The Right to forget the past

[karenm]

Transgender woman in landmark legal battle to force government to 'forget' her identity as a man before sex change
The 44-year-old Londoner says previous gender should be wiped records
Claims she had 'intrusive and humiliating interactions' with Jobcentre staff
The case could have huge implications for the rights of transgender persons


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2634104/Transgender-woman-landmark-legal-battle-force-government-forget-identity-man-sex-change.html#ixzz32OQj8JZX

[FTMDiaries]

I saw this, and thought it's a very interesting case. I'm keen to see its outcome.

The strongest protection we have in law - the GRA - gives us the right to have our past identity erased up to a point; unfortunately, it contains exemptions (including exemptions for the Social Security system) that allow our status to be disclosed for public policy reasons.

These exemptions give Jobcentre staff the right to know about our status, and all the safeguards in the world cannot stop people from gossiping about us amongst themselves, or to their spouses, or to their friends down the pub... because it's human nature to love a bit of salacious gossip. And if they know their backsides are covered by an exemption, some of them may feel they have the permission and authority to do just that.