Tessa Ganserer speaks about transphobia and the self-determination law

Everyone can live as they wish – as beautiful and simple as this sentence sounds, it is all the more unrealistic in today’s world. Although the introduction of the third gender in 2018 or gendering in higher education suggest otherwise, there are still many areas that still discriminate against people – an example is the transsexual law. We spoke to Tessa Ganserer, member of the Bundestag, about her own experiences as a trans woman and about new political approaches.

Tessa Ganserer: “Malice, ridicule and hate, that’s been with me since I came out”

BRIGITTE: For the first time, two trans women made it into the Bundestag in the last federal election. How has your life changed since then?

Ms. Ganserer: Actually not at all. I’m still explaining why some spellings aren’t correct, so I think it would be nicer if we wrote about transgender women. Then it also becomes clear that being trans is a trait, just like being blonde, small or tired. But this quality alone does not distinguish us. We don’t want to be reduced to that, nor are we second-class citizens. Therefore it is neither correct nor respectful to speak of “trans people”. I still enjoy doing educational and acceptance work.

And what are your tasks in the Bundestag?

As before in the Bavarian state parliament, it is queer-political issues that get me the most media attention, but these are by no means the only issues that motivate me to do politics. I am therefore very pleased that, as a member of the environmental committee in the German Bundestag, I can also work on fundamental green issues as a green chairwoman in the parliamentary advisory board for sustainable development, that I can campaign for the UN sustainability goals there and that I am also a deputy on the health committee and will be able to represent queer-political concerns in the health sector.

In January 2019 you announced in an interview that you would appear as a woman under the name Tessa Ganserer in the future. How was that received by the public and your private environment at the time?

In fact, I said that I’m going to be the woman I’ve always been and that my name is Tessa. It was clear to me that I couldn’t just go to the Bavarian state parliament as the woman I’ve always been and pretend that nothing had happened. I was aware that being forced to do a public soul striptease would generate enormous media interest, but for a long time I wasn’t sure if I was up to it emotionally. I was not naïve and it was clear to me that malice, ridicule and hatred would not be absent and that is exactly what has accompanied me since I came out on social media, with every tweet, with every step and every day.

You started your transition relatively late. Was there a reason for this?

I would very much like to return this question. Why do we have to justify and explain our coming out? Why do people who only start their transition in the middle of their life have to justify and explain themselves? Why is coming-out and the seriousness of it being questioned in young people? I think what unites everyone is the fear of coming out. The fear of not being taken seriously, the fear of not being accepted, marginalized and ridiculed or of experiencing disadvantage and discrimination up to and including physical violence. Unfortunately, this fear is not unfounded, because all this is still sad everyday life today.

Where does discrimination against transgender people begin? Do you have any examples?

The question is not easy to answer. Some formulations that are still okay for some trans people are already hurtful for others. For example, I reject the terminology of the medical term transsexuality because it is a term that psychology has coined and is associated with a psychopathologization of transsexuality. It is important to be sensitive. It is best to ask the person concerned which terms are correct for them.

It is absolutely hurtful and unacceptable if the self-chosen name is deliberately not accepted and the gender affiliation of a trans person is denied.

That is extremely discriminatory. We know from numerous studies that schools, for example, are not places of acceptance for trans young people. We know that well over 50 percent of trans people speak of experiences of discrimination in the workplace. It is known that trans people with the same professional qualifications have a much higher risk of becoming unemployed. We know that experiences of violence, hate speech in social media and even physical violence are a sad reality in Germany. Politically motivated hate crimes have even increased in recent years and these cases are still not systematically recorded. In fact, we know that the majority of these offenses go unreported. Long-term experiences of discrimination make you ill. Due to structural discrimination in the healthcare system, access to necessary medical measures is made more difficult for trans people.

A classic reaction to experiences of discrimination is that people try to avoid these places in the future, which means that, according to a study by the German Youth Institute, young people do significantly less sport than heteronormative cis-gender young people because they experience discrimination in sport. Queer people, trans people in particular, even refrain from standard medical check-ups due to negative experiences.

Which structures support the discrimination of transgender people in everyday life?

I think the reason for this is that transgender issues have been taboo for a long time. That is why there is no knowledge in large parts of society. From an early age, a worldview is imposed on us that only assumes two genders and as if it were given by God and carved in stone. However, the reality is different – ​​this is not a fad. The phenomenon of transgender is probably as old as mankind. They existed through all epochs, in all cultures. Unfortunately, ignorance is always good breeding ground for prejudices and inhuman ideologies. That’s why acceptance work is so important, but it takes a lot of staying power.

You speak of acceptance work and use social media, among other things, for this. Is that a blessing or a curse?

The internet and social media are a technological invention and this technology is not inherently evil. It depends what you do with it. It’s a blessing for those affected. In the 1960s and into the 1990s, this form of information gathering did not exist. The Internet is not only a source of information, but also a way for queer people and marginalized groups to experience empowerment. At the same time, social media are a mirror of today’s society, where inhuman ideologies are also spread and hatred and violence are practiced.

They are now in a position to address structural issues. What needs to change in the transsexual law? What is still discriminatory?

You have to know the history. Until the end of the 1970s, transgender people had no way of correcting their official documents. However, this law was wrong from the beginning. Trans people first had to divorce their marriage before they could register an official change of civil status. Changes in marital status were only possible when trans people had undergone gender reassignment surgery. In a total of six judgments, the Federal Constitutional Court declared parts of this law to be unconstitutional. The last judgment dates from 2011, when the Federal Constitutional Court overturned the regulation of gender reassignment surgery as a mandatory requirement because this requirement is incompatible with the constitutionally protected right to physical integrity.

That was eleven years ago and the Union-led federal government has since omitted to remove this unconstitutional section from the law. As early as 2015, the Council of Europe called on the member states to introduce simple and transparent procedures for official changes to civil status that are accessible to everyone and that do not require pathologizing compulsory assessments. Nevertheless, it is still the case today that trans people first have to file an application with the court, file a detailed trans CV and expose themselves to the most intimate questions in two psychological reports, just for a court to decide on them.

And would it be enough to revise this law? Or would a completely new draft law be needed?

We want to replace the degrading transsexual law with a self-determination law. With a self-disclosure at the registry office, all people should be able to correct their marital status and have a new first name entered without a compulsory assessment.

How to be a good ally for trans people?

Even if you don’t belong to the queer community yourself, that doesn’t mean that you can’t do anything. Tessa Ganserer thinks that getting information should be the top priority – for trans people. According to the member of parliament, listening, learning, accepting and raising awareness in the language are the first steps to being an ally of the LGBTIQA+ community.

Even if the majority of trans people locate themselves in the binary gender system, there are non-binary people. For example, if you use your own pronouns on social media or in the e-mail signature, it automatically shows other people that you have a certain sensitivity for it.

Above all, the assignment should not only take place on one day a year. It is not enough to wave the rainbow flag on Christopher Street Day, for Tessa Ganserer it would be desirable if heteronormative people would think along with queer people in general – in all areas – and provide education and acceptance.

You can find more about the topic here.

Bridget