French Court says Trans Woman Needs more Surgery

June 15, 2010

A court last week in the French city of Nancy has ruled that a trans woman is not a woman because her breasts weren’t large enough.

Delphine Ravisé-Giard, who began her transition back in 2007, is a long-term serving member of the French Air Force, which had no issue recognizing her gender according to her own self-identification.
Last year however, a court claimed that she could not change her gender unless she had irreversible surgery.
 

This year proved a better one for trans folks in France when the Justice Minister rolled back the requirement of absolute surgery, as long as the individual was on route to a chosen gender, whether through hormone enhancement therapy or surgery.

The Minister said: “The principle of respect for private life requires that the state recognize gender according to a person’s appearance”.

Authorities in Nancy are making it difficult for Ravisé-Giard by demanding – despite the Justice Minister’s position – that proof of gender change, whether cosmetic surgery or breast implantation.

Ravisé-Giard is, naturally, upset. She said:

“Of course, if the state applied the same test to cis [non-trans] women, it would have to redefine the gender of many French women. But of course, this would never happen.”

She added: "What size breasts are required for a change in civil status? Will that breast size be established nationally by the Minister of Justice or will it be up to the personal tastes of individual attorneys?"

Image source: sunshinecity