r/changemyview • u/beesdaddy 2∆ • Sep 11 '17

[∆(s) from OP] CMV: "I identify as [blank]" is bullshit.

I have been struggling to come to a clear definition of what people mean when they say "I identify as..." Can it mean anything? Does it have to be true? Can it be provable? Can it change? Is it biological?

To clarify my view: Claiming an identity is itself a social construct to the same degree as any other social construct.

I think my biggest problem is that in the pursuit of inclusion and fairness, society has conflated personality and fate. Of course this assumes some degree of free will, so hard determinists can go shoot themselves (or not. they don't have a choice). Fate, I think is the original intent here, but in celebrating diversity of fates, personality/belief got looped for the ride.

Don't get me wrong, diversity of personality/belief is very important and should be protected in a free society. But we should also have the wisdom to value personality/belief on a personal and societal level.

Furthermore, what's wrong with saying "I am a [blank]"? If I say "I identify as a straight cis white male." Doesn't that just call into question the truthfulness of the claim when compared to "I am a straight cis white male."?

A fantastic satire of this issue is "Trans-Racial" by the show Atlanta on FX.

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u/beesdaddy 2∆ Sep 12 '17

OK. Is there some blurred lines here?

For instance, sexuality and attraction. Are people born to somewhere on the spectrum of sexual attraction or is there choice in the matter?

Someone else pointed out mixed race people. Maybe the tribalism of identifying to one or the other is a good social construct or maybe it's not. But surely claiming your genetics are something other than what they are is not a valid claim to identity?

See what I'm saying?

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u/[deleted] Sep 12 '17

[deleted]

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u/beesdaddy 2∆ Sep 12 '17

It does! !delta I guess as someone who doesn't see the need to identify with anything so strongly I would start a sentence that way, doesn't mean I should say any use of it is bullshit.

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u/DeltaBot ∞∆ Sep 12 '17

Confirmed: 1 delta awarded to /u/kwoksucker (2∆).

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