To celebrate Trans Day of Visibility we look at some cool trans people who’ve made the news this year.
Bethany Black
Bethany has been described Britain’s only goth lesbian transsexual comedian. This year she also became the first trans actor to play a trans character on British television in Channel 4’s Cucumber and Banana.
She also responded to transphobic comments made by Germaine Greer – who said “Trans women don’t know what it’s like to have a big hairy, smelly, vagina.” – by saying: “Well, I do.
“Transgender bodies are obsessed over in a way that cisgender ones aren’t. With people like Germaine Greer and the things that they’re saying…
“I came out about 15 years ago and I’ve seen how attitudes have changed over the years and those attitudes feel more and more like a relic of a bygone time.”
Emily Brothers
Emily Brothers became Labour’s first out trans prospective parliamentary candidate when she came out in an interview with PinkNews in December. She has a long history of fighting for disability rights and was a key figure in securing disability living allowance for trans people.
Her coming out was met with widespread support, including from Labour leader Ed Miliband. When Sun columnist Rod Liddle said of her “Thing is, being blind, how did she know she was the wrong sex?”, Ms Brothers responded “I wondered aloud how he knows he’s a man when he turns the light out.”
She also spoke out about her suicide attempt and publicly discussed her transition.
Charlie Kiss
Charlie Kiss is parliamentary candidate for the Green Party, and the only openly trans male prospective parliamentary candidate.
He has spoken about the lack of diversity in Parliament, and told PinkNews he “remains committed to the feminist cause”. He also said: “I just feel that in the Houses of Parliament at the moment it’s not very representative of the population. It’s got to change.
“I would love not to be the only male transgender candidate standing.”
Other trans parliamentary candidates include the Lib Dem’s Zoe O’Connell and the Green’s Stella Gardinier.
Angel Haze
Rapper Angel Haze is one of the very few non-binary people who have gained recognition recently. They have worked with artists such as Iggy Azeala, Natalia Kills and Ludacris. They are agender and pansexual, and famously covered Macklemore’s ‘Same Love’ to reflect their own experiences.
They have also spoken out about the stigma of being LGBT in hip hop.
Laura Jane Grace
The singer of punk band Against Me! came out in 2012. She received support from people across the punk music scene, and in January last year the band released the album ‘Transgender Dysphoria Blues’ to a broadly positive reception.
In October, she spoke about coming out to her band as trans. She also made a documentary about her transition.
CN Lester
CN is a genderqueer classical musician and activist. They have featured on Classic FM and Radio 4, as well as being praised for their work promoting trans and non-binary representation. They founded and run Transpose, a regular event celebrating trans and queer art and culture.
They’ve also spoken about the discrimination they’ve faced in the classical music scene and have written for several different publications.
Madhu Kinnar
Madhu Kinnar became India’s first trans mayor in January this year. She won the election in Chhattisgarh’s Raigarh Municipal Corporation by over 4000 votes.
She said: “People have shown faith in me. I consider this win as love and blessings of people for me. I’ll put in my best efforts to accomplish their dreams.”
Andreja Pejić
Andreja found fame as an androgynous model, working in both men’s and women’s fashion, before coming out as a trans woman last year. She spoke out publicly in the hope that her story would inspire people.
She said: “I want to share my story with the world because I think I have a social responsibility. I hope that by being open about this, it becomes less of an issue.”
She has also spoken about the positive influence of her transition, and her desire to become a mother.
Laverne Cox
No list would be complete without Laverne Cox, whose career and visibility continues to go from strength to strength this year. Last May she appeared on the cover of Time magazine, as part of their “transgender tipping point” feature, and this year was cast in a new legal drama as a high-flying lawyer. She was the first trans actor to be nominated for an Emmy.
She continued to use her visibility to push for greater trans rights. She has spoken out about her suicide attempt in her youth, and was praised for hitting back at an interviewer who said she had been “born a boy”.
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