It’s not so much gatekeeping, as much as it is reminding them that they contributed to building a world that is hostile toward their grandchildren in the first place.
I think it’s just frustration that they can’t take the leap that every trans child has grandparents. It’s like someone realizing that knives are sharp and can hurt their baby and then finally connecting that voting for the sharp-blades-for-infants party could be harmful to people!
Well that’s my point. Maybe I’m too willing to give older folks the benefit of the doubt, but we don’t know anything about these folks besides political affiliation and that they have a trans grandchild.
I mean, I grew up in a conservative household. In 1997, trans healthcare wasn’t a consideration. It wasn’t an issue in 2007. If it’s not an issue, I guarantee that it wasn’t on most voters mind. The vast majority of the ardent champions for LGBT rights in elected office right now were part of the majority that were against marriage equality at some point of their political career.
Disparaging people for growing, regardless of the reason, is counterproductive.
Well that’s the thing: nobody’s disparaging them for growing. It’s great that they finally saw trans people as people. Wonderful for them. But they’re LIFE-LONG Republicans. They sat through Nixon, Reagan, both Bushes, and Trump as president. All the while, their party just got shittier and more full of bigoted people. They watched the rise of right-wing talk radio, with horrendous humans like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck spewing their vitriol in the name of the party, and they remained. They watched the Tea Party hold up signs decrying Obama as a monkey, or a muslim, signs calling for the hanging of Obama, and they remained. They watched Trump try to overthrow democracy as hundreds of terrorists committed violence at his bidding, and they remained.
Now, they’re finally deciding to leave the party because the bigotry they supported all along suddenly became turned their way. Fuck them. I’m not disparaging them for growing. I’m disparaging them for being pieces of shit.
Did I say I wished they continued to be pieces of shit? No, I just don’t see it as uplifting when a person’s empathy only extends to their immediate family.
It explains that their daughter’s experience more or less opened their eyes to the treatment as a whole. (As in not just their family) It may be spun that way, but for two (likely groomed) 70’s+ republicans in a primarily red state, to have any diverging beliefs from their party is a good thing. It shows that the fight for LGBTQ+ rights, while admittedly slow (and shouldn’t be necessary), is showing progress, even if it’s small.
As another user mentioned, they could have just disowned their granddaughter, like a lot of bigots do. I’ve seen it happen and know a few people that it happened to. It’s not a good feeling being alone in the world because your family doesn’t agree with your identity.
I say that while the fight is still going on, we can at least enjoy this, albeit tiny, victory.
Would you rather the grandparents had shunned the grandchild? What use is gate keeping correct decisions?
It’s not so much gatekeeping, as much as it is reminding them that they contributed to building a world that is hostile toward their grandchildren in the first place.
I think it’s just frustration that they can’t take the leap that every trans child has grandparents. It’s like someone realizing that knives are sharp and can hurt their baby and then finally connecting that voting for the sharp-blades-for-infants party could be harmful to people!
My guess is that they’d rather those grandparents not have been hateful pieces of shit in the first place. But better late than never!
Well that’s my point. Maybe I’m too willing to give older folks the benefit of the doubt, but we don’t know anything about these folks besides political affiliation and that they have a trans grandchild.
I mean, I grew up in a conservative household. In 1997, trans healthcare wasn’t a consideration. It wasn’t an issue in 2007. If it’s not an issue, I guarantee that it wasn’t on most voters mind. The vast majority of the ardent champions for LGBT rights in elected office right now were part of the majority that were against marriage equality at some point of their political career.
Disparaging people for growing, regardless of the reason, is counterproductive.
Well that’s the thing: nobody’s disparaging them for growing. It’s great that they finally saw trans people as people. Wonderful for them. But they’re LIFE-LONG Republicans. They sat through Nixon, Reagan, both Bushes, and Trump as president. All the while, their party just got shittier and more full of bigoted people. They watched the rise of right-wing talk radio, with horrendous humans like Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck spewing their vitriol in the name of the party, and they remained. They watched the Tea Party hold up signs decrying Obama as a monkey, or a muslim, signs calling for the hanging of Obama, and they remained. They watched Trump try to overthrow democracy as hundreds of terrorists committed violence at his bidding, and they remained.
Now, they’re finally deciding to leave the party because the bigotry they supported all along suddenly became turned their way. Fuck them. I’m not disparaging them for growing. I’m disparaging them for being pieces of shit.
Would have liked to have seen them do that for the reasons they did even if they didn’t have a trans grandchild
The second-best time to realize others matter is today; but we get to remind people that the best time would’ve been before today
Did I say I wished they continued to be pieces of shit? No, I just don’t see it as uplifting when a person’s empathy only extends to their immediate family.
Did you read the article?
It explains that their daughter’s experience more or less opened their eyes to the treatment as a whole. (As in not just their family) It may be spun that way, but for two (likely groomed) 70’s+ republicans in a primarily red state, to have any diverging beliefs from their party is a good thing. It shows that the fight for LGBTQ+ rights, while admittedly slow (and shouldn’t be necessary), is showing progress, even if it’s small.
As another user mentioned, they could have just disowned their granddaughter, like a lot of bigots do. I’ve seen it happen and know a few people that it happened to. It’s not a good feeling being alone in the world because your family doesn’t agree with your identity.
I say that while the fight is still going on, we can at least enjoy this, albeit tiny, victory.