Transgender Awareness Week 13th - 19th November

What is Transgender Awareness Week?

The purpose of Transgender Awareness Week is to educate the wider community about transgender and gender non-conforming people and the issues associated with their transition or identity. 

Transgender Awareness Week runs from 13th - 19th November each year and is a one-week celebration and awareness generating event leading up to Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR), a day in which we commemorate victims of transphobic violence. 

TDOR occurs annually on November 20th, when awareness is raised of the transgender community through education and advocacy activities. This is a day to honour those who have either been killed or have taken their own lives as a result of transphobia.

So how can you be a better ally to the trans community? 

Educate Yourself 

It's not always down to someone else to educate you on the matters they face 

Here's some websites and resources you could use to get started on educating yourself. 

Challenge Transphobia

Amplify trans voices, use your voice and actions to change the thoughts and opinions of others when it comes to trans equality. Sign petitions, join in at marches, protests and protect trans protestors from threats. Stand up to those who use transphobic language, don't leave transphobia for trans people to deal with. 

Listen 

Speak to and listen to trans people. Hear their stories and support them. Active listening will help you ensure you use the right name and pronouns if you are unsure. If you realise you've used deadnamed someone or used the wrong pronoun or terminology just apologise, correct yourself and move on. Don't make a big deal about it but make an active effort to not make the same error. 

Respect Boundaries

One good way to be an ally is to understand and respect peoples boundaries. You would not ask a stranger or friend about the appearance or status of their genitals so DONT ask someone who is trans about theirs. It's inappropriate to ask personal questions - You don't need to know what genitals someone has, nor do you need to know if they want to medically transition. Each persons transition is different, there is no right or wrong way to transition. 

Lets talk about the terms we've used: 

• Transgender 'trans' is an umbrella term used to describe a person who's gender identity is not the same as the sex they were assigned at birth. Trans also includes non-binary people who do not fall into the binary categories of man/woman or male/female/ 
• Non-binary or gender queer is another umbrella terms for gender identities that are neither male nor female-identities that are outside the gender binary. Non-binary people may feel they are not exclusively male or female and may embody elements of both. 
• Transphobia is negative attitudes, feelings or actions towards transgender people - often times this results in violence towards trans people. Transphobia usually comes from Homophobic (Negative attitudes, feelings or actions to those are part of the LGBT+ community) views and is considered an aspect of homophobia.
• Deadname is a name that someone no longer goes by - To deadname someone on purpose is extremely disrespectful and often leaves the individual feeling invalid and hurt.