GLBT advocates have slammed the apparent non-inclusion of trans representatives in the 2020 Summit this weekend.
The summit includes a number of people championing the cause of gay and lesbian people in Australia, but trans interests appear to have been sidelined, activists claimed.
“It’s of … concern that no transgender person is involved, given the severe disadvantage that they face in Australia,” Tasmanian Gay & Lesbian Rights Group spokersperson Rodney Croome, told SX. “The conference that is supposed to be about social inclusion is already off to a bad start when there is a significant and deeply sidelined minority that is excluded.”
Independent trans activist from Brisbane, Linda Petrie told SX she had nominated herself to take part in the summit but was rejected. “The average attempted suicide rate of transgender citizens is 40 per cent, largely because of the stressors of socially systemic ignorance, prejudice, harassment and ostracisation we and transgender children endure in Australian society,” she said.
“How can any summit speak with confidence and ethicality to the ‘health’ issues of our country while it leaves these transgender men and women, boys and girls behind, then talk about ‘social inclusion’ to refer to another of the Summit’s focuses?”
Representatives from the NSW Gender Centre and lobby group Sex And Gender Education (SAGE) said they had not nominated themselves as they were unaware of this option being available to them.
Sally Goldner, media spokersperson for Transgender Victoria, said, “Not only are there no transgender people invited but also no people who are huge champions of trans issues. It makes me wonder whether our issues will be represented adequately, if at all. It’s not a surprise because the issue [of trans exclusion] is systemic.”
A spokesperson for the 2020 Summit told SX, “[Nominees] didn’t have to disclose [if they were trans] and so that is something they could include in their bios. So far none of the bios have indicated that information, however we are still waiting on the remaining bios to come in.”
Wouldn't it be nice if all of us trans folk just disappeared, that would be around 10 - 15% of the worlds population on current conservative estimates. I'm sorry that I was ever a part of the Autralian culture, 1968-1971.
Hugs Janice xxx
... written by EarthAngel , 17 April, 2008
And as always intersex people are left out altogether from the Summit and Fox and Cook's complaint about the non-inclusion of transgender people, despite the prevalence in the population of intersex people being between 1:60 and 1:100. Think about that, Fox, Cook and the 2020 Summit organizers. And please pull your fingers out.
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