In my country it has been made easier to change the gender in your passport. I think it’s a good step forward. But since this has officially been decided, multiple times people used the sentence above for any gender related issue, with derogatory attitude. For example when talking about quota of women at work or pay gaps. When I just look at them, because I’m missing a good response, they add something like “now it’s easy, everyone can change it just as they like”. I don’t know how to concisely respond to this. There are multiple things wrong - as if discrimination would disappear by “changing” gender and the obvious dissent about it being a progressive step that everyone can decide for themselves now what the gender entry in their ID is. What would be a good short response in a situation like this?
How about innocently asking “how would that help?”
In the case of quota, they are necessary because of women not being promoted to higher positions as frequently as men. This has nothing to do with your gender in your ID card.
In the case of pay gap, most of it is explained by jobs most often held by women being payed worse. This doesn’t get better by changing your gender.
With just asking “how would that help?”, you put the other person in a position to explain their argument, and maybe they reflect a little.
This.
One of the best ways to confront a bigot is by pretending to be completely naive of their intentions, and getting them to dig their own hole by repeatedly asking them to explain what they mean.
They are trolls. They are not speaking in good faith. Is it true that people in your country can just change it as they like? The short response is fuck off.
The answer you should give is “what the fuck are you on about?”
Gender inequality isn’t solved via paperwork. If anything that would make pay equity even harder to achieve.
“You first.” 🤷♂️
Just say you don’t want to change your gender, that it shouldn’t be expected that one should have to change their gender for fair treatment. The gender you were born as and identify with should grant you equal treatment in society, otherwise is kind of a crazy “gotcha”.
Not sure if it’d be the best response, but I’m pretty sure that Trans people (of either gender) face more discrimination than women do. So changing one’s gender would lead to more discrimination in all cases.
Assuming they mean this as a joke, there’s not really much point in responding at all. Bad jokes are best just ignored.
“Were you dropped on your head as a child? That would just add to my problems.”
How about change YOUR FACE
In a work environment, best response is to ask things like “why?” “What do you mean?” Etc and let them either dig a hole that you can bring to HR; or come to the realization that their derogatory mindset actually feels really dirty when they spell it out, and drop it on their own.
Already done
