atsaq newsletter issue 127 april 2013
TRANSCRIPT
7/28/2019 ATSAQ Newsletter Issue 127 APRIL 2013
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Issue 127 Australian 07 3843 5024
APRIL 2013 TRANSGENDER SUPPORT [email protected]
Associaon of Queensland. Inc. atsaq.com
ISSN 1835-4637 ABN 13 319 522 768 PO Box 212 New Farm QLD 4005
ATSAQ UPDATE | ISSUE 127 | APRIL 2013 | PAGE 1
Following the death of Lucy Meadows,
Maeve Regan explores for PinkNews the
impact of transphobic language in the
media and the findings from the Trans
Mental Health Study.
I‟ve been driven to write this article by
the widespread reporting on the death ofLucy Meadows, a primary school teacher
in Lancashire.
I should say that at this point, there is no
confirmation that it was suicide, but
there have been informal reports on
social media, and some bloggers have
felt confident in saying that it was. The
reason that this particular death is
receiving widespread coverage, is that
Lucy was the target of a vicious article in
the Daily Mail just three months ago,covered in detail by Zinnia Jones (no
direct link to the DM). Jane Fae wrote
about the links between Lucy Meadows‟
story and press regulation, which is high
on the media agenda right now.
In related news, this week the Press
Complaints Commission (PCC)
responded to a selection of the 800
complaints they received about Julie
Burchill‟s transphobic rant in January.
The PCC ruled that the decision to
publish was not in breach of the Editors‟
Code of Practice, predominantly because
the article did not name an individual.
It is with those details in mind that I
want to turn to the data. It is all too easy
to read a report like the Trans Mental
Health (TMH) study and forget that every
data point is a person.
The TMH study was the largest of its
kind ever undertaken in Europe, withalmost 900 respondents.
As the researchers knew anecdotally that
suicidal thoughts and experiences are a
major issue for the trans community,
there was a whole section dedicated to it
in the survey.
The key results are:
84% of respondents had thought about
ending their lives at some point , a hugemajority.
Of those people:
63% had thought about attempting
suicide in the past year
27% had thought about it in the
past week
4% thought about it every day
Of those who had thought about suicide:
48% had made an actual suicide
attempt
33% had tried more than once
11% had tried in the past year
Factoring back in the people who
responded that they had never
considered suicide, the overall figures for
the trans community are 35% of people
have attempted suicide at least once,
and 25% have attempted more than
once.
These figures compare with global
estimates that approximately 5% of
people attempt suicide at least once in
their life, and 10-14% of the general
population have suicidal thinking
throughout their lifetime.
When asked about how their suicidal
ideation and attempts changed after
transition, 63% of respondents said that
they thought about or attempted suicide
more before transition, and 3% thoughtabout it or attempted more after transition.
Some respondents, 7%, said that they
thought about or attempted suicide more
during the process of transition, which
has clear implications for healthcare and
support.
Participants were asked some questions
about whether anyone they knew
personally had attempted suicide. 68%
of respondents reported knowing
someone who had attempted suicide due
to being trans or having a trans history,
(Continued on page 2)
Analysis:
Trans suicide and the way the media reports the trans community
7/28/2019 ATSAQ Newsletter Issue 127 APRIL 2013
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OBJECTIVES of ATSAQ > To provide Queensland’s transgenderpopulaon with such support as our re-sources can permit.
> To connue a program of public educa-on aimed at changing the negave imag-es which the community may have withtransgender people.
> To provide support for family andfriends of transgender people and helpwith understanding issues involved. > To provide informaon on medical andhealth services available to transgender
people.
> To connue to address the problem of legal recognion and human rights fortransgender people in the state of Queensland.
Membership is available upon request.Pick a form up at the luncheon or we canpost one to you. Fees for membership are
$30 pa single & $50 pa couple.If you require one to one counselling orwould like to meet in a friendly, uncon-venonal atmosphere, please contact us
07 3843 5024 8am-6pm weekdays. Writeto us;
PO box 212 NEW FARM Q 4005
atsaq.com
PLEASE NOTE: ATSAQ is run from a privateresidence and is not an introducon
agency.
PAGE 2 | ATSAQ UPDATE | ISSUE 127 | APRIL 2013
Disclaimer For writers wishing to be anonymous, a non-de
-plume will suce, providing a contact number is supplied. ATSAQ is com-mied to healthy debate and/or construcve cricism upon any subject, we reserve the right to omit material, which is oensive or
inappropriate for publicaon Ideas and opinions in this publicaon are not necessarily those of ATSAQ or those of our adversers.Arcles appearing in THE UPDATE are wrien expressly for ATSAQ unless otherwise stated. All arcles may be reprinted providingthat the source and author is acknowledged.
and 31% knew someone who had committed suicide.
The TMH study also asked specifically about the media, and
51% of respondents reported that the way that trans people
were represented in the media had a negative effect on their
emotional wellbeing. 4% felt it had a positive impact, and
31% reported no impact.
Clearly, suicidal thinking and attempts are dramatically higher
for the trans community than for the population as whole.
That we live in a society where such an at-risk group can be
subjected to personal and generalised vilification in
mainstream media should be a source of deep shame for us
all. As David Allen Green so eloquently puts it; “the tabloids
treat trans people the way they would treat anyone, if they
could get away with it”.
To bring us back to the start, remembering that these data
refer to individual people, I will end with a selection of quotesfrom the survey participants:
On suicide:
“We need to start helping trans teenagers. This would have
helped me and probably prevented me from attempting
suicide.
“If I had not undergone surgery when I did I would almost
certainly have either been a suicide or at very least a long-term
depressive and possible inmate in some mental hospital.”
On the media:
“Tabloid stories about trans people are often exploitative,
invasive of privacy, inaccurate, irrelevant or intended to drum
up transphobia in their readers, often successfully as revealed
in the comments on stories.
Reading these sometimes upsets and angers me because it
shows how hostile many people are to trans people in current
society.”
“The caricatured and stereotyped portrayal of trans issues is
the same as racist and sexist jokes.
It gives phobic people a means of expression towards other
people who are specifically targeted by these jokes.
Where are the transgender social heroes who have raised
thousands of pounds for charity?”
“It makes me angry. It also denies me my civic rights. I would
never DARE to stand for election, either to the parish, boroughor county council, much less to parliament as I would be sure
to be „outed‟ and made to look stupid by the gutter press.”
“The media consistently misgenders, refers to previous names,
makes a trans person‟s body theirs, theorises why we do it
without talking to us properly, makes assumptions about our
genders and motivations.
They use language that makes „trans‟ a third gender, stripping
us of our identities. They use language that refers to us as
abnormal and disrespects our bodies and our rights.”
“At best it‟s patronising, at worst it‟s a hate crime.”
“We are made out to be freak shows and I am scared that
they may come after me or my friends next.”
(Continued from page 1)
7/28/2019 ATSAQ Newsletter Issue 127 APRIL 2013
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27th APRIL 2013
11am
“We are seen as having sex swaps and
mutilating our genitals or we are sexualdeviants, we are never just seen as us,
the trans angle is always there for
titillation.”
“It is a constant reminder of how much
most people despise me for what I am.”
“My parents read into the news too much
and think being trans is wrong, this
affects their treatment of me.”
“The ways trans people are portrayed in
the media generally fosters negative views
of trans people. It makes me feel unsafebecause it normalises ridicule and
violence towards trans people, portrays
our identities as invalid, posits being cis
as the „natural‟, „normal‟ way to be etc.‟”
Researchers of the Trans Mental Health
Study have launched an online
fundraising page – with aim of creating
suicide prevention resources – more
details can be found here
http://www.scottishtrans.org/Uploads/ Resources/trans_mh_study.pdf
Lesbian and Trans* Community
Groups Showcase
To whom it may concern,
My name is Amelinda and I am currentlyin the process of planning a Lesbian and
Trans* Community Groups Showcase
event in Brisbane for the Lesbian Health
Action Group.
The event will be held on Saturday the
25th of May and run from 12:00am –
4:30pm at the Queensland Association
for Healthy Communities office and will
be completely free to attend. The primary
goal of the showcase is to increase the
awareness of community run groups thatare currently active in Brisbane that are
run for or inclusive of lesbian and trans*
people. Secondary goals for the showcase
are to highlight the benefits of
participating in group activities with other
lesbians and trans* people and to educate
community members and active group
organisers on strategies to establish and
maintain a community group. Theshowcase will include a free barbeque
and the program will be a combination of
short presentations by representatives
from a variety of community groups that
are currently active and a series of small
work-shops on community groups.
The Lesbian Health Action Group are
seeking registrations of interest from
community groups who would be willing
to give a 5 minute presentation on the
who, what, where, how and when of your
group.
The presentations will be accompanied by
20 minute workshops on topics which
will educate community members and
group organisers on the benefits of
participation and how to start up, market,
and maintain a community group. The
Lesbian Health Action Group would like to
encourage organisers who have
experience in running community groups
to share their knowledge and run the
workshops on topics that pertain to group
organisers experience and interests. If you
or someone from your groups has a
particular interest in running a workshop
you are encouraged to propose your idea
as soon as possible to avoid crossover of
topics. The Lesbian Health Action Group
would also like to invite groups who are
attending to consider organising a group
event or meeting on the evening of the
25th of May to coincide with the
showcase.
For more information or to register yourinterest in a 5 minute presentation, a 20
minute workshop or if you would like to
have a resource (eg. mailing list,
newsletter, event flyer) at the showcase
please contact Amelinda at QAHC by
email: [email protected] or call the
office between 10am – 3pm on (07)
3017 1777. Interested groups are
encouraged to please RSVP by Monday
the 22nd of April as the program will be
planned around community interest and
depends on community involvement.
Kind Regards,
Amelinda Cope
(Continued from page 2)
ATSAQ UPDATE | ISSUE 127 | APRIL 2013 | PAGE 3
NEWS and EVENTS
You are invited to come and enjoy
the company, the conversations,
and share knowledge
or learn new things.
Yes it’s the ATSAQ Luncheon
~
THAI CHICKEN
VEGE & RICE
Garden Salad
Dessert Mystère
Wine, tea & coffee
Vegetarians also catered for –
please advise when booking
~
Lucky Door PrizeCost $15
ATSAQ Members $10
Contact ATSAQ
07 3843 5024
by APRIL 24 20123 to reserve your
place and for the Venue address
~All are Welcome~
(you do not have to be a
member to attend)
7/28/2019 ATSAQ Newsletter Issue 127 APRIL 2013
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Schools and Toilets
A transgender girl, 9yo, has with her
family's support transitioned and all her
documentary evidence now state that
she is now legally female for all intents
and purposes.
She is attending a QLD state school, one
in which the school principal was
supportive. From a quiet reclusiveindividual, who self harmed and whose
scholastic records were below average
she became alert, attentive and her
grades improved.
The school were accommodating, her
family overjoyed, and the girl herself was
starting to academically excel.
Then came the day when ONE complaint
was made to the principle about, ( we
will call her Jane), utilising the female
toilets. The principle, as he or she must,
made it known to Education QLD who in
their supposed wisdom instructed Jane,
via the principle, to use the disabled
toilet.
Let us recap; Jane has all her approved
legal documentation to state that she is
legally to be regarded as a female.
Jane is not disabled and she, quite
rightly considers it insulting to be
considered thus.
Now this is where the whole
bureaucratic system will leave the
average person in absolute
bewilderment.
On behalf of her parents, ATSAQ
contacted QLD Education to try to
resolve this ONE isolated complaint.
We were informed that we could appeal
this decision of disabled toilets to the
Assistant Regional Director and if nonefavourable outcome was achieved we
could appeal to the Regional Director for
South-East QLD. Again if we lost that
appeal thence we have the privilege to
appeal to the Director personally.
So from the school principle up too the
Director there are 4 levels of appeal
ATSAQ was assured but wait there is
more if the Director finds the appeal
against Jane, disabled toilets remember,
then we were informed all is not lost, we
can utilise the services of theOmbudsman.
FIVE levels of appeal just to have a pee.
Knowing, as I do know, the public
service by the time Jane or ATSAQ has
exhausted these levels of appeal she my
well be in high school or dead.
Answer me this and make an old farthappy. When a family are home with
brothers and sister do they have a
problem with the toilet? If they have a
birthday party and invite their classmates
over the question if using the bathroom
is a non issue so what am I missing here!
I informed QLD Education that they had
inadvertently omitted another form of
appeal and that was the QLD Anti-
Discrimination Commission one in which
Jane could eliminate the trauma of goingthrough a bloated bureaucratic bulldust.
ATSAQ UPDATE | ISSUE 127 | APRIL 2013 | PAGE 4
Australian
TRANSGENDER SUPPORT
Associaon of Queensland. Inc.
ABN 15 319 522 768
PO Box 212 NEW FARM Q 4005
atsaq.com
07 3843 5024 8am-6pm
weekdays
ATSAQ is run from a private
residence
PRESIDENT:
Gina Mather
SECRETARY:
Krisne Johnson
ADMINISTRATION & SUPPORT:
Roz Ferguson
Gail Fleming J.P. (Qual)
SPECIAL THANKS:
Aunty Pat & Sally Geraghty
many, many things
Linda Lovell
Volunteering
Linda L & Aunty Pat
Fund Raisers : The SPORTSMAN HOTEL
Alternate Fridays
To Pee or not to Pee, That is the
Question!
Google transgender poster toilets