There's a clever little trick behind the outrage over "chestfeeding" as a suggested alternative (not replacement) to breastfeeding, and the reason it works is, once again, say it with me: TRANSMASCULINE INVISIBILITY.
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This trick only works because trans men are so invisible as to be outside the picture frame of ordinary somewhat transphobic but not that informed people's minds. If you picture a trans man giving birth, him saying "chestfeeding" might be a little awkward, but it's not scary.
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But if you're unable to conjure the imagine of a trans man to your mind, because of transmasc invisibility, you make trans women the culprits (as always) and ascribe some sort of evil motives of jealousy and hatred of cis women to them.
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And, presto! By making trans men disappear, you've turned a relatively simple issue of some trans AFABs feeling more comfortable with alternate language into this ominous sign of the erasure of women.
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Of course, more advanced transphobes know that trans men are the people for whom "chestfeeding" applies, and they have their own baroque reasoning about why trans men are really poor lil deluded women in need of saviors to stop them being trans.
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But for your average person "chestfeeding" only activates their prejudices bc they're NOT thinking of trans men, rather than bc they think trans men are women who need to be reminded of what sex they are.
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End of conversation
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But they are breasts? There's no logic to changing the word. It's appeasement to someone who couldn't explain why they need it and will want something else tomorrow. They are breasts and it hurts no one to say so. You can't take femaleness out of breastfeeding.
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Hmm. Interesting. Let's test this. Would there be any logic to using the word for breasts in the native language of a non-English speaking patient? And, would using that word hurt English speakers in any way?
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