Erin Reed has a good article (Jun 22, 2023): 'Cisgender' Is No More A Slur Than 'Straight' Is - Elon Musk Restricts Term On Twitter: Elon Musk declared that 'cis' is a slur on twitter. The word is no more a slur than 'straight' or 'heterosexual,' and it has over a hundred years of use to describe gender identity or presentation."
She wrote: "Yesterday, in a stunning development, Elon Musk announced that Twitter would begin to consider the term 'cis' or 'cisgender' as a slur. The word, which is important in conversations that center on gender identity, is extensively employed by transgender people, as well as by medical professionals, researchers, service providers, and advocates, to differentiate between transgender and cisgender individuals and their distinct needs."
The result: "Musk is endorsing policies that squelch the speech of transgender people who use terms like 'cisgender,' which are essential in explaining lived experiences and unique circumstances to differing gender identities."
In October 2023, Musk tweeted: “The word ‘cis’ is a heterosexual slur. Shame on anyone who uses it.”
In response to which, on October 30, Ari Drennen tweeted: "They think 'cis' is a slur because they use 'trans' as a slur"
Yesterday, January 11, 2024, Musk similarly tweeted: “Cis is a heterophobic word. Shame on anyone who uses it.”
Plainly, it isn't. If "heterosexual" and "straight" are not slurs for "not gay/bisexual," why would "cisgender" be a slur for "not transgender"?
People have written about this on Medium (unpaywalled links):
*Cisgender Definitions Pax Ahima Gethen
*No, “cis” is not a slur David Allsopp
*Cis Is Not a Slur. It Does Not Belittle Who You Are. Emma Holiday
*Cis Women Don’t Oppress Us. And Cis Is Not a Slur. Cassie Brighter
Transphobes reject the word "cis" because they don't want trans people to say things that make sense.
Trans people often use simple language to make obvious points like "people who aren't 'trans' are 'cis'," "anti-trans positions are transphobic," "anxiety about trans people is moral panic and scaremongering," "concern about hypothetical trans people being too trans is concern-trolling," etc.
Transphobes object to this language because it shows them exactly how they're being transphobic, a judgment they reject in its essence. To persist in their anti-trans agenda, they object to trans people using language that diagnoses anything at all as transphobic. They object to trans people using language that makes the relevant distinctions that will enable us to go on to diagnose anything as transphobic.
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