Social work interventions for reducing social stigma in transgenders
Keywords:
transgender, stigma, discrimination, health, interventions, social workAbstract
Transgenders in one form or the other have been an integral part of human society right from time immemorial. Transgenders though have been of different types, they have been regarded as synonymous with homosexuality. Today the different sections of transgenders have been brought under the single umbrella called LGBT though differences of opinions exist among these various sections. Transgenders may be born inter sexed or male, but portray themselves as feminine. They live mostly in kinship groups of other transgenders rather than with people related to them by genetics or marriage. Till a few decades ago, emasculation of male organ was almost compulsory for transgenders. Now they are free to decide whether to undergo surgery or not. Basically, they regard themselves as women. They also portray and project themselves as “the spirit of female trapped in a male body”. Like any other persons belonging to any other section of the society, they may or may not have lovers. However, homosexuality is the common denominator that runs through all the sections of the LGBT. Discrimination was found to be pervasive among transgenders (Grant et. al., 2011). Mac Kenzie states that societal discrimination of transgendered people is not new. As such discrimination against the transsexuals has resulted in adverse public health outcomes, including HIV/AIDS, facing the transgendered community. Transgendered people commonly use the terms male-to-female (MTF) and female-tomale (FTM) to describe their gender identity. MTFs are people who are assigned a male gender at birth, but identify as female. FTMs are people who are assigned a female gender at birth, but identify as male. Available research, though limited, seems to indicate that there is a high HIV prevalence rate among transgendered people and that transgendered people are at high risk for HIV infection according to the findings of the past studies. There is a growing recognition all over the world including India about the crucial role of family, educational institutions, media organizations, health institutions, philanthropic societies, cultural organizations, research and development organizations in the rehabilitation and development of transgenders. The major problems related to the vulnerability of transgenders in health areas include the lack of safe environments, poor access to physical health services, inadequate resources to address their mental health concerns, and a lack of continuity of caregiving by their families and communities (Grossman, and D‟augelli, 2006). Transgender lives in severe deprivation characterized by illiteracy, malnutrition, lack of shelter, vulnerability to diseases, lack of educational and employment opportunities to enhance upward mobility and restriction on access to resources that would allow them to work their way out of poverty. The issues faced by transgender are diverse and encompass various issues related to Human Rights and transgender rights, HIV/ AIDS, health, sex, gender, sexuality, and gender identity (Hammarberg 2009). The author after gaining good experience in understanding the issues and challenges faced by transgenders felt that they need to be mainstreamed in various concerns.
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