia, we need to understand these fears.

A darkness has fallen over our democracies. The mood is very much like in Europe in the 1930s. At that time evil and cynical politicians used Jews as the scapegoats needed to take control of society. Everything bad was, according to this narrative, caused by a secret  cabal of Jews who controlled Hollywood, world banking and communism.

Racism was and is a key tool in any totalitarian handbook, since it ensures that the dominant, default, "race" remains in power. Racism is still a potent weapon wielded by those who seek control.

The current enshittfication of our societies  is, like the previous one, also powered by the desire to defend traditional gender roles, which - according to this belief - is anchored in both nature and God's will.  This sexist nonsense is an essential part of the word view of conservative extremists like Trump, Putin and Orban. Trans people are seen as a threat to this "natural" order. That is why it makes sense to persecute them.

From Hitler to Trump

This need for traditional gender conformity explains why one of the first things the Nazis did when they came  to power in Germany was to destroy  Magnus Hirschfeld'ts Institute for Sexual Science in Berlin. 

Magnus Hirschfeld's science and practice called for a humanization of gay and transgender individuals. Hirschfeld did not see queer and trans  people as mentally ill, but rather as  natural variations of humankind. His work reflected an increasing tolerance of LGBTQ people in a city like Berlin.

Magnus Hirschfeld (the one with glasses)  with friends.

The Nazis, however, believed in the gospel of strong white men dominating everyone else, and that world view required a strict adherence to traditional gender roles, where men rule and women raise children and serve men with adoration in their eyes.

Controlling science

This kind of nationalistic traditionalism was not only based on cultural norms and accepted behaviors; it was also based on pseudo-scientific ideas about the natural order of things. 

Eugenic research was seen to "prove" white superiority over people of color. A lot of researchers studying sexuality and gender let their own prejudices label everything that did not follow the vanilla script of submissive woman loving dominant man as sexual perversions. Gender variance was just a sign of such perversions.

In the second half of the 20th century, science gradually managed to free itself from19th century prejudices. I guess the rising number of female scientists and scholars contributed to that. Contemporary science, from medicine to sociology, has thoroughly documented that gender cannot be reduced to reproductive sex and that the world of sex and gender is better understood as variation along continuums.

One of the main reasons for why Trump is currently bullying American universities into submission is that he and his servants want to put an end to open research in the real nature of sexuality and gender. When insisting that gender must be reduced to "biological sex", they are basically trying to ban any research that undermines their simplistic binaries.  They want to create universities where science aligns with their political goals.  (This is, by the way, exactly the same as Hitler did in Germany and Putin has done in Russia.)

Magnus Hirschfeld was dismissed as a leftist Jew. Today's sexologists and gender scholars are seen as part of a left wing conspiracy driven by "gender ideology", which - according to the right wing extremists and TERFs - denies biological realities and seduces kids into a life of sin. 

There is no unified "gender ideology", and the idea that researchers on sex and gender think sexual orientation and gender identity is a personal choice is pure nonsense. But it makes sense in the minds of people who know next to nothing about true science and philosophy.

Transphobes live in a constant state of fear, where everything and everyone that do not confirm their ideas of a safe world become a threat. The great challenge now is that they are no longer satisfied with living behind the walls of their Fortress of Normalia. They want to turn the whole world into Normalia.

Transphobia cannot be explained by politics alone

The fact that fascists cynically make use of people's fears to take power, does not mean that they do no believe in their own gospel. Hitler truly believed that Jews were a mortal threat to Germans. 

I am not sure Trump believes in anything but his own hunger for power and glory, but most of his collaborators do believe in some kind of white supremacy, as well as the social exclusion of LGBTQ people.  They are using Trump's second victory to turn the US into a country that follows those ideals.

In other words: Do not think that their cynicism is nothing but cynicism. They have often been raised in toxic cultural environments where they have been rewarded for brutality and deceit and punished for tolerance and compassion towards anyone outside their own tribe.  Their brutality gives them a sense of meaning, purpose and power. They believe their actions are justified and that evil is - in some bizarre sense - good. Republicans  are now saying that empathy will destroy civilization. 

I am underlining this point because there are some, especially on the left, who seem to fall for another kind of conspiracy theory, namely that all of this is a game aimed at controlling the economy, ensuring that the richest of the rich own everything. The 1 percent does not really believe in the nationalist/fascist narrative. They are just using it to control the masses.

Sure, there are rich Americans who believe they can control MAGA without being fascists themselves, in the same way there were conservative millionaires in Germany who though they could control the Nazis.  

But they cannot do so without  losing  their souls. Just look at the rapid descent of Elon Musk into total darkness. The multibillionaires are not in control of the current collapse of liberal democracy. They are exploiting it, yes, but this madness is driven by forces out of their control.

To really understand transphobia, we need to understand the dark side of the human mind.

The psychology of transphobia

I will argue that transphobia, in the same way as homophobia and racism, is an expression of a deeply engrained fear of the unknown found in the minds of the fearful and anxious. This anxiety comes first. It can then be exploited by those who seek power.

Being human is hard. Many wise people (including Jesus, Buddha, Kierkegaard, Dostoyevski and  Jung)  have argued that suffering is an essential part of existence, and I am convinced they are right about that.

We are born into a universe that makes little sense if you look at it with open eyes. There may be close to two trillion galaxies out there. This tells us that the Universe was not made to serve humans.  And then there is death, which some believe annuls the very meaning of life. 

I do not belong to them. There is simply too much love, creativity, joy and meaning around. But I can see why living in denial becomes a tempting option for many. Joining an imaginary belief systems that promises happiness, wealth and salvation may be seen as preferably to facing and embracing the uncertainties  and pain of real life. And doing so will give you refuge in a community that seems to support you.

Back in 1942 the German-American psychologist and humanistic philosopher Erich Fromm  wrote the following about the Nazis in his book Fear of Freedom:

"It seems that nothing is more difficult for the average man to bear than the feeling of not being identified with a larger group. However much a German citizen may be opposed to the principles of Nazis, if he has to choose between being alone and feeling that he belongs to Germany, most persons will choose the latter... The fear of isolation and the relative weakness of moral principles help any party to win the loyalty of a large sector of the population once the party has captured the power of the state."

The human ape did not evolve to understand the secrets of the universe. It evolved to survive in the harsh conditions of nature, and it did so by being smarter than many other species and by forming strong social groups where the members support each other.

And this is where we find the ultimate reason for racism and transphobia. If your life depends on being part of a tribe, accepting the overall belief system of that tribe will make you feel safer. If you follow the moral rules of  your tribe you are less likely to face social expulsion. 

Moreover, by supporting the existing world order you will be seen as a safer bet by other members of the tribe when it comes to love, work and the sharing of resources.

The language of the tribe has been developed in tandem with its belief system. Your vocabulary reflect this belief system. It therefore limits your ability to think outside this box. 

What in reality is pure nonsense ("gender equals biological sex") may seem like common sense to you, your family and your friends. If there is only one word to cover both reproductive sex, sexuality, gender identity, gender expression and gender roles, it is easy to believe that they are all one and the same.

The face of Hazel Bryan harassing  Elizabeth Eckford entering Little Rock Central High School back in 1957 can serve as an example of how the hidden darkness of the human mind can be projected upon people who do not deserve it. (Wikipedia)

The Shadow

The fear of the outsider is fueled by forces buried deep in our psyche. Rational arguments normally come up short against the fear and the anger caused by these forces.

Carl Gustav Jung called the unconscious part of the personality that contains aspects of ourselves that we reject and repress "The Shadow". This part of our psyche - this archetype - includes traits, desires, and impulses that we consider unacceptable, shameful, or incompatible with our self-image. 

The reason we suppress the parts of us we do not like is that these feelings entail the risk of social ostracism. Or, at least, we believe we will be despised and excluded if they become known. And we may be right about that, at least if we are member of a repressive culture, where dogma and religious laws trumps compassion, tolerance  and diversity.

People of some personality types are so rebellious that they leave the safe haven of the tribe. They find other tribes that have room for their strengths and qualities, or they journey alone.

But others are more afraid and anxious, either by nature or because the rebellion has been beaten out of them. They like social and cultural rules and regulations, because these relieve them of the duty to think for themselves. Dogma and "common sense" clichés protect them against the chilly winds of the Universe.

Such people, who I call "the fearful", are more likely to push any unwanted desires down into the subconscious. So even if they have concepts about what the Shadow contains, they do not see these traits, desires or ideas as a part of themselves. Instead they project them upon others: They see in others what they cannot stand in themselves.

So the Jews are seen as power-hungry, greedy, violent and lecherous criminals, not because the actually are these things, but because these traits reflect repressed feelings and desires that remind the timid of these tropes. Trans people are seen as sex perverts who want to seduce children, not because they are, but because the human mind is full of desires that violate cultural taboos.

In the same way trans people are seen as leading a destructive
"gender ideology", Jews were presented as leaders of a secret cabal
controlling both communists and bankers.

Jung underlines that the Shadow is not only something that affects individuals. When a  subculture develops a specific set of "truths", rules and moral teachings, the more timid and oppressed members of that culture are more likely to repress similar parts of their personalities. They reinforce each others fears. 

The idea that both "biological sex" and gender identity are binary and can be reduced to your reproductive sex is  a cultural and social construct. 

The very existence of transgender and intersex people proves that this is not the case. The same applies to sexual orientation. Sexual orientation is not a binary, but found on a spectrum. 

However,  multi-dimensional continuums of gender and sexuality open the door to diversity and diversity threatens the narrow and easy to understand rules set up by the tribe. Things become complicated, and complicated is bad.

Note that even if a timid member of such a tribe has no oppressed sexual desires or cross-gender traits (most of them do), they will nevertheless fear these variations, because this diversity threatens the social order that makes them feel safe. They have invested so much in social roles determined by these binaries, that abandoning them will make their lives meaningless. Or so the believe.

Keep in mind that they fear that their social standing, acceptance and safety are at stake. If their children or family members are exposed as "deviants", that will threaten their own lives and perceived happiness. 

Cis parents who destroy the lives of their  own queer and trans kids, do so because they think they are protecting them against the great evil of "gender ideology". They know that LGBTQ kids will get harassed, because they take part in this persecution themselves.  

This leads to the absurd situation where the very ones who say that sexuality and gender cannot be changed are the ones who tries to force their loved ones to deny their own nature.

All of this can only be described as a kind of collective mass hysteria, with emotional feedback loops that lead to violence and death.

The Myth of Normal

In the book The Myth of Normal  the Hungarian-Canadian physician Gabor Maté argues that “Normal” is not a neutral, scientific term but a social judgment based on cultural expectations. Our society defines normal in terms of productivity, conformity, and functioning within systems, not in terms of actual human health or wholeness.

Many patterns considered normal today - chronic stress, suppressed emotions, disconnection, burnout, shallow relationships, overconsumption - are actually expressions of trauma and dysfunction. Because these patterns are so widespread, they appear normal, but in reality they are harmful adaptations. Maté argues that “normal” often means being well-adjusted to a sick society, or - in our context - a sick subculture.

Trauma and chronic stress underlie many conditions we label as disease. They are the body’s and psyche’s attempts to cope. According to Maté he solution is to rediscover authenticity, connection, and compassion,  i.e. that what is truly natural for humans.

But what if there is no room for an authentic life in the subculture you are part of? How do you handle the fact that what the tribe believes will make you safe, healthy and wealthy is actually doing the opposite? 

Well, you simply blame the people you think are violating your contract with God, the Nation or Nature.You pour all your pain and frustration into hating the ones who defy the dogma and practices your whole life depends on. 

And this rage is powered by all the feelings stored in the dark depths of your mind. It is not rational. Is it not based on love.  It becomes evil because it has been denied for so long. It  has not been seen and accepted for what it is. It has not been integrated into a healthy psyche, so it is extremely hard to control.

Evil is a phycological reality. And it is time for us all to face that fact.

The fear of the dark forest represents the fear of that which is not, including the dark side of our own mind. The fearful seeks safety in their local tribe and channels their fears through racism and transphobia.(Getty)

The case of Britain

What is happening in the UK right now is an clear example of the collective Shadow taking control of so many that their irrational fears leads to what can only be understood as a violent expulsion of the unwanted - in this case transgender people. 

In Britain the hysteria started among "gender critical" TERFs like J.K. Rowling, but since the TERFs share the fears of the right wing extremists (they both fear the collapse of the strict gender binary) it has now taken over most of the major parties.

As in the myth of the evil Jew, facts no longer matter. The real science on sex and gender is replaced by irrational narratives that have no basis in reality. Trans women do not attack cis women in bathrooms. Yet, that imagined threat is the basis for all the current oppression of trans women in Britain. 

And in the same way as the Jews were seen as  masters of a capitalist/communist ideology, trans people and their defenders are believed to be using a "gender ideology" to destroy civilization as we know it.

This does not mean that a majority of Brits are hysterical transphobes, at least not in the repressed Shadow sense of the word. And note that a majority of Americans still think trans people should be allowed to live their lives in peace.  But most of the good ones keep quiet. They let the transphobes get away with this  genocide for two reasons:

1. They do not know trans people and they do not know much about gender diversity, gender incongruence and gender identity, so they think they do not have the knowledge needed to take part in the debate.

2. The violent insanity of the haters scares them. They do not want to be dragged into a war they do not think is theirs. They know that if they become  associated with the unwanted,  they may become victims of same hatred themselves.

It is actually their war, because fascism always leads to more oppression and more hatred. Their own safety and comfort is depending on an open society that allows everyone to live their lives in peace. But I guess they manage to convince themselves that there are others better equipped to fight that fight. 

That is how fascism wins.

What can we do?

As noted, Fascism cannot be reduced to a tactic used by a cynical and power hungry elite. Fascism grows out of "the common clay", ie. the fears of ordinary, run-of-the-mill people. It is the mindless stupidity of people who have fooled themselves into believing they are the "normal" ones and their enemies are not that is turning the world into a dystopian hellscape.

Some of the fearful will in the end see through the narratives that have shaped their lives and free themselves from these chains. But we cannot win by making all of the fearful less fearful through rational arguments. This is not about facts. This is mostly about feelings.

It is true that the fearful are less likely to become fascists in stable and wealthy societies, but there will always be a significant number of people who will seek safety in the concept of "normal".  And right now the extremists are doing their best to make our societies less safe, less stable and much  poorer, which again leads to more racism and  transphobia.

If you want the fearful to stop harassing transgender people, you have to make them believe that trans people are "normal" too. 

The reason so many of the fearful finally stopped hating and harassing gay and lesbian people was that more of them learned to know and love queer people. They had to face the fact that these people were human too. Increased visibility humanized gay and lesbian people in the eyes of the fearful.

We can argue that there are no "normal" people. There is no-one at the top of the bell curve. What we are seeing is an insane diversity of traits, abilities, interests and passions, and that is a good thing. But the fearful need the illusion of normalcy, and the only way to make them stop harassing trans people is that they learn to know so many trans people that they cannot turn them into the dangerous "other".

The TERFs and the fascists are now forcing trans people out of public spaces. The real reason is not that trans women are a real threat to cis women and kids. No, they are forcing them back into the closet in order to make them invisible. If trans people become invisible none of the fearful will see that the trans people they fear so much "bleeds when they are pricked and laugh when they are tickled" too.

Good is evil, evil is good

One liberal tactic used against the fascist was, until recently, quite effective. This tactic was to present the bigots as bigots, and therefore as someone who were not "decent citizens", i.e. "not normal". Even the most fearful understood that "liberty and the pursuit of happiness" was an essential part of democracy. And if they had been raised in a Christian tribe, they would also have learned  that "blessed are the poor" and that you should "love your enemies." In other words: normalcy demanded at least a minimum of compassion and decency, real or pretend. Their fear of social exclusion kept some of their most destructive traits in check.

This is why the fascists started their culture war against "woke". By turning love and decency into something evil, they gave the fearful free reign to express their fears through hate and violence. Now evil is good and good is evil. 

Right wing Christians are no longer quoting Jesus' Sermon on the Mount. Why? Because the sermon so clearly shows that Jesus was "woke". He said that blessed are "the poor in spirit," "the meek",  "those who hunger and thirst for righteousness", "the merciful",  "the pure in heart",  "the peacemakers," "those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake" etc. Come on! What's next? That Jesus respected women and believed that rich people could not enter the Kingdom of Heaven? Where does that leave Trump?

Still, the fact that their new gospel of hate is so blatantly evil, is also their weakness. Because a majority of people do not believe that evil is good. They are not religious fanatics, Republican fascists or hateful TERFs. 

There are a lot of decent people out there. But they need to be mobilized for good. They need to see that their role models stand up for people of color, LGBTQ people, and the poor. If they can see themselves as part a larger movement for good, they will protest, they will march and they will talk back at family members and acquaintances who spread hate and prejudice.

And the tipping point often comes when the bigotry becomes som extreme that some selected people with voice and influence clearly and succinctly make that clear. They will not be arguing against the bigotry. They will simply be pointing out what most decent people knows: that these bigots are toxic creeps.

This is what eventually led to the fall of McCarthy's anti-liberal crusade back in 1954. Joseph Welch asked Senator Joseph McCarthy during a nationally televised congressional hearing: “Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?”

McCarthy's fascist terror had been unmasked for what it was. He was defeated.

What you must not do is to adopt the vocabulary of the haters in order to "reach the middle ground" or whatever it is some Democrats and Labour politicians tell themselves these days. Because if you legitimize the narratives that cause the terror,  decent people will believe in them and stay quiet. 

See also: "Trump and the transphobes won in the US. But there are still ways trans people can win."

Top photo: OgnjenO