Changing Cis-tems:Providing Trans* Affirming & Inclusive Services

Funding for this project comes from Health Resource Services Administration Grant No. XXXXXXX

About Us

Founded in 1985, our mission is to provide services to those who are disenfranchised by, poverty, HIV/AIDS, homelessness, and/or gender nonconformity.

Funding for this project comes from Health Resource Services Administration Grant No.

H97HA24965

TransLife Center

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TransHealth

TransHousing

TransSafe

TransLegal

TransWorks

Gender Binary

Gender Reality

Everyone is Unique

Gender Identity

Gender Expression

Sexual Orientation

Sex Assigned at Birth

Transgender Umbrella

So who is transgender?

Transgender Definitions

Transgender: a person whose sex, gender identity or gender expression differs from the one assigned to them at birth.

Transition: The period of time in which a person begins to live in a gender role which is in accordance with their internal gender identity. May include period of time where person begins dressing, hormone therapy or getting surgery to align their physical self with internal gender identity.

“Trans” can be shorthand for transgender and transexual and a number of additional gender-non-conforming identities.

Source: Keatley, 2008. Killerman, 2013.

“Transgender” was first used as a way of distinguishing people with no desire for surgery or hormones from transsexuals (people who may want to legal and medical support to align their internal and external gender).

Transgender or Trans* is currently used to include all people who fall outside of mainstream ideas of gender.

Cis, is a word that is becoming increasingly popular to describe people who are not trans or gender variant.

Cisgender is a description for a person whose gender identity, gender expression, and biological sex all align (e.g. man, masculine, and male).

Transgender Cisgender

Source: Keatley, 2008. Killerman, 2013.

The ResearchTransgender people are disproportionately likely to experience violence in the home, on the street, and in health care settings (26% report being physically assaulted at least once)

Transgender people are 4 times as likely as general population to live in extreme poverty

Transgender people are more likely to be uninsured (19% of study reported no insurance; among African American increases to 31%) and less likely to get preventative care (50% reported not being able to afford it).

Recent study of more than 6,400 trans people in US, 41% of respondents reported attempting suicide (a rate 25 times higher than general population)

CDC data shows new HIV infections among transgender people occur at almost 3 times that of non-transgender men and 9 times that of non-transgender women.

SOURCES: 2011 National Healthcare Disparities Report; Centers for Disease Control, www.cdc.gov/hiv/transgender.pdf, 2011.;

Injustice at Every Turn: A Report of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey, 2011.

A Culture of Inclusion

Inclusion & Affirmation mean…

Inclusion: Welcoming, respecting and valuing each person’s unique characteristics and

integrating them in an open and supportive environment which helps build strong clients,

employees and agencies.

Affirmation: To recognize and accept a person as true and valid and to hold them in positive

regard as a member of the community.

Problematic PreferredSaying “transgendered” or Transgenders

Transgender or trans

Using language like “sex change,” “pre-op,” or “post op”

People's surgical status is rarely appropriate to discuss

Not using a person’s preferred name & insisting on using legal name

Use name that person prefers

Not using appropriate gender pronoun

It’s Okay to ask pronoun preference (he/his, she/her, or they/them”

Getting called “sir,” “guys,” “buddy”

Gendered language should affirm a persons gender ID

Displaying a judgemental attitude about a person’s ability to “pass” in affirmed gender

It’s not your place to judge anyone’s appearance

Practice Tips: A word from the community

Problematic PreferredOuting a person or asking about their trans status

Respect confidentiality; if you don’t need to know, don’t ask

Excluding a trans person from services b/c they are not “ideal” client

Include everyone!

Don’t ask trans client to choose between hormones or treatment

Hormones are critical to a person’s health (if they choose)

Work with a transgender person if you “don’t approve” of trans people

Seek out clinical supervision if you need support or have feelings about working with trans people

Allowing staff and other clients to use transphobic language or treatment

Interrupt transphobia and call it out

Making trans clients responsible for educating staff

Agencies provide staff training and education around trans identity

Practice Tips: A word from the community

Our Partners

Owen Daniel-McCarter: odaniel-mccarter@chicagohouse.org

Questions/Comments?

Thank You!

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Community Advisory BoardAtlantis Hoskin

Danielle Ruys

Aja Fe’Rae Blalark

Keisha Allen

Vickie Lawson

Victoria Archambault

Kourtney Berry

StaffJosie Lynne Paul, LCSW, Director, TransLife Center

Channyn Parker, TransCare Coordinator, TransLife CenterOwen Daniel-McCarter, Esq, TransLegal Director, TransLife Center

Lex Lawson, TransWorks Coordinator, TransLife CenterKevin Pleasant, TransHousing Manager, TransLife Center

References

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Brill, S.,& Pepper, R. (2008). The Transgender Child: A Handbook for Families and Professionals. San Francisco, CA: Cleis Press.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. HIV Infection Among Transgender People, 2011. www.cdc.gov/hiv/transgender/pdf/transgender.pdf

Garafalo, R., Deleon, J., Osmer, E., Doll, M., Harper, G. Overlooked, misunderstood, and at- risk: Exploring the lives and HIV risk of ethnic minority male-to-female transgender youth. Journal of Adolescent Health 2006;38:230-236.

Grant, Jaime M., Lisa A. Mottet, Justin Tanis, Jack Harrison, Jody L. Herman and Mara Keisling. Injustice at Every Turn: A report of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey. Washington: National Center for Transgender Equality and National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, 2011.

Keatley, J. (2008). “Transgender People: Epidemiology and Treatment.” Slide set. Center of Excellence for Transgender Health University of California, San Francisco.

2011 National Healthcare Disparities Report. January 2012. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD.

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ReferencesNational Coalition for LGBT Health’s Disparities Working Group. HEALTH PRIORITIES SLIDE

Killerman, Sam. Comprehensive List of LGBTQ Terms & Definitions. It’s pronouncedmetrosexual.com. Retrieved February 1, 2013 from http://itspronouncedmetrosexual.com

Live Oak and UCAN (2007). Clinical Philosophy Training Series: Trauma, Violence and Loss, Module 3. Chicago, IL: Live Oak and UCAN.

British Columbia Ministry of Health (2005). Harm Reduction: A British Columbia Community Guide. British Columbia: Ministry of Health.

Transgender Law Center (2011). 10 Tips for Working with Transgender Patients (Brochure). San Francisco, CA: Transgender Law Center.

Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual , and Transgender Issues, NASW (2008). Position Statement, Transgender and Gender Identity Issues. Socialworkers.org.

Retrieved February 1, 2013 from ww.socialworkers.org/da/da2008/finalvoting/do cuments/Transgender%202nd %20round%20-%20Clean.pdf