transgender

Trans* Jersey

Equal marriage support

Trans* Jersey supports Deputy Sam Mezec’s call for the States of Jersey to pass legislation to legalise same-sex marriage. Trans* Jersey goes further and would support a move for the island to model its law on Scotland’s equal marriage legislation.

We support equal marriage because, as the law currently stands in Jersey, a transman or transwoman in a marriage or civil partnership and wishing to legally transition (by acquiring a gender recognition certificate (“GRC”)) must first obtain a divorce from their spouse. Divorce and re-marriage (via a civil partnership or marriage, depending on which way you are going!) carries with it not just costs but implications for the continuation of legal documents, such as wills, and pension provisions.

This is the only known example where the law requires someone to forgo one right (the right to remain married to their partner) in order to access another (the right to private life afforded by the Gender Recognition Act). This anomaly has led to some transsexual people in the UK deciding not to acquire a GRC, as they argue their marriage vows were for life and they object to the idea that their partner (by remaining with them and true to those vows) would be unfairly treated by dissolving the original bond.

When Scotland was considering equal marriage legislation, James Morton of the Equality Network and Scottish Transgender Alliance released this video explaining why equal marriage matters to trans and intersex people. Trans* Jersey agrees with the points he made.

When England introduced the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, they got it wrong. They included what has come to be called the Spousal Veto, a clause that allows spouses of transgender people to effectively stop them from legally transitioning (i.e. acquiring a GRC). Sarah Brown, the LibDem politician and trans* activist, explains why this is a problem here.

When Scotland passed its legislation, the Marriage and Civil Partnership (Scotland) Act 2014, they got it right. They removed the need for transgender people to dissolve their marriage before be able to acquire a GRC; they have enabled people to have gender-neutral marriage ceremonies; and they secured the removal of the spousal veto.

An explanation from the Equality Network on what Scotland’s recently passed equal marriage bill will mean for trans and intersex people.

The Equality Network is a Scottish lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) equality charity: http://www.equality-network.org

Video Trans* Jersey

Middle Sexes: Redefining He and She

Documentary by award-winning filmmaker Antony Thomas (HBO’s Celibacy), Middle Sexes: Redefining He and She, sensitively explores the controversial subject of the blurring of gender as well as the serious social and family problems – even dangers – often faced by those whose gender may fall somewhere in between male and female. Narrated by noted author Gore Vidal and filmed in the United States, Europe, Asia, and South America, Middle Sexes examines the ways different societies and cultures handle the blurring of gender, sexual identity and sexual orientation. Through interviews with transgender, intersexual and bisexual men and women, as well as experts from the scientific and academic communities, the film considers the entire spectrum of sexual behavior, personal identity and lifestyles among people of different backgrounds and cultures. From this, a theme of tolerance and appreciation of diversity emerges in the film.

Along with thought-provoking personal experiences of transsexuals, intersexuals, transvestites and their partners and families, Middle Sexes: Redefining He and She interviews scientists,anthropologists and psychologists who offer ground-breaking research on the biological and cultural influences on gender identity and sexuality. Researchers cite examples from the natural world, where species display a wide range of sexual variation, and point out that humans show more diversity than the strict male-female dichotomy.

Trans* Jersey

What makes a (wo)man a (wo)man?

We all know what makes a (wo)man a (wo)man, right? Make a list of the things that differentiate men from women. What are the clues you look for when you meet someone for the first time?

Here’s our list, which is not in any way exhaustive:

Men-v-WomenAn anthropologist will tell you that evolution over thousands of years is responsible for many of these differences and a biologist will tell you that the hormones bathing the brain are responsible for the others. But that cannot be the whole story as one look at your list will tell you that for every trait you put down you know a man or woman who does not conform to the stereotype, and it doesn’t make them feel or appear less manly or womanly.

There are many, many men who work in artistic or caring professions; who have hobbies that do not correspond to the stereotypical man; who enjoy talking; who take responsibility for their children and for making a home; and, who show/share their emotions willingly. But they still feel like men. Equally, there are many women who work in tough, hostile environments; who are capable of fixing an engine; who enjoy their own company; who don’t get broody at the sight of a pushchair; and, who are not in touch with their emotions. But they still feel like women.

So, maybe there is no universal checklist that we can use to say that is a man and this is a woman. But we know what a man is and what a woman is, don’t we? We use that definition every day without thinking about it. So, is there a default within all of us as to what defines a man or a woman? We believe we can get closer to an answer by agreeing that there is no universal set of criteria. Our education, experiences, and society shape our definition of men and women, and it is subtly different for each individual. We know that is a man and this is a woman because a lifetime of influences has taught us that, when we receive those particular signals from the people we meet, it means man or woman. We only think about it when we come into contact with someone who blurs the gender divide. And, even then, we don’t think about it too hard.

Within a single culture, both sender and receiver will know “the rules”, ie. the accepted gender presentation for a man or a woman. This means that a sender can consciously elect to blur their gender. Done successfully, the receiver will not be aware that they are meeting someone whose biological sex is not aligned with their presented gender. But this also means that the receiver can get it wrong if their experience is not the same as the sender’s. Receivers from another culture may be particularly bad a guessing the right gender based on appearance.

Can you guess the gender of the following people? It’s not so easy when you don’t know the cultural gender clues and begs the question of why society gets so steamed up when individuals digress gender boundaries. Visit another culture and you won’t have a clue whether the person you are meeting is genderqueer.

mursi-womantharaka-girlmaorimasai-warriorsAnswers: Mursi woman (Ethiopia), Tharaka woman (Kenya), Maori woman (New Zealand), Maasai men (Kenya/Tanzania)

Trans* Jersey

Gender: a human right

You have a right to present yourself in the way in which you wish to be received – so does a transgender person.

How proud of your presentation are you? Do you take time over it? Transgender people should be able to be proud of their presentation too.

How far would you go to protect your right to present yourself how you want? Transgender people all over the world put their lives at risk for this right.

In 2012, at least 265 trans people were murdered (data from 29 countries only). In only 13 cases has any arrest been made. In at least 2 cases the murders were committed by the police. In 56 cases the victim’s name has not been recorded. (Source: TDoR, 2012)

70% of children who are uncertain about their gender are subject to bullying, 88% of transgender employees experience discrimination or harassment in their workplace, and there has been a recent rise in hate crime against transgender people of 14%. (Source: UK Home Office report, 2011)

41% of transgender people in the United States have attempted to commit suicide; more than 25 times the rate of the general population, which is 1.6 percent. (Source: National Center for Transgender Equality and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, 2010)
woman makeup mirror
These statistics are alarming for the friends and families of people coming out as trans. We hasten to add that trans* people in Jersey do not tend to experience bullying, discrimination or harassment on the same scale as elsewhere. Britain has a much better track record than most countries regarding crimes against LGBT people. Surrounding yourself with educated people who understand the importance of tolerance and diversity in a civilised society can also help to minimise a trans* person’s exposure to discriminatory behaviour.

Trans* Jersey

Glossary

Acquired gender: see Recognised Gender below. A legal/bureaucractic term used to distinguish between the gender someone was assigned at birth and the gender they feel themselves to be. Not widely used in the trans* community because of its implication that a trans* person “acquires” their gender, rather than has always been of that gender.

Assigned gender: see Acquired Gender above. Again, not widely used in the trans* community because of its implication that a trans* person can have their gender “assigned” to them by a third party, rather than has always been of that gender.

Androgynous: the gender expression of a person who has both masculine and feminine characteristics.

Bigender: a person who tends to flexibly shift between the gender behaviour typically associated with men and women depending on context.

Cis or cisgender: a person whose gender conforms to their birth sex, i.e. a male who identifies as a man or a female who identifies as a woman. The opposite of transgender.

Drag (queen or king): this refers to an actor or actress who dresses as the opposite sex for the purposes of entertainment. Not related to being trans*.

FtM or F2M: see Transman below.

Gender dysphoria: the medical term for the feeling that a trans* person has that their biological sex is not aligned with their gender identity.

Gender expression or presentation: the gender that a person appears to other people to be, selected from a spectrum of genders.

Gender identity: the gender that a person feels themselves to be, selected from a spectrum of genders.

Genderqueer: anyone with a gender identity that is non-binary, i.e. not man or woman. Genderqueer people may identify as one or more of the following: having an overlap of, or indefinite lines between, gender identity and sexual and romantic orientation; two or more genders (bigender, trigender, pangender); without a gender (nongendered, genderless, agender, neutrois); moving between genders or with a fluctuating gender identity (genderfluid); third gender or other-gendered. It also includes those who do not place a name to their gender.

Gender recognition certificate or GRC: a document certifying that for all purposes a transgender person is to be treated as the gender they feel themselves to be. In the UK, the document enables a transgender person to amend their birth certificate if they so choose.

Gender variance: a term for the feeling that a trans* person has that their biological sex is not aligned with their gender identity.

dictionary_1633840cMtF or M2F: see Transwoman below.

Passing: the act of successfully being accepted by society as the gender that you wish to present.

Pronouns: he/him/his/his, she/her/her/hers, they/them/their/theirs. There are a range of gender neutral pronouns that have been suggested over the years. A list can be found here. Never ever use “it” when referring to a trans* person.

Recognised gender: An acceptable term used to distinguish between the gender someone was assigned at birth and the gender they feel themselves to be. The term acknowledges not only the trans person’s recognition of their “true” gender but also society’s recognition of their gender.

Sex: the biological or chromosomal sex of a person, as distinct from their gender identity or expression.

Sex-change: out-dated and unacceptable now.

She-male: unacceptable description of a transwoman.

Stealth: the condition whereby a trans* individual passes so completely that they elect not to reveal they are trans*.

Tranny: unacceptable shortened form of the word transgender or transsexual.

Trans: an acceptable shortened form of the word transgender or transsexual.

Trans*: this has replaced trans in recent years. It has been adopted by the trans* community to encompass more groups than just transsexual and transgender individuals. Trans* encompasses anyone whose gender is non-binary or fluid, i.e. androgynous, bigender, genderqueer and some intersex people.

Transgender: a term that describes someone whose gender identity is not aligned with their biological/chromosomal sex. Transgender should never be used as a noun (“I met a transgender today”). Transgender is an adjective (“I met a transgender person today”). Transgendered is also not correct (“I met a transgendered person today”) and should be avoided.

Transsexual: a term that used to be used to distinguish between someone who had undergone gender reassignment surgery and someone who had not (who would have been referred to as transgender). This has fallen out of favour as people have begun to emphasise the plurality of gender rather than accepting it as binary.

Transition: the process that a transgender person undertakes to move from being accepted as one gender to being accepted as the gender they feel themselves to be. It usually includes hormone therapy to make physical changes to the body but may or may not involve surgical procedures.

Transman: a transgender person born female but living as a man. Synonymous with the term FtM (female to male).

Transwoman: a transgender person born male but living as a woman. Synonymous with the term MtF (male to female).

Trans* Jersey

MtF finance

Even if you take the publicly funded healthcare route to manage your transition, the costs are higher for trans* islanders than for trans* individuals in the UK because we have to travel to see the specialists who can assist us to transition.

For those transwomen with island medical insurance policies, you will find that they specifically do not cover any treatment relating to gender reassignment.

Below are some of the costs that you will need to fund whichever transition route you follow:

Travel
Flights to the UK for consultations with your therapist. You will need to budget for more than one visit. Depending on how your therapy goes, you could be visiting regularly for a while. The cheapest flights from Jersey to the UK are on the Gatwick route so take this into consideration when you and your GP select your therapist. Your appointment should only be an hour so you should be able to get over and back in the day. Also, remember to budget for the Gatwick Express into London and transport in London.

GP visits
You will need to visit your GP more regularly than usual to keep them updated on progress, to ask for referrals, to have bloods taken to check your hormone levels and to ask their advice on a range of issues. Budget for about one every two months during your first two years of transition.

Change of name
The costs given below are approximate. They may change.

Deed poll prepared by Jersey advocate and sworn in Royal Court: £435
New driving licence: £40
New passport: £75
Passport photographs: £5

See the change of name page for more details.

Devices for passing
Some transwomen like to use breastforms and gaffs to assist them in passing. Breastforms start at about £30 and can go up as high as £750 for realistic skin tone, shape and nipples. Gaffs are around £35-£50. For more information about suppliers see the help page.

financeBelow are some of the costs that are optional depending on how you manage your transition. You may elect to go completely private, completely public through the States and NHS systems, or do a mixture of private and public:

Gender therapy
For those who wish to see a gender therapist privately in the UK, an hour’s consultation will cost about £200.

Hormone therapy
For those who wish to see an endocrinologist privately in Jersey, an hour’s consultation will cost about £280.

Surgery
Bottom surgery (GRS): costs vary depending on the surgical procedure being undertaken. Orchiectomy: £3,000 app. Cosmetic genital reconstruction surgery without vaginoplasty: £9,500 app. Vaginoplasty (penile inversion): £10,800 app. Colon vaginoplasty: £13,000 app.

If you go abroad for surgery, don’t forget to add in the travel, accommodation and food costs. For GRS, for example, you won’t be able to fly for a least a week afterwards, which means a hotel bill. Full recovery time is six to twelve weeks.

Top surgery: costs vary depending on the type of breast augmentation surgery being undertaken. There are two types of implant commonly used. However, you can expect to pay between £3,500 and £5,000.
Facial feminising surgery: costs vary depending on the surgery being undertaken, and there is a large range of procedures you can have done. You can pay anything from £1,000 for a minor procedure to £10,000 for a full facelift.

See the surgery page for more details of MtF surgery.

Funding
The truth is transitioning costs the trans* individual and, because it is still seen as a choice rather than a necessity, especially by insurers, there is little financial help available.

Try to put away £100 of your salary every month into a transition fund or hold a ‘transition fund’ event where friends and family show their support by donating as much or as little as they want without embarrassment.

Don’t fund your transition through credit cards or pay-day loans. These are the worst ways to borrow money as the interest rates are so high. If you need to borrow, talk to your bank about a loan. Trans* Jersey has contacted NatWest bank in Jersey and they have confirmed that they would do a personal loan for treatment or surgery and that anyone who approached them would be treated sensitively and with discretion. Criteria for the loan would be the standard requirements, ie. any person wanting a loan will need to bank with NatWest for 6 months, have a regular income mandated to the account and be able to afford the loan. Anyone seeking this sort of facility can contact Tanya Nerac, Assistant Relationship Manager, in the first instance who is one of our trans* allies.

Trans* Jersey

Press and media advice

Trans* Jersey is very happy to answer questions from the press and media about trans* issues. All enquiries should be addressed to: admin@transjersey.org in the first instance.

The following interview is a parody of typical media interviews with transgender people, with Janet Mock asking Alicia Menendez – who is cisgender – many of the same questions she routinely has to deal with as a transgender woman. The video highlights the way that even trans-welcoming media personalities can objectify and dehumanize their transgender guests by focusing on their bodies and medical histories. Take 5 minutes to watch it here before you plan your interview questions.

Janet-MockResources for journalists reporting on transgender issues or interviewing transgender people from –

Trans Media Watch
GLAAD
Press Complaints Commission

Resources for transgender interviewees from –

Trans Media Watch
Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition

 

Trans* Jersey

Healthcare gatekeepers

These are the main healthcare professionals you will need to deal with in your transition. If, at any stage, you find you cannot get on with your healthcare provider, or you are not confident in their abilities or the advice you are being given, seek to change. Not all healthcare providers are skilled or experienced with trans* patients and their issues, so make sure you are seeing someone who is or, if they are not yet skilled, someone who is sympathetic to your situation and willing to do their research. Don’t assume that because your GP is unhelpful, all GPs will be unhelpful – it doesn’t work like that! For every GP who does not want to deal with trans* patients, there are many more supportive and interested ones.

Things you can do to help
There are a number of things that you can do to help with your consultations:

  • Do your homework about transitioning so that you become knowledgeable about the process and can plan ahead
  • Prepare for consultations by knowing what you want to get out of the interview
  • Be clear and concise in the consultation – don’t ‘kitchen sink’ – realistically doctors can only deal with one or two issues at a time
  • Stay calm and stick to the facts – try not to get emotional as it won’t help you think or communicate clearly
  • Be patient with the professional if they ask you to recap your history for them, or they are new to trans* issues, or they don’t seem to understand what it is you are asking them to do
  • Double-check with the healthcare professional if you think something isn’t right – they are human and can make mistakes, too
  • Don’t be afraid to ask the healthcare professional to explain something you don’t understand, and to ask again if you still don’t understand it
  • Finally, become the expert on you and your transition

Your Jersey GP or doctor
Their role in your transition is one of co-ordinator and referrer to the various agencies that you need to access. You can expect them to undertake the following tasks for you:

  • Providing a non-judgemental sounding-board for all and any healthcare concerns you might have during your transition
  • Researching the options available to you and providing you with a choice of options and their implications
  • Writing a letter of referral to a gender therapist (if going the private route into the UK system)
  • Writing a letter of referral to a Jersey psychiatrist (if going the public route into the UK system)
  • Writing a letter of referral to Jersey’s endocrinologist
  • Writing letters of referral to surgeons specialising in gender reassignment techniques (if going the private route)
  • Writing prescriptions for hormone therapy (if not being done through the endocrinologist)
  • Writing a letter of confirmation that you are undergoing gender reassignment for those authorities that require it
  • Providing pre-surgery confirmation that you are physically fit to undergo surgery
  • Taking blood samples as requested by your other healthcare providers
  • Liaising with your other healthcare providers to share information about your transition
  • Monitoring your transition by taking an interest in your general well-being and progress

Your Jersey psychiatrist (if going the public route into the UK system)
Your Jersey psychiatrist will not be a specialist in the field of gender care. The demand for gender care in Jersey is not big enough to warrant a specialist being employed. Their role in your transition is one of referrer to the Charing Cross Gender Identity Clinic in the UK. You can expect them to undertake the following tasks for you:

  • Providing a non-judgemental stance on your desire to transition
  • Providing you with a choice of options and their implications
  • Writing a letter of referral to the Charing Cross Gender Identity Clinic
  • Writing a letter of referral to Jersey’s endocrinologist (or your Jersey GP might do this)
  • Liaising with your other healthcare providers to share information about your transition

Your gender therapist
Some trans* people don’t strike up a rapport with their therapist at the first go and this makes it hard for them to have confidence in the advice they are being given. This may be to do with the manner of the therapist or it may be to do with the preconception that some trans* people have about their gender therapist. Unfortunately, some trans* people see their gender therapist as the person with the ultimate power to say ‘no’ to their desire to transition, which immediately sets up a confrontational or defensive position. This is not how you should approach gender therapy. Gender therapy is your opportunity to explore whether transitioning is right for you. If your gender therapist asks you difficult questions sometimes, it is because they want you to think about aspects of transitioning you have not considered, or not considered fully. It is not because they are blocking you from accessing treatment. Respect your therapist’s experience in their field and work with them to achieve your goals. If you have given the therapist a chance to build a rapport with you and it is still not happening as you would wish, seek to change.

You can expect your therapist to undertake the following tasks for you:

  • Providing you with a resource to test the feeling you have that you are transgender
  • Explaining the options available to you and providing you with a choice of options and their implications
  • Working with you to plan your transition and to suggest the order of steps to be taken to transition
  • Writing a letter suggesting a course of hormone treatment, the starting dose and progress of dosage to your GP or psychiatrist in Jersey
  • Writing letters of referral to surgeons specialising in gender reassignment techniques
  • Writing a letter of confirmation that you are undergoing gender transition for those authorities that require it
  • Liaising with your other healthcare providers to share information about your transition
  • Monitoring your transition by checking your mental well-being at intervals

DoctorYour endocrinologist
Their role in your transition is to prescribe and monitor your hormone therapy to ensure that your body is absorbing the prescribed hormones at the correct rate and the changes that those hormones bring about are happening. You can expect them to undertake the following tasks for you:

  • Writing prescriptions for hormone therapy (if not being done through your GP)
  • Taking blood samples or requesting you arrange with your GP to take blood samples at intervals
  • Liaising with your GP to share information about your transition
  • Monitoring your hormone levels to ensure that they are normal
  • Providing advice on the affects of hormone therapy on your body

Your surgeon
Their role in your transition is to provide you with the selected reconstruction surgery that you require to assist the hormone therapy with the physical changes to your body. You can expect them to undertake the following tasks for you:

  • Writing or advising on the prescriptions you need following surgery
  • Taking blood samples or requesting you arrange with your GP to take blood samples pre/post-surgery
  • Liaising with your GP to share information about your transition
  • Performing the surgery you have requested, as you have requested it and to the highest standard
  • Monitoring your progress post-surgery until you are discharged from the hospital
  • Providing pre-surgery explanations and advice on the affects of the surgery on your body
Trans* Jersey

Trans* studies and reports

Studies and reports of relevance when considering anti-discrimination legislation –

GIRES report on trans mental health in the UK (2012)
TGEU and ILGA-Europe report highlights legal and healthcare issues in the EU (2012)
National Center for Transgender Equality and National Gay & Lesbian Taskforce report on transgender discrimination in the USA (2011)
GIRES report on gender variance in the UK (2009)
The Equalities Review report on UK trans* people’s experiences of inequality and discrimination (2007)

Studying-book