Transgender Australia

The first book on Australian trans history exploring the lives and impacts of trans and gender-diverse Australians.

Trans and gender diverse people have always been present in Australian life, whether they’ve lived quiet lives in the country, performed in cabaret shows, worked on the streets or run for parliament. But over the last century there have been remarkable changes in how they have identified and expressed themselves.

Transgender Australia is the first book to chart the changing social, medical, legal and lived experiences of trans and gender diverse people in Australia since 1910.

Drawing on over a hundred oral history interviews and previously unexamined documents and media reports, it highlights how trans people have tried to live authentically while navigating a society that often treated them like outcasts. It is the first book to chart the history of gender diverse Australians, exploring both progress and ongoing battles. It is also a celebration of ways that transgender participation has enriched our lives in all its cultural diversity.