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On Transgender Day of Visibility, we celebrate the trans people amongst us, raise awareness about the struggles we face, and advocate for protected rights for all trans people. Brunel LGBT+ Officer Kira Nelson shares the importance of visibility and invites you to join the conversation.

 Today is Transgender Day of Visibility, an international event on March 31 dedicated to recognising the resilience and accomplishments of the transgender community. As a trans woman myself, this is a day I hold very close to my heart. In today’s world, trans visibility is quite possibly higher than it has ever been, yet large swathes of people across the world still haven’t a clue who transgender people are, why they exist or even that we exist at all.

I wanted to share directly with you on camera, as a trans person and as a woman, to show you that we are real and that visibility is a life changing issue for our community. Please click the video below to watch.

The public climate now is especially hostile for us. Trans people are vilified in the media, often reduced to stereotypes and misrepresented in order to further a false narrative. The idea that’s often pushed is that trans people, particularly trans women, are a threat to cisgender women simply by existing. We are accused of undermining the plight of cis women in modern society, of being dangerous or predatory, and made to assume that there is a conflict between the rights of cis women and girls and those of trans people. On the other hand, the existence of trans men and people with transmasculine identities is something that ends up totally ignored, because it doesn’t fit with this narrative.

None of these accusations are true. Trans people, especially trans women, not only face the same sexism and misogyny as cis women do, but additionally targeted discrimination and violence simply due to our trans identities. Our community is one of the most, if not the most, marginalised and vulnerable in the world. Trans people almost daily find themselves harassed on the street, attacked and even murdered just for being ourselves. But nobody hears about these crimes, because issues impacting trans people ourselves are often ignored by mainstream media. We’re made out not to exist unless we are portrayed as the villains.

But the truth is, we are real people, just like you.

We aren’t here to try and force our pronouns on anyone, or create mass hysteria if someone gets them wrong. A trans person could be anyone you know: your parents, children, siblings, friends or family. Someone could be walking down the street right by you and you might not even know that they were transgender. It is a rare, but naturally occurring and legitimate way to be. It is not a gimmick or a trend, and it certainly isn’t new. People have been identifying as transgender for thousands of years.

It is only in recent times where in Western society we have gained any level of acceptance, and unfortunately, any hard-won rights or protections are constantly under threat. Visibility is more important now than ever, even if it comes with a cost.

Just recently, there has been uproar around the swimmer and trans woman Lia Thomas, due to a false narrative that due to her being assigned male at birth she therefore holds an unfair advantage over her fellow competitors. The firestorm of hate and vulgar language being thrown her way shows why days like this promoting trans equality, visibility and awareness are VITAL. News stories like these are often sprayed across front pages of newspapers and tabloids in a bid to spread misinformation about the trans community because “hate sells”.

But it’s not all doom and gloom. In 2014, Laverne Cox was the first trans person ever to grace the cover of Time magazine. In 2021, MJ Rodriguez became the first trans woman to be nominated for an Emmy award in a major category for the TV show Pose, a major milestone for the community. And this year Munroe Bergdorf made the cover of Cosmopolitan magazine here in the UK, the first time a trans woman has ever done so. There is an increasing and more vocal faction of those who are fighting back against hate, increasing positive trans representation in the media and lobbying against anti-trans legislation that is currently being debated and, unfortunately, often adopted all around the Western world.

Here are some openly transgender individuals blazing a trail in media today:

• Elliot Page (Oscar nominated actor and producer)
• Fox and Owl Fisher (non-binary trans activists and filmmakers)
• Hunter Schafer (actress and model, stars as trans girl Jules in hit TV show Euphoria)
• Jazz Jennings (activist and influencer, star of reality show I Am Jazz)
• Jamie Raines (trans man, runs YouTube channel Jammidodger with 1 million subscribers)

While some of the loudest public voices are shouting that transgender men are not men, transgender women are not women and that there is no validity in identifying as non-binary, polls consistently show that overall, people are supportive of the trans community. This is especially true when people see and relate to the stories of trans people in the public eye or in their personal lives.

The reason we mark events like today is to educate, to empower, and to show that these misconceptions and negative stereotypes are untrue. It is our responsibility as a new generation to carry a torch of acceptance, love and understanding. Our journey of visibility begins here, with us. I am sharing this message directly with you, as a trans person and as a woman, to show you that we are real.

We do not lie, we are not crazy, we do not insult, and we are not threats.

Trans men are men.

Trans women are women.

Non-binary identities are valid.

Thank you.