“I came alive the day I put on women’s clothing. I felt so confident and free. I felt like I could finally fit in with the other girls.”
“Although transgenders are largely accepted in South Africa, it’s hard in the Eastern Cape because of cultural beliefs. Men are expected to grow up, get circumcised and find a wife. In many cases we are told we have been bewitched and need muthi or an exorcist so we can become normal again. This stems from a misunderstanding about transgenders and what this means.”
On their website, Transgender Intersex Africa defines transgender as an umbrella term for people whose gender identity, gender expression or behaviour does not conform to the gender assigned to them at birth.
It defines the following terms:
- Transsexual: A term referring to people who wish to undergo gender reassignment therapy to align their bodies to their gender identity;
- Cross dressing: Wearing clothes designed for the opposite gender, according to gender stereotype norms;
- Stealth: Remaining private about the sex assigned at birth;
- Reassignment surgery: Surgery to change primary or secondary sexual characteristics;
- FTM: Meaning Female-to-Male, individuals born female but who identify as male; and
- MTF: Male-to-Female, or born male but identifying as female.
Ngcingi, who has assisted many transgender school pupils when they faced rejection because of their clothing options, said the rejection normally starts from there and lasts well into adult life.
“At school many from our community are stopped from wearing skirts or pants and are limited in terms of sport too. Everything about school is gender specific.
“If you’re a boy, you’re expected to play soccer, you are never allowed to play what is referred to as a girl’s sport like netball.
“Bathrooms are another challenge we face. We are generally not allowed to use female bathrooms because we are considered male. But the biggest challenge is the violence we face almost on a daily basis.”
Research conducted by SHE in 2015 found that 86% of transgender women had experienced some form of violence in their lives.
Ngcingi said other challenges include limited access to health and justice.
“Many trans women would rather not report crimes because of secondary victimisation at police stations.
“Trans women experience high levels of structural forms of violence, such as employment discrimination and they are pushed into doing sex work as a means of survival.
“It is in this context that they become vulnerable to violence from clients and abuse at the hands of police officers.
“When trans women are arrested they are held in custody with men, which renders them vulnerable to sexual assault and a high probability of HIV infection.
“Finally, the issues with Act 49 and the implementation of the law expose trans women to violence and they are denied citizenship, which leads to a whole range of other problematic issues,” Ngcingi said. — zisandan@dispatch.co.za
Trapped in a man’s body: : Zisanda Nkonkobe looks into the story of 18-yr-old EC transgender
“Although transgenders are largely accepted in South Africa, it’s hard in the Eastern Cape because of cultural beliefs. Men are expected to grow up, get circumcised and find a wife. In many cases we are told we have been bewitched and need muthi or an exorcist so we can become normal again. This stems from a misunderstanding about transgenders and what this means.”
On their website, Transgender Intersex Africa defines transgender as an umbrella term for people whose gender identity, gender expression or behaviour does not conform to the gender assigned to them at birth.
It defines the following terms:
Ngcingi, who has assisted many transgender school pupils when they faced rejection because of their clothing options, said the rejection normally starts from there and lasts well into adult life.
“At school many from our community are stopped from wearing skirts or pants and are limited in terms of sport too. Everything about school is gender specific.
“If you’re a boy, you’re expected to play soccer, you are never allowed to play what is referred to as a girl’s sport like netball.
“Bathrooms are another challenge we face. We are generally not allowed to use female bathrooms because we are considered male. But the biggest challenge is the violence we face almost on a daily basis.”
Research conducted by SHE in 2015 found that 86% of transgender women had experienced some form of violence in their lives.
Ngcingi said other challenges include limited access to health and justice.
“Many trans women would rather not report crimes because of secondary victimisation at police stations.
“Trans women experience high levels of structural forms of violence, such as employment discrimination and they are pushed into doing sex work as a means of survival.
“It is in this context that they become vulnerable to violence from clients and abuse at the hands of police officers.
“When trans women are arrested they are held in custody with men, which renders them vulnerable to sexual assault and a high probability of HIV infection.
“Finally, the issues with Act 49 and the implementation of the law expose trans women to violence and they are denied citizenship, which leads to a whole range of other problematic issues,” Ngcingi said. — zisandan@dispatch.co.za
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