“I Didn’t Come Here to Make Trouble”: Resistance Strategies Utilized by Transgender and Gender Diverse Youth in the Midwestern U.S.

Abstract

Research on transgender and gender diverse (TGD) youth demonstrates the negative outcomes associated with trauma and oppression based on gender identity and expression. Related research illustrates how TGD youth are resilient in the face of oppression through individual (e.g., navigating difficult relationships, seeking mental health support) and community (e.g., access to community resources) factors. However, this research is limited by an understanding of resilience as overcoming challenges rather than exploring the possibly unique ways that TGD youth resist oppression as a form of resilience. This qualitative study utilized in-depth interviews with 19 TGD youth living in two Midwestern states, a region of the U.S. characterized by high levels of hostility and victimization toward TGD young people. Thematic analyses revealed the ways in which TGD youth engage in resistance strategies in the face of oppression. At an intrapersonal level, strategies included resisting oppressive narratives, affirming one’s own gender, maintaining authenticity, and finding hope. At an interpersonal level, strategies were standing up for self and others, educating others, and avoiding hostility. Finally, at a community-level, TGD youth were engaging in activism and organizing and enhancing visibility and representation. Findings are discussed and implications are identified.

Identity outness to family among gender diverse sexual minority youth: A latent profile analysis.

“…Sexual minority people of color report fearing heterosexism within their racial/ethnic communities (Balsam et al, 2015). Youth living in the South or Midwest may be more cautious about disclosing their sexual and gender identities than youth living in other U.S. regions due to persistent negative attitudes toward SGM individuals (Paceley et al, 2021). In addition, youth may fear losing their family as a source of social support when contemplating whether to disclose (Williams et al, 2005).…”

“…For instance, youth from the South were overrepresented in our sample. Due to persistent negative attitudes toward SGM individuals in the Southern United States (Paceley et al, 2021), our sample may overrepresent profiles with limited outness. In addition, although we could identify region of the country, we could not identify urbanicity or other city-level characteristics, and within a region, one might expect differences in experiences of outness based on such characteristics.…”

“We’ll dance harder and love deeper”: LGBTQIA+ resilience and resistance during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…Shifting to a resistance framework over a resilience framework centers the work required to address and dismantle the systems that create hardships ( Robinson and Schmitz, 2021 ). However, resistance and resilience are often used interchangeably in the literature, and “resistance may be a form of resilience” ( Paceley et al, 2021, p. 30 ). For example, trans and nonbinary youth may build resilience to resist prejudice ( Singh et al, 2014 ).…”

“…Our study is built on the foundation of past knowledge suggesting that resilience and resistance are fruitful and critical to the survival of LGBTQIA+ people (e.g. Paceley et al, 2021 ). We begin by reviewing the literature on historical trauma and resilience and resistance within LGBTQIA+ communities.…”

Intricate Realities: Mental Health among Trans, Nonbinary, and Gender Diverse College Students

“…While minority stress models may accurately capture the difficulties that marginalized people face in navigating a society that is hostile and oppressive toward them, and social dominance theory explains how this oppression is operationalized, neither theory speaks to the strengths that individuals bring to bear in living their lives with resilience and resistance. TGD people often have had to become resilient in the face of such oppressive structures and interactions [20], yet perhaps more importantly, many TGD individuals, especially young TGD people, live their authentic lives as a form of resistance to these structures and beliefs [21]. We believe we cannot only speak to the negative impacts of minority stress without also emphasizing the beautiful, creative, and full lives lived by so many TGD people as a foil to these harms [22].…”