I came across this article in the "
New York Times" Opinion Page.
It's a touching and sensitive look at our culture and the many variations. The same variations which on occasion lead us down such an destructive internal path.
Here's the intro by Sharon Shattuck published: April 18, 2012:
"
I’ve heard much debate in the past year about what constitutes a “healthy family.” Some politicians argue that the best environment for a child is one with a mother and a father — and the underlying context here is that a “normal” family should be helped by a “normal” heterosexual couple.
For me, “normal” is something entirely different. Yes, I grew up with a
happily married mother and father in a small, conservative Midwestern
town. But my father is transgender, and he’s a cross-dresser. He has
never tried to hide these facts from anyone.
As you can imagine, my family stuck out like a sore thumb in our small
town, though I didn’t quite realize to what extent until my dad legally
changed his name from Michael to Trisha. And yes, I sometimes still get
tripped up about whether to refer to my dad as “he” or “she.” Growing up
with Trisha caused me some grief, mostly because I worried about what
other people thought of my family and me. But Trisha just went about
her business,
painting prolifically
in oil on canvas, playing the banjo — and winning people over by simply
being a good friend, neighbor and parent. You can’t choose your
parents. Now I know that I wouldn’t want my dad any other way.
What I’m trying to do now, with this short piece and with a
feature-length documentary I’m working on, is to put myself in Dad’s
shoes, and in the shoes of other LGBT families across the country.
There are a lot of us out there, and I hope that one day we will see
“healthy family” redefined to include us, too.
Sharon Shattuck is an animator and filmmaker who lives in Brooklyn. Her award-winning animation
“Whale Fall” had its premiere on Radiolab."
And here is the video:
