Brooklynne Kennedy The Queer Avengers are demanding the media end the disrespectful practice of calling transpeople by their previous names. “The media focuses on our past,” transwoman Brooklynne Kennedy told a press conference in the capital yesterday, which the Queer Avengers called to address portrayal of trans people in the media. “There is no respect for what we call ourselves, who we say we are, how we present and identify. They drag up the past and our birth genders even when it has no relevance to the story," she said. “You know, people say we want special rights. Well, I demand that people use the name I give them. I demand that they respect the gender I identify as and present as. That's not special rights, that the rights everyone has. What it boils down to is respect.” The Queer Avengers say the media has a strong role to overcome its own, and the public's ignorance. The group hit the headlines this week with its glitter-bombing of visiting arch feminist Germaine Greer, who has made a series of transphobic comments over the years. Read Steve Attwood's full report from the conference here You can discuss this gay New Zealand news story on the GayNZ.com Forum here
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Friday, 16th March 2012 - 8:22pm