23 Aug 2024 – National LGBTIQ+ group Equality Australia has welcomed a Federal Court judgment that has upheld the right of trans women to live free from discrimination.
In a judgment handed down in Sydney on Friday, Justice Robert Bromwich found that trans woman Roxanne Tickle was indirectly discriminated against when she was excluded from social media app Giggle for Girls.
Equality Australia CEO Anna Brown said the ruling upheld the original intent of the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (SDA).
“Justice Bromwich has correctly and sensibly interpreted the law to ensure it does not exclude marginalised people who are in need of protection,” Ms Brown said.
“When the SDA was amended in 2013, the purpose was to protect trans and gender diverse people and others in our community from discrimination.
“This judgment confirms that discrimination laws exist to protect all of us, particularly groups such as trans women who have experienced historical exclusion and disadvantage.
“The judgment also confirms that gender identity as a protected ground of discrimination is constitutionally valid.”
Justice Bromwich also rejected arguments that questioned Ms Tickle’s sex, finding these arguments conflicted with 30 years of settled law.
“In its contemporary ordinary meaning, sex is changeable,” he said.
Ms Brown said the judgment reflected that “the legal meaning of sex is clear and well-established".
“Trans women, like all women, should be protected from discrimination. They deserve to feel safe and supported, and to be treated with dignity and respect,” she said.
Ms Brown said that trans and gender diverse Australians have been under repeated attack, which forces them out of public life and into social isolation, driving some of the worst mental health outcomes in the community.
“Excluding Roxanne from this app was a hurtful act and an affront to her dignity, which the court has acknowledged today,” she said.
“Women’s spaces should be open to every woman seeking friendship and connection.”
Media Contact: Tara Ravens 0408 898 154
