The reasons were all legal. Kids these days don't really understand how much society just refused to acknowledge or accommodate trans people even just a few years ago. I feel like so much of my early life was spent arguing, writing letters, pushing, to get the most basic rights. Its easy to forget these days, but a whole lot of stuff that we can take for granted was fought for, by a whole lot of people.
When I initially transitioned, finally finding a sympathetic GP to refer me to a decent shrink etc., and officially getting on the hormones, the next step was to change my name and update my ID. Changing my name was straightforward. Here in Australia you can do so via deed poll. Changing everything else... Not so much.
So like a lot of trans people then, I got good at harassing bureaucracies. When an initial request to change details was refused, I'd try another tack. I'd write letters, engage allies, push, write more letters...
Anyway, I wasn't the only one. Kevin (not his real name) was also doing his bit, and in a big way. Kevin was pissed off that the law wouldn't allow him to marry his girlfriend, so he took the government to court, and won. In a ground breaking judgement of the family court, justice Chisholm found that Kevin was male, and could therefore marry. The government of the time didn't like it, so appealed to the full bench of the family court, where the original decision was upheld, creating incredibly powerful precedent that's been used worldwide ever since.
It took another couple of years (more letter writing) before Victoria changed their laws to allow transsexual people to get amended birth certificates, but when the did, I did so and married my man soon after. So every year since, on July 22, we raise a glass to Kevin, who made it all possible.
Here's hoping that everyone can soon marry their partners, regardless of sex.
