The OUSA Executive and UniQ oppose the Gender (Definitions of Man and Woman) amendment bill, and call for it to be withdrawn over the dehumanisation wielded against transgender, non-binary, takatāpui and intersex people.
Everyone deserves to live a life of dignity where we can be comfortable in our own bodies. Trans* people deserve to exist in public life with dignity; their identities are inherent to them, determined by them, and their validity is not up for debate.
Fostering such a political environment that incites discourse on the validity of human beings renders these people’s very identities into something that no longer belongs to them, but instead a conversational topic to be debated by people who do not know them. It is inherently dehumanising and invades everyone’s bodily autonomy and privacy. Incorporating the definitions the government has proposed would threaten the abilities of these people to engage in public life concerning the legal system, such as any situation where legal documents are required, and regarding discrimination protection, placing them into a space of unnecessary legal confusion that leaves them vulnerable.
Instead of reducing the cost of living for New Zealanders, supporting the next generation of leaders, or investing in anything constructive, the government is choosing to strip away legal recognition from a handful of people already fighting every day to be comfortable in their own bodies.
Trans people have always existed throughout human history and will continue to exist. They deserve to do so with dignity.
