A TV Show Turned Me From Trans Indifferent To Trans Ally in 30 Minutes

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tell you about the time Charlie and I went cow-tipping?</p></blockquote><blockquote id="77ff"><p>Susan: Cow tipping?</p></blockquote><blockquote id="f1e2"><p>Ben: Cow in field, push cow, cow falls over. Cow tipping.</p></blockquote><blockquote id="6c9c"><p>Susan: Oh, you mean like fly-tipping?</p></blockquote><h1 id="9040">The Twist</h1><p id="1c9f">When Charlie arrives, there’s a twist in the tale. Instead of Ben’s childhood friend, there’s a beautiful woman at the door. Who introduces herself as Charlotte. Incidentally, Charlotte is played by the irreplaceable Diana Weston, who I just learned is Canadian.</p><p id="69d5">Long story short, Charlotte is Charlie and it dawns on miserable old Ben that his boyhood friend has undergone a gender transition.</p><figure id="172e"><img src="https://cdn-images-1.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:800/1*3-yVg5zlZaZLVjyTlEPvNw.jpeg"><figcaption></figcaption></figure><h1 id="7225">The Resistance</h1><p id="c56e">Showing his usual resistance to change, Ben dismisses pretty much every aspect of Charlotte. But in a particularly sweet moment, you see Ben reading a book called “Gender Dysphoria: Understanding the Facts.” But he hides it away because he thinks he’s too manly to read it.</p><h1 id="65a4">The Showdown</h1><p id="508a">A secondary character’s mum is rude to Charlotte because she’s transgender. And despite Ben’s dismissive attitude, talking about his friend like that is a step too far. And he tells her, “You could learn a lot about being a woman from my friend Charlotte.” He gives a more passionate speech, but I

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can’t remember what the rest of it is. I remember it makes me cry every time I see it though. I felt like if someone as stubborn and set in his ways as he was could learn to embrace and support Charlotte, then it was proof that anyone could.</p><h1 id="a934">I’m Not Selling It</h1><p id="9fde">I know what I’m saying doesn’t have the same effect as seeing it. The episode is called “One of the Boys,” if you’re interested in watching it.</p><p id="a521">After I watched it, I made a conscious effort to educate myself about the experiences of transgender people. I sought out books, documentaries, and personal stories to get a deeper understanding of the challenges they face.</p><h1 id="17f8">Never Dismiss The Power Of Fiction</h1><p id="515a">I know it isn’t real. I know Ben Harper is a work of fiction. But I also know that whoever wrote that episode, their compassion shone through like a torch.</p><div id="d9d1" class="link-block"> <a href="https://medium.com/@leonorawatkins98/membership"> <div> <div> <h2>Join Medium with my referral link - Leonora watkins</h2> <div><h3>As a Medium member, a portion of your membership fee goes to writers you read, and you get full access to every story…</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*L4cJOZglJAspUTUR)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

My Family

No, not that bunch of hateful miscreants, the TV show. That’s what turned me from indifferent to ally in 30 minutes. My Family is a sitcom about the Harpers, and on paper, it’s nothing out of the ordinary, but it was one of my favourite shows. Robert Lindsay and Zoe Wanamaker are the perfect on-screen married couple. Anyone else, and I don’t think the show would have been so successful. I was about 18/19 when this particular episode first aired.

Ben = The usual grumpy sitcom dad Susan = The usual long-suffering but compassionate mother.

Charlie

No, not my husband. But a character in the show, Charlie is planning on visiting Ben. And Ben is in an uncharacteristically good mood about this, Charlie was his friend from childhood and the pair had a lot of fun together.

Ben: Did I ever tell you about the time Charlie and I went cow-tipping?

Susan: Cow tipping?

Ben: Cow in field, push cow, cow falls over. Cow tipping.

Susan: Oh, you mean like fly-tipping?

The Twist

When Charlie arrives, there’s a twist in the tale. Instead of Ben’s childhood friend, there’s a beautiful woman at the door. Who introduces herself as Charlotte. Incidentally, Charlotte is played by the irreplaceable Diana Weston, who I just learned is Canadian.

Long story short, Charlotte is Charlie and it dawns on miserable old Ben that his boyhood friend has undergone a gender transition.

The Showdown

A secondary character’s mum is rude to Charlotte because she’s transgender. And despite Ben’s dismissive attitude, talking about his friend like that is a step too far. And he tells her, “You could learn a lot about being a woman from my friend Charlotte.” He gives a more passionate speech, but I can’t remember what the rest of it is. I remember it makes me cry every time I see it though. I felt like if someone as stubborn and set in his ways as he was could learn to embrace and support Charlotte, then it was proof that anyone could.

I’m Not Selling It

I know what I’m saying doesn’t have the same effect as seeing it. The episode is called “One of the Boys,” if you’re interested in watching it.

After I watched it, I made a conscious effort to educate myself about the experiences of transgender people. I sought out books, documentaries, and personal stories to get a deeper understanding of the challenges they face.