Q&A: “…does anyone ever talk about how jobs can limit one’s choices for gender presentation?”
anonymous said:
Concerning being either GNC or nonbinary, does anyone ever talk about how jobs can limit one’s choices for gender presentation? I’m in hard science, which tends to have much stricter standards of “professional presentation” (and thus gender-performance), than the humanities. I couldn’t get away with half of the presentation stuff that people on Tumblr endlessly espouse if I want to actually get a job in my chosen field, which is then used as proof that I’m a faker and trend-follower.
unfortunately i don’t have any links on hand to offer you, but i have seen many people both online and offline talk about the limitations (or even complete inability) that they face regarding being able to present themselves in a way that reflects their gender (or lack thereof)– both in regards to on the job and as a student because of standards re: “professionalism”. especially here in Japan where binary gendered uniforms & dress codes are extremely common both in the workplace and in schools, it’s a fairly commonly shared source of frustration and distress, i think.
that said, although your ask instantly made me think of a particular friend of mine in a scientific field who has voiced similar frustration as you, i actually haven’t seen much talk about this topic specifically from those in scientific fields, hard or otherwise. i’m sure there are various reasons for that, none of which being an actual shortage of people who are faced with this problem, because Tumblr being Tumblr aside, i’m sure there is no such shortage.
it can be hard at times, dealing with all the things that are skewered on Tumblr, having to remind yourself that things are in fact skewered on Tumblr and not an actual reflection of the state of things at times; trying not to internalize things, be they aimed directly at you personally or not or in general navigating any kind of space where you do not see yourself or your experiences represented in one way or another, meanwhile dealing people with people who are all too quick to pass down judgement on others without knowing anything about them or their situation et cetera ad infinitum.
trust me, as someone who has worked in a humanities field for ten years in an arguably conservative country, even though the standards for “professionalism” that i face may differ from yours, even i get frustrated and exasperated with Tumblr and non-binary spaces in general that are dominated by people who are younger / at a different place in life career-wise than me.