The poster in question said: “Some people are trans, get over it!”
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGE BY CHRONICLE BOOKS, STONEWALL, FRANCIS LINCOLN’S CHILDREN’S BOOKS
According to an exclusive report by Arts Professional, the Young V&A museum – a branch of the Victoria and Albert Museum aimed at children – removed a trans poster and two LGBTQIA books ahead of its opening on 1 July.
The anonymous source shared an email with Arts Professional which said that the V&A Director, Tristram Hunt, was behind the decisions.
The poster which was removed was designed by Stonewall and read “Some people are trans, get over it!”. Alongside this, the email said that two illustrated books – Seeing Gender by Iris Gottlieb and Here And Queer by Rowan Ellis – were taken out of the Young V&A bookshop.
Rowan Ellis, the author of one of these books, tweeted in response to this news: “My book ‘Here and Queer’ is one of two books which affirm trans identities that have been reportedly removed from @young_vam by its Director. I am devastated and furious in equal measure. Thank you to the staff and union members fighting this decision.”
In an attempt to have these objects restored the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union members at the V&A are working with the V&A Staff LGBTQ Working Group and fellow trade union Prospect.
Steven Warwick, PCS Culture Group Secretary, told Arts Professional: “PCS is absolutely clear that we oppose the removal of these objects and urges the V&A to reverse this decision. The poster was simply a statement of fact that ‘Some people are trans’. That the director of the V&A considers this to be a controversial statement is disappointing.”
He continued: “Seeking to hide the existence of Trans people contributes to the idea that being Trans is somehow unacceptable and adds to the current climate of transphobia and trans-erasure, putting trans people, particularly young trans people, at risk.”
A spokesperson from the V&A responded to these statements to Arts Professional by saying that the Young V&A “made the complex decision to remove several objects from this gallery – not just the Stonewall poster – as having reflected on the interpretation, the senior team felt more consultation was necessary with young people and teachers on how to present these topics, to ensure their perspectives were more fulsomely represented.”
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