Yes to BDMRR poster

This poster was created and distributed by trans activists in New Zealand seeking accurate birth certificates in order to live with dignity and to fulfil human rights recommendations which have been on the table since 2008. The posters provide personal perspectives from children to adults, and highlight particular issues around non-binary identities, including the use of gendered toilets, employment problems, financial stress and bullying.

The Births, Deaths, Marriages, and Relationships Registration Bill aims to upgrade the BDMRR Act 1995 in line with the United Nation’s Human Right’s Council’s recommendations and the Human Rights Commission 2008 inquiry which call for New Zealand to reduce discrimination against gender diverse people. The Bill was introduced in August 2017 and is up to its Second Reading in Parliament.

The current Act makes provision for trans people to change the sex (or gender marker) recorded on their birth certificate, but the administrative burden is considerable: it requires a declaration from the Family Court and medical evidence showing that the applicant has undertaken medical treatment. This process can be difficult, lengthy and expensive. It is out of line with current policy on passports and drivers licenses, which require a simple statutory declaration to change the gender marker. The Act particularly impacts people who don’t undertake medical steps as part of their transition, and/or do not have the financial means.

Arguments against passing the Bill are framed as concerns for women’s rights, but are based on the false assertions that transgender women are inherently men, and that transgender women should be considered sexual predators unless proven otherwise (and recognising them as women would increase sexual violence). These positions are counter to international human rights organisations and treaties, the Human Rights Commission, the National Council of Women, and against transgender people’s experiences of themselves. There is no credible evidence suggesting elevated levels of sexual violence as a result of similar legislation passing in other countries.

The New Zealand Government has delayed dealing with providing explicit legal protection to gender diverse people because of many other competing human rights priorities, including the impact of the Christchurch terror attacks on 15 March 2019 in terms of hate speech (RNZ News, 5 July 2019).

Rainbow-focused organisations, most human rights advocates, women’s organisations, and public health organisations are in favour of passing the Bill, including the United Nations, Public Health Association of New Zealand, Women’s Health Action, Wellington Sexual Abuse HELP, National Council of Women, and the Human Rights Commission.

This poster is one of five which were displayed in city streets in 2019 to bring faces and personal stories to the campaign for accurate birth certificates. The illustrations are by Huriana Kopeke-Te Aho (Ngāi Tūhoe, Ngāti Porou, Rongowhakaata, Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi, Ngāti Kahungungu), a Takatāpui activist artist. This particular poster features a transgender woman's perspective on the difficulty and expense of acquiring an accurate birth certificate. The posters were published by Gender Minorities Aotearoa, which is a cross-cultural and transgender-led organisation, assisting and advocating for transgender, intersex and takatāpui people.

Posters are a traditional method of advertising, but posters in the street are not easily ignored, and can catch the eye of people who may not be aware of trans people and issues around rights and discrimination in their communities. Such messaging can also gain acceptance and traction when displayed on authorised hoardings.