I promise I'm asking this question in good faith because I would genuinely love to understand your reasoning: why does the term "transvestite" have anything to do with Nazism?

From what I remember, that word was common and acceptable when I was growing up in the 90s, and I don't remember any Nazis using it. Nor did anyone tell me that the word "transvestite" was derogatory or offensive, although if social mores have shifted then fine, I won't say it.

What did I miss?

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gcr 8 months ago | parent | next [-]

no worries, people typically use “transgender” or “trans” as an umbrella term these days

I have heard of folks who claim the label “transveatite” for themselves. Others see it as derogatory.

	▲	ben_w 8 months ago \| parent [-]
		I suspect there may have been a misunderstanding of my earlier comment that led to this chain. Where I wrote above: > current external physical appearance — which tends to lead to confusion by both transvestites in public That wasn't a statement about being transgender. I was saying that people judge clothing, and are confused by that clothing. "Public" being about clothing, because there aren't many public places where you're going to see enough skin for anything else to cause confusion. ("vest" as in vestments, clothing).

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aisenik 8 months ago | parent | prev [-]

The emotions fueling my reaction are based on the way I experienced the word as a child in the 80s and 90s, and I could delve deeper into that but it's mostly irrelevant beyond the fact that I experienced the word in hateful ways.

In truth, I misspoke when I said "Nazi demographic" and had intended to write "Nazi era demographic," as the word's origination was in its use to describe the nascent trans community in Weimar Germany. In fact, the Nazis disregarded the validity of trans status entirely and the folks we'd regard as trans women today were classified as homosexual men before being subjected to the violence of the Nazi state. Trans men received a different, no less humiliating punishment.

The motivation in asking the question, beyond my disgust, is that I have observed a trend on this site of anachronistic language that fell out of favor after being associated with hate speech. It is generally being used in contexts supportive of the prominent far right agenda, and I seek to illuminate the motivations of the commentators who facilitate such odious reversions in discourse.

I apologize for my lack of clarity.