Stonewall’s long-standing definition of “trans” changed on 27th June 2024 to drop “crossdresser” from the list. Before then, it said:
“Trans people may describe themselves using one or more of a wide variety of terms, including (but not limited to) transgender, transsexual, gender-queer (GQ), gender-fluid, non-binary, gender-variant, crossdresser, genderless, agender, nongender, third gender, bi-gender, trans man, trans woman, trans masculine, trans feminine and neutrois.”
The so-called “trans community” is not a homogenous group but a list of identity options, some of which, like “neutrois”, no one can define. Crossdressers are familiar to many of us, though, and in the past would not have been described as trans. It always seemed odd that Stonewall’s definition included them. It has worked well for crossdressers, though, normalising their behaviour and giving them protection. Calling a man a part-time crossdresser could see you branded transphobic and even cost you your job – even if the man in question did not claim to be a woman.
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