Hi, I have a transmasc boyfriend and am part of the LGBTQ+ alliance. However I started my first year of college and encountered uneducated men who just did not believe that trans people had their rights under attack. One of my friends even told my trans woman friend that she had more rights than him. How or what can you do to help others become educated without “debating trans existence” or starting an argument? Thank you.
You could try dropping the condescending tone. Just because someone disagrees with you doesn’t mean he is uneducated.
I would also recommend being polite and using the charity principle. You generally won’t change someone’s mind by berating him.
There is a stark difference between the average opinion in online spaces and in real life. Most people will just flat out not care. Talk about golf or the weather or something.
To say something controversial: maybe listen to what they have to say and try to understand why they think what they think, instead of assuming that you’re automatically right and just need to educate them.
Thats the issue though. They dont think, Ive tried asking them about stuff and they’ll parrot things like “puberty blockers kill people.” then I show them that study was wrong and they just dont believe me lol.
You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.
I think it’s fine to want to educate the undereducated, but the reality is they’ll never learn unless they want to learn. So when they say something ignorant, you can just say that hasn’t been your experience.
If they ask for more you can share your experience. If they’re still interested then you can open it up to the broader national or global narrative.
I feel for you and your loved ones and I hope you have success finding and building allies in your community.
I like to figuratively give people shovels and let them dig themselves into a hole. A lot of people I talk to don’t really have good evidence, they’ve just been convinced by someone louder than them.
Ask genuine questions, not debate me bro style, for explanations. If they’re open minded, maybe they’ll question things. If they’re closed minded, you were never gonna get anywhere with them.