Why we need to reform the UK’s Gender Recognition Act
- Text by Lee Hurley
- Illustrations by Vice / Recognise Me
The Gender Recognition Act 2004 allows transgender people to be legally recognised by the state as their ‘preferred’ gender. It was ground-breaking legislation for trans people when it was first introduced, but now it is no longer fit for purpose.
The GRA currently requires that transgender people sit through months of extensive and intrusive interviews with psychiatrists, undergo invasive medical checks, receive a clinical diagnosis of gender dysphoria and ‘prove’ that we have been living as our ‘preferred’ gender for two years, before a panel of strangers decides if we are who we say we are. There is a campaign underway to change this to a process that allows transgender people to self-certify and, in response, the UK government launched a public consultation to determine how the Act should be reformed.
A system of self-certification, as they currently have in the Republic of Ireland, is exactly what it sounds like. A trans person says they are male/female/non-binary and we trust that they know themselves better than any “expert.” At present, non-binary people have no legal recognition at all under the current GRA.
I am a transgender man. When I realised I was attracted to women when I was a teenager, I didn’t have to seek anyone’s permission to come out as a lesbian. I didn’t need a medical diagnosis, nor did I need to demonstrate that I had been living as a lesbian for two years before I was granted the full gamut of lesbian privileges. No doctors wanted to see my genitals. I didn’t have to tell psychiatrists about every sexual partner, fantasy or what I masturbated to. I realised I was a lesbian, so I told people and that was enough. When it comes to my gender, however, I had to do all those things and more.
Scare stories abound about what this will mean in terms of men trying to access women-only spaces, but the reality is this act only harms trans people. It treats us like medical freaks and reinforces society’s view that there is something ‘wrong’ with us.
A move to a system of self-certification would not only demonstrate that society trusts trans people to know what is in our own best interests, but it would also send a message that we do not need other people’s approval to be who we truly are.
Recognise Me, a new campaign from Vice and Stonewall, is calling on the UK Government to make these changes to the Gender Recognition Act. You have until 11 pm on Friday (October 19th) to speak up for trans rights and reform it.
Follow Lee Hurley on Twitter.
Enjoyed this article? Like Huck on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.
Latest on Huck
Maryam El Gardoum is breaking new shores for Morocco’s indigenous surfers
The Amazigh Atlantic — Through her groundbreaking career and popular surf school, the five-time Moroccan champion is helping women find their places in the waves.
Written by: Sam Haddad
Youth violence’s rise is deeply concerning, but mass hysteria doesn’t help
Safe — On Knife Crime Awareness Week, writer, podcaster and youth worker Ciaran Thapar reflects on the presence of violent content online, growing awareness about the need for action, and the two decades since Saul Dibb’s Bullet Boy.
Written by: Ciaran Thapar
Volcom teams up with Bob Mollema for the latest in its Featured Artist Series
True to This — The boardsports lifestyle brand will host an art show in Biarritz to celebrate the Dutch illustrators’ second capsule collection.
Written by: Huck
A visual trip through 100 years of New York’s LGBTQ+ spaces
Queer Happened Here — A new book from historian and writer Marc Zinaman maps scores of Manhattan’s queer venues and informal meeting places, documenting the city’s long LGBTQ+ history in the process.
Written by: Isaac Muk
Nostalgic photos of everyday life in ’70s San Francisco
A Fearless Eye — Having moved to the Bay Area in 1969, Barbara Ramos spent days wandering its streets, photographing its landscape and characters. In the process she captured a city in flux, as its burgeoning countercultural youth movement crossed with longtime residents.
Written by: Miss Rosen
Tony Njoku: ‘I wanted to see Black artists living my dream’
What Made Me — In this series, we ask artists and rebels about the forces and experiences that shaped who they are. Today, it’s avant-garde electronic and classical music hybridist Tony Njoku.
Written by: Tony Njoku
