March 2025 marks the 38th celebration of Women’s History Month across the US and Canada, and March 31 is the 16th year of celebrating Transgender Day of Visibility around the world. This year, the Daily’s Editorial Board wishes to honour the rich heritage of both communities by highlighting the intersections between women’s rights and transgender rights.
The 2025 theme for Women’s History Month is “Moving Forward Together.” According to the National Women’s History Alliance, it aims to celebrate “the powerful influence of women who have dedicated their lives to education, mentorship, and leadership.” In North America especially, it is impossible to speak about women in education and leadership without acknowledging the trans women who dedicated their lives to this very cause. Christine Jorgensen is one such well-known figure, an actress and trans activist who spent much of her time in the spotlight educating the American public and advocating for transgender people. In terms of leadership and community organizing, American activist Louise Lawrence held large public lectures on transgender history from the 1940s to the 1970s. These women played an integral role not only in raising public awareness about trans issues but also in advocating for the rights of all marginalized genders.
Looking at past examples of how trans activists spread awareness about gender non-conformity, we can see that trans rights and women’s rights have always been intertwined. Transphobia is ultimately harmful to anyone affected by sexism or misogyny, including cisgender women, since it reinforces the stereotypes that, for centuries, have been perpetuated by the patriarchy. In light of the recent rise in vitriol and hate crimes against transgender individuals, it is more important than ever to stay united as a community. The normalization of anti-trans violence makes the world less safe for everyone. When some members of our community are in danger, the entire community is in danger — violence ripples outwards, and as these hate crimes become legitimized by mainstream media and the government, much of the human rights progress over the past few decades is eroded.
One recent instance of this discrimination was the treatment that Imane Khelif received at the Paris Olympics. Khelif, an Algerian boxer, was targeted by a violent hate train filled with transphobic attacks despite not being a transgender woman herself. This highlights how anti-trans rhetoric is largely based on Western ideas of femininity, resulting in a racist, narrow conception of gender that disproportionately affects women of colour. In 2022, a “female-only” dating app came under fire for using AI to “confirm” if users were female. The AI ended up denying access to users that were women of colour, since they did not meet the Eurocentric criteria for “female features” defined by the app’s software. “Trans women are an easy scapegoat to amplify an effort to police all women’s bodies,” said Angel Joy Flores, a trans athlete based in Seattle. “Anti-trans rhetoric surges and emboldens [all forms of] misogyny.”
Given the precarious state of trans rights around the world, especially in the US and the UK, it is more important than ever for Canada to continue protecting trans rights for its community. On October 31, 2024, Alberta passed a new bill called the Fairness and Safety in Sport Act. This misleadingly titled legislation aims to restrict women’s sports to “female only” and could target children as young as twelve. Children risk being pulled from sports just based on someone’s suspicion of their identity; the legislation urges educational institutions and sports clubs to go as far as investigating birth records. Additionally, Conservative party leader Pierre Poilievre has also voiced his support for excluding trans women from women’s spaces such as bathrooms and shelters. That such rhetoric is being issued by one of the leading figures in Canadian politics sets a dangerous precedent for trans rights in our country.
Now more than ever, it is important for feminists and trans activists to come together to build solidarity and fight against the patriarchal regime that affects us all. We must challenge the rise in exclusionary ideology worldwide by embracing the intersections between both communities, and we must be wary of falling into the trap of pitting women’s issues against trans issues.