I've been thinking about June Egbert a lot lately. Well, more than usual. Specifically, I was thinking about how I feel very strongly about characters getting universally gendered and named correctly, even by fans, and even when discussing media that did not acknowledge the character's gender at the time. I feel very very strongly about correctly gendering and naming June when talking Homestuck, from page 1 through to what Beyond Canon is doing now. It doesn't matter who she was, it matters who she is. I suddenly remembered when I was getting a friend of mine to start reading Homestuck, and I said that I thought it was important she know that Egbert is trans now, her name is June and she's a trans woman, and I think it's important to keep in mind when reading Homestuck because the text uses a deadname and misgenders her (in the way that all trans people were misgendered prior to realizing they're trans). She acknowledged that, but also said that since the text calls her by a different name, she would probably just call her that because she doesn't know her as June. I didn't push it, I just wanted her to read a piece of media I really love.

It did make me think, though. It actually made me think of one of the few good lessons I still take from my mother, which is the idea that there is always a smaller version of the important things in life that let you practice for the big things. Growing up with siblings, I had a chance at home to learn more about social situations and friendships before I went out and interacted with friends. A lot of people get a learner's permit at 15 to prepare for driving when they're 16. Having a job in high school can help teach you about working for when you're out of high school and want to support yourself. There's a lot of examples of things like this in life, especially in childhood but in all stages of life.

To be clear, I don't think that fictional characters are real people, nor should they be treated with the same value as real people. Fiction is fiction, they're stories, and they should not have the same moral weight as actual people and real-world actions. However, how you act about characters and how you treat them in conversation and discussion is another one of those small versions of important things. If a character is a lesbian, then the least you can do is respect that and work your fan content and conversation around the actual text of the character. When a character is trans, the least you can do is gender and name them correctly when talking about them. I can understand where my friend was coming from with "the text calls her this, so I'll just follow the text", but is that how you treat trans people? If I show you my high school yearbook, are you going to call me by my deadname because that's what the page says? If I tell a story from when I was a kid, will you refer to young me with he/him pronouns because that's what I was called by back then? Now I know my friend; she wouldn't do anything like that. However, the concept of smaller versions of important things means a lot here. Just because it's a fictional character doesn't mean that you should have free reign to misgender a trans person, especially a trans woman. I'm not saying that misgendering a fictional character carries the same weight as misgendering a real person, but it is a litmus test for what you're willing to do if given an environment where it is "acceptable". You shouldn't disrespect the identity of a fictional character because "it's fine" and you would never do that to a real person, you should be honest and respectful of trans people to the point that even fictional characters are gendered correctly. Fictional characters shouldn't get this treatment because they're on the same level as real people, but the way someone treats characters identities is a test of their limits. When that trans woman's identity is unstated in the material that you know her from, do you still use her name? When she's facing backlash and it's "acceptable" for you to call her "he", will you respect her pronouns? When she's subject to harassment and threats and it's encouraged to erase her identity, will you remember that that's a woman you're talking about? If your support has limits, then what is it good for? And if those limits are dictated by what you decide is or isn't worthy of respecting, then where do you draw the line?

I think that's why I feel so strongly about something as simple as gendering a character retrospectively. I don't care what the text said then, I don't care what you thought before, I don't care what the perception is; that is a woman. Sure it's just a character, but why are you so quick to find an excuse to misgender a trans woman when given the option?

~ Alex Amelia Pine