A new law has been proposed by the far-left party in Spain’s coalition government which would make it easier for trans citizens to legally change their name and gender on official documents. According to The Independent, the bill is sponsored by equality minister Irene Montero, who wants to remove the need for medical or legal permission before trans people can change their names and gender markers. If the law is passed successfully, Spain will become one of 20 European countries which have similar regulations.
The bill has faced criticism from deputy prime minister Carmen Calvo, a gender-critical women’s rights advocate, who said: “I’m fundamentally worried by the idea that if gender can be chosen with no more than one’s will or desire, that could put at risk the identity criteria for 47 million Spaniards.” Other opponents to the bill, including women’s rights collective Confluencia Feminista, have argued that it will ‘erase women’.
However, many LGBTQ+ activists have showed support for the bill, with Spain’s trans federation president, Mar Cambrollé, saying those opposed to the bill are citing ‘outdated’ ideas that pigeon-hole men and women into socially constructed gender roles: “Transphobic attitudes p*ss me off. As a woman, I’ve been discriminated against for being a woman in a world made by men for men, but also by cis people who build it with other cis people in mind.” The state LGBTQ+ federation also praised the bill, saying it could help decrease discrimination against trans people.