The Podcast for Social Research

Podcast for Social Research, Episode 90: TRANSgressions — Rights, Wrongs, and Liberal Pieties

Jul 25, 2025
Ruth Averbach, a BISR faculty member studying Russia's first trans writer, and Sophie Lewis, focusing on enemy trans feminism, dive deep into the complexities surrounding trans identities. They explore the nuances of trans politics, contrasting trans liberalism with materialism, and critique the portrayal of trans figures in history and media. Their conversation questions societal perceptions of trans rights in light of recent legal changes, advocating for a more nuanced understanding of trans experiences amidst contemporary struggles and identities.
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INSIGHT

Two Divergent Trans Political Tendencies

  • Sophie Lewis argues trans politics splits between liberal identity-focused models and radical materialist approaches tied to anti-colonialism and class struggle.
  • She urges linking trans liberation to care communization and solidarity with poor and sex-working trans people.
INSIGHT

Trans Visibility Can Be Weaponized

  • Lewis identifies a settler-colonial form of trans chauvinism where trans visibility is used to justify imperialist violence and white settler identity.
  • She warns that transness can be co-opted into homonationalist, femonationalist, and pinkwashing projects like Israeli propaganda.
ANECDOTE

Trans Celebrities Used In State PR

  • Sophie Lewis cites Israeli trans soldiers and celebrities like Mayan Gross and Dana International as examples of trans visibility tied to state militarism and PR.
  • These examples show how trans fame can be instrumentalized to obscure colonial violence.
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