#ThemToo?: Trans Women Exclusionary Discourses in the #MeToo Era

Abstract

Trans women experience sexual violence at alarming rates; however, due to societal cisnormativity, people often remain unaware of such rates. As digital feminist movements, such as #MeToo, gain momentum, this moment represents an opportune time to illuminate how trans exclusionary discourses may exist in feminist movements. Using transfeminist theory as an analytic tool, we discuss how the #MeToo movement may displace trans women’s bodies allowing for further violence to occur. Through disrupting the phallus as the “source” of sexual violence, we hope to reduce the assumption that trans women are sexual predators. In this call to action, we invite clinicians to take a stance to end transgender oppression and advocate for transformative change.

Keywords:

• Feminist theory
• transfeminist theory
• trans women
• family therapy
• sexual violence