This vintage clip reminds us what trans people had to go through before we had visibility

Before the trans tipping point, before Boys Don’t Cry, and long before the Internet existed, trans representation was hard to come by unless you were really looking for it. But for a generation of kids who wanted to know who they were and where they fit in the queer community, there was an imperfect form of representation that sometimes showed up in the least likely places. Talk shows like Maury and Phil Donahue traded on the sensational, the melodramatic, and the out-and-out shocking. And in the 80s and 90s, when daytime conflict TV reigned supreme, that was where you were most likely to find trans people talking about their lives and experiences.

@..dollhistory

A pannel of trans people and transvestites on Donahue (1989) #donahue #latenighttalkshow #80s #80stv #trans #transgender #transsexual #transhistory #lgbt #🏳️‍⚧️

♬ original sound – DollHistory

The fantastic TikTok account @dollhistory is a catalogue of clips from this bygone era of representation, and while many of the clips aren’t the easiest to watch, they’re incredibly illuminating. Consider one clip taken from a 1989 segment on Phil Donahue that shows a group of trans women (and one trans man) reacting to some truly out-of-pocket questions from audience members.

There’s a mix of curiosity and fear palpable in the people stepping up to the mic to ask these folks questions about their lives. One woman expresses disbelief at the fact that one of the trans women on stage is stealth at work. “I actually told one of [my coworkers,]” the woman on stage responds, “and she thought it was a practical joke. I had to bring in an old photograph.” Another man—sporting a magnificent rattail—asks the trans folks what right they have to “play God.” “I think this just goes to prove,” one of the women replies, “that you are what you are, nothing can change that.”

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Amen. Thankfully we live in a world where, for the most part, we don’t have to put up with invasive, rude questions on TV anymore. But we’re not as far from the world of 1989 as we’d hope to be, either.

“How do you know that you’re a man?” One trans man asks an audience member after being questioned as to how trans people know their correct gender.

“Because I was born into a man’s body,” the questioner replies, “so I assume I’m a man.”

“Nobody really knows,” another trans woman responds. “And one of the confusions here that has to be straightened out is gender and sex. Gender is what the culture says you are…but if you don’t feel that way inside, you’re bucking nature, and that’s the problem.”

It can be painful to revisit this time in history, but we can’t be allowed to forget it, especially in this political climate. We’re never going back to a time when we were put on display for shock value, and we won’t be forced back into the cultural closet. Moments like this remind us how far we’ve come, and also how important it is to keep fighting for our future.

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