Transphobic Humor as Social Regulation, Boundary Enforcement, and Cultural Policing
Transphobic humor is a form of comedy that pokes fun at people who identify as transgender, transsexual, or nonbinary individuals. It can take various forms, from jokes about their appearance to insults based on gender stereotypes. Although some may view it as harmless, transphobic humor operates as a tool of social regulation, boundary enforcement, and cultural policing in our society. By ridiculing and degrading trans individuals, this type of humor reinforces societal norms and expectations regarding gender roles and identity, thereby perpetuating discrimination and marginalization against them.
Social regulation refers to the process by which social institutions like laws, policies, and norms maintain order and control within a society. In the context of transphobic humor, this humor functions as a way to police behavior and reinforce socially acceptable standards for gender expression. When someone makes a joke that targets trans people, they are essentially saying that there is a right way and a wrong way to be gendered, and those who do not conform to these expectations should be mocked and shamed. This not only limits the freedom of trans individuals to express themselves but also contributes to a culture of fear and shame around gender nonconformity.
Boundary enforcement refers to the process of establishing and maintaining boundaries between groups of people, often through the use of violence or coercion. Transphobic humor plays an important role in boundary enforcement because it creates and sustains divisions between those who fit into society's binary gender categories and those who do not. By making fun of trans people, it serves to reinforce traditional ideas about what is masculine and feminine, and thus maintains the status quo of cisgender privilege. It also sends a message to cisgender people that they must adhere to strict gender roles and avoid anything that challenges them, lest they too become the target of ridicule and derision.
Cultural policing refers to the process of actively controlling and monitoring cultural practices to ensure their adherence to dominant values and beliefs. Transphobic humor operates as a form of cultural policing by reinforcing traditional conceptions of gender roles and identities. By degrading trans individuals, it serves to marginalize and silence them while simultaneously reinforcing the hegemonic power structures that uphold cisnormativity. In this sense, it serves to maintain the social order and prevent any challenge to existing norms.
Future queer humor studies may offer a way forward for subversive, inclusive, and transformative comedic practices. These studies could explore how comedy can be used as a tool for resistance against oppression rather than complicity with it. They could highlight the ways in which marginalized communities have used humor as a means of empowerment and resilience in the face of discrimination. By doing so, they could create space for new forms of expression that challenge and disrupt societal norms around gender and sexuality.
Transphobic humor plays an important role in sustaining social regulation, boundary enforcement, and cultural policing.
There is potential for comedy to be used as a tool for resistance and liberation, particularly through future queer humor studies.