Health Care for All?

(This was initially published on my FB page, but I have chosen to republish it here. This is really a two parter, with this being the first portion. Enjoy.)

I said to a friend at work today that shockingly I would be willing to wear a badge stating I was vaccinated if it meant I could stop wearing a mask. This was overheard by another teacher. She disagreed and said masks should just be gone, and no vaccine should be required. (BTW, this teacher is often without her mask or has her mask below her nose, and I never am.)

I upped the ante and said I am all for anyone who doesn’t want to mask, or vaccinate, as long as they are willing to cover all their own health care costs associated with getting covid. And that was the piece that really pissed her off, lol.

She told me that was not fair. I told her she was choosing where she wants her health care dollars to go. She again disagreed and told me that someone’s choice should not affect their health care and she wants her health care dollars applied in all places.

At this point I was shaking and starting to tear up. I began loosing my voice. Sweat rolled down my back. I told the teacher that she has already previously told me she was highly in support of health care dollars only paying for certain things.

I left that room, and promptly began crying. I had about ten minutes before class began. Lucky for me, I’m trans and I have the super power of being able to cry and not smear my mascara, hahahaha! Seriously any good mascara wearing crier knows how to pull that off….. its just dab, dab, dab.

Okay so a bit of back story….. about 3 years ago while discussing my work’s policy on TG health care and how discriminatory it is this same teacher spoke up. She loudly, and proudly proclaimed to all in the lounge that she did not support any of her health care dollars going to support people’s choices about how they live. That if people choose to be transgender than they can choose to pay for their own health care costs because it is a choice. This teacher is so “well respected” that not a single employee challenged her statement in any way.

So in the end, what did I do? I cried some more at lunch and apologized to my wife for being born transgender. I can’t change that, and I can’t change that woman. But, I’ve got to stand my ground. I’ve got to stand up for what is right, even if it is not popular. And even when someone is mean and discriminatory it still feels wrong to me to not be sweet, nice, smiley, and helpful to them. But ya know what? Fuck that. No more Mrs Nice just because I am so thankful to be able to just be myself.

And the hard part as well…. if you support them….. what does that mean about your support for me??

Okay, rant over….. maybe…….