OPINION

Skirting issue:Skirting issue: Jaden Smith (right), son of Will Smith, appears in latest ads for Louis Vuitton

‘Why I believe the future is gender-free’by Paris Leesby Paris Lees

She is a transgender journalist and

activist. She has a column for Vice

and in 2014 appeared in Hollyoaks, playing

herself.

A campaign to remove gender

from British passports and

driving licences has been backed

by a Tory MP. And public

support is gathering. Is the UK

leading the way to a post-

gender future?

MONDAY, 11 JANUARY 2016 THEDAY.CO.UK

Who’d have guessed it would be a Tory government that smashed the

gender binary? That’s right, Maria Miller, who chairs the women and

equalities committee, is on a mission to make Britain a post-gender

utopia.

Well, sort of. She’s been hanging around transgender activists

recently and has picked up on an idea that’s been floating on the

internet for some time but, until now, has evaded mainstream political

attention: gender-neutral passports.

Radical feminists should be delighted – they’ve been on about

ending gender for decades, and with good reason. Top marks for the

trans movement, then, for taking up the baton and making some real

progress at degendering society.

“ALL THAT FUSS ABOUT GAY MARRIAGE

WOULD HAVE BEEN UNNECESSARY IF THE

LAW HAD NEVER REFERENCED GENDER”

In an interview with the Times, Miller said: “As a society and a

government we should be looking at ways of trying to strip back talking

about gender, and only do that when it’s absolutely necessary. We need

to understand that gender stereotyping can be as damaging for men as

it can be for women.” It’s interesting she felt the need to sell the idea to

men, too, but she’s right – strict gender roles harm everyone.

Take something as frivolous as fashion. Sixty years ago, clothing, like

gender roles, was rigid, uncomfortable and strictly divided. Since then

the divide in clothing has softened. Whether or not you’re a hippie,

feminist or postmodernist, those movements have probably affected

the way you dress.

But back to passports. Is there a legal argument for having gender

markers on official documents? I’ve yet to hear one. Ostensibly, gender

markers are there to improve security, but modern passports boast

colour photographs, hi-tech deterrents against forgery and biochips.

Most airports have scanners that can see through your clothes.

As Miller notes: “Why do we need gender on our driving licence? Why

do we have to have it on our passport if it doesn’t really add

identification? It’s not relevant. Australia has decided to degender its

passports.” I really hope this is the start of something. All that fuss – all

that time and money wasted – faffing about with gay marriage, would

have been completely unnecessary if the law had never referenced

gender. Everyone should have the same rights, regardless of whether

they’re a man, woman or any of the myriad new identities that are

opening up in 2016.

Not that I’m in any rush to live in a completely post-gender society.

Many people enjoy identifying as men or women, the majority of whom,

of course, aren’t trans. Yet more and more people are identifying as

non-binary these days – that is, neither male nor female, or a mix of

both. Good for them. There’s space for everyone’s unique gender

identity, but I rather enjoy being a woman. I suspect many women do.

When I got my first female passport in 2009, as a trans woman, I was

thrown and overblown with bliss. It was like an angel at the passport

office had been playing with my heart. The state had finally recognised

something I’d known internally for as long as I could remember.

That doesn’t mean the state should make life harder for people who

don’t identify as male or female, though, so it’s time to stop putting

people in boxes. Leave that to advertisers. It says something about the

pace of change when a Conservative MP wants to reform something as

iconic as the British passport in the name of trans rights, but it’s the

right thing to do. Let’s get rid of gender from all official documents while

we’re at it. No sex please – we’re British.

© The Guardian. Reprinted with permission.

YOU DECIDE

Should all gender-revealing titles like Mr, Mrs,

Miss (and so on) be dropped for everybody?

ACTIVITY

Can you make list of ten ways in which is easier

to be ‘straight’ than to be ‘gender non-

conforming’?

Read this article on theday.co.uk for links to recommended videos and further reading.BECOME AN EXPERT

Gender binaryGender binary ––

Post-gender utopiaPost-gender utopia ––

TransgenderTransgender ––

WORD WATCH

A system that views people as

either male of female, with no space in

between or outside these categories.

Some people think that

in an ideal society (’utopia’) we would make no

distinction between men and women.

A person who lives as a

Radical feministsRadical feminists ––

Degendering societyDegendering society ––

member of a gender other than that expected

based on sex assigned at birth.

They argue that our

society is fundamentally patriarchal, and must

be totally reordered. Famous radical feminists

include Germaine Greer, Gloria Steinman,

Andrea Dworkin and Catherine MacKinnon.

Last year students

pushed for gender-neutral toilets at various

British universities. Even the White House has

PostmodernistPostmodernist ––

unisex loos now.

A 20th Century movement in

culture and the arts based on scepticism.

Famous post-modernists include Jacques

Derrida, Michael Foucault and Martin

Heidegger.

Notes