Manager's Report

by Elizabeth Riley

(The Gender Centre advise that this article may not be current and as such certain content, including but not limited to persons, contact details and dates may not apply. Where legal authority or medical related matters are cited, responsibility lies with the reader to obtain the most current relevant legal authority and/or medical publication.)

Transphobic Violence - Focus Groups

Andrew Sharpe from Macquarie University and Dr. Leslie Moran from the University of London conducted two focus groups through The Gender Centre during July. Several members of the community participated and issues ranging from family violence to police attitudes were discussed. The sessions were very powerful, highlighting the many kinds of violence that are directed towards transgender people. We keenly await the publishing of Andrew and Leslie's report. Personal thanks to all who attended and shared their experiences. It is through your efforts that we can hope to effect change.

The second focus group session was followed by a forum attended by Jackie Braw, Gay Lesbian and Transgender Liaison Officer with the Crime Prevention Unit of the Attorney General's office and Di Topping, Executive Officer of the Gay and Lesbian Anti-Violence Project (A.V.P.). This too was a powerful session and again thanks to those community members who attended.

Both the focus groups and the forum aid in developing partnerships that will ultimately help to address the issues of violence for transgender people. We look forward to an ongoing relationship with Attorney General's and the A.V.P. and to developing some key strategies to combat violence in the coming months. Several community members have agreed to participate on a sub-committee that will liaise with A.G.'s and A.V.P. and work on those strategies. We anticipate some exciting outcomes from this work.

O.D.E.O.P.E.

We have had several meetings with O.D.E.O.P.E. in reviewing the Public Sector Management Office's publication of the Employers Handbook. All appears to be on schedule for the inclusion of transgender people in the handbook which is the first step towards effecting equal employment opportunity in the NSW Public Sector for members of our community.

While this work has been an initiative of all the representatives on the Transgender Working Party (Dept for Women), I would particularly like to thank Vivienne Porzsolt from O.D.E.O.P.E. who has enthusiastically taken responsibility for revising the handbook.

The new edition of the handbook is due out this month (August), so I continue to encourage people who would like to secure employment in the Public Sector to start putting in your applications. A range of jobs are advertised every Saturday morning in the Employment Section of the Sydney Morning Herald.

Petersham T.A.F.E.

Our newly established partnership with Petersham T.A.F.E. is up and running. We have spoken to teachers and T.A.F.E. counsellors and they are highly empathetic to transgender issues. I am pleased to be able to report that there are already three transgender people enrolled in courses there and we would hope to expand on this number in the near future.

We would like to promote Petersham as the transgender friendly T.A.F.E., so if you need gain work skills or up skill this is a great opportunity. As a first point of contact you can call Julie Robinson (T.A.F.E. Counsellor) on (02) 9335 2568, Monday to Wednesday.

If you are interested in the possibilities of working with the Public Sector but don't have the necessary skills, a course at Petersham T.A.F.E. may be your answer.

South Sydney Council

South Sydney Council's Social Plan committee is reviewing the Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Issues Paper to establish appropriate services in the South Sydney area for gay, lesbian and transgender people. Included in the South Sydney Local Council Area are Oxford Street and King Street so many transgender people are involved.

Key issues such as safety and access will be addressed as the Social Plan progresses. I will keep you informed in future editions of Polare.

Department of Education and Training (D.E.T.)

We are continuing to be invited to participate in training programs with D.E.T.. Since the last edition of Polare Sean and I have acted as panel members on eight separate training sessions to address the issues of discrimination against transgender people in the education system. These have proved highly effective sessions and all staff at The Gender Centre remain committed to providing education to the wider community to reduce the impact of discrimination.

We have also participated in training to a number of T.A.F.E. students and two sessions to University of N.S.W. medical students. These have provided exciting opportunities to raise awareness of transgender people. Since many of us have had negative experiences with doctors we are particularly delighted to be in a position to now influence the attitudes of the medical practitioners of the future.

Farewell to Sean

By the time this issue of Polare reaches you Sean will have left the centre and moved to Newcastle. Sean has been a dedicated worker and many transgender people have benefited from his advice and support. We are sorry to see him go and I am sure you will all join me in wishing him every success in his new endeavours.

New Workers

In the wake of Sean's departure we have restructured our staffing at the centre. A new person will replace Sean as Social and Support Worker and we have also created a new position of Community Project Worker. At the time of writing this report the selected applicants for these positions have not yet commenced duties. I will give full introductions in the next edition of Polare.

In the meantime here is a brief overview of the roles the two positions will fill. The Social and Support Worker will be primarily responsible for organising social events and also support events such as educational workshops which we are keen to implement. We will be seeking community input into developing the types of workshops that will be most sought after.

The Community Project Worker will have a central role in establishing an employment network to facilitate access to employment for the transgender community. We would hope that through this role we can expand on the employment efforts conducted so far and gradually improve employment prospects, (and as a result improve the standard of living for many in the community).

Many more details to come in the next edition of Polare.

Polare is published in Australia by The Gender Centre Inc. which is funded by the Department of Community Services under the S.A.A.P. Program and supported by the N.S.W. Health Department through the AIDS and Infectious Diseases Branch. Polare provides a forum for discussion and debate on gender issues. Advertisers are advised that all advertising is their responsibility under the Trade Practices Act. Unsolicited contributions are welcome, though no guarantee is made by the Editor that they will be published, nor any discussion entered into. The editor reserves the right to edit such contributions without notification. Any submission which appears in Polare may be published on our internet site. Opinions expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect those of the Editor, The Gender Centre Inc.I, the Department of Community Services or the N.S.W. Department of Health.