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NICK LAIRD DELIVERS A PERSONAL VIEWPOINT AND LOOKS TOWARD NEW DEVELOPMENTS FOR TG PEOPLE

Initially, when transgender was included with lesbian, gay and bisexual, there was some resistance, as there always is when change occurs, but eventually the arguments not to exclude trans people won through and the T was added on to the LGB community. I was delighted the T was included, but had some concerns because it often seemed tokenistic and in some instances there was a complete lack of understanding of transgender issues, or even an understanding of the term 'transgender'.

I was very disappointed with a survey questionnaire a few years back during Glasgay. It was a tick box job and the first question asked to tick lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. Well, I' m a gay man and wanted to tick the gay box, but I'm also a trans man and felt I ought to tick transgender to make sure we' re counted. I considered ticking both boxes, but then I remembered the time I told someone, who knew I' m gay, that I am transsexual and he made the assumption that I dressed up in women's clothes. I wanted my experience to be counted, but I felt the questionnaire couldn' t do that. I did not want to tick the gay box only because I would be missing part of my experience out and I did not want to tick the transgender box only because it missed out my sexuality. I ended up not bothering filling the questionnaire in because I felt I would need an extra sheet of paper to explain I am a man, I am a gay man because I am attracted to men, and I am a transsexual because I was born with a female body.

I sometimes doubted the T being included with LGB because it was obvious LGB was about sexuality and T was about gender identity, but deep down I knew it was important to include.

For the purpose of challenging discrimination it is useful to include T with LGB because the prejudice comes from the same heterosexist, patriarchal roots. Basically LGB & T people face discrimination because our society dictates what a man is, what a woman is and who should put what where and with whom. LGB is about sexuality, but the prejudice is about gender and what our society says is appropriate gender expression. For example, people who are prejudiced towards gay men often believe that their sexuality makes them 'not a real man'.

Homophobic bullying in schools is about gender expression, i.e. boys being verbally or physically attacked, called a 'poof' if they show any so called 'feminine traits'. It's all about gender, about society saying certain things are not appropriate. I think we should be trying together to challenge our societies views of what men and women, boys and girls, 'should' be like. Together we are saying a persons body does not necessarily determine their gender identity or what other types of bodies they might want sex with.

There are many new developments for trans people in Scotland including the Sandyford Trans Support Group. Clients of the Gender Identity Clinic set up the support group, which is open to both users of the clinic along with people who feel they may wish to use the clinic in the future, or indeed anyone with gender identity issues.