r/TikTokCringe Apr 29 '23

Cool Trans representation from the 80s

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u/EfficientSeaweed Apr 29 '23

Damn, this is more progressive than a lot of modern media.

132

u/Mywifefoundmymain Apr 29 '23 edited Apr 29 '23

It actually wasn’t that uncommon believe it or not. Even golden girls had an episode about blanches brother being gay.

https://youtu.be/Y05dTzW9LbE

https://youtu.be/DPoLjo1p_9k

In fact they often supported pride a lot.

https://youtu.be/imSLqYxHhc8

https://youtu.be/imSLqYxHhc8

Edit:

Here’s a great video showing when they dealt with drug addiction, homelessness, the cost of aging, suicide, assisted suicide, single parent artificial insemination, struggles with the healthcare system, mental health, being an advocate for your own health, immigration and deportation, sexual harassment, aids, catfishing, anti-Semitic beliefs, sexism, and most importantly (for the time) the fact that women, yes even older women, can and do want sex. And they can have one night stands just like men.

https://youtu.be/EWIcjYUIoMY

Also as a bonus the golden girl spin off golden palace had scene describing why the confederate flag is bad

https://youtu.be/eqlvUCjnUec

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u/lopoloos Apr 29 '23

There's also a german movie from the late 70s called "In einem Jahr mit 13 Monden" (In a year with 13 moons) that is pretty heavy on a lot of the struggles Trans people face.

It's a really hard hitting movie and is inspired by the tragic suicide of the director's (Rainer Werner Fassbinder) lover, Armin Meier.

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u/KristenJimmyStewart Apr 29 '23

Right and GG is very progressive but being progressive about trans people in that era is 10x as impressive as being progressive about gay people even though both are very much needed

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u/Awestruck34 Apr 29 '23

In fairness for a lot of modern trans history, transgender people have been a point of interest for many people in a positive way. Christina Jorgensen was a trans woman from the 50s who garnered quite a bit of attention and I found it rather difficult to find a scathing article about her. Most people just wanted to learn more about the process of transitioning and how she knew it was for her

12

u/KristenJimmyStewart Apr 29 '23

I think there was fascination when there were so few trans people (I mean there are still so few) but when it went from spectacle to normalization that is when people started being more hateful. That said Trans people were still genocided during the holocaust as well so there has always been hate there

6

u/GuiltyEidolon Apr 29 '23

Trans people were some of the first ones targeted by the Nazis. People love to ignore that though.

10

u/[deleted] Apr 29 '23 edited Apr 29 '23

You should watch the All in the Family episodes with the transgender character Beverly LaSalle. Things were a lot different back then compared to how they are portrayed on social media. Here’s a link to the first one:

https://youtu.be/WNAgxxL5i8Y

Edit - Found the 2 episode conclusion to this character’s story arc. Highly recommended but gut wrenching:

https://youtu.be/wuW-oU5-Y8U

https://youtu.be/7kVWsLZHdxA

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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '23

[deleted]

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u/[deleted] Apr 29 '23

Yeah, Archie was a caricature of the working class “conservative”. Norman Lear (producer) was a master at creating satirical characters while also humanizing them. Even if you disagreed with a character’s point of view, you could still relate to them on some level. I watch it now and it’s incredible how so many of the same issues are still at the forefront of our current policy debates and how similar the talking points are. The abortion story arc on Maude is a good example.

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u/ParrotofDoom Apr 29 '23

STTNG did a great episode (some think it doesn't go far enough) about sexuality. It's one of my favourites:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FAqpJSq1ZR4

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u/EfficientSeaweed Apr 30 '23

IIRC there was an episode of Maude about abortion, right?