Transphobia is “harmful or unfair behaviours or actions a person does based on a fear or dislike of trans people”. Transphobia may be targeted at people who are, or who are perceived to be, trans.
Behaviours that may be considered to be ‘transphobic’ could be:
- repeatedly and intentionally referring to a person by a name or pronoun that does not correspond to their gender identity after they have made them known.
- making offensive comments relating to a person's appearance, voice, or manner of dress.
- making derogatory jokes.
- knowingly making a trans person feel unsafe.
- not upholding the University’s values of Dignity and Respect when engaging with trans people.
Whether intentional or not, consistently addressing someone by their previous name, and/or repeatedly failing to use the correct pronouns, can negatively impact on a person's sense of belonging and in some instances may amount to a breach of the University’s Dignity and Respect Policy.
Learn more about The University of Edinburgh’s support and guidance for students who have experienced any forms of discrimination and explore the University’s Trans Hub.
The Advice Place is run by the Student's Association and is a third party crime reporting site. If you are a victim of a crime, they can support you.
You can call 999 in an emergency to speak to Police or 101 for non-emergencies. If not an emergency, but you wish to report something, you can report online.