DIVA had an exclusive chat with Rhiannon about the power of telling trans+ stories
BY ELLA GAUCI, IMAGE BY PEXELS
jane fae’s new book Transitions: The Unheard Stories, made by TransActual, tells the real-life stories of trans people in the UK. In the book, Rhiannon* talks about the challenges in her coming out and her fears for the future. DIVA spoke to Rhiannon about why telling trans stories is more important than ever.
*In order to protect the safety of “Rhiannon”, her name has been changed.
Why did you want to tell your story in Transitions: The Unheard Stories?
Voices from the community are not being heard often. A lot of the narrative from the “other side” of the argument is them saying they’re being silenced when actually a lot of the time it feels like they have more of a voice than anyone. I’ve told my story in various places before and a lot of the time it gets ignored. This book shows that we’re a wide, diverse community in ourselves. If it helps the community as a whole, I’ll do it.
Why do you think it’s so important that we have trans stories being told by trans people, rather than other people speaking for the trans community?
To be quite blunt and honest, no matter how much a person may have the best intentions for the trans community, there’s that old saying “Nothing about us, without us”. It’s amazingly important to get the authentic voices of those people and their real-life experiences. Our stories are extremely important. Storytelling and hearing people’s stories is a brilliant way to build empathy. Hearing those actual experiences is really important.
In your excerpt of the book, you talk about how long you had to wait on the NHS. What do you hope people who are not trans will take away from your experience with healthcare?
My experiences written in the book are from a very long time ago. Now people are being told, especially in England, that it will be six to eight years before they get their first appointment. The NHS is massively underfunded, but it would be good to see a bit more priority towards trans people’s access to healthcare. The longer those people are on those waiting lists, the more it can impact their mental health. People get more desperate and look for other alternatives. Some people look to self-medication which can be really dangerous.
Why is allyship so important right now for the trans community, and how can the LGBTQIA community be better allies to the trans community?
If you want to be an ally to somebody, don’t assume you know what that person needs. Don’t second guess them. Ask them what they need. Ask them what will help. For a long time, there was nobody around me to whom I could comfortably come out or disclose parts of myself. One of the best bits of allyship I’ve seen recently was the new documentary Will & Harper on Netflix. He treated her like the same friend he’d always had. He was just more aware of how the world around her treated her.
What can the LGBTQIA community do right now to support the trans community?
Be vocally supportive of trans people, even when those trans people aren’t in the room. Sometimes it takes sticking your neck out. It might feel unsafe for you to do that, but imagine how your trans friends would feel if they were in that situation as well. The world feels filled with fear right now. Support your friends. Include them in things. Call your friends. Check in how they are. Treat them as any friend going through a tough time. It can be an anxious world to live in the moment.
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