Final Project Assignment by Nicole Bhagwandin

Ryka Aoki

By Nicole Bhagwandin

Q1: What is your chosen text “dissenting” against?  

A: In the text Ryka Aoki is “dissenting”against those who support transphobia in the text, “Why Dust Shall Never Settle Upon This Soul”. In her poem, “The Woman of Water Dreams”, Aoki discusses from her perspective how she lives her life as a transgender woman in the modern era and dealing with the backlash that she receives from transphobic people. On page 8 within the first stanza Aoki writes, “With another November, / the names of trans people / change color and fall.” Aoki emphasizes yearly the amount of deaths that occur within the transgender community, a lot of people are being murdered just for how they want to declare their gender to be. Aoki continues in the next stanza writing, “Mispronounced, sainted, / ceded to anonymous candles, / anonymous flame.” In this stanza, Aoki acknowledges those who have been murdered have been disrespected with how they have been represented after they have died, whether that be through the media, from the transphobic community or from their family. Those transgender people who have been murdered are being remembered by those within the transgender community, who may have not known the person that has died. The deaths of those who have been died are being remembered by the transgender community to bring awareness of the violence that transgenders endure just because they cannot express themselves the way they want to. Aoki wants the readers to understand how innocent transgender lives are being taken, and how the deaths of those who have been murdered are not being acknowledged in the way they should be.

Unfortunately, in the modern era there have been a lot of deaths in the media regarding transgender women within the the transgender community. According to an article titled, “At least 22 transgender people have been killed” written by Harmeet Kaur emphasizes that there were at least 22 murder cases of transgender women in 2019 alone, and it has been the fifth year in a row where there have been 20 murders of transgender women reported. There has been a rise in deaths occurring against the black transgender community, some are calling it an “epidemic”. Dana Martin was murdered and then disposed of on the side of a roadside ditch. Bee Love Slater’s body was found inside of a burning vehicle. Muhlaysia Booker was discovered shot to death, shortly after being assaulted by a mob one month prior to her death. These death rates of transgender women are alarming to discover here in the United States, and some believe that the deaths are purposely being misrepresented in the media. Aoki this in her poem highlights in her poem, “For all he was, / he will forever be known / as the groundskeeper.” This quote resonates with the underlying issue found with misreporting in the media. There has been an absurd amount of misinformation given from the authorities to media outlets regarding transgender victims being misgendered or misrepresented. Aoki in her poem writes about a groundskeeper, who no one will ever pay attention to, is murdered and will be remembered for being the groundskeeper. The groundskeeper was misidentified with the gender that they wanted to assume, but now the media reports the groundskeeper as a male and as a result he will always be represented as a male. To be misrepresented after you have died is disrespectful in itself, and Aoki wants transgender people to be represented with the gender that they identify with not one that is given to them last minute after they have passed.

Q2: What (if any) strategies for liberation or subversion does this author offer?

A: On page 13 Aoki begins the first stanza by giving advice that she was given by others stating, “Be yourself? / Sure!” with quite a sarcastic tone to it. For a transgender person living in the modern era hearing this advice is an absolute joke because with the rise of targeted murders against transgender victims you cannot fathom the idea of living your ideal lifestyle knowing that a lot of people are being murdered by transphobic people. “Be yourself” is more of an insult then comforting to hear from a non-transgender person because you have to abide by a lifestyle that is not in your control. This advice is comforting to be given by someone who is not transgender but it is disheartening advice to give to someone who is transgender because they had to fight to get where there are while still enduring trauma. 

 Throughout the poem Aoki’s tone quite frequently and consistently remains quite grim throughout the entirety of it. However, on page 14 there is one section within her poem on the following page that Aoki offers strategies to her readers on being authentic to yourself with no obligations regarding how others around you want you to feel in a rather uplifting tone. Aoki in her poem writes, “Ask why you were born today. / Ask what is good, bad. Ask what is justice. / Ask how eternal truths / should rest so much upon today.” In this quote, Aoki wants those who are struggling with gender identity issues to ask themselves these integral questions, without having to feel the pressure to conform to a specific gender identity. In the modern era, a lot about how we think of ourselves is derived from our own insecurities regarding how others view ourselves. Being able to to ask yourself why you are physically here, shows your strength with being comfortable identifying with whatever gender you want to be. Aoki offers readers advice on how to heal themselves of any mental health issues or trauma that they may have faced identifying or attempting to identify as a transgender individual with these self-reflecting questions. 

Q3: What are two small things YOU can do to combat this form of injustice today? 

A: Now that I have developed more of an understanding of the transgender community through Aoki's writing, something that I can take away from this is that transgender individuals go through a lot just to be comfortable identifying with their gender. I have never really thought deeply about how much trauma transgender individuals go through, because I was not aware of it before reading Aoki's work. However, after reading through her work I want to engage more with the transgender audience by making sure I am more aware of what they go through. I think for now the main thing that I can do while in quarantine is go to online forums or websites where you can engage with the transgender community virtually. I have not really met a lot of transgender individuals and I want to understand what they go through in more depth. Just to be aware of how they socially live their own lifestyles. I have participated in LGBTQ+ groups in the past and fully support everyone's decision to be who they want without discriminating them. I have not been that much involved because there has not been an opportunity that has come up for me as of yet but I would love to get back into the community. Especially after reading Aoki's work because I am honestly saddened to hear that there are transphobic people who are being murdered every year. I think I would help change the community by becoming involved and help being more awareness to the issue of transphobic murders happening yearly. I hope that being involved would help their goal of putting an end to the discrimination that the transgender individuals go through yearly. 

Works Cited: 

Kaur, Harmeet. “At Least 22 Transgender People Have Been Killed This Year. But Numbers Don't Tell the Full Story.” CNN, Cable News Network, 18 Nov. 2019, www.cnn.com/2019/11/18/us/transgender-killings-hrc-report-trnd/index.html.

“The Woman of Water Dreams.” Why Dust Shall Never Settle upon This Soul, by Ryka Aoki, Biyuti Publishing, 2015, pp. 5–20.