After shouts of celebration and hugs, initial euphoria has given way to reflection as trans and non-binary Scots consider what the passage of Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) means for them.
The Holyrood parliament voted overwhelmingly and cross-party on Thursday afternoon for Scotland to become the first part of the UK to introduce a self-identification system to change legal gender, removing requirements for a medical diagnosis of gender dysphoria and extending applications to 16 and 17 year olds.
But the final vote came after months of increasingly hostile and angry public debate over whether these changes would negatively affect women’s rights and spaces. Activists say too often transgender voices felt they were absent from these discussions.
As Vic Valentine, the manager of Trans Scotland, said when they welcomed the news: “Trans people in Scotland will be pleased and relieved that this bill has been passed after many years of difficult public debate which has often had the feeling that people are talking about us. , and not us.”
Beth, a queer campaigner, was watching the proceedings from the public gallery at Holyrood and described it as “an incredible day for the queer rights movement in Scotland”. However, he also suggested that the toxicity surrounding the reforms had “allowed intolerance to grow”.
“Hate crime figures are rising at an alarming rate. However, I hope that when the bill becomes law, people will see, like every other country before us, that the misinformation behind the reform gender recognition is simply that.”
“It was certainly a significant moment,” said Dylan Hamilton, a climate activist, “and it was important to show that the majority voted for these reforms, because sometimes with this debate you can feel that the whole world is against you.”
Like many trans Scots, he also pointed to the long delays in the progress of the bill: it was promised six years ago, went through two of the biggest consultations held by Holyrood and was stalled by the pandemic.
“Gender recognition has become a frontline issue because of this bill, but it’s not the most important issue for most trans people,” adds Hamilton. “It is just an administrative matter to make life more dignified, but far more important are the horribly long waiting lists, hate crime and the conversion ‘therapy’ bill. [Scotland will include transgender people in its ban on the practice, while the UK government U-turned to exclude them earlier this year].”
Writer and filmmaker Jennie Kermode agrees that there are other pressing issues for the trans community, but adds: “There is also the political context of the bill and the importance of seeing state support for the people live their lives.”
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Kermode believes the public discourse has left some disillusioned: “Trans people have lost some of the optimism and sense of security they had about how they would be treated in Scotland.”
For non-binary people, the progress of the bill was a disappointment as it did not include them as originally proposed. Andie, a marine biologist, says: “Non-binary people are still trying to gain our own recognition, but this is a good step.
“It’s still a win and it defuses the horrible things people have said, because it shows we’re still going in the right direction even though it’s taking time.”