Gender-variance: From Ostracism to Recognition

Rogena Sterling- PhD Candidate at Te Piringa - Faculty of Law, University of Waikato

Right to Gender Identity and Development• Gender Identity and Biological Sex Diversity• Mechanisms of Gender Development

– Internal Development– Socialised Development

• The Right to Identity– ‘Gender identity’ is Quintessential to Identity– Right to Recognition before the Law– Right as a Participatory Citizen

• Child Centred – Best Interest of the Child• For Development of the Child to Independence

Gender-diverse Safety Issues• Recognition of Difference

– Stigma of Difference and Abnormality– Passing and Transitioning

• Mental Health Issues– Suppression and Concealment– Depression, Anxiety, & other Mental Health Issues

• Family (Non-)acceptance• School and Social Issues

– Acceptance, Identity, and Public Facilities– Moral Panics and Mythical Narratives

• Harassment, Assault, and Violence

Prevention of Identity• Socio-cultural/Religious Rights• Parental Rights• Legal and Policy Failure

– Sexed at birth but lived through Gender– Legal and Policy Restrictions– Law’s Reliance on Medical Authority

Safety and Development Paramount• Safety of the Child Paramount

– Important when there is “grave” concern– Marion’s Case - ‘grave’ -violation is likely to have

implications concerning the person’s sense of identity, social place and self-esteem

• States Obligation – in all actions concerning children

• “Where a child is illegally deprived of some or all of his/her identity, the state is obligated to provide assistance and protection, with a view to re-establishing speedily his/her identity”.

A future?• A Legal and Social Life Outside of a Binary

– Identify as male, female, neither, or both– Some countries have Made Small Inroads

• e.g. NZ have permitted passports and drivers licences in “X”

• A World in which the Other is No Longer Stigmatised

• A World where Diversity is not Pathologised• Children will have a Supportive Environment to

Explore and Identify