So fuck spez but r/t4t and r/r4r were useful. Where do yall meet folx for friendship and more?

ACCEPT Romania

Erin In The Morning is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a subscriber.

On Transgender Day of Visibility, a Romanian appellate court ordered the government to recognize a transgender man's gender identity on state documents—the first known court enforcement of a landmark 2024 ruling by the Court of Justice of the European Union. That ruling requires all member states to recognize legal gender changes obtained elsewhere in the bloc. The Bucharest Tribunal's decision is final and cannot be appealed. While the ruling directly applies only to transgender people who obtained gender recognition documents in another EU country, it sets a significant precedent in a nation that ranks dead last among all 27 EU member states on LGBTQ+ rights, according to ILGA-Europe's 2025 Rainbow Map.

The case centers on Arian Mirzarafie-Ahi, a transgender man with dual British and Romanian citizenship who was born in Romania and moved to the United Kingdom in 2008. Arian began his transition in the UK in 2016 and obtained a gender recognition certificate in 2020, while the UK was still treated as an EU member state during the Brexit transition period. Romania's own gender recognition procedure was not a viable option—the European Court of Human Rights found in 2021 that the country had no "clear and foreseeable" framework for gender recognition and had forced transgender people into an "impossible dilemma" by requiring surgery that was either unwanted or unavailable domestically. ACCEPT Romania estimates fewer than 50 people have successfully changed their civil status documents in the country in the last 20 years.

When Arian attempted to register his UK gender change with Romanian authorities in 2021, they refused. He sued. The Romanian court sent the legal question to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) for a binding interpretation, and in October 2024, the CJEU ruled that Romania’s refusal violated EU law—holding that “gender, like a first name, is a fundamental element of personal identity” and that forcing a citizen to carry conflicting identities across member states was an illegal barrier to free movement.

Even after the CJEU's ruling, Romania resisted. When the case returned to domestic courts, three government agencies—the Cluj Personal Records Directorate, the Civil Status Service, and the General Directorate for Personal Records—appealed a lower court's order to comply. The Bucharest Tribunal rejected all three appeals on March 31, making the order final: Romania must recognize gender changes from other EU member nations.

"The legal process we accompanied Arian through over the past several years has, at last, reached a conclusion that does him justice. More than a personal victory, the ruling confirmed by the Bucharest Tribunal is a major step toward respecting the rights of all transgender people in Romania," said lawyer Iustina Ionescu in a press release by ACCEPT Romania. "Romanians who have obtained a final gender recognition decision in another member state will no longer need to go through Romania's arduous procedure. We call on the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Ministry of Justice to adopt a clear, fast, and accessible procedure for changing documents for all Romanian transgender citizens—regardless of whether they have lived in other EU member states—as the European Court of Human Rights has required since 2021 in X and Y v. Romania." (Translated from Romanian.)

The ruling has significance well beyond Romania. Because the underlying CJEU decision is binding on all 27 EU member states, the Romanian court's enforcement serves as a practical test case for how the principle will be applied across the bloc. ILGA-Europe's Senior Strategic Litigation Advisor Marie-Hélène Ludwig called the decision "a victory for the many trans people in the EU who are still refused identity documents matching their gender identity and are forced to live with different identities when crossing borders," adding that since "Romania has resisted implementing the CJEU ruling in the Coman case for eight years, it is particularly important to see a Romanian court giving practical effects to a CJEU ruling." The organization said it is now monitoring implementation in other EU countries. Three member states—Hungary, Bulgaria, and Slovakia—have effectively banned legal gender recognition entirely through laws, court decisions, or constitutional amendments, all of which now run contrary to the CJEU's evolving jurisprudence.

The ruling does have significant limitations. It applies only to transgender people who obtained legal gender recognition in another EU member state—it does not help trans Romanians who have never left the country and remain trapped in Romania's domestic procedure, which the European Court of Human Rights condemned in 2021 but which remains unchanged. As the Reuters noted in its analysis of the underlying CJEU decision, "as the litigation in this case was focused on freedom of movement rights, it means the process for Romanian citizens seeking to change legal gender remains unchanged." Ionescu's statement directly addressed this gap, calling on the Romanian government to create a procedure for all transgender citizens "regardless of whether they have lived in other EU member states." ACCEPT has already begun distributing template legal forms for other trans people with cross-border documents to file their own requests.

This was me yesterday, for TDOV (It's already April 1 here in Australia) sitting in front of the worlds largest trans flag. Photo taken by the wonderful @supakaity@piefed.blahaj.zone.

Today is 9 years since I came out to my then 11 year old kid, and tomorrow is 9 years since I started medically transitioning.

I was 41 years old then. Trans awareness was just on the upkick. Everyone knew Caitlyn Jenner. Laverne Cox had appeared on the cover of TIME magazine... Yet I was still the first trans person most people had met.

At the time, my understanding of gender was very binary, and my own goals pretty much consisted of "Get transition out of the way, blend back in to the world, and get on with life without much talking about the trans thing"

But, I went to my first Pride, and I was changed forever. I was surrounded by my people, which wasn't something I'd ever felt before. And with time, I came to have a more nuanced understanding of gender, and the artificial nature of the binary. And I also came to appreciate my own queerness, and completely lost the desire to blend in and hide amongst the society that had made it so hard to accept myself in the first place.

And now, I can't help myself. I run gender diverse events, I create spaces and help foster queer communities. I stand loud and visible and proud, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

I see all of you glorious bitches, bastards and ne'er-do-wells, and I love you all!

it can be specific to body features common with being trans or just general photography technique in general, no matter how basic. example photos are ok, but we do not demand them. just thinking this would be a helpful thread to have !!

a tip of ours (for those femme-leaning at least):

having the camera from a more top-down perspective seems to make the jawline look a little nicer. this is true of most others in that they look skinnier, but it especially seems to bring out the femme look in our experience.

TDOV 2026 Meanjin, Queensland, Australia

(I didn’t know where to post this on Lemmy. If it’s not appropriate here, please let me know, or just take it down.)

There is a secret hidden trans theme in Port87 Mail. I’ve never disclosed it publicly, but for Trans Day of Visibiliy, I’m going to. You can activate it by going into your settings on desktop, opening the theme dropdown, then typing “traaaaaaaaaaaaaa” (I don’t remember how many As there are). There are other secret themes, that maybe I’ll disclose later. For now, enjoy pink, white, and blue email. The best color theme! 🙂

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.blahaj.zone/post/40645952

Thought David Scott did a great job here.>

If you are thinking about harming yourself — get immediate crisis support. Connect to a crisis counselor 24/7, 365 days a year, from anywhere in the U.S via text, chat, or phone. The Trevor Project is 100% confidential and 100% free.

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/get-help/

If you are thinking about harming yourself — get immediate crisis support. Connect to a crisis counselor 24/7, 365 days a year, from anywhere in the U.S via text, chat, or phone. The Trevor Project is 100% confidential and 100% free.

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/get-help/

i use water, bar soap, and moisturizer and thats pretty much it. (and an epilator for hair removal)

it does keep me clean, but my skin is not so smooth. i would enjoy seeing what others around here do, or perhaps resources you find useful as well.

side tangents on nails, hair, etc. are also welcome :)

For context, I am referring to the fact that the "Licc'em Low Lisa" track picks on the officer's (quite deep) voice, which leads to the suggestions she harbors a massive D, and the call for "someone to verify her vagina", in a related Tweet. The suggestion that she is a lesbian is also used as an insult in both places.

I enjoyed the whole thing as much as the next person. But calling to verify genitals in this climate of gender policing is (at least) a grey zone, even given the context. And given the "implied transness", then showing women running away scared from her, again, is not great in the current climate. (I mean the relentless narratives denigrating trans women as a threat to cis women and girls.)

Unless Ohio is the kind of place where the mere suggestion that a female LE officer working with children is trans is so hilarious, that the suggestion is unintentionally wholesome. But I can't know that, since I'm not from there.

So I made a very dumb mistake. I have been using hair removal cream for the last month or so and getting good results. My skin was handling it well and the grow-back was much softer and slower than shaving. Good times.

Yesterday I didn't time it correctly and left it on certain areas too long. I didn't realise that 2-6 minutes was a strict upper range and that it's dangerous to leave it on longer.

So yeah, I took too long and now I have a very unpleasant chemical burn on both my ass cheeks. I had to cancel plans so I can sit inside with my butt in air while it heals.

Setbacks like this have really thrown me into downward spirals in the past, and I was very upset at first, but I'm trying to move past it, see the funny side, and pick myself up.

Early transition can feel a lot like you're fumbling around in the dark sometimes. I wish I had a community-assigned trans mentor with me at all times to gently warn me when I'm about to do something stupid.

Alternatively, maybe some of you have some similar mistakes that you can look back and smile or laugh at now, and maybe if you share them I can feel less like a dumb idiot while I wait for my ass to cool off.

Hi all,

I just set up a new community for trans people who want to make their own clothes. If that sounds like something you'd be interested in, it's right over at !transsewing@lemmy.blahaj.zone

I cleared this post up with the mods and they agreed I could post this.

• Invidious
• Youtube

Hello gals and pals, I know this may seem abstract and "could never happen" and as most people around me say "collapse is a slow process so you'll have time" but as the Seneca effect has shown - that is usually not true - collapse can and mostly likely will be much faster than we imagine.

And considering geopolitical tensions and the fact that most hormone precursors are made in China I can see the supply drying up almost entirely

I guess my question is - how are you preparing?

For me community is a massive one - learning where to get blood work done outside the system, how to diy, how to get in touch with homebrewers - but at the same time I've not found anyone who actually makes hormones from scratch - most still mix existing precursors into injectables.

I've though about storing pills and making them into stickies ~~but I still doubt they'd last more than 5 years even if stored in ideal conditions.~~ on further research it appears pills could retain 50% or more of their potency for 15-20 years if stored in extra vaccum sealed packaging in a cool dark place

And I know the HRT pharmaceutical business is much bigger than just trans people but AFAIK very few cis people cannot live without exogenous hormones as most produce at least some by themselves - which I dont think is the case if you're trans and have been on HRT for years/decades (not to mention after bottom surgery) - so I can see how their production can get deprioritised in favor of much more critical things like insulin for example.

How are you dealing with all of this?

i thought it would be nice if we shared some general expiriences. i list some of my learnings below. feel free to add! :))

note that i was a part of my local queer spaces for longer already, so my thoutghts on networks might seem obvious to you. but since i gad my inner coming out my love for my communities has only intensified.

local networks are key

there are a lot of good reasons to seek out for other queer people in your area (be it a queer party or a self help group). the obvious downside is that you need to trust those people. especially in harsher political/societal environments it might be a hard decision, who to trust. my pros:

• you will find people who live in the same city/region and who can give you important advice.
• you can exchange contacts of doctors/practioners and learn who to avoid.
• you will find yourself in a (more) accepting space, where people will sit next to you while you vent your frustration and share your joy.
• you will find radical friends. solidarity is strong. queer groups tend to make happen a lot of crazy stuff for their members. you will be adopted by them.

being out might not just help you

this is anecdotal but i have helped some people navigating early transition, which i could not have done in the same way, if i hadn't been out to my friends and haven't had the confidence to (quasi) publicly share my expiriences. similarly i know a person who is very stealth (transitioned as teen, moved ...), and is only out to a few close friends. she is scared of the political climate and with this very alone. when i came out to her, we talked a while and i promised to be a proxy for her to our local groups, if she doesn't want to out herself but needs help.

don't get too excited – but celebrate steps!

i'd advice general scepticism. your hormones might get lost in the mail, your surgery postponed. or some other shit doesn't go as planned. there is a lot of potential to get your hopes crushed. believe it when you have it.

frustration will build up. so celebrate any little step you achieved.

being yourself is so much easier than pretending

first i was afraid, (i was petrified), it would be hard to play a new role, that i needed to put in hard work to convince people i was a woman. in the end i am still myself but i don't police myself as much anymore. sure i have done a lot more shopping lately, but that was fun, not a chore. i wear what i deem fitting. in short, i stopped worrying, if i was presenting too fem and just started to go for it. and that's so much easier.

If you are thinking about harming yourself — get immediate crisis support. Connect to a crisis counselor 24/7, 365 days a year, from anywhere in the U.S via text, chat, or phone. The Trevor Project is 100% confidential and 100% free.

https://www.thetrevorproject.org/get-help/

For everyone in the US here, there is currently a FDA petition to create a federal registry of all trans women taking HRT. The FDA is currently taking public comments supporting and opposing the petition. Here's a link on how to make your voice heard: https://transresilience.org/issues/fda-registry.

You can comment anonymously if you feel unsafe putting your name out there.

I've read some of the comments and most of them so far seem to be from transphobic ppl.

Montgomery County Planning Commission // Creative Commons

Erin In The Morning is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a subscriber.

On Sunday, a federal judge ruled that Aetna's categorical denial of facial feminization surgery for transgender women constitutes sex discrimination under the Affordable Care Act. The landmark ruling, handed down in the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut, is believed to be the first federal court order requiring a major private insurer to make individualized coverage determinations for gender-affirming facial surgery rather than automatically rejecting every claim as "cosmetic." The case was brought by six transgender women who sought coverage for facial feminization surgery to treat severe gender dysphoria but were denied under Aetna's Clinical Policy Bulletin 0615, which categorically excludes all gender-affirming facial procedures from coverage. Though the preliminary injunction applies to only two of the six plaintiffs, the class action is pending, and the court's legal reasoning will serve as a powerful precedent for transgender women denied facial surgery coverage nationwide.

“To be clear, the issue is not whether Aetna’s policy exclusion prohibits this type of gender-affirming care, but rather that Aetna’s policy exclusion prohibits only transgender individuals, the only individuals who can experience gender dysphoria, from receiving this type of gender-affirming care. Thus, when Aetna decided that facial gender-affirming procedures “performed as a component of a gender transition [were] not medically necessary and cosmetic,” Aetna prohibited only transgender individuals from seeking this medical care, and thus discriminated on the basis of sex,” wrote Judge Bolden in his ruling.

The ruling was made on behalf of two patients, Dr. Jamie Homnick and Dr. Gennifer Herley, both transgender women seeking gender-affirming facial surgery. Both reported severe depression, suicidality, and intensifying gender dysphoria related to facial masculinization—the result of not having access to puberty blockers or hormone therapy early in life. Both were denied categorically under CPB 0615, which does not evaluate requests for gender-affirming facial surgery on the basis of medical necessity but instead denies them altogether, regardless of a patient's individual medical circumstances or whether their treating physicians have deemed the procedures medically necessary.

The court leaned on the Supreme Court's decision in Bostock v. Clayton County and Title IX, as incorporated into Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, to find that Aetna's exclusion constitutes sex discrimination. The court reasoned that to deny a facial surgery claim under CPB 0615, Aetna must first determine whether the patient is transgender—which necessarily requires considering their sex assigned at birth. If a person assigned male at birth seeks facial reconstruction to treat a congenital condition or traumatic injury, Aetna evaluates the claim for medical necessity. If that same person seeks the same procedures to treat gender dysphoria, Aetna denies it automatically. Change the reason for the surgery—which is inextricable from the patient's sex assigned at birth—and the coverage determination changes. That, the court held, is textbook sex discrimination. Notably, the court also addressed the Supreme Court's ruling in United States v. Skrmetti, which upheld state bans on gender-affirming care for minors under the Equal Protection Clause, finding that it did not disturb Bostock's application to insurance discrimination claims under the ACA.

Gender-affirming facial surgery can be a critical part of a transgender person's care. A UCLA study published in the Annals of Surgery found that transgender patients who received facial feminization surgery reported significantly better outcomes across several measures of psychosocial health, including reduced anxiety, depression, and social isolation. The World Professional Association for Transgender Health recognizes FFS as medically necessary for many transgender women. Some states, including Colorado, Washington, and Oregon, explicitly prohibit insurers from categorically excluding facial feminization surgery and require that claims be evaluated on a case-by-case basis for medical necessity. Most states, however, leave it up to individual insurers—and many, like Aetna, have maintained blanket exclusions. This ruling may change that calculus, giving transgender women denied coverage a legal framework to challenge categorical exclusions nationwide.

Though the ruling applies to only two patients for now, the plaintiffs are seeking class certification, which could broadly impact every transgender woman on an Aetna plan who has been denied coverage for facial surgery. Members of the same legal team—Advocates for Trans Equality, Wardenski PC, and Cohen Milstein—successfully challenged Aetna's categorical exclusion of breast augmentation for transgender women in 2021, resulting in a settlement that changed the insurer's general policy. If this case follows the same trajectory, it could force Aetna to add facial feminization surgery to its list of potentially covered gender-affirming procedures. More broadly, the court's holding that categorical exclusions of gender-affirming facial surgery constitute sex discrimination under the Affordable Care Act gives transgender women across the country a legal framework to challenge similar denials from other insurers.

You can see the full decision here:

Gordon Order Granting Pi Denying Mtd

419KB ∙ PDF file

Download

Download

Erin In The Morning is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a subscriber.