Interview with Karine S. Espineira - Part 2

 

Monika: How would you describe President Hollande’s approach to the needs and rights of the transgender community?

Karine: President François Hollande was a great disappointment in this regard because he did not keep his campaign promises. After the outburst of violence from the most conservative Christian lobbies against marriage for all, the Socialist Party became afraid of provoking these groups again with a law in favor of trans people, especially since the republican parties ride the wave of these lobbies and sometimes maintain very shady relations with them. There is therefore little chance that the rights of trans people will progress under this legislature.

Karine in 2012. Photo by Leya Smith.

Monika: Politics often involves negotiating with different interest groups pursuing their own goals. How effectively has the French transgender community been able to advocate for itself in this context?

Karine: One of the specificities of the French case is its pioneering role in the pathologization or psychiatrization of identity. Any analysis must take this into account to understand the French resistance to progress. The policies of the alliances focus on their own interests. Within the LGB movements, for example, the push for psychiatric emancipation from protocols is often misunderstood. Trans identity was associated for so long with psychiatric follow-ups that other groups have difficulty understanding that trans people are capable of completing transitions without psychiatrists if they so choose.

Monika: And how does this affect cooperation with other groups?

Karine: The difficulty of showing a united front also comes from the challenges of interacting with other autonomous or institutional groups. Another example is the recent conflicts between materialist feminists and feminist trans movements. Certain papers clearly recall the positions held by Janice Raymond in 1979. The trans movements have stood alongside the LGB movements for more than twenty years, remembering Stonewall, and they have shown solidarity with intersex people, precarious people, undocumented immigrants, and sex workers. However, the LGB movement shows itself to be much less united with the trans movement and with other allied movements, such as the intersex community. I should specify that I am making this analysis from a French point of view.

Karine in 2012. Photo by Leya Smith.

Monika: The transgender cause is often presented together with other LGBT communities. Since the T appears last in the abbreviation, is the transgender community able to promote its own cause within the LGBT group?

Karine: Sometimes I think that claiming trans separatism and removing the T from the initials LGBTIQ could be a shock that wakes everyone up. I am therefore very divided, because I believe that certain trans movements worldwide have the means to be autonomous. But on the other hand, separatism could be perceived as separating from the LGBIQ movement and its allies. Giving the impression of division could be counterproductive, so it seems important not to create that image.

Monika: In practice, how can trans communities strengthen their position within the larger LGBT movement?

Karine: Within LGBT movements, it is often necessary to rely on ourselves, especially in countries where trans issues are not fully understood by our allies. We must be the architects of our own emancipation from systems of control and sometimes oppression. In certain cases, we will have to count only on ourselves, and this is why the internationalization of the issue matters. The example set by the Stop Trans Pathologization campaign and the work of GATE or Transgender Europe shows that we can be allies across languages, cultures, and borders without denying the specific situations of trans people in different countries.

Monika: Are you personally involved in politics? Do you take part in any lobbying work? Do you believe transgender women can make a difference in political life?

Karine: I am known to be left-wing. Since my adolescence, I was close to the Socialist Party, where I invested a lot, especially in the mid-1980s during the student strikes and actions supporting undocumented people on hunger strike. More recently, I formed a connection with the Green Party. I never tried to enter politics directly because I do not think I have the profile for it, nor do I have that ambition. I feel more comfortable with intellectual activism. This is one of the reasons why I wanted to return to my studies and obtain a PhD in information and communication sciences.

Karine in 1973.

Monika: How does your academic work influence your activism?

Karine: It is a form of empowerment, and I do not hide that I am a committed researcher. Through my work, I contribute to spreading knowledge about trans issues, and perhaps I can do this in a more balanced way than a cisgender academic.

Monika: So how do you see the role of transgender people in politics more broadly? 

Karine: I think trans women, and also trans men, can make a real difference in politics. It is essential for them to think about others as much as about themselves and not hesitate to highlight their life experience. If I may say so, we have experienced gender in its complexity and witnessed disparities, sexism, and discrimination at work. These accumulated experiences become an incredible inner strength.

Monika: At what age did you begin your transition, and how would you describe that experience?

Karine: I finalized my transition between 28 and 29 years old. I was lucky to have access to the experience and information gathered by the first trans associations in France in 1996. At first, I wanted to be evaluated by a medical team. After four months, I realized that the psychiatric follow-up was not only insufficient for me but also involved procedures that were scandalous for trans people.

Karine in 2014.

Monika: What happened once you decided to stop the psychiatric follow-up?

Karine: The day after I made that decision, I found an endocrinologist, booked an appointment with a surgeon in Belgium, contacted a lawyer, and rented a flat in a city where I knew the change of civil status would be less time-consuming and easier than in Paris. I did almost everything at the same time. Six months after starting hormone therapy, I had my surgery. Four months after the surgery, my civil status papers were changed. The transition itself was not very difficult, and that was thanks to the work of trans activists. 

Monika: How do you view surgery and transition in relation to trans identity?

Karine: I want to clarify that when I speak about my surgery, I do not promote transsexualism, which for me is a medical practice and concept, not an identity. I oppose any hierarchy among trans people.

Monika: When you were preparing for your transition, did you seek out any transgender figures who inspired or guided you?

Karine: Before my transition, I had seen some trans people in the media but no one with whom I felt a real sense of identification, even if I admired their transitions and beauty. My first meaningful point of reference was Kate Bornstein, whom I found very beautiful on the cover of the book Gender Outlaw, published in 1994.

Monika: And once you had taken your first steps toward transitioning, did you find other figures who influenced the way you saw yourself?

Karine: I also admired cabaret stars such as Coccinelle, Bambi, April Ashley, and Marie France, whom I discovered in magazines, reviews, or documentary images. Their beauty seemed inaccessible to me at a time when I felt very uncomfortable in my own skin. I had to try to be myself in my own way, knowing that pioneers had already opened the road.

"Mes questions sur les Trans"

Monika: Thinking about your journey today, which transgender women do you admire and respect?

Karine: I have had various models and for various reasons. I think of Kim Pérez as a transfeminist before her time. I think of Lynn Conway, Kelley Winters, and Andréa James for their respective transitions and for sharing invaluable information on the Internet. I think of Susan Stryker for her academic work. I also respect trans men such as Jacob Hale and Patrick Califia.

Monika: And whose work or presence continues to inspire you on a more personal or artistic level?

Karine: I think of Calpernia Addams for her sharp mind and her humor. Numerous South American activists also inspire me. For example, Loana Berkins played a very important role in the movement in Argentina but also internationally. She is a model of strong activism and a very committed person who remains simple and accessible. During a recent stay in Argentina in 2013, I became acquainted with Karen Benett and Susy Shock, who amazed me as artists and as people. I could name many others whom I admire for their activism, artistic talents, commitments, or simply their personalities: Belissa Andía Pérez, Maria Bélen Correa, Maria Sundin, Laverne Cox, Lana Wachowski, Julia Serano, Kate Bornstein, Kelley Winters, among many other ladies.

Monika: What did you find most difficult about coming out during your transition?

Karine: It was within my circle of friends and family that I faced the greatest difficulties and dramas during my transition. My father abandoned me, or rather denied me. My parents moved to Chile where, for most members of my family, I am considered a “freak”. Most of my friends also abandoned me, unable to understand that I had simply remained myself by becoming myself. 

Monika: And when you later came out in your professional life, did you face similar challenges?

Karine: Twenty years later, when I committed myself to university research, I experienced a second coming out, this time by identifying myself as a trans woman in academia. The academic world is not always trans-friendly, and living conditions within it are not always easy to handle.

"Gare aux trans"

Monika: How would you describe the way transgender stories have generally been presented in French media?

Karine: From my point of view, the stories proposed in the media are often very consensual or, at least, they address the “transsexual model” as very close to the forensic narrative. From time to time, a model emerges that is a little different and closer to reality.

Monika: Is there a particular film or documentary that you believe offers a more authentic portrayal?

Karine: The documentary film of my friend Marie-Pierre Pruvot titled Bambi (by Sébastien Lifchitz, 2013) is interesting because we discover the transgender cabaret culture and the life of the pioneers. With the television film La reine des connes (The Queen of Idiots, Guillaume Nicloux, 2009), despite the title, we discover a trans person of her time, a young and clumsy person who wants to make her transition against all odds.

END OF PART 2

PART 3

 

All the photos: Courtesy of Karine Solene Espineira.

The main photo credit: Naőel

© 2015 - Monika Kowalska