To a certain degree, I think that is true. But ignorance is a matter of degrees, and I don’t know how well read you are on the topic, I don’t know how many transexuals you know personally, etc. I made a generic comment that I think most people’s objections come from fear and ignorance. If yours do not, then I guess you are an outlier. Congrats.
I very carefully separated genitals from mental identity. I did not speak of the body. Which is more the body, the genitals or the brain? The brain is a physical organ, too, rooted in biochemistry. Right now, the evidence points at the brain biochemistry defining sexual identity based upon hormonal balances during formation. Right now, the evidence supports that sexual identity is as much rooted in physical processes as vision. (Vision is a process in the brain, that relies on inputs from the eyes. You can’t have vision without input, but the eyes can work perfectly and the brain still malfunction on vision.)
Ergo, the body is right, but which part of the body?
Science recognizes that there are people who have a mismatch between their self-conception of their identity and their gonads. Scientists need a way to make the distinctions in order to understand and treat this condition. So they define a concept, “gender”, and differentiate it from another concept, “sex”, so they can talk about the issues clearly and concisely.
You seem to be disputing that self conception of sexual identity occurs. But you state that you are a man, and that if your brain were transplanted into a female body, or if you were drugged and surgically altered, you would still be a man. This is inconsistent. If your mind is set by who you are now, and changes to your body would not change your identity, then the concept of “gender” is real. If your “gender” is determined by your body, then if someone surgically altered your body to have female genitals, you would be a woman. Against your will, but still be a woman. You can’t have it both ways. Either gender is not real, in which case you would become a woman, and then I guess be a lesbian*, or gender is real, in which case you would still be a man in a female body, and thus in need of some form of treatment - perhaps surgery to “correct” what was done against your will.
Why shouldn’t they? You claim not to be bigoted. Can you give a reason that isn’t bigoted?
Okay, so if I understand you correctly, this boils down to a matter of perception. You don’t mentally accept that a person’s internal identity matters, you think that “reality” is defined by the gonads over the brain biochemistry. Therefore, conceptually, the person will always be the sex they were born rather than however they identify. Even if they get hormones early, get surgery early, look like a woman to all outward appearances, and have a vagina and breasts, you will still think they are a “man” underneath it all because their chromosomes are XY and/or their body started out with a penis and scrotum.
I guess I can understand that. I have a certain mental struggle myself when I encounter someone who looks mostly masculine wearing makeup and a dress. It triggers a discombobulation, a sense of discomfort, a social awkwardness. I’m trying to remap my personal conception to think of them as female rather than male because it helps me mentally map my expectations to theirs, so I’m less likely to get confused on pronouns and the like. If I try to keep the conceptualization as “That’s a man I’m supposed to treat like a woman” I’ll get confused, whereas if I conceptualize “that’s a woman who looks like a man” I’ll be more likely to keep it straight. To me, it’s all about mental compartmentalization to create a map of expectations, how to interact. Experience breeds familiarity breeds comfort with the situation.
*I’m assuming you still accept sexual orientation as different than sexual identity.