Hello underachievers!
Som if you're trans and you're watching this,
you're probably, rightly so,
really tired of transphobia at the moment.
The level of transphobia that's going around...
I feel the exact same!
And I know my usual content of, you know,
making fun of transphobes, you know,
debunking transphobia...
That's good!
But I think today it will be fun to just look at
some trans memes that are actually funny,
because I'm sure when you think of trans memes,
a lot of the population will be like:
"Oh, yes, trans memes like these".
Which, you know, it's the same tired joke
that we've been dealing with since probably 2014, 2015.
Today I thought I would just show you
some actually funny trans memes.
And just before I do that,
obviously, gotta remind you:
I am on tour in America right now.
Here are the dates.
We got VIP options...
You can have a great time!
and jump around with a bunch of gay people,
a bunch of trans people,
a bunch of people that aren't gay or trans,
but also enjoy music.
Tickets to that are in the description below.
So, trans memes, let's go!
"You may have lost your virginity in high school,
"but I lost my gender identity.
"Seriously, though, where is my gender?"
This one.
I feel this one.
I really feel this one.
When I was a kid, growing up,
watching all those Disney High School movies,
I assumed that high school, for me, you know, I'd be--
Bearing in mind--
I was a girl growing up, watching these videos, and,
for some reason,
for whatever reason,
I thought I would grow up to be like Troy Bolton.
I really wanted to be Troy Bolton.
And what did Troy Bolton have?
He had a girlfriend!
And he was popular!
And he was the captain of the basketball...
He was the captain of the basketball team.
And then, when I did get to High School...
You know, I was severely underwhelmed,
because...
It did not go for me like it went for Troy Bolton.
I relate to this one.
During high school or like,
the equivalent of high school in the UK,
I was also going through this.
I was questioning a lot.
For a little bit I thought I was non-binary and,
you know what?
I don't know how well I thought I was non-binary.
I think I was just worried that,
if I kind of admitted to myself that I was just a trans guy,
that I was just a guy,
then it'll be a lot scarier.
And, for me, it was...
I'm not saying that's the case for everybody,
because obviously a lot of people are just non-binary.
But I definitely relate to this one.
I did feel very lost in high school,
and then, when I did figure myself out,
I didn't feel lost, I just felt angry.
So if you feel a little bit lost and angry in high school,
don't worry,
when you leave it's so much better.
I don't know why everybody tells people that
High School are the best years of your life.
they're absolutely not,
and especially for LGBT people right now.
"What if you wanted to be flat,
"but your ribs said 'pain' ".
This one! I feel this one so hard.
I haven't wore a binder in years,
and I'm incredibly grateful for that,
and I'm very lucky that I was able to afford to get surgery.
But, Jesus Christ,
the level of frustration...
When you're neurodivergent,
and you're also trans,
and you're also trying to be flat,
it is the worst!
Wearing a binder is a sensory nightmare,
regardless if you're neurodivergent or not,
but...
Picture this:
You're neurodivergent,
sensory issues,
things that taste weird,
they smell weird...
You know, when you touch them,
it's uncomfortable.
When you wear clothes that don't fit the way you want them to,
you're just like this...
Your body is just like this...
Now, imagine that,
but you're trying to just...
You don't need to imagine.
I know why you're watching this.
But, absolutely, the rib pain was immense.
And I, like so many other people did not bind safely,
I would bind all the time.
I would sometimes sleep in my binder...
I know I should be telling you:
"Hey don't do that!
"Bind safely.
"If it hurts, take it off.
"Wear extra sports bras,
"try and flatten yourself with layers".
All that kind of stuff.
Absolutely, you should do that!
I'm also aware that I did not do that.
But I will say, from the other side,
I definitely did some damage to myself.
When I had top surgery and, you know,
I was all healed up,
I tried exercising,
because, you know, you should never exercise in a binder.
So I was like: "I just won't exercise",
hen I was binding.
I tried exercising and I realized that
I wasn't fully breathing in and out in the way that I should be.
My body was not taking in enough oxygen,
and that's because I was wearing a binder for so many years
that my body had just learned to breathe really shallow, so...
It's not fun!
It's not a good experience.
If you're able to be comfortable without binding 24/7...
Please, try and find ways to do that.
So, this is the kind of meme that I did not have growing up.
At least I didn't see this,
but, you know, there's a rise in gender envy,
or people understanding what gender envy is.
It's a thing, I get it.
It's just it wasn't a term that I had when I was 15.
And this meme...
This is, absolutely, this is gender envy.
"Yeah, I just really love this male character".
"I want his gender".
For me, at least growing up,
it wasn't that I wanted his gender,
although absolutely it was.
I wanted to be Troy Bolton, and I wanted to be a man.
I think it was mostly confusing for me growing up,
because like, I knew I wanted to be a guy.
I knew I wanted to grow up and have a flat chest
and have a deep voice and have a girlfriend,
even though I wasn't into girls,
but I just wanted to be a boy,
and I knew that boys were into girls.
It was very confusing!
But this is a big thing,
because I looked up to so many men,
and I just wanted to be all of them, for completely different reasons.
I wanted to be Peter Parker,
I wanted to be Peter Pan,
I wanted to be Troy Bolton,
I wanted to be Parker Cannon,
I wanted to be...
I wanted to be Brendon Urie, for a little bit.
And that frustration, that kind of envy,
I feel like people that aren't trans don't understand it, maybe,
to the extent that trans people do,
because not only do I want to be you,
I'm also really annoyed that, physically, I could never be you.
Like, no amount of working out,
like, you have a [ ], I don't.
That really upset me.
That just leads me on to this meme,
which I'm just gonna have to blur out, but...
"Without the [ ] and balls,
"it's just torture".
I feel that.
I mean, my bottom dysphoria was way worse
when I was younger,
and I think that's because, you know...
Not only did I have bottom dysphoria,
I had chest dysphoria,
I had voice dysphoria...
My body fat was not redistributed into a male pattern,
like it is now that I'm on testosterone.
That was so much that I was dysphoric about,
but it was so much more intense before I transitioned.
And I know it seems maybe pathetic to people
that don't understand it.
I would just cry about the fact that
I didn't have a [ ].
And I would just get so frustrated!
Like, I'd have meltdowns about it.
I'd just sit in bed and be like...
[ Screams ] So, I get you, Shadow.
Is that Shadow?
It's not Knuckles.
"Happy transgender day of visibility to all of you,
lovely people who are much more braver than I am".
"Other trans people today".
"Me, today", in the closet.
This is a thing that I have been thinking about recently.
When I came out, I was called "Brave"
by people that I went to school with
and people that were like, family friends of my parents.
Just about anybody that didn't really know any trans people,
they just said that I was brave because I came out.
And I do understand that,
because in the world that we're living in right now,
it's not easy to be trans,
but I don't think that if you're in the closet right now,
that means you're not brave.
And I don't think that means you're less brave
than trans people that are out.
In comparison to a lot of trans people,
I had it ridiculously easy.
Like, my parents were always supportive.
Even as a kid,
I told my parents I wanted a boy haircut,
I wanted to go to the boys section of H&M,
and they were just like:
"Sure, just do whatever makes you feel happy".
I think I just had it easier in that regard,
so I don't think if you're in the closet right now
that you're less brave.
I just don't want that to be a thing that
people think about themselves, because like...
You already have low self-confidence if you're in the closet,
you don't need to--
You don't need to beat yourself up about it.
"Why does everyone on Twitter come from this country?"
I like these memes.
I can't even explain why I find this funny.
It reminds me of the "hey, I'm lesbian".
"I thought you're American", kind of thing.
Here's another dysphorian meme.
"Puberty, easy".
"Puberty again,
"but this time you're paying for it, hard".
Maybe a lot of people relate to that.
I do not relate to this at all.
The first puberty, for me, was the worst.
The second puberty, I was like, " hell, yeah!
"Hell, yeah!
"Where are my facial hairs?"
I'm still-- Where are they?
Where are they?
But like, I get it in some sense, because like,
at least for me,
I have, you know...
I've got a weird body.
I don't know what's up.
Testosterone and me,
estrogen and me,
any hormones and me...
Anything...
And me.
I'll get a little bit funny!
We've had to up and lower my testosterone dose,
and it was too high,
and then it was too low,
and then we couldn't find a right place.
I'm good now!
But I guess I can kind of relate to that meme in that way.
The first puberty, I didn't have to do anything
and I didn't want it.
The second puberty...
I had to do so much!
I guess it was difficult.
"When you're passing in public,
"but then your mom calls you a 'she' ".
Yeah,
I get that one!
I remember, as a kid,
my parents would always have to correct people
because people would just assume I was a boy,
because, as I said, like,
I got a "boy haircut"
and I wore "boy clothes",
and there are very distinct memories
that I have about this.
I remember going to London
and going into an ice cream shop,
and the guy behind the bar was just like:
"Oh, what would he want?"
And my parents had to be like:
"Oh, no, she's a girl".
And that was this whole conversation about it,
where he's like, "oh, but the hair",
and they're like, "yeah, no, I know, that's just--
"She's just like that".
Like, the amount of conversations that were had about me
and about my gender,
in front of me, as a child...
It's kind of insane!
I just have so many memories of that,
and I think my absolute favorite one is:
We went on holiday,
when I was maybe about five.
I think I had my fifth or sixth birthday there.
I lost my first tooth there...
It was a great time,
and it was kind of a resort, I guess.
There was like a swimming pool
that was shared by a bunch of people that were also there
and I guess everybody had their own little flats...
It was weird,
but I made really good friends
with the boy that lived next door for that holiday.
And he knew my birth name,
he knew the name that I was going by,
but he looked at me,
and saw that I was wearing swimming shorts,
I've had a boy haircut,
and, you know, I was more masculine.
I was like, what peopl would consider a "tomboy".
He just assumed that I was a boy.
Like, this entire week that we were there,
he was calling me "he"
to his mum,
and to me, and to other people...
And I remember we go around like, squishing ants
and, at the end of the holiday,
my parents came to go say goodbye to his parents
and be like, "oh, I'm so glad that they got on so well.
"Like, they had a really good time together".
My mum was like, "yeah, she had a great time".
And I just remembered this kid being like, "what?
"She?"
And then we just left.
So, did I catfish?
- It's getting weirder.
- Is that catfishing? I don't know!
Anyway-- What was the meme?
Yes, "when you're passing in public,
"but then your mom calls you a 'she' ".
It was funny as a kid,
but as I got older,
it was more distressing.
Before I came out to my mum and that happened,
because I'd still look like a little boy,
even though I was in high school.
It was-- I've had a weird life.
I like this one.
I don't relate to it, but I like it.
"Being straight as a boy".
"No".
"Being gay as a boy".
"No".
"Being straight as a girl".
"Yes".
This is interesting.
I don't relate in terms of straightness,
because I started out straight,
and then I didn't go gay.
As a girl.
I, you know, I came out as a boy
and at that point I thought I only like guys.
So I went from being a straight girl to a gay boy,
which, big change!
And that was why it was so frustrating
that people assumed I was a lesbian,
because I was like, not only am I not a girl.
I also I'm not attracted to girls in the slightest,
so you could not have been more wrong.
Turns out I do like girls!
And I was just really scared of boobies
because I had them myself
and they made me so upset and traumatized.
I feel like this is maybe something
that the majority of trans people experience,
where their sexuality is not very straightforward.
Excuse the pun.
It's not very straightforward
and it's very difficult to know where you stand in society
and where you stand within specific communities.
Growing up as a lesbian,
and then coming out as a trans man,
it must be a very interesting intersect of like,
the lesbian community that you're part of.
Because like, you grew up being a girl that liked girls,
and that was an identity,
and now, all of a sudden, you're like, "oh, wait, no!
"I was wrong and now I'm not lesbian?"
It's very confusing!
And I understand why cis people are confused by it.
I like, I get that.
But trans people, you know...
We didn't-- There's a--
We have a lot going on.
"Walking over to the boys line when told to do so in gym class".
"Staying in the girls line until the teacher threatens you with detention".
This is where I think people are more brave than me!
Because I am not brave in the slightest,
when it comes to anything in this regard.
I know a bunch of friends that did this,
and hell, yeah, you are very strong will.
If I did this at my school,
I think I would not survive.
I think I would actually die.
And not because people would hate crime me,
I'm sure they would, but--
I would just be too embarrassed!
That would be so embarrassing.
And, you know, I wasn't out in school,
so I guess it wouldn't have made sense,
but I guess I did try this a few times when I was younger,
but it wasn't in this context.
It was like, again, growing up,
I look like a little boy
and I played rugby with the boys.
Like, I played boy sports up until the age of 12,
where there's a cut off that the government tells you
that you're not allowed to play with boys anymore,
even though you're stronger
and smarter
and faster
and taller than them when you're 12.
I remember hitting age 12,
I'm being told that I couldn't play sports with the boys anymore
and I guess I kind of did something similar to this.
I was just like, "why? I'm stronger than them".
I definitely didn't have it easy.
And everybody's situation is different!
I have a lot of respect for trans kids growing up in high school right now
because when I was in high school,
obviously there was like, the anti-trans memes.
That was the Apache helicopter jokes,
and, obviously, that was transphobia,
but I feel like the level of transphobia that we have right now,
the amount of [ ] in the media about trans people,
that would be so terrifying
and scary to grow up in school while that was all going on.
While also being out as trans,
so like, if that's you, in this situation,
I understand that's probably very difficult.
I hope you're doing good!
US Government:
Stop being trans.
Trans people:
You know what?
I'm gonna start being trans even harder.
This...
I can relate to, you know?
I'm not from America,
but I toured there last year,
I'm touring that currently, right now, this year,
and the amount of anti-trans legislations
that are just going through...
Not great!
But I do relate to this one.
I really do relate to this one.
I've had a very interesting journey and...
Relationship with being trans, and my identity.
At first, you know, I outright rejected it.
I was like, "I'm not trans!
"I'm just non-binary.
"I don't want to bind!"
And then I got a binder
and I was like, "wow, this is exactly what I wanted".
And then, you know, I was aggressively trans,
because I needed to prove myself
that I was the most trans ever!
And then I went through a phase where the only thing
that I could ever think about was being trans,
because my dysphoria was so insanely bad,
and then after I transitioned,
then I went through the medical transition...
I went through a phase where I was like:
"I don't want to be defined by being trans".
And I feel like I'm still in that phase.
I don't know if it is a phase, but--
It's very easy to be pigeonholed,
especially with a label like trans.
But with the amount of stuff that's going on now, you know like...
A few years ago,
I purposely tried to make less trans videos,
because I didn't want that to be the only thing
that people thought of me.
But now there's so much shit,
and there's so much pushback, I'm like:
"Look, I'm just gonna post the most obnoxiously trans shit
"you've ever seen in your life".
I will make a 40 minute video
talking about how much transphobia sucks.
And I hate that I feel the need to do that,
and I hate that, I'm sure a lot of other people
feel they need to do that, but...
Someone's gonna do it!
So, there it is!
And, you know, it is fun pissing off transphobes.
Obviously, not if you're in an unsafe environment,
but if you're on the internet...
I don't mind trolling a few transphobes.
I don't mind rubbing it in their face
that I used to have titties and now I don't.
This one is a timeline of a transgender.
So, you're born,
and then, you know, puberty hits!
"Oh, man!"
"Oh, geez!"
"Oh, man!"
"Oh, man, oh, geez, oh, geez!"
"Oh, oh, geez, oh, man, oh, man,
"oh, geez, oh, man, oh, no, oh, geez!"
Yeah. Yeah.
Yeah, I get that.
I mean-- The timeline doesn't end there.
I'm on the other side of that.
We go back and forth...
But yeah, realizing you're trans is one thing.
Accepting you're trans is another thing.
And then, actually doing anything about it...
Is another thing.
I just don't think a lot of people realize just how much is going on
when somebody realizes they're trans.
It's absolutely terrifying!
And maybe there are people that do not have that experience.
I am yet to find them.
I love a bit of trans women and trans man solidarity,
because I feel like a lot of the time
there's so much pointless arguing,
for absolutely no reason
and there's always competitions about who has it worse.
I definitely played into that.
Probably not that long ago,
but, you know what we like?
We like a bit of salad--
"Saladority".
We like a bit of salad!
- Right in fron of my salad?
Trans woman to trans man solidarity.
"Height dysphoria".
Absolutely.
This was a big one for me.
And, you know, a big one.
Oh it's a very small one.
I'm a little guy.
I'm five foot five.
And I grew a few centimeters on testosterone, luckily.
I was five foot four and a half,
and now I'm very comfortably five foot five.
Don't ever measure me.
Ever.
It's a kind of similar experience to the frustration
that you get with binding,
where it's like, I cannot will myself into growing taller.
I cannot do that.
So I went through phases of putting like, height insoles in my shoes,
gave me a few inches...
I actually wore them the first time I met Corry,
and then, the second time I met Corry,
he was like, "you seem shorter".
And I'm like, "yep...
"I stuffed my shoes
"to make myself taller".
And don't get me wrong, like,
the shoe insoles, very useful for going to concerts,
because you can actually see over people
and there's not this wall of blocked sound surrounding you.
And, you know, currently I wear platform shoes all the time.
They look sick as hell,
and they also made me taller!
I wouldn't say that my height dysphoria is really that bad anymore,
it's more just an inconvenience.
And it annoys me sometimes.
Like, I'll be at a party and speaking to a bunch of guys...
And I feel like we're on the same level of like, humor.
Like, we're like, you know, we're both equally as funny as each other.
We're both equally, as cool as each other,
but because I'm down here
and they're up there,
I feel so inferior.
I'm like, "hey, listen to my joke,
"please.
"But don't look down at me".
I'm sure that must be very difficult as a trans woman as well,
because like you can't control your height.
Like, you just can't!
If you're really tall and you stick out,
you just can't do anything about that, that sucks!
"Coming out as transgender face-to-face".
"Coming out as trans through a meme".
Hell, yeah.
This terrifies me a little bit.
I've had a few people ask me like,
"oh, what joke can I make to come out as trans to my family?"
And I'm like, "look, I don't know you, stranger".
I don't know what your parents are gonna do.
I don't know how they're gonna react.
I don't know if they're gonna find it funny
to learn this very big part of your life.
This very big thing that's going to change their entire world...
Through a meme.
That scares me.
And I'm not saying that it's insensitive.
I mean, obviously, if you come out through a meme
and your parents are like, "haha, that's funny",
you have a great relationship with your parents, hell yeah.
I just-- It scares me the fact that,
like, some people may do that
and it may backfire,
and, you know...
As hard as it is for a trans person,
and, absolutely, your transition is about you.
It's not about your parents,
it's not about how other people feel,
but, you know...
Your parents grow up with you,
they see you as one thing,
and it could absolutely change their entire world.
So maybe coming out with a meme...
Oh, that scares the hell out of me!
I just sent my mum a Wikipedia link to non-binary,
and sent it to her on Facebook Messenger
while I was in school, sat in the bathroom.
So I'm not one to talk.
I've never really come out as trans to anyone...
In person--
That's a lie, oh, my God.
Actually, my roommate from school.
I went to a boarding school and I had a Russian roommate.
And I love her, she's called Sasha,
she's the best.
Literally, a few weeks before we finished school,
I came into her room and she had obviously--
I don't know what she had been doing,
she would definitely have seen my social media,
and, you know, I was Noah online.
I wasn't birth name online.
But I came into her room and she was like...
"So, can I ask you a question?"
And I'm like, "oh, God, oh, God, yes".
"You like boys, right?
And I'm like, "yeah, absolutely, no doubt.
"I'm not a lesbian.
"I feel like I have to make this very clear.
"I'm not a lesbian".
And she was like, "okay, I get that,
"but if you were gonna have a boyfriend,
"would you be their boyfriend,
"or would you be their girlfriend?"
And I was like, "oh, my God, that was intense".
And I'm very glad she did that,
because it made coming out to her face to face
way easier because I feel like,
if I was gonna come out to her face to face,
I'd have to make such a big deal out of it.
I'd be like, "look, I'm not who you think I am".
So I came out to her face to face,
but yeah, coming out in a meme...
That's scary.
That's very scary to me.
So those are the trans memes.
If you want me to make another video like this,
I'm so down.
I enjoyed it.
This is, you know, more enjoyable
than being called slurs.
But yeah, if you want to see me at a show,
you want to meet me,
we've got VIP tickets!
I'm in these places, just have a look!
Just, maybe, consider it.
It would just be a fun time.
But yeah, have a good day or don't.
See you later losers.
Goodbye!