The Gender Council of Australia (S.A.)

OUTLINE OF AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

WHO WE ARE

The Gender Council of Australia (S.A.) is a group of concerned people who seek to create a platform to improve the quality of life for gender dysphoric and reassigned people and others with gender issues. Council members include representatives from this population and members of the general community, who are concerned with the issues that we face.

BACKGROUND OF THE COUNCIL

The Gender Council was established in September 1994, as a steering committee by two people with a common point of view -- that people affected by gender dysphoria and others with gender issues have an equal right without prejudice to:

a general standard of living and quality of life which is equal to the general community standards;
actively participate in the economic and social life of the nation; and
enjoy the rights and privileges of citizenship.

WHO DO WE SEEK TO REPRESENT?

We seek to represent Gender Dysphoric people, Reassigned people and others with gender issues such as transvestites and crossdressers.
A gender dysphoric person is someone who identifies with the other sex, and who has the symptom complex of gender dysphoria. The term "Gender Dysphoria" refers to "the condition of feeling ill at ease with one's gender identity in biological terms" and the term gender identity refers to "one's sense of belonging to the male or female sex".
"Transsexualism [is the attempt of the individual to] assume the physical characteristics of the other sex; [and is] the symptom complex of gender dysphoria"(1). A gender dysphoric person is either pre-operative, post-operative or non-operative:

Pre-Operative refers to a person who identifies him or herself as a member of the other sex and lives as a member of that sex and is undergoing hormonal and surgical procedures which are still incomplete, to assume the bodily characteristics of that sex.

Post-Operative refers to a person who's hormonal and surgical procedures are completed, and is recognised as the gender to which they have been assigned. they are also known as 'Reassigned Persons'.

Non-Operative refers to a person who for a variety of reasons cannot or does not complete those procedures.

The Council prefers not to use either "Transsexual" or "Transgendered", as both terms emphasize the transition, which is only a part of what we go through. Instead, we use "person living with gender dysphoria", "gender dysphoric person", "reassigned person" or "person with gender issues", should we need to refer to someone in this way.

PHILOSOPHY

The Gender Council of Australia (S.A.) , believes that people living with gender dysphoria syndrome, and those with a gender based disorder, or other gender issue should have:

a right to protection from discrimination on the ground of their gender identification
access to employment opportunities
specialised health care services,
education programmes,
specialised welfare services
recognition under the law of their reassigned gender status so they can participate as equal citizens of the nation.

OUR MISSION

To promote the interests of people living with gender dysphoria syndrome and other gender issues at a State and National level;

To have established a Gender Dysphoria Clinic in this state (S.A.), to provide services of a health, including access to reassignment surgery , education, and welfare nature for people living with gender dysphoria;
To seek law reform to secure the human rights of people living with gender dysphoria and other gender issues;
To act as an advisory body to government and non-government agencies on the issues pertaining to people living with gender dysphoria and other gender issues; and
To undertake research into areas affecting the quality of life of people living with gender dysphoria syndrome and other gender issues.

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES

The Council seeks:

appropriate health and welfare services for people living with gender dysphoria and other gender issues;
law reform to Equal Opportunity Legislation and amendments to birth certificates of reassigned persons;
inclusion of people living with gender dysphoria in social justice statements;
project funding;
participation in policy development and its implementation for people living with gender dysphoria and other gender issues;
recognition of human rights of people living with gender dysphoria and other gender issues.

To achieve these outcomes the Council shall:

Distribute and collate results of surveys and censuses of gender dysphoric persons developed by the Gender Council of Australia (W.A.) inc and to assist in the on-going development of service provision;
establish resources to provide information to people living with gender dysphoria and other gender issues and to the wider community, on gender dysphoria and other gender issues;
respond to reports in an informed and focussed manner accessing research data into issues affecting people living with gender dysphoria and other gender issues;
initiate inquiries into issues affecting people living with gender dysphoria and other gender issues;
establish access to support services for people living with gender dysphoria;
actively work towards the integration of people living with gender dysphoria into the mainstream of society; and
establish a community liaison function with government departments to encourage increased sharing of information and delivery of services to people living with gender dysphoria and other gender issues.

CONTACT DETAILS

You can contact the Council via the following:

POST:
The Secretary, G. C. A. (S.A.)
c/o Darling House
64 Fullarton road
Norwood
South Australia 5067

E-Mail: The Secretary

(1) Finlay & Walters: Sex Change Medical and Legal Aspects, 1988, pp42.

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Last Updated: 23rd June 1997