Shemale

Even though it is very easy to determine one’s sex by physical appearance, it is sometimes difficult to tell whether the gender is male, female, or both. Gender roles are socially created. When visiting Thailand this Eid holiday, the number of transsexuals in the country shocked me. It is socially acceptable in Thailand, whereas it is considered as out of the norms in our society. At some cases, I couldn’t tell if it was a male or female. Their secondary sex characteristics all proved to be ones of female.



When talking with one of the transsexuals working for a makeup store in Siam Paragon, the very first thing I noticed is the voice. It was the voice of a man, but the appearance of a woman. He would refer to himself as a “she,” which confused me at some point. I didn’t really know whether to refer to him as a male or a female. His name is Boom. Boom’s height seemed very masculine, but has long hair and an ideal shape of body for a woman. Even though we sometimes refer to masculinity and femininity as a biological attribute, it is in fact socially created.



Those physical appearances determine whether we perceive a person as a male or a female. However, once they have an operation to change their physical appearance, it becomes difficult to tell the difference between the two. When comparing this to our culture here in Doha, it is seen as socially unacceptable as it deviates away from the norms. They are looked-down upon, which is why we rarely see them here in public as strict rules apply to those who are seen.



As much as those transsexuals in Thailand try to convert into the physical, behavioral, mental, and emotional traits characteristics of a female, they will never reach the “ideal.” Very few people reach the gender ideal.