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In this, the 40th Anniversary summer of the Stonewall Riots, TransLondon co-founder, Christina Alley, argues that trans folk are a vital part of the LGBTQ community. Forty years ago, this summer, police raided the Stonewall Inn in New York’s Greenwich Village – in order to arrest the customers, just for being gay. While such raids and arrests were not unusual, what was important and unusual about this raid was that – on this occasion – the customers decided to fight back. They had finally had enough of being arrested, beaten and, in some cases, even raped, by police. For several nights the riots raged on, changing the history of gay rights for good. Every year since then, LGBTQ people all over the world have marked the anniversary of the Stonewall Riots with Pride marches and celebrations. But how many of us now acknowledge that, on that fateful evening at the Stonewall Inn, it was the drag queens and kings – the brave ancestors of today’s trans activists – who stood up to the police first? The sad truth is that, soon after the Stonewall Riots, when the gay rights movement spontaneously erupted, the drag queens and kings who put their lives on the line were actively sidelined and marginalised by the predominantly white, middle-class, educated and affluent gay men and lesbians who organised the rallies. Why? Because those gender benders looked different, behaved differently and did not fit in with the image of “normality” that the gay “assimilation” movement wanted to present – so that gay people could be more easily accepted by society. The emerging “gay community” fell into the trap of thinking that, to win rights, it had to think, behave and dress just like straight people. What is even more lamentable is that this hetero-normative attitude still persists today. Here in the UK, the gay rights organisation, Stonewall – named after the riots – deliberately excludes the “T” and describes itself as “the lesbian, gay and bisexual rights charity”. At last year’s Pride London rally in Trafalgar Square, trans women were, for whatever reason, refused entry to the women’s toilets by the official stewards. Moreover, a ridiculous myth circulates in the gay community and some parts of the media that trans people “pretend to be the opposite sex because they cannot cope with being gay”. Yet did you know that the majority of trans people self-identify as gay, bi, queer, asexual or questioning after transition? We cannot be separated from the gay community because many of us are gay – and so are our friends and partners. I hope that the trans community will be fully embraced and included in the future, because what we have in common is much greater than what separates us. We should unite because we have a common cause and common opponents - right-wing religious groups, for instance, who dismiss our identities as a “lifestyle choice”, vilify us all and campaign against our rights. Besides, we have lots of energy and creativity to offer! United, aren’t we stronger? OK, I will step off the soap box now and let you in on the fun. Trans people love to party too! It has been suggested that our unique perspective on the world gives us fresh insights and a wicked sense of humour. Personally, I think everyone within the LGBTQ community has experienced life on the margins of society and that is where the most exciting developments in art, performance and writing usually come from. What I can honestly say is that some of the most innovative, exciting, thought-provoking and fun performance art today is happening within the trans community. Just check out the amazing events organised by Wotever (www.woteverworld.com), TransFabulous (www.transfabulous.co.uk), Bird Club (www.birdclub.org.uk) and the London Transgender Film Festival (www.transgenderfilmfestival.co.uk). Christina Alley co-founded TransLondon two years ago with her trans girlfriend, Tessa. TransLondon is a discussion/support group for members of the “trans” community – whatever their gender identity (or identities) and whatever stage in their “transition” they have reached. Meetings take place on the third Tuesday of every month at Gay's The Word Bookshop, 66, Marchmont Street, London WC1N 1AB. Meetings start at 7.30pm and are free. See www.translondon.org.uk for more details.
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