Podcast
We Can Do Hard Things
Alok Vaid-Menon, the author and public speaker, believes the gender binary is an attempt to control us through its structure. They believe the gender binary isn't real and it's a structure that we do not have faith in. They believe we are all non-binary, even if we identify as cisgender.
What I'm asking people to do is to author their own version of womanhood, their own version of manhood, their own version of gender. And so it's less to me about the destination as much as it is about...
— Episode: The One Question to Finally Let Go of Co...
Episode: The One Question to Finally Let Go of Control with...
Alok Vaid-Menon, the author and public speaker, believes the gender binary is an attempt to control us through its structure. They believe the gender binary isn't real and it's a structure that we do not have faith in. They believe we are all non-binary, even if we identify as cisgender.
What I'm asking people to do is to author their own version of womanhood, their own version of manhood, their own version of gender. And so it's less to me about the destination as much as it is about the practice of questioning.
I don't think that I want people to have faith in the gender binary when I'm saying is being a man or being a woman does not mean replicating the binary structure. I'm saying that it is possible to actually come to your own definition of womanhood outside of a binary structure and I think if cis folks are interested in that look at the testimonies of trans people, trans people who are in many ways very literate about what's wrong with the gender binary, what's wrong with assigned the course of gender who's some still identify as man and woman. I don't think that those people are replicating the gender binary for being that. I think that they've actually done this work to actually say where I feel most beautiful is in this place.
Episode: 74. ALOK: What makes us beautiful? What makes us f...
It was mentioned as being included on a list of books banned in Texas public education, representing the broader issue of censorship and the erasure of trans and non-binary perspectives.
I just got word that the Texas state legislature where I'm from has included a politician, there's included my book, 'Beyond the Gender Binary', and a list of 850 books to ban in Texas public education.