17c起草社区

Norrie, the first person in the world ruled by a court to be of non-binary sex, has released their autobiography, Ultrasex: (Beyond Division). In this excerpt, Norrie recalls how their former 17c起草社区 column, Gender Agenda, came about.

Chapter 29, Queer Collaborations:

We were invited to a big final night party for Queer Collaborations that weekend. It was held in a redecorated two-story warehouse, with a couple of hundred young queers, and a fair amount of social lubrication. A lot of people came up to me to tell me they鈥檇 enjoyed the workshop, or had missed it but heard how good it was. I was hoping there might be an opportunity for a bonk here, but I figured I was either not the right sex or too old.

A young mixed sex couple offered me a toke, and I figured I could at least enjoy getting stoned. The three of us went downstairs to watch the show, some sort of听avant-garde听lesbian performance art thing. I didn鈥檛 actually see much of the performance, because the woman reached her arms around the man and began caressing me.

We gave anyone watching a floorshow of our own, each mouth wandering between two other mouths and four nipples, hands and arms groping inside tights and tops and underpants, three bodies standing and swaying and squirming together.

We carried on outside, until I was desperate to be somewhere we could get naked. The trouble was, I only had enough money for one train fare home, and they couldn鈥檛 take me to where they were billeted.

I went back inside to bludge cab fare for the lust-struck triangle. Someone took pity on us, and I very gratefully took the necessary dollars from them, and we piled into a passing cab, and went to my bedroom in Marrickville.

The next day, they told me of the discrimination they suffered as bisexuals from gays and lesbians. I was horrified to hear of the abuse heaped on them by those I would鈥檝e expected to accept them. I wasn鈥檛 always sure that 鈥済ay and lesbian鈥� included transsexuals, but I had always assumed it included bisexuals. Not so, it seemed, for many people thought that 鈥済ay鈥� or 鈥渓esbian鈥� meant 鈥渙nly gay鈥� or 鈥渙nly lesbian鈥�.

They told me of how ostracised they often felt, rejected by both straight and gay society. They couldn鈥檛 be honest about their sexuality in straight circles without activating some bigot鈥檚 homophobia, and they couldn鈥檛 go out as a couple on the gay scene without being vilified as 鈥渂reeders鈥�.

Misogynist queens thought that the guy having sex with a woman was sick and disgusting, and told him so. Separatist lesbians told the woman she was 鈥渟leeping with the enemy鈥�, and morally condemned her.

I didn鈥檛 identify myself as a bisexual. (After all, one swallow does not a summer make.) Nevertheless, I identified very much as someone who loved bisexuals. They were the most likely to accept me as a lover (as I was both male and female), and to own up to the relationship in public (instead of hiding it as something shameful, as so often happened). I valued bisexuality very highly, and was shocked to hear of this ill treatment, particularly from gays, who should surely know better.

* * *

Following my work with the Stonewall collective, Robin invited me to join the committee of the Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby. Jennifer had been at Queer Collaborations recruiting for the Lobby, and I had filled in a membership application. She told me their Annual General Meeting was on in a few days, and I duly went along to it.

The Lobby had a set number of male positions, a set number of female positions, two non-gender specific executive positions, and three general non-gender specific positions. I nominated myself for the last category.

I wasn鈥檛 sure if I could be accepted as belonging in a gay and lesbian organisation, and told the meeting this. 鈥淚鈥檓 a tranny,鈥� I told them, 鈥淚 identify as gay, but I鈥檓 not a gay man. I鈥檓 not sure whether I can be classified as a lesbian, but I did sleep with a woman last Sunday.鈥� This last admission was, of course, a blatant attempt to gain acceptance.

They elected me, on a platform of being transsexual and possibly bisexual. I lasted seven months before I was expelled for pursuing this platform.

* * *

That Saturday, there was a meeting of TLC. Rochelle, who had been the founding spokesperson, resigned. She had become the Project Manager of Tiresias House, and said she wanted to devote her energies to this. She nominated me as her replacement. I was busy enough myself as Tiresias鈥檚 president, but no one else wanted the job. And so, I became TLC鈥檚 second spokesperson.

I was disappointed by the low level of enthusiasm and attendance at the TLC meetings I called. I thought that perhaps my increasing radicalness was to blame. I had began walking around barefoot everywhere, and dressing more tomboyish. Rochelle had suggested I should dress conservatively, but I felt too strongly about expressing myself. I lasted less than four months, before handing over the position to the first person who wanted it.

Aidy (who was to become my successor as TLC spokesperson) suggested to me that we co-write a column on transgender issues for the听Sydney 17c起草社区. We met a few times and plotted out a proposal for a series of ten columns. We sent this proposal to the Star, and I made an appointment with the editor, Campion.

I was frightened I鈥檇 have to do a lot of work to sell the idea to him, but he was quite enthusiastic. His main concern seemed to be that we come up with a name for the column in line with the paper鈥檚 format, a double-barreled name like听Happy Feet听(the dance-music column), or听Being Positive听(the HIV/AIDS column). I was surprised he hadn鈥檛 thought of the obvious name himself, and wondered what was wrong with it.

鈥淗ow about听Gender Agenda?鈥� I asked tentatively.

鈥淕reat!鈥� he replied, and so a legend was born.

Exceprt from UltraSex: (Beyond Division), the autobiography of听Norrie, (AKA听norrie听mAy-welby),听听the first person ruled by a court to be of non-binary sex (High Court of Australia, 2014). Paperback available from听Amazon.com with limited copies also available from Gould鈥檚 bookshop, 536 King St, Newtown NSW. UltraSex (Beyond Division) will be relessed as an e-book on AppleBooks on 1 December 2019. 听