Caveat: I’m not trans and don’t know any trans people closely.
However, from my external observations, trans people and rats are both often unfairly maligned. Trans people, so far as I can tell, are just people; you can justifiably like them or not based on their qualities as individuals, but as a group they’re no different from any other, they’re just people. No reason to dislike them automatically.
I also don’t know much about rats, but I know people associate them with filth. I think this is because they’re survivors. I’ve had two or three rats as pets and they were not malicious (as they are often depicted) and not gross (because they were kept in clean environments and didn’t have to scavenge). They were clever, affectionate and cute. I especially admired how they’d use their tail not only for balance but also for grip.
Anyway, the point I’m trying to make is that maybe the reason the rat is a trans icon (which I just learned from this post) is because some people don’t like either of them, but should.
Caveat: I’m not trans and don’t know any trans people closely.
However, from my external observations, trans people and rats are both often unfairly maligned. Trans people, so far as I can tell, are just people; you can justifiably like them or not based on their qualities as individuals, but as a group they’re no different from any other, they’re just people. No reason to dislike them automatically.
I also don’t know much about rats, but I know people associate them with filth. I think this is because they’re survivors. I’ve had two or three rats as pets and they were not malicious (as they are often depicted) and not gross (because they were kept in clean environments and didn’t have to scavenge). They were clever, affectionate and cute. I especially admired how they’d use their tail not only for balance but also for grip.
Anyway, the point I’m trying to make is that maybe the reason the rat is a trans icon (which I just learned from this post) is because some people don’t like either of them, but should.