The Transgender Thread

[sick among the pure]

Ok, so, I need the opinion of people who can really understand my situation.
I have to go up to NY later this month to renew my permit. (A friend of mine is taking me to the Toronto NIN show, so I need to pretend I'm a NY resident still a little longer so I can cross the boarder. If I had a job, and enough time, I would just opt for a passport.) I am 100% getting a new photo, because not only is my photo on my current ID just so ridiculously old, but since I've been on T for over 2 years now, I don't really look anything like my photo. Hell, it was taken before I got my mohawk. I had problems with people not believing it was my ID in the past, mostly due to transitioning (I should be happy I pass so well that they don't believe it, but it sucks when you're stuck trying to get back into the US for a half hour). SO. I have the option of changing my gender marker on my ID, since I have the necessary letter from my doctor (which is all NY needs). But I won't have the money and time to get my name legally changed for a while still. A year minimum. Do you guys think I should get my gender marker changed as well when I renew, or just get a new photo and hold off on the gender marker until I can change my name? I don't know if having the gender marker match my appearance, but not name, would make it more or less confusing for people who don't fully understand (/believe in? yeah, that's a thing...) trans* people.
Oh, as for the US boarder douche, he asked if I had a second ID. I don't. Because who has 2 government photo IDs? I had to give him my credit card, which also had my legal name on it, and wait a half hour for him to decide if I was me. I never thought I'd miss Philly, every time I've used my ID down here, it sometimes takes a few seconds to "get it", but everyone does.

[jessamineny]

Ok, so, I need the opinion of people who can really understand my situation. <snip>

Your birth name is pretty traditionally feminine iirc, so potentially you'd have to continually deal with explaining that you haven't legally changed your name yet (and keep facing delays at the border). But you're already dealing with that anyway since the image on your current ID doesn't look like you...

[sick among the pure]

Your birth name is pretty traditionally feminine iirc, so potentially you'd have to continually deal with explaining that you haven't legally changed your name yet (and keep facing delays at the border). But you're already dealing with that anyway since the image on your current ID doesn't look like you...

Yeah. And I mean, you've met me a few times now. If I handed you a photo ID with a very feminine name and photo, but male gender marker, do you think that would make a difference in believing it was my ID? If I worded that weirdly, I am half awake, lol.

[Fixer808]

who has 2 government photo IDs?

Well to get into the US from Canada I need a passport, so I suppose my second ID would be my driver's license, but that's probably beside the point... As for your question, shit... I don't know. I would say change the gender marker, because that's who you are.

[sick among the pure]

Well to get into the US from Canada I need a passport, so I suppose my second ID would be my driver's license, but that's probably beside the point... As for your question, shit... I don't know. I would say change the gender marker, because that's who you are.

For NY state residents, you can get a special driver's license that has an RFID chip with info so you don't need a passport. It's one of like 3 or so states that have them (as far as I know). It's a little extra money, but way less than half the cost of a passport, and only takes 1-2 weeks instead of like 6 or more.