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Don’t let ‘Hot tranny mess’ become the new N word
August 4th, 2008
In today’s mailbox, someone left me a copy of Calpernia Addams’ new essay about the catchphrase “hot tranny mess.” A phrase I recently used in a blog entry — about the ‘Trashy Tuesday’ protest at Crews Inn. Calpernia (whom I interviewed a couple of months ago) is against the catchphrase.
Like a dumbass, Christian Siriano once said that trannies and drag queens were the equivalent to white trash women and trailer parks. But Christian is only 21 years old and has since apologized for putting a stiletto down his own throat.
But I refuse to let ‘hot tranny mess’ catchphrase be totally outlawed — especially when it’s synonymous with ‘fierce!’ And I really wish Calpernia gave Saturday Night Live’s Amy Poehler some props — because Poehler is the one who really made ‘hot tranny mess’ a popular catchphrase. And the way Poehler used ‘hot tranny mess,’ you know she meant ‘fierce!’ And when I wrote that the Trashy Tuesday protest was a ‘hot tranny mess,’ I meant that it was ‘tranny fierceness’ — especially since so many people braved Dallas’ sweltering heat on a weekday night to express community activism.
I wish Logo would hire Calpernia, Amy Poehler and Christian Siriano to do a PSA about the use of ‘hot tranny mess.’ So that we don’t get too politically correct and take a fierce phrase and license it so that only bigots can use it.
— admin
August 4th, 2008 at 7:02 pm
As I say in the article, I can be quite un-pc in a humor context, I just don’t like the phrase when used pejoratively by Siriano because it’s specifically a zing against me as a person. I know everyone will have different feelings about it, and I’m not about to take up protest signs over it, I just wanted to make the point. I think if it were someone outside the gay male community (as Christian is outside the trans community) like a lesbian using the term “hot faggy mess” to describe a straight guy who did some exaggerated behavior it might resonate a little more as an insult to the gay community. “Why must fag be the perjorative she used to describe his negative behavior?” people might ask.
It would be shocking as a catchphrase, though, and I’m sure it would also catch on and lots of gay kids would start using it. But when it started turning up as a description for TR Knight on TMZ.com (”Hot faggy mess TR Knight shows up in another mismatched outfit!”) or in TV Guide (”Matthew Rhys, the hot faggy mess of the Brothers & Sisters gay couple, overplays his role with gusto”) it starts losing its lustre.
That’s what was beginning to happen with “Hot tranny mess”. As I say, it’s mostly just a passing annoyance… there are bigger fish to fry, but it’s just not funny to me. I’m not making myself not laugh. I just actually didn’t laugh.
I’m not mad at you, or anyone for having a different opinion, though. And I think Amy P. was funny in the Siriano skit, but only because she was showing what a meaningless twit he is.
August 5th, 2008 at 9:48 am
from tranny to tranny, I’ll i gotta say is “im pressin charges!” i worked hard at bein a hot tranny mess, so why i gotta change and be all vanilla in yo shit, shorty?
yes, u white and all, but im big black and tore up. so yah, im a hot tranny mess, deal wit it. i still be eatin sushi, wearin’ gucci, and playin wit my coochie, ya hear me?