GENDER AFFIRMATION Guide

1. Since 1959 The Universal Life Church has been campaigning for legal, medical and religious transgender rights. All the ULC asks for is legal transgender ID to correct names and gender in ULC ordination transgender records. 
2. The ULC supports self ID of ULC trans and gender diverse recognition so long as you have at least one form of legal trans and gender diverse identification with the name and gender you want to be known as. 
3. In Australia as it is not an American court order system to obtain legal transgender ID, you have to get medically recognised as a transgender person to obtain legal transgender ID. 
4. While in Australia it is unlawful discrimination on transgender grounds to deadname and misgender a trans and gender diverse people in any record.   Religious exemptions from the anti discrimination act can make it difficult for anti discrimination cases to be legally recognised. However legal ULC transgender ordinations can help to overcome these challenges and stop the discrimination. 
5. For non binary and intersex folks we also recognise you don't require hormones or gender affirmation surgery and also experience difficulty in obtaining legal ID to correct your name and gender in church records. 
6. Likewise we also recognise the difficulty for trans and gender diverse people born overseas in countries where you cannot obtain legal transgender ID.  
7. We also recognise the difficulty for trans and gender diverse survivors who were state wards to obtain transgender birth certificates and legal transgender ID. 
8. So that's why for all of these reasons CLACCA ULC has created this step by step guide to assist Australian ULC ordained trans and gender diverse ministers as well as other trans and gender diverse folks from all walks of life to correct names and gender in church and other records. 
9. This step by step guide also includes a step on what you can do about gatekeeping from churches and other authorities who refuse to correct you name and gender on your records.
10. For anything we haven't addressed in this step by step guide please check out the CLACCA ULCs WEBLINKS and Socialist Legal Links section for transgender friendly organisations to help you in your fight for your medical, legal and religious transgender rights in Australia.

1. Find a Gender Affirmation GP at https://www.transhub.org.au/doctors as your starting point if you do not currently have a Gender Affirmation GP. 
2. Obtain a Gender Affirmation letter from your GP recognising your transgender name and gender pronoun.
3. Obtain a GP referral to a Gender Affirmation Psychiatrist for approval for hormones, gender affirmation surgery. For non binary and intersex people go to STEP TWO, you do not need psychiatrist referrals for hormones and gender affirmation surgery. The next points mainly apply to transgender people who want to obtain hormones and gender affirmation surgeries to obtain legal transgender ID in Australia. 
4. Obtain a Gender Affirmation Psychiatrist referral for hormones, gender affirmation surgery and recognising your name and gender pronoun.
5. Obtain at least one gender affirmation surgery and ask your gender surgeon to complete a medical statutory declaration from births, deaths and marriages. If you have to go on a waiting list to access free gender affirmation surgery under Medicare if you are on Centrelink payments some Gender Affirmation surgeons may require you to obtain a Gender Affirmation psychiatrist referral letter for gender affirmation surgery every 12 months. 
6. Accessing Hormones happens after the 4-week assessment by two doctors and the signing of a written agreement. Self-injection of hormones costs about $30 per prescription every three months for transgender people on Centrelink payments. Injection hormones by a nurse or doctor at a Medical Centre cost about $7 per prescription every 8-12 weeks for transgender people on Centrelink payments. Gels and tablet hormones are also other options. 
7. Free transgender surgery is normally an 8-12 month waiting period for transgender people on Centrelink. There is normally a surgery consultation fee of $200-$400 that is rebated through medicare.

1. Obtain an Australian birth certificate or an Australian Passport of your transgender name and gender marker. If you were born in Western Australia you will need to apply to the Gender Reassignment Board for transgender recognition of your name and gender marker. 
2. If you were born in Northern Territory, South Australia, Queensland, New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory, Victoria, or Tasmania you will need to apply to the state or territory Registrar of Births Deaths, and Marriages for legal transgender recognition of your name and gender marker. Just click on the links below. 
3. If you were born in a state or territory that requires hormones and gender affirmation surgery to recognize your name and gender marker without any dead names on your Australian Birth Certificate you can apply for an Australian Passport by asking your GP to complete a B14 Declaration Gender Change In Travel Document

1. Click on this link for ULCHQ Modesto Transgender Recognition to complete the application form update your name and gender marker on your ULC Modesto California ordination records. Upload or email your legal ID and doctor's letters to them. 
2. Click on ULCM Transgender Recognition to complete the application form to update your name and gender marker on your ULC Monastery ordination records and email your legal ID and doctor's letters to them. 
3. No Fee is charged to correct names and gender pronouns in ULC ordination records. If you want a hard copy of your updated record then you can order this online at ulchhq.com or store.ulc.net or ulcseminary.org or themonastery.org. 
4. CLACCA ULC also offers free Gender Affirmation baptisms to any trans and gender diverse person. This also comes with a free ULC Gender Affirmation baptism certificate and is legally recorded in our CLACCA ULC church records. This is super helpful in getting your name and gender corrected in your other records. Contact CLACCA ULC on 0459771520 for more info. 
5. For other churches that have not updated your church records, you will need to contact their Records and Archives Section to update your church records directly through them. 
6. To correct your name and gender in old school records you can contact the Department of Education who can provide helpful advice in how to do this if your Education authority doesn't. 
7. If a church doesn't have a Records and Archives Centre then you will need to contact the ordained minister directly to see if they can update your records. 

This step provides some practical solutions on what you can do to remove your dead name from records when transphobic bullies, the state and church authorities don't. 

1. You can apply to the archives records holder of most organisations to get your name and gender corrected. Not all organisations have policies or avenues to update your name and gender on records. In these cases, you may have to consider taking legal action to get your deadname and misgender removed.  
2. If deadnaming and misgendering are happening to you on websites and social media platforms you can get it removed from the social media platform. For websites, however, you may need to lodge legal action to get your deadnaming and misgendering legally removed from the holder of the records. 
3. You can sign Rev's petition to NSW Parliament for legislation change to remove our dead names from police and church records. 
4. You can organise a basic conflict resolution meeting with the assistance of a neutral friend to resolve the matter but if the other party is not willing to participate in the process then this solution may not work. 
5. You can contact other transgender organisations for support. A list of them is provided at the end of this step by step guide. 
6. You can get ordained with the Universal Life Church and organise your church to stand up to it. Click on ULC ordination to find out how to apply. 
7. Another option is a transgender religious practice of organising a transgender naming and renewal of baptism ceremony or protest with water according to the religious rites of Matthew 28:19 and the transgender naming rites of transgender people to tell other organizations to remove your dead name from their records and accept your legal ULC transgender clergy ID. Contact CLACCA ULC if you need assistance.
8. You can move but if you can't afford to move this might not be an option. The other problem too is dead names and misgendering on rental records and leases can make it difficult for transgender and non-binary folks to move if you need to provide proof of previous rental tenancy history and there is deadnaming and misgendering on your tenancy records. In this situation, you can take them to the anti-discrimination board and NCAT.
9. You can transfer to another organisation. However, if the organisation you have transferred to works with the former organisation the bully from the former organisation can use deadnaming and misgendering against you in the organisation you have transferred to. From experience, you can only run from a transphobic bully for so long before you have to do some practical action to stop it.
10. You can lodge a form 1 for a peaceful equality protest outside the church to address it but make sure you have some friends who will go with you who protect you from the bully when the authorities don't listen to your concerns. Protests do work but it takes lots of protests to make change happen.
11. You can lodge a case with the anti-discrimination board but if it's a religious organisation their exempt.
12. You can walk into any court to apply for an APVO order to get your dead name and misgender removed from old records to stop any further transphobic violence from happening to you as a result of it. Yet this is a temporary solution and should be considered as a last resort as there is a time limit on the court order and the police and the courts will not necessarily protect you from a bully who is abusing you.
13. While this is not the end of practical solutions that can be done to address this problem until the religious exemptions from the anti-discrimination act are revoked whatever you decide to do CLACCA ULC will never stop defending the legal rights of transgender people no matter what God calls you to be and that's our commitment. For more info check out our WEBLINKS  section or to join the fightback for transgender clergy rights in Australia click on the ULC Legal transgender recognition button below and contact CLACCA ULC Sydney.