Discrimination
While it is against the law in New South Wales to discriminate against somebody because they are, or it is assumed that they are transgender, a high level of discrimination, vilification, harrassment and physical violence toward transgender and gender questioning people still exists within our society. This treatment often stems from the high levels of ignorance, prejudice and bigotry leveled towards transgender and gender questioning individuals.
Another form of discrimination - institutionalised discrimination, i.e. unjust and discriminatory mistreatment of an individual or group of individuals by organizations such as governments and corporations, financial institutions, public institutions like schools, police forces, healthcare centres and other societal entities, also plays a large part in the often overwhelming level of discrimination, both subtle and overt, but nevertheless commonplace, faced by transgender and gender questioning people in society today.
The Discrimination section of the Gender Centre's website contains a number of articles about discrimination in relation to transgender and gender questioning people and in time this section will also include other resources such as books, book reviews, research papers, videos, links to other anti-discrimination related services and more. The articles below are just a few of the articles currently on the Discrimination page of this website.
... TO COMMENTS REGARDING THEIR POSITION ON A RANGE OF TRANSGENDER ISSUES
Article appeared in Polare 58, July 2004
Australian Democrat spokesman for Sexuality and Gender Issues, Brian Greig states that while the they endorse support for transgender people who later regret their decision for surgery, they do not believe this should be grounds upon which to discredit the Monash Clinic ...
BLATANT DISCRIMINATION AGAINST PRE-OPERATIVE TRANSSEXUALS IN THE PUBLIC HOSPITAL SYSTEM
Article appeared in Polare 67, April 2006
Blatant discrimination against transsexual Western Australians undergoing sex affirmation treatment is perfectly legal under Western Australia's Equal Opportunity Act 1984. Discrimination against transsexual people is permitted in every area of daily life ...
A MELBOURNE HOTEL WINS RIGHT TO REFUSE ENTRY TO ALL WOMEN AND HETEROSEXUAL MEN
Article appeared in Polare 72, July 2007
Katherine Cummings writes that a reprehensible example of discrimination has come to light, with the Peel Hotel in Collingwood, Victoria, being granted an exemption under the Victorian Equal Opportunity Act to refuse entry to all women and heterosexual men ...
NATIONAL ROUNDTABLE ON DISCRIMINATION ON THE BASIS OF SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND GENDER IDENTITY
Article appeared in Polare 94, January 2013
In October 2012, representatives of several organisations and N.G.O.s active in the amelioration of legal and social rights for variousL.G.B.T.I.Q. communities met to discuss basic principles of human rights for these communities and to draft a set of recommendations ...
VICTIMISATION AND THE ILLUSION OF LEGAL PROTECTION
Article appeared in Polare 29, February 1999
Discrimination and victimisation are illegal in Australia, everyone is protected by laws covering such areas. But realistically is it just a grand illusion? Does the law protect all people equally, or are there small or even big weaknesses in this ideal? ...
AWAY FROM THE COURTROOM, ORGANISATIONS ARE JUST STARTING TO GRAPPLE WITH THE COMPLICATED ISSUE OF GENDER IDENTITY
Article appeared in Polare 86, January 2011
Lana Lawless, a former police officer who had affirmation surgery in 2005, has successfully challenged the U.S. Ladies' Professional Golf Association's ban on transgendered players, having previously had a ...
A MOST TRAGIC RESULT OF IRRESPONSIBLE AND BIGOTED JOURNALISM
Article appeared in Polare 95, April 2013
Gender Centre Counsellor, Anthony Carlino discusses the recent suicide of British school teacher, Lucy Meadows following bigoted media reports, from one journalist in particular ...
SOMETIMES LIFE'S LESSONS AND RIGHTS APPLY ACROSS VARIOUS LINES AND EFFECT ALL PEOPLE
Article appeared in Polare 36, April 2000
Sometimes life's lessons and rights apply across various lines and effect all humans.One such lesson and right is the ability to ride the bus, free from discrimination and harassment, and also with the right to feel comfortable doing so as the person you are ...
... AND AN ONLINE PETITION HAS BEEN LAUNCHED
Article appeared in Polare 90, January 2012
Queensland Catholic Priest Father Paul Kelly is taking up the fight against a plea for mitigation of violence using the 'panic defence', a defence usually claimed by perpetrators that were allegedly unaware of their victim's sexual or gender diversity ...
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST TRANSGENDER PEOPLE
Article appeared in Polare 63, May 2005
Social progress is so often a matter of three steps forward, two steps back as norrie mentions in this article about retrograde decisions, like the granting of exemptions to allow Mission Australia and Edward Eager Lodge to discriminate against transgendered people ...
AND THE ASSUMPTION THAT MALES CHANGE SEX TO REAP REWARDS IN WOMEN'S SPORT
Article appeared in Polare 56, March 2004
An area of women's sport which continues to create confusion, debate and for which gender verification has implications, is male to female transgenders in sport. Debbie Sims, Manager, Ethics and Women, Sport Development Group at the Australian Sports Commission reports ...
AGAINST EXCLUSION
Article appeared in Polare 27, October 1998
The Left Alliance members within N.O.W.S.A.at R.M.I.T. move to exclude transgender women from their feminist organising women's movement amid widespread opposition from the Melbourne Star Observer, campus women's collectives, e-mail networks and queer collectives
An Interview with Transgender Athlete, Lauren Stewart
by Cassandra Guidice Article appeared in Polare magazine: May 2015.
Cassandra: What insights have you been able to glean about the participation of transwomen in sport? Lauren: According to a number of women I have spoken to, sport and group physical activity allowed them to finally feel connected with themselves and aided their transition. These women were finally able to be true to who they are and be involved in a sport and group physical activity that interested them. Both sport and group physical activity were seen as facilitators to feeling connected with not only other people, but with oneself...
ACCORDING TO A SEPTEMBER 2002 SURVEY
Article appeared in Polare 48, October 2002
In September 2002 the Human Rights Campaign announced the findings of a pollthat focused on public perception of transgender issues. The results of this poll show that while most people accept that a person can indeed be transgender, more public education is needed ...
