Thanks, Phil! You know, I’ve taken some push back from some LGBTQ people who suggest I’m obscuring history or misrepresenting science, which sort of misses the point that this article is neither a history nor a science lesson.

I’m writing about feelings and inclusiveness and about people who in my lifetime used to take for granted that we all shared a common cause.

I used to attend Act Up and Queer Nation meetings and actions with gender-nonconforming people (including the very famous one I cited in this article) who today would almost certainly call themselves transgender — but who did not then.

We have common enemies because people hate us for common reasons, no matter what we choose to call ourselves.

Members of gender and sexual minorities have so many interests in common, and so much of what we do in our identity communities helps other GSM people in other communities.

We need to resist fragmentation, I think. We need to resist infighting and stigmatizing one another.

I know one thing. As a gay man getting on in years, the trans struggle for freedom and equality is MY struggle too. Bisexual people’s struggle for recognition and respect is MY struggle too.

That’s the message I’m trying to spread with this piece, and I think it’s a powerful, important message.