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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
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Arwa Mahdawi

Whether you’re trans or not, the gender police are coming for you too

Police officers with two people wearing rainbow flags
‘Every day it seems like there is a new anti-trans bill being passed; every day some high-profile media commentator or rightwing politician comes out with more dehumanising rhetoric about trans people.’ Photograph: Wojciech Stróżyk/Alamy

The gender police need to see your documents now

It was supposed to be a fun school sports event for young kids. Instead it turned into an altercation that went viral and made international news. A nine-year-old girl was getting ready to take her turn at a shot put event in British Columbia, Canada, when a belligerent 67-year-old man called Josef Tesar intervened and allegedly accused the girl of being a boy or transgender. The girl had short hair, you see, and apparently didn’t fit Tesar’s precise specifications of femininity. Since she didn’t immediately pass the Tesar test, he wanted proof that the girl was born female before she was allowed to continue. The competition was disrupted and the girl ended the day in tears.

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