Search

"American Horror Story: Retail" series

Cody
Aug 25, 2016
2 min read

So, I was incredibly fortunate this summer: I managed, after numerous interviews, applications, follow-ups, etc., to finally get a job at a local dollar store - nothing fancy, nothing prestigious, but, considering the terrible economy and generally sky-high unemployment rate of my area, it was a miracle - not only for those factors, but also because my town is less than accepting and welcoming when it comes to transgender individuals. To give you a clear picture of the kind of place I live, the mean annual income is at most $20,000 and there are Trump support signs on half of the unkempt lawns in my neighborhood alone. On a crime index of 0 - 100, with 100 being "safest," Gloversville, NY is listed as a SEVEN (7) which means it is safer than about 7% of other US towns of the same size. There are an average of 800 crimes reported per year, for an exceedingly small town of about 15,000 (according to a 2014 census). To add insult to injury, the political atmosphere is over 55% Republican - I think I can stop there before I digress into a full-on quasi-political meltdown.

Anyway, so, I got a job - and, at first, I was incredibly nervous because, since I have been on HRT for nearly a year (which I still can not believe!), I am beginning to look drastically different; mainly, I am in that strange liminal stage where my face is softening and becoming androgynous, but my body (hips, ass, and breasts) are blossoming and becoming very noticeable. I considered binding but, after a lot of deliberation, I figured that I had worked so hard to get on HRT, and have been waiting for these bodily changes to be noticeable for so long, that I truly am above other people's negative thoughts about me - so, I dove headfirst into the position, looking how I wanted to at a job for the first time ever, which was wonderfully liberating.

I knew that working retail in such a backwoods area would not necessarily be the most positive experience, since I have witnessed firsthand (on many occasions) the intense and flagrant, unbridled bigotry that the people in Gloversville freely brandish and spew. However, I was pleasantly surprised to have an incredibly supportive and encouraging manager and group of co-workers who gendered me properly, actually acknowledged my gender identity, and actively worked to dismiss the tranpshobic bigots who found it necessary to insult me in public at my place of employment (which happened quite a few times).

After a few outrageous experiences, I realized that I had to make a YouTube series dedicated to the ridiculous customer service encounters that I was amassing at work. So, without further ado, here is the first in a series of about four videos (I was only able to work from June to the middle of August since I am on summer vacation but, nonetheless, Gloversville citizens did not allow me to languish for even one hour without sufficient ignorance and transphobic rhetoric.