Transgender: Identity

and Rights
Introduction
• A person whose gender assigned at birth remains the same
throughout life is called a cisgender. Cisgender comprises a
majority of the population.
• However, there are people whose gender identity and sex
assigned at birth change after some time. They are referred to as
Transgender.
• The United Nations defines the term transgender as “an umbrella
term used to describe a wide range of identities whose
appearance and characteristics are perceived as gender-atypical-
including transsexual people, cross-dressers (sometimes referred
to as “transvestites”), and people who identify as the third
gender.”
History
• Hindu Mythology had various references to transgender. In
Ramayana, when Lord Rama was leaving for exile, he was
followed by many trans women. When they were asked the
reason for following him, they said that they could have no
proper life without him. Lord Rama blessed them and credited
them with a boon.

• Ancient texts like Manusmriti, Vedas, and other religious texts

also identify transgender as the third gender. They have been
called the ‘Tritiya Prakriti or the third form of nature.

• There have been queer slaves in the Delhi Sultanate. Trans

people have been in notable positions in the Mughal era too.
 History (Contd.)
• We could find the degradation of dignity of trans people in India
after the advent of the oppressive colonial government. The
Criminal Tribes Act, of 1871, penalized transgender people to
dress opposite from the gender they were assigned at birth. The act
deemed the entire community of Hijras as criminals. Being a Hijra
was a non-bailable offense.

• The term 'Transvestite' originated in 1910 from the German

sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld, who would later develop the Berlin
Institute where the very first 'sex change’ or ‘sex re-assignment
operations took place.

• The term Transsexual' was not coined until 1949, 'transgender' not
until 1971, and 'trans' (a very British term) not until 1996.
SOCIOLOGY AND
TRANSGENDER IDENTITY
1. CASE STUDY:
 Harold Garfinkel’s case study of Agnes 1967
 understood to be the first sociological analysis of a transitioning person (Connell 2009)—
to the rapidly expanding area of the sociology of transgender studies in the mid-2010s.

2. PARADIGM OF GENDER
 GENDER DEVIANCE – Transgender as ‘objects of study’ (1970’s to 90’s)

 GENDER DIFFERENCE – Transgender as ‘subject of study’ (1990’s to 00’s)

3. WAYS TO STUDY
 BASED ON CURRENT SCENARIO

 BASED ON EXPERIENCE

 QUANTATIVE APPROACH

This helped sociologists might use insights from transgender studies to construct a critical
sociology of cisgender, or nontransgender, identities and practices
 The books and articles that make up this first wave of sociological research, most prominent
in the 1970s through the mid-1990s, emerged from social constructionist critiques of
medical knowledge, feminist theory, deviance studies, and ethnomethodological approaches
to gender.

SOCIOLOGIST’s VIEWS :
1.The Transsexual Empire: The Making of the She-Male (Raymond 1979), was the first major
“left-wing” critique of transsexuality.

2. prominent feminist social psychologist Sandra Bem advocates a similar position in 1993:
“Transsexualism would be much better conceptualized as a social pathology than as an
individual pathology ... as the underside of the same process of gender polarization that also
produces highly conventional males and females”

3. 1980s, sociologist Margrit Eichler offers a strong critique of the medicalized aspects of
gender transitions: “From a strictly physiological viewpoint, we must designate sex
changeoperations as bodily mutilation—the willful destruction of physically healthy portions of
the body for purely social reasons”

4. Sandy Stone’s now-canonical rebuttal to Raymond’s The Transsexual Empire, titled “The
Empire Strikes Back,” in which she argues that “as with men theorizing about women from the
beginning of time, theorists of gender have seen transsexuals as possessing something less
than agency.

‘PASSING’ IN SOCIOLOGY
A central preoccupation in these works is “passing,” a sociological term for an interactional
Strategy that social actors can adopt to hide a stigmatized identity or characteristic from
others.
Legal Analysis
• In 2014, the Supreme Court in the landmark judgment of National
Legal Service Authority of India (NALSA) Vs. Union of India
recognized transgender as the third gender. The Supreme Court also
held in this judgment that the fundamental rights guaranteed to all the
citizens under Articles 14 15, 16, 19, and 21 shall be applied without
any exception to transgender people.

• Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 said, “whoever voluntarily
has carnal intercourse against the order of nature with any man,
woman or animal shall be punished with imprisonment for life, or with
imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to ten
years, and shall also be liable to [a] fine.”
Legal Analysis (Contd.)
• In June 2016, Navtej Singh Johar who identified themselves as gay, and
five other LGBTQ activists filed a writ petition in the Supreme Court to
strike off Section 377. Finally, in 2018, the apex court ruled that Section
377 violated the rights of two consenting adults to consensual sex and
hence was struck off.
• The Surrogacy Bill, 2021 only covers males and females (couples) who
have been married for 5 years. It disregards the recognition of
transgenders because they are nonbinary. This amounts to a violation of
art 21 and 14.
• Surrogacy in India is altruistic. However, it is obvious that transgenders
are alienated and disregarded by society, so it kills their very
opportunity even if they are included under the bill.
Steps were taken by the government.
• The Transgender Person (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2019 was
introduced seeing the voices raised by the trans community.

• The government has made Garima Greh or Shelter for transgender

people in Vadodra, Gujarat. It is managed by Lakshaya Trust which is
run by trans people. The Garima Greh also provides basic amenities like
food, medical care, and recreational facilities.

• National Portal for Transgender Persons has been opened so that they do
not have to physically travel for identity cards and can apply for identity
certificates online.

• A separate university for transgender people is to be opened in

Kushinagar, UP, by Akhil Bharatiya Kinnar Sikhsha Seva Trust which
shall be India’s first university for transgender people.
 Criticism
• The Transgender Person (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 says that
a certificate of identity could be received by making an application
to the District Magistrate. However, the trans community has
questioned this provision as it doesn’t promise self-determination
of gender.

• There have been numerous cases of rape against the trans

community. The activists have time and again raised their voices
for criminalizing trans rape. The Supreme Court had said in its
verdict that Section 377 of the IPC is a gender-neutral law.
However, Section 375 is gender-specific. This is a huge ground of
discrimination that needs to be resolved.

• The sex reassignment surgeries are very expensive for people

belonging to low and middle-income families. Therefore, the
activists ask for free or low charges for safe sex reassignment
surgeries.
Reservation to Trans
• Trans people have been socially discarded in the past. They are still not
fully welcomed by the abundant cis society. Therefore, reservations
must be provided as it is highly required for the trans community. The
main area of the debate should be whether transgender people should
be provided vertical reservations or horizontal reservations.

• Vertical reservations are applied separately for the persecuted or

minority group like the scheduled Castes and scheduled tribes. Article
16(4) of the Constitution of India deals with vertical reservations.
Horizontal reservations are applied to all the minority groups across
the vertical reservations. Article 15(3) of the Constitution of India is a
type of horizontal reservation.

• They face persecution for being a Dalit in the first place and then they
are mocked for being different.
Reservation to the transgender

SC
ST

OBC

WOMEN

PWD
Sociological View
• The last census suggested that the trans community comprises 2.5
million of India or 10% of the Indian population. They are smaller
in number and, therefore, regarded as different from the ‘so-called
normal’ or cisgender.

• Homophobia or transphobia, which is dislike or prejudice against

trans people, has been created in the minds of people. This
eventually leads to hatred and various forms of hate crime.

• Data suggests that gender identity and sexual orientation is the third
most common reason for hate crime in the world.

• The deadliest year of violence was 2021 when about 375

transgender people were killed. There are plenty of cases that go
unreported.
Secondary Data
• Transgender people face staggering levels of poverty,
discrimination, and violence. In 2016, 27 transgender people
were killed. Since January 1, 2017, eight transgender women of
color have been murdered.
• According to the "2015 U.S. Trans Survey," a report by the
National Center for Transgender Equality:
 29% of transgender people live in poverty, compared to 14% of
the general population 30% of transgender people report being
homeless at some point in their lives, with 12% saying it was
within the past 12 months transgender people experience
unemployment at 3x the rate of the general population, with rates
for people of color up to 4x the national unemployment rate 30%
of transgender people report being fired, denied a promotion, or
experiencing mistreatment in the workplace due to their gender
identity
Secondary Data
 In the past 12 months 31% of transgender people experienced
mistreatment
 In the past year in a place of public accommodation, including 14%
who were denied equal service, 24% who were verbally harassed,
and 2% who were physically attacked because they were transgender
40% of respondents reported attempting suicide in their lifetime,
nearly nine times the attempted suicide rate in the United States
(4.6%)
 Transgender people, particularly transgender women of color, face
shockingly high rates of murder, homelessness, and incarceration.
Most states and countries offer no legal protections in housing,
employment, health care, and other areas where individuals
experience discrimination based on their gender identity or
expression.
Data & Analysis
Data & Analysis (Contd.)
 Conclusion
• There is a massive difference between equality and equity. Equality is providing equal ground to all. Equity is removing the
historical backlog. Transgender people have been physically and mentally traumatized by the oppressive thinking of the cis
community. They have a historical backlog of oppression. Therefore, they must get reservations for their upliftment.

• In the present day, trans people have raised their voices against the persisting discrimination. We should welcome them as
human beings and not as beings who don’t deserve to live as they are different from the so-called ‘majority’. A few steps
have been taken for their inclusion in society. We, as responsible citizens, need to ensure the effective implementation of
the Bill. We must include them with open arms and not mock people by name-calling or other forms of insults.

• Lastly, every man should have the right to cry and express his emotions, every woman should be praised for being bold and
every trans should have the right to dress and make love. Equality shall be achieved when people are viewed from the bare
eyes of humanity and not from the thick, and dark lens of distinguished gender.
Resources
Legal search engines:
• Manupatra
• SCC
Newspaper Articles:
• The Hindu
Research papers:
• Attended a paper presentation conference organized by DME
on the topic.
 Thank You
Presented by:
Shubhanshi Suman (B-23)
Kunwar Sarthak (B-17)
Anushka Bahuguna
Barira Parvez (B-6)
Tushar (B-32)
Pranjal Pathak (B-37)

To:
Ms. Sneha Sable