Charley
Identifies as a man
Lynne: So, what gender were you born as?
Charley: Female.
Lynne: Do you identify as a female?
Charley: I am a female, but I want to be a man. That’s what I like.
Lynne: Have you thought about what it would take to become a man?
Charley: Not really. A lot of my friends, they always make jokes on me. They say you are just a man, cuz I always wear, you know, sweatpants, jeans, T-shirts. I shop at a lot of clothing stores for men, because I like those kinds of clothes. It’s comfortable. I do hip hop dancing too, which makes me look like a man.
Lynne: Are you familiar with the word gender-nonconforming? It describes people that don't follow the rules of their gender.
Charley: I think that's me.
Lynne: Can you talk about it a little bit about that?
Charley: I don't know when I started to think that I want to be a man. I just don't like being really girlish since I was young. Of course, when I was a very young little girl, I wanted to be like a princess. I wore the dresses. But since middle school, I started to know what hip hop was, and I felt like I wanted to wear men’s clothes. I just feel like those kinds of clothes make me feel more comfortable.
Lynne: Does it make you feel powerful?
Charley: It does. When I wear baggy stuff, it feels more comfortable to walk. If I wear very tiny stuff, I don't know. I can't even walk straight. I just feel like I'm so light, I'm skinny, but I really want to be more heavy. That's why I like to wear everything heavy, especially shoes. I don't wear light shoes. I feel really uncomfortable with that. I like having sneakers to make me feel like, "Oh, I'm actually touching the floor".
Lynne: Now here's a tough question, but probably a charged question. Do you think any of it has to do with your culture?
Charley: There's no freedom for me there. That’s why one of the reasons I love America. I can be with anybody I want to be. I told my friends I have dreams. I'm a dream chaser. I love what I do, and I love the way I live, but in China, sometimes you get really depressed. They think I'm a liberal. Freedom is a tough one. People sometimes judge you by your appearance or whatever you do in China. They are conservative and traditional. Here it isn't. So, you can express what really you are.
Lynne: If you could be anybody in the world, who would you want to be?
Charley: Like, I don't know if you know the Chinese history called the 3 Kingdoms. There's one man called Thoogull. He is very smart. I want to be that. He is a very smart man.
Charley: Female.
Lynne: Do you identify as a female?
Charley: I am a female, but I want to be a man. That’s what I like.
Lynne: Have you thought about what it would take to become a man?
Charley: Not really. A lot of my friends, they always make jokes on me. They say you are just a man, cuz I always wear, you know, sweatpants, jeans, T-shirts. I shop at a lot of clothing stores for men, because I like those kinds of clothes. It’s comfortable. I do hip hop dancing too, which makes me look like a man.
Lynne: Are you familiar with the word gender-nonconforming? It describes people that don't follow the rules of their gender.
Charley: I think that's me.
Lynne: Can you talk about it a little bit about that?
Charley: I don't know when I started to think that I want to be a man. I just don't like being really girlish since I was young. Of course, when I was a very young little girl, I wanted to be like a princess. I wore the dresses. But since middle school, I started to know what hip hop was, and I felt like I wanted to wear men’s clothes. I just feel like those kinds of clothes make me feel more comfortable.
Lynne: Does it make you feel powerful?
Charley: It does. When I wear baggy stuff, it feels more comfortable to walk. If I wear very tiny stuff, I don't know. I can't even walk straight. I just feel like I'm so light, I'm skinny, but I really want to be more heavy. That's why I like to wear everything heavy, especially shoes. I don't wear light shoes. I feel really uncomfortable with that. I like having sneakers to make me feel like, "Oh, I'm actually touching the floor".
Lynne: Now here's a tough question, but probably a charged question. Do you think any of it has to do with your culture?
Charley: There's no freedom for me there. That’s why one of the reasons I love America. I can be with anybody I want to be. I told my friends I have dreams. I'm a dream chaser. I love what I do, and I love the way I live, but in China, sometimes you get really depressed. They think I'm a liberal. Freedom is a tough one. People sometimes judge you by your appearance or whatever you do in China. They are conservative and traditional. Here it isn't. So, you can express what really you are.
Lynne: If you could be anybody in the world, who would you want to be?
Charley: Like, I don't know if you know the Chinese history called the 3 Kingdoms. There's one man called Thoogull. He is very smart. I want to be that. He is a very smart man.