Will the transgender clownfish save us?
In the past few weeks, I've published two pieces diving into what we mean when we talk about "biological reality"
Hello! Welcome back to Ranch Baby.
In the past few weeks, I published two pieces of media, a video in Xtra and an essay as my debut in The Narwhal, grappling with the right’s obsession with the so-called “biological reality” of binary sex.
The TikTok was in line with my usual work: a close reading of the U.S. government’s new ludicrous definitions of biological sex (and believe me, they are bananas!)
@xtramagazine U.S. President Donald Trump’s government continues to jump through hoops in its attempts to establish firm binary definitions of “male” and “female.” A new document put out this week by the Department of Health & Human Services—-now led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.—tries to explain why, in the Trump administration’s words, there are “only two” genders. But by defining all of this by a person’s “biological function to produce eggs or sperm,” the Trump administration raises a whole host of new questions and challenges that don’t hold up to established scientific evidence. Senior editor Mel Woods breaks down how these definitions are trying to force a made-up idea of a distinct gender binary onto an actual reality that is far from that, and why trying to draw firm lines around biology can be harmful to both trans and cis people alike. 🏳️⚧️🙋♂️💁♀️ #lgbtqnews #biology #gender #rfkjr #usnews #unitedstates #transgender #news
♬ original sound - Xtra Magazine
The Narwhal story came from a prompt around transness and the natural world. While my day job is so focused on LGBTQ2S+ issues, I like the opportunity to bring that expertise to other audiences and had a great time working with Denise Balkissoon and the Narwhal team on the story. While we first started chatting back in November, the story's ultimate publication timing ended up lining up with so much public discourse around biology—and that certainly makes its message feel all the more vital.
With the Narwhal audience in mind, I was tasked with centring the piece on examples of changeable sex and gender in the natural world. And I certainly found plenty of examples from the natural world of biological sex shifting and changing—there are slugs and fish and birds and a whole host of other creatures and crawlies that shift and swap sex traits from birth or throughout their lives.
Mel Woods
But the story isn’t really “did you know clownfish change sex!” That’s been done time and time again, and it’s … fine. I wanted to say something a bit more interesting than that. The conclusion I came to in writing the piece centres on transness as not only a uniquely human attribute but one of the most human things a person can be. TLDR: clownfish can't be trans (But they also can't be cis! They're fish, they have no concept of gender!!)
I try to make the case for being transgender being as human as being able to think and hope and dream and love—because being trans is all of those things.
The only real biological reality is change, and that’s what trans people represent.
We’re the living embodiment of one of humanity’s deepest traits — personhood and autonomy. When a male clownfish becomes a female clownfish, it’s doing it to survive. When a person transitions, we’re also doing it to survive.
But unlike the clownfish, at least consciously, we’re also choosing to do it, and choosing to survive. The independence, intellect and autonomy to choose one’s own path is one of the most human things I can imagine. It’s what separates us from animals.
All to say, working on this story was very personally fulfilling amidst what has been a challenging month and a half for me and much of my community. It was a good reminder that I, and trans people on the whole, are powerful and resilient and as much survivors as the tiny fish who’ve evolved to do exactly what we get to choose to do for ourselves.
The news cycle continues to be bad and it feels like the world is increasingly hostile to anyone who dares to challenge how things are, and dares to dream of how things could be. But let the clownfish and all of those other sex-changing creatures remind us: it's all evolution, baby, and we are survivors.
Things I’ve made:
- A video about sponsors dropping from Toronto Pride.
Mel Woods
- A small moment of good news about a trans sports ban failing in the U.S. senate.
Mel Woods
- A fun formal experiment dealing with some not so fun news around immigration.
@xtramagazine This week, a new memo from U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio regarding visas for transgender people trying to enter the United States has caused alarm on social media as to how far it could be enforced. The memo, which specifically targets transgender athletes coming to compete in the U.S., instructed U.S. visa officers to investigate anyone for fraud who might be “misrepresenting their sex” and possibly bar them from entering the U.S. permanently. Senior editor Mel Woods breaks down what you need to worry about—and if you need to worry at all—if you are a trans person looking to travel to the U.S. #unitedstates #news #lgbtqnews #canada #travel #usnews #fyp #foryoupage
♬ original sound - Xtra Magazine
- This story about why making online jokes about Trump and Musk being gay is tired and boring. Get better jokes!!
Mel Woods
Things I’ve loved:
- I am watching Love Is Blind and continuing to be baffled by straight culture. But I particularly enjoy the one girlie’s lesbian sister, who does not have the patience for any of this nonsense.
- Rebecca Black’s new album SALVATION isn't all that complicated, but it is perfect hyper-pop gay noise, and will be on my gym playlist.
- For similar gym playlist reasons, I also appreciate Tate McRae's new album So Close To What. But all of the chatter around her has reminded me of how much of a 'Berta girl she will always be.
Tate McRae is so disarming to me because she embodies the look/mannerisms/speech patterns of a very specific category of girl I went to high school with growing up in Alberta. Like, she IS every girl dating a hockey player I sat next to in Math 20 Pure.
— Mel Woods (@melwoods.me) 2025-03-03T17:09:12.225Z
- I’ve really gotten into a Mount Everest hyperfixation hole (as one does) this past week, and I particularly appreciated this Business Insider video breaking down the costs behind climbing the mountain.
- I’ve continued watching The Traitors, and recently found this TikTok account that pairs podcast appearances and front-facing videos from former Bachelor contestant and current reality TV queer icon Gabby Windey (freshly gay married!) with inspirational imagery and music. It’s niche, but I can’t stop watching them!
@gabbyxhopecore for all the hot depressed girls out there 🙃 @Long Winded #hopecore #hopecoretiktok #gabbywindey #gabbywindeyedit
♬ Synthwave - Lowtone Music
Cat of the week:
Tesla used to hate this bed, but since I’ve moved it to this exact spot it’s become one of his favourite spots and puts his little toe beans in perfect range for touching while I'm at work. We love a cozy boy!
