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.)

Given the current debate over terminology in this country that has given rise to such phrases as 'people who experience transsexualism', 'people who experience variation in sexual formation and expression' and 'transsexualism and other intersex conditions', all of which seek to distance themselves and their advocates from terms such as transgender, I thought it might be interesting to print the following brief history of the term transgender provided by Susan Stryker.

While the Gender Centre unequivocally supports and respects the right of all people in the sex and gender diverse communities to self-define according to their own terminology, we equally unequivocally reject any notion that one term, and the individuals who embrace it, have a claim to moral superiority over any other.

As the article demonstrates significant gains have been achieved under the banner of transgender activism and all of us, regardless of preferred terminology, have benefited. If transgender is not your preferred terminology then select the term you do prefer. This is not an issue. For most people, post-transition, the preferred terminology is simply 'man' or 'woman' and, despite my role at the Gender Centre, this is certainly my choice in my private life.

What I do find difficult to comprehend in those who are advocates for the terminology above, is not their personal rejection of the term transgender but their public assertion that the term is offensive. How so? Surely no one can be offended by a term under the banner of which so much has been achieved? Can a woman of the 21st century, who has benefited from decades of feminism, be offended by the term 'feminist'? One would hope not though if she were one would be justified in questioning her motives.

As a final twist on the whole silly business, I quote Katherine, the sage editor of this magazine when I say "I used to be transsexual but my surgeon cured me'. Having been so cured I nonetheless, when donning my activist hat, do so with pride in its transgender label. And now to Susan:

Please refer to the G.L.B.T.Q. website

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.