'It seems that every other week a new proposal or act is put forward that is going to potentially affect my rights and the way that I live. In and between this, comments, sneers, and jibes are routed through the House of Parliament that dehumanises my identity as a transgender woman, all just to score cheap political points.
We are now day 30 of the electoral campaign, and the General Election is just weeks away on July 4. News of the Conservative Party’s promise to overhaul Britain’s Equalities Act to protect single-sex spaces by barring transgender people comes as the Tory's latest ploy in fore fronting culture wars to climb the leader board.
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If successful, the previous efforts of the last Labour government will come undone. Under the Equalities Act, the new definition of sex will be restricted to the biological sex given at an individual's birth, rather than how they identify. As well as this, transgender people will be barred from single-sex spaces that they identity with, meaning myself and others would be excluded from women's toilets, hospital wards, housing shelters, changing rooms and more.
While the political scapegoating of transgender people is by no means new or unsurprising, it is never not frustrating and is always extremely damaging. Especially when the source of it comes from those who hold the highest positions of power in this country, essentially green-light unavoidable harm to trans individuals and communities across the UK.
We know all too well when parties and prominent figures within them deliver hostile dialogue and policies, it has a direct link to the behaviour of the public. Take [former US president Donald] Trump's speech back in 2021 that incited a violent mob of his supporters to storm the Capitol, or the continuous racial tirades of the BNP and UKIP during the early and mid 2000s that led them to becoming the most prominent extreme-right parties in British politics. And most recently the Prime Minister Rishi Sunak normalising discriminatory definitions of sex and gender by saying: 'A man is a man and a woman is a woman.'
It's an extremely tired narrative to position transgender woman as predatory and ill-intentioned, especially when there are no statistics to prove so, it needs to stop, especially as the election nears. We need to be protecting transgender rights, not the opposite. Banning transgender people from single-sex spaces and redefining definitions of sex and gender can only take us down one path. Hate crime, transphobia and trans deaths will only rise.
For example, if a person calls me a man on the street, the 10 people around him might not have said it, but they won't interfere because they've seen similar stuff being said on TV, so they probably won't step in and defend me because they think Oh, it's not that deep.
As someone who uses their platform to advocate for transgender rights, I won’t ever stop remaining hopeful in these times. Although it is very easy to feel isolated, I find a lot of comfort in talking to my community – it really does keep me going. I’d urge young people, especially, to reach out to their trans and queer friends and not to lose hope. Looking to the older generation, who have seen unjust policies and rhetoric come and go, is also a great source of comfort and reassurance.
Although representation of young transgender people and voices in British politics runs scarce, you don’t have to look too far outwards to those who champion us. Undoubtedly one of the most influential activists in the country is Munroe Bergdorf. She’s always on the right side of the argument, is an amazing person to follow and look up to, and an amazing friend. She's a real trailblazer in the trans community.
Growing up, being able to eventually go into women's spaces was so euphoric and gave me a real sense of belonging and inclusion in society. It was a huge part of my transition. When I first started identifying as female, I wasn't allowed to go into the female toilets at school, so to see a potential regression [of trans rights] once again would be so upsetting.
But I remain hopeful. We need to continue supporting trans spaces, get more visible representation of us in government, on social media, and on TV to really feel included in society. That's the only way we're going to feel normalised in society.
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