There is a move towards "de-pathologisation" of being trans. This means that healthcare conditions linked to trans people get renamed and moved around in diagnostic manuals. In the past there was...
There is a move towards "de-pathologisation" of being trans. This means that healthcare conditions linked to trans people get renamed and moved around in diagnostic manuals. In the past there was "gender dysphoria", under mental conditions. In the ICD11 there will be "gender incongruence", under sexual health. They're still listed in diagnostic manuals to preserve people's access to gender-affirming care.
One of the consequences of this move away from pathology is to help people get legal documentation that matches who they are, rather than what they were assigned at birth. In the past some of these administrative processes would have refused changes to people unless they'd undergone surgery (but the EU courts strongly disfavour this approach) or unless they were getting medication. Self-ID isn't a trivial thing - people are making a solemn legal declaration - but it does make life a bit better for trans people.
I'm delighted to see self-identification becoming the default in more and more countries, and changes like this allow me to retain mild optimism even as the legal situation gets markedly worse in...
I'm delighted to see self-identification becoming the default in more and more countries, and changes like this allow me to retain mild optimism even as the legal situation gets markedly worse in other countries. Here (Germany), a handful of movements towards updating our horrifically antiquated trans legislation have been gaining traction too, but i don't have a whole lot of confidence there'll be any success before the next general election this fall. I'd like to eventually have my data changed, and for reasons that will hopefully become obvious in the next sentence i have no plans of using the currently officially sanctioned path for that.
The 1981 "transsexuals law" regulating the name and gender change process poses an impressive list of demands (that used to include mandatory sterilization before it was declared unconstitutional, like about half of the law by now) before you can have yourself declared "trans enough" in court proceedings for a measly sum of around 1000-1500€, depending on how much time your two "expert opinions"¹ take to procure. Fun times! There's also a newer law making all of this a matter of declaring your desired gender and name to the local records office, but of course that's intended exclusively for intersex people, and while plenty of trans people just went ahead and got an attestation for an unspecified intersex condition (all that's legally required), it's somewhat of a legal grey area².
For quite a while, there's also been a push, lately supported by more or less the progressive half of parliament, to wholly replace the "transsexuals law" with one based on self-identification and no gatekeeping. The conservatives in charge don't seem partial to that approach for some reason. So, for about one and a half years now, the grand coalition has been in a state of firm and principled indecisiveness about the matter³, but a few days ago a replacement draft from the conservative-staffed interior ministry was leaked and considering its origin it's actually fairly good. It's still gatekeeping, but less so, and either significantly cheaper or entirely free. Of course, it's a leaked draft, so who knows where we'll end up eventually.
¹ As we all know, gender is a quality measurable by any sufficiently old and creepy psychologist.
² German jurisprudence is, in part due to the lack of terms cleanly separating "sex" and "gender", very confused on the whole affair. There is precedent for being trans being legally considered as a specific intersex condition (yes, you read that right), but all of the judicial discourse on the matter is usually buried in highly specific and inaccessible court decisions.
³ Which seems to be what people keep electing them for, in all fairness.
I can't wait until I can opt out of having a gender.
I’m cis, but I think it’s really really weird how so many forms you fill out ask for your gender.
There is a move towards "de-pathologisation" of being trans. This means that healthcare conditions linked to trans people get renamed and moved around in diagnostic manuals. In the past there was "gender dysphoria", under mental conditions. In the ICD11 there will be "gender incongruence", under sexual health. They're still listed in diagnostic manuals to preserve people's access to gender-affirming care.
One of the consequences of this move away from pathology is to help people get legal documentation that matches who they are, rather than what they were assigned at birth. In the past some of these administrative processes would have refused changes to people unless they'd undergone surgery (but the EU courts strongly disfavour this approach) or unless they were getting medication. Self-ID isn't a trivial thing - people are making a solemn legal declaration - but it does make life a bit better for trans people.
I would love it if I could opt out of having a gender in a legal sense. C'mon Canada, get your shit together.
I'm delighted to see self-identification becoming the default in more and more countries, and changes like this allow me to retain mild optimism even as the legal situation gets markedly worse in other countries. Here (Germany), a handful of movements towards updating our horrifically antiquated trans legislation have been gaining traction too, but i don't have a whole lot of confidence there'll be any success before the next general election this fall. I'd like to eventually have my data changed, and for reasons that will hopefully become obvious in the next sentence i have no plans of using the currently officially sanctioned path for that.
The 1981 "transsexuals law" regulating the name and gender change process poses an impressive list of demands (that used to include mandatory sterilization before it was declared unconstitutional, like about half of the law by now) before you can have yourself declared "trans enough" in court proceedings for a measly sum of around 1000-1500€, depending on how much time your two "expert opinions"¹ take to procure. Fun times! There's also a newer law making all of this a matter of declaring your desired gender and name to the local records office, but of course that's intended exclusively for intersex people, and while plenty of trans people just went ahead and got an attestation for an unspecified intersex condition (all that's legally required), it's somewhat of a legal grey area².
For quite a while, there's also been a push, lately supported by more or less the progressive half of parliament, to wholly replace the "transsexuals law" with one based on self-identification and no gatekeeping. The conservatives in charge don't seem partial to that approach for some reason. So, for about one and a half years now, the grand coalition has been in a state of firm and principled indecisiveness about the matter³, but a few days ago a replacement draft from the conservative-staffed interior ministry was leaked and considering its origin it's actually fairly good. It's still gatekeeping, but less so, and either significantly cheaper or entirely free. Of course, it's a leaked draft, so who knows where we'll end up eventually.
¹ As we all know, gender is a quality measurable by any sufficiently old and creepy psychologist.
² German jurisprudence is, in part due to the lack of terms cleanly separating "sex" and "gender", very confused on the whole affair. There is precedent for being trans being legally considered as a specific intersex condition (yes, you read that right), but all of the judicial discourse on the matter is usually buried in highly specific and inaccessible court decisions.
³ Which seems to be what people keep electing them for, in all fairness.