Julia's Hometown Welcomes Her Back

by Julia Doulman

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Since both the film and I received a standing ovation from the packed State Theatre in Sydney, I feel a great sense of achievement and self-worth.

Julia Doulman, who featured on the cover of Polare 52, returned to her home town of Bathurst on 31 October 2003 for a screening of the film "Becoming Julia", which followed Julia's progress over two years through the process of transition and was one of the hits of the recent Sydney Film Festival.

Uncertain of her reception from the citizens of the country town where she had grown up, she was delighted to find herself taken to the people's hearts. Her own family proved to be the exception, but that was not unexpected. Many of the audience stayed after the screening to say a few words to Julia and to wish her well.

She had been invited to say a few words at the end of the film and the following is a shortened transcript of her speech.

First, I would like to thank Ruth Cullen for giving me the opportunity to be the subject of her documentary. I believe she interviewed more than twenty people and I was the lucky one.

Many people have asked how much I was paid to make this film. The truth is I have not been paid a single dollar. My motivation in making this film was and still is to try and dispel the misconceptions held about transgender people. I believe that due to lack of information many people arrive at the wrong conclusion about us. We are not necessarily homosexual, perverted or deviant. Mostly we are ordinary everyday people like the rest of you. I have transgender friends who are lawyers, bus drivers, vet nurses, librarians and waitresses, and yes, a couple of sex workers. These are the same types of jobs that many non-transgender people do. We are people whose brains are at odds with our bodies. It is not an illness but a medical condition known as gender dysphoria, for which there is no known cure. If there were, I most certainly would have preferred that option. The condition can, however, be changed from an intolerable one to a tolerable one by gender reassignment.

What I have received from this film, though, is something priceless. Since both the film and I received a standing ovation from the packed State Theatre in Sydney, I feel a great sense of achievement and self-worth. It is not so long ago that I would not have had the confidence to stand here and speak publicly. Thank you Ruth!

But I would also like to thank you, Bathurst. Four years ago, when I decided to change my gender rather than end my own life I did so in the belief that it would cost me my local community and my home town. I have never been so happy to be wrong in my whole life. I underestimated the level of acceptance and compassion in the Bathurst community. Many of you have not been merely accepting but have extended the hand of friendship and made offers of help during the past two years.

For thirty-six years I lived a lie but my life had become miserable. Being true to myself at last has been the most wonderfully liberating experience of my life. I cannot tell you how good it feels not to want to die. I hope every one of you is enjoying the same level of happiness I now feel.

It is forty years next Tuesday since I was born at the Bathurst District Hospital. Bathurst has always been my home and always will be. My move to Sydney was temporary and I promise you all I will return home soon. I hope you enjoyed watching "Becoming Julia" and can take something positive away with you tonight. Thank you all, and I love you, Bathurst.

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.