March 31st, 2021 is internationally recognized as Transgender Visibility Day and to support the members of our community who identify as trans, we gathered a handful of resources that amplify their voices, recognize their contributions, and raise awareness of the discrimination they face. This list is by no means exhaustive so please feel free to reach out to research@fairfield.edu if you would like to locate additional resources. We also recognize that a list is still just a list and welcome any opportunity to collaborate on programming or exhibits.
Books:
"While medical identification and treatment of gender dysphoria have existed for decades, the development of transgender as a "collective political identity" is a recent construct. Over the past twenty-five years, the transgender movement has gained statutory nondiscrimination protections at the state and local levels, hate crimes protections in a number of states, inclusion in a federal law against hate crimes, legal victories in the courts, and increasingly favorable policies in bureaucracies at all levels. It has achieved these victories despite the relatively small number of trans people and despite the widespread discrimination, poverty, and violence experienced by many in the transgender community. This is a remarkable achievement in a political system where public policy often favors those with important resources that the transgender community lacks: access, money, and voters. The Remarkable Rise of Transgender Rights explains the growth of the transgender rights movement despite its marginalized status within the current political opportunity structure." -- Publisher description.
"Since the mid-1990s, there has been a seismic shift in attitudes toward gay and lesbian people, with a majority of Americans now supporting same-sex marriage and relations between same-sex, consenting adults. However, support for transgender individuals lags far behind; a significant majority of Americans do not support the right of transgender people to be free from discrimination in housing, employment, public spaces, health care, legal documents, and other areas. Much of this is due to deeply entrenched ideas about the definition of gender, perceptions that transgender people are not "real" or are suffering from mental illness, and fears that extending rights to transgender people will come at the expense of the rights of others. So how do you get people to rethink their prejudices?
In this book, Melissa R. Michelson and Brian F. Harrison examine what tactics are effective in changing public opinion regarding transgender people. The result is a new approach that they call Identity Reassurance Theory. The idea is that individuals need to feel confident in their own identity before they can embrace a stigmatized group like transgender people, and that support of members of an outgroup can be encouraged by affirming the self-esteem of those targeted for attitude change. Michelson and Harrison, through their experiments, show that the most effective messaging on transgender issues meets people where they are, acknowledges their discomfort without judgment or criticism, and helps them to think about transgender people and rights in a way that aligns with their view of themselves as moral human beings." -- Publisher description.
"There are growing numbers of youth who identify as transgender, and as a result, clinicians and counselors are in need of an informed resource that covers the basics of gender identity and expression. Counseling Transgender and Non-Binary Youth: The Essential Guide responds to that need by setting out clear advice and support on working with transgender and non-binary youth with regard to their identity, mental health, personal and family life and their medical and social transition as well as offering additional resources and reading lists.
Along with the basic information needed to understand transgender clients, Irwin Krieger applies this general knowledge to work with transgender teens at what can be the most critical and problematic stage in a trans person's life. Specifically, issues of gender identity awareness and expression for youth along with the mental and physical challenges that puberty presents are discussed. This guide will inform counselors and therapists to support transgender teens in their practice, while providing the necessary tools for opening up the conversation on transgender issues in families and schools." -- Author description.
Hammeren, A. (2018). Crossing the river. Oxford: African Books Collective.
"What do you do when you realize that one of your most fundamental ideas about yourself is actually false? How do you resituate yourself in a world that has been turned upside down? This book charts the early stage of the author's journey of gender transition, as well as her process of settling down in South Africa as a fledgling academic. The story is a deeply personal one, but also one that will resonate with other transgender people, migrants, academic hopefuls, and border-crossers of all kinds. As a story of coming to terms with an identity in flux, it illustrates the fundamental open-endedness of all human identities." -- Publisher description
Mock, J. (2014). Redefining realness: My path to womanhood, identity, love & so much more. Atria Books.
"In her profound and courageous New York Times bestseller, Janet Mock establishes herself as a resounding and inspirational voice for the transgender community—and anyone fighting to define themselves on their own terms.
With unflinching honesty and moving prose, Janet Mock relays her experiences of growing up young, multiracial, poor, and trans in America, offering readers accessible language while imparting vital insight about the unique challenges and vulnerabilities of a marginalized and misunderstood population. Though undoubtedly an account of one woman’s quest for self at all costs, Redefining Realness is a powerful vision of possibility and self-realization, pushing us all toward greater acceptance of one another—and of ourselves—showing as never before how to be unapologetic and real." -- Publisher description.
"According to the Youth Suicide Prevention Program, “more than 50% of transgender youth will have had at least one suicide attempt by their 20th birthday.” This data demonstrates a dire need for caregivers, educators and providers to have a better understanding of youths experiencing gender dysphoria (and gender non-conforming youth, who are often mistaken for transgender youth). This book was created to give a voice to these individuals as they are being silenced by some of their caregivers, school officials, religious leaders, and politicians. Transgender Youth: Perceptions, Media Influences and Social Challenges is about the experience of child development, adolescent development and gender identity development as well as society’s positive and unnecessary negative responses. Transgender youth have some experiences that their 1950s and 1960s counterparts did not encounter or have access to – hormone blockers, celebrity role models, and social media. This book brings readers closer to empathy for transgender youth and transgender young adults with the ultimate goal of improving the quality of life for these exceptional children and adolescents.
The book introduces the topic of gender dysphoria and explains various terms important to this conversation regarding gender identity. It describes the challenges transgender adolescents experience to include barriers and obstacles not faced by their cisgender counterparts. Some parents and their transgender Christian children discuss gender dysphoria, gender identity development, their families’ response to their gender expression, and their experiences within their faith communities. We review the literature on transgender youth and the use of sexual activity as commerce. The audience gets to read narratives of individuals who identify as transgender or transsexual. There are discussions about transgender youth within the foster care system, transgender youth athletes, and the issues they face in school-based and intramural sports programs. Readers are offered suggestions to implement and support transgender youth in their schools and communities." -- Publisher description.
Articles:
Flores, A., Haider-Markel, D., Lewis, D., Miller, P., Tadlock, B., & Taylor, J. (2018). Transgender prejudice reduction and opinions on transgender rights: Results from a mediation analysis on experimental data. Research & Politics, 5(1), 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1177/2053168018764945.
"Fears, phobias, and dislikes about minorities should be strong determinants of whether Americans support policies protecting such minorities. Studies suggest that discussions and information about transgender people can reduce transphobia. However, these studies also indicate that experimental treatments do not necessarily affect individual attitudes on policies concerning transgender rights. Scholars contend that durably reducing prejudice should increase public support for minority rights. In this study, we examine this causal mechanism utilizing an experiment. We find that reducing transphobia is a reliable mechanism to increase public support for transgender rights. These results are robust to causal identification assumptions, suggesting that this mechanism provides a clear avenue for stigmatized groups to increase public support of rights for those groups." -- Author abstract.
"Challenging binary gender norms and common conceptions of the differences between sexes, transgender individuals are misunderstood, feared, and often subjected to stigma. As a result, transgender individuals are exposed to harassment, violence, and employment discrimination. The negative outcomes of this exposure include poverty, unemployment, trauma, homelessness, arrest, and/or incarceration. Within the correctional system, stigmatization is heightened, leading to grave consequences for transgender inmates. The goal of this article is to highlight these outcomes, as illustrated from legal case histories, and to suggest best practice recommendations for correctional system improvements in ensuring the rights of transgender inmates." -- Author abstract.
"This roundtable discussion is the result of a research symposium entitled In Transition: Gender [Identity], Law & Global Health where participants took up the challenge to engage with the question: What will it take to ensure the sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) of transgender populations across the globe? The barriers to overcome are fierce, and include not only lack of access to health services and insurance but also stigma and discrimination, harassment, violence, and violations of rights at every turn. Transgender people must of course lead any sort of initiatives to improve their lives, even as partnerships are needed to build capacity, translate lived experience into usable data, and to make strategic decisions. The SRHR of transgender people can only be addressed with attention to the social, cultural, legal, historical, and political contexts in which people are situated, with social, psychological, medical, and legal gender affirmation as a key priority shaping any intervention. Bringing together nine diverse yet complementary perspectives, our intent is to jumpstart a global and multigenerational conversation among transgender activists, lawyers, policy-makers, programmers, epidemiologists, economists, social workers, clinicians and all other stakeholders to help think through priority areas of focus that will support the needs, rights, and health of transgender populations. Making the changes envisioned here is possible but it will require not only the advocacy, policy, programmatic and research directions presented here but also struggle and action locally, nationally, and globally." --Author abstract.
"In tandem with the growing visibility and acceptance of transgender people in the United States, we have seen a rapid increase in insurance coverage for health care services related to gender transition. Despite ongoing court battles over federal nondiscrimination protections for transgender people and uncertainty over the future of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), this trend is likely to continue: Medicare, many state-regulated private plans, some state Medicaid programs, and an increasing number of employer-sponsored plans now cover transition-related care for transgender people. These changes are driven by a growing expert consensus on the medical necessity of gender transition, new legal interpretations prohibiting insurance discrimination against transgender people, and mounting evidence that transgender-inclusive coverage is cost-effective." Excerpt from introduction.
Other Resources:
GLSEN: Transgender Day of Visibility
Human Rights Campaign: Transgender Resources