While it claims to be a new sexual orientation, “Super Straight” is yet another movement circulating online that people are using to mask their transphobia.
Its premise is blatantly transphobic. Those who identify as “Super Straight” claim that they differ from heterosexual people completely, as they are not attracted to anyone who is transgender, despite them being of the opposite gender. Essentially, it is trans-exclusionary heterosexuality. While there is nothing transphobic about having a genital preference, the justification of being “Super Straight” is. By suggesting that they couldn’t possibly be attracted to transgender people because of the sex they were assigned at birth, “Super Straight” people are separating cisgender and transgender people. By doing this, they add to the transphobic narrative that transgender people are “less than”, or not their real gender.
Definitively, gender is a social construct that has no fixed meaning. There is also an argument to suggest that biological sex is socially constructed too. While sex categorisation is based on biological sex in terms of anatomy and chromosomes, the definition and consolidation of it as a concept is rooted in how society views gender. At birth, babies are assigned male or female based on their anatomy. But in some cases, individuals may have a genotype that refutes their assigned sex. Biological sex also isn’t a black and white binary, as some individuals may also not match XX or XY chromosomes. Oversimplifying biological sex is particularly dangerous when it is used to discriminate against transgender people. The entire basis of the argument regarding gender and sex binaries is not scientifically based, as it is an argument about classification and social constructs. Therefore, the entire fundament of being “Super Straight” is not only horribly transphobic, but also logically flawed.
All identities are valid. However, when a particular identity is based on threatening the existence of transgender people, it is simply transphobic and ignorant. Genital preference is completely justifiable and while no one is forced to date or have sex with transgender people, it is incredibly narrow-minded to not date someone purely because of their gender. For “Super Straights” to be openly discriminatory while additionally claiming that they are marginalised and that those who don’t differentiate between heterosexual people and “Super Straights” are ignorant is ironic.
Written by Ty
Artwork by Delicia
