Transgender Warriors

In 1976, Feinberg read a pamphlet by Bob McCubbin about gay and lesbian history. The pamphlet contained information about evidence of transgender people throughout history. It was the first time that Feinberg saw people like herself reflected in history, and she decided to do more research. She learned about prehistoric matrilineal societies and found evidence of transgender priestesses in “the Middle East, Northern Africa, Europe and western Asia” who worshiped different forms of a Mother Goddess (40). The goddess herself was often depicted as having both male and female sex characteristics. Feinberg highlights the significance of goddess worship in communal societies and points out that “[w]omen didn’t rule over men, the way men dominate women in a patriarchal society” (42). This meant that societies were structured more equitably and therefore had more room for variance in sex and gender expression. 

Feinberg asserts that the division of sex and gender into two binary categories (male and female) is a modern, Western idea. In matrilineal societies, Feinberg finds evidence of “sex-change, transgender, and intersexuality” (43). She acknowledges that it is not possible to assign the same labels to ancient people that are used today but nevertheless notes remarkable similarities in the experiences of ancient and modern transgender people.