"For most teenage trans, educational contexts seem like a desert with no references"

02/11/2016

On 10 March 2016, the UAB passed its protocol to fight against any type of harassment on campus ("Protocol d'actuació contra l’assetjament sexual i l’assetjament per raó de sexe, d’orientació sexual, d’identitat de gènere o d’expressió de gènere de la UAB”). Presently, the UAB is working on the protocol for when transsexuals change their name. The improvement represented by these changes will also be accompanied by awareness-raising campaigns and visibility measures. And for this reason, the motto for this year's Festa Major is “Fora la LGTBIfòbia de la UAB” (Keep LTGBIphobia Out of the UAB).

Offering the opening speech was Miquel Missé, UAB Alumni (Sociology) and trans activist. He was the first student at the UAB to request that he be treated according to the gender he identified with, and not with the one he had physically been born.

1- They say to be born transsexual is to be born inside the wrong body. Is that so?
It is true that our cultural imagery regards transsexuality as something connected to this idea of the wrong body: the body as a prison. Part of my work as an activist is precisely to question this idea. Our bodies are not wrong: what may be wrong is the social meanings we give them.

2.- Is surgery the perfect remedy for a transsexual?
It is for many people. When your body is not like you want it to be and that makes you suffer, surgery can become the answer. But this is not only in the case of transgender people, surgery helps in many types of situations. Nevertheless, I believe we must seriously reflect upon this subject. Feeling bad about our bodies indicates many things within our social structure.

3.- What then is transsexuality?
I like to talk about the trans fact, which includes transsexuality and transgenderism. I would say it is the fact that I want to live in a specific gender, and sometimes a specific body, which is not the one I was assigned upon birth.

4.- What conclusions did you reach as a student at university, and at the UAB in specific?
Many. First, the fact of being trans makes explaining things a must. I spent two years asking for my name to be changed in the class lists, my e-mail address, my student ID card. Everything that identified me did so with a gender I do not feel identified with. I had to visit offices, spoke to the administration, waited in line, but to no avail. I don't think the people I spoke to were against it; they simply saw things from a bureaucratic viewpoint and did not consider what the situation really meant to my daily life.

I also realised I was privileged, because the majority of transsgender people I know never went to university. It seems that now there are more transgender people at university, but before it wasn't so. At the same time I received a lot of support, I was lucky to meet another trans who was studying journalism. We helped each other out a lot. I also have very fond memories of my friends at the "Sin Verguenza" association. They definitely helped me feel like I was not alone.

5.- Why are awareness-raising campaigns so important, and especially in educational contexts?
For most teenage trans, educational contexts seem like a desert with no references. I think raising awareness in those moments must be above all focused on a message of empowerment for those who feel isolated or who are feeling things which feel strange to them. Having references, meeting people like you, this is an important part of the gender transition process.

6.- How can we end with intolerance towards people who are different from the majority? What solution is there in today's society?
I believe intolerance as a social phenomenon is connected to very complex issues. Hatred towards what is unknown, the inability to empathise with others, violence against social minorities, all of this indicates that something is wrong with our society. Especially when the way our societies view individuals and the community does not help us to coexist. In the case of transgender persons, I believe our mere existence puts into question a model which is seen to be unalterable: the differences between men and women. And many people feel extremely uncomfortable in front of a trans person precisely because they feel questioned in aspects which give them insecurity and which pulls apart the idea they had of what a man and a woman is.

7.- I am guessing that being a trans activist is the result of wanting to reach a specific objective...?
At first I became an activist because I felt in debt with all those activists who took me in, I felt part of chain in which I also had to contribute with something. But now, more than a decade later, my activism is related to communicating and building spaces in which people can reinvent themselves in different ways and, especially, where they can question the compulsory mandates of transsexuality.

8.- As a sociologist and someone who is close to the movement, do you consider that society has advanced in this sense? Are young people more tolerant nowadays?
As a sociologist, the correct answer would be to say that there is a need for research in this area. The LGTBI issues have been studied very little in our country, and even less studies exist on the social perception of this community. I can only talk about the perceptions I have had of the evolution in these past ten years. I believe the community's visibility has grown strongly, and that political agendas focus on eliminating the idea that transsexuality is a pathological condition. At the same time, we can see that more and more younger people are starting to transition. The question I have is whether all this visibility and facility in transiting leads to freedom of gender or if it only applies from one gender to the other.

9.- Recently, Catalonia's healthcare system decided to eliminate transsexuality as a pathological condition and therefore, there is no need for a psychiatric assessment before transitioning. Is this an important step?
When I read the news, I thought that more than an advance, it is embarrassing to think that in 2016 the Catalan healthcare system has decided to recognise that transsexuality is not a disease. With that said, this is not a step, it is a declaration of intentions that the Spanish government, the European Parliament and United Nations had already done as well. Now it needs to become effective. And more work will need to be done on the social imagery of what trans actually is, which unfortunately is still very heavily focused on medical issues.

10.- A few years ago Catalonia passed a law against homophobia. What is your opinion on this law? Is it enough?
There is no doubt it represented a step forward in a matter which until the moment had not been addressed institutionally as it should have been. However, if we need a law to eliminate the pathological stigma of transsexuality, we have a problem. Much work needs to be done as a society in relation to sexual and gender diversity, not only in LGTBI issues, but also as a social group. Sexual and gender freedom are collective treasures we can all benefit from.

11.- What fundamental message do you want to transmit to the university community and society in general in your speech on Wednesday?
I am still thinking about it, but I do want to pay homage to all those transgender students who decide to come to university, despite all their fears, doubts and insecurities. To me they are real heroes and heroines.