Germany has made history by voting two transgender women into Parliament. The two transgender women won parliamentary seats after Sunday's national elections.
Tessa Ganserer and Nyke Slawik, both from the Alliance 90/The Greens political party, are the first transgender women to be voted into the German parliament. For this year's elections, four transgender women had submitted their bid for a seat in parliament.
Their win increased their party's share of the vote from 8.9% to 14.8%. The increase is expected to play a key role in the formation of a likely three-way coalition German government.
Ganserer, who was voted into Bavaria's regional parliament in 2013, said that their win is not only a historic victory for the Green party but also for the "trans-emancipatory movement and for the entire queer community." She added that their win is a clear indication of the growth of the country and a symbol of an "open and tolerant society."
The 44-year-old politician said that one of her goals in her new position will be to enact laws that would make it easier for people to change their genders on identity documents. Ganserer, who has two sons, also wants to make it easier for lesbian mothers and couples to adopt children.
Slawik described their win as an "unbelievable" victory. The 27-year-old politician secured her seat in parliament after being listed in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia. As a member of parliament, Slawik plans to advocate a campaign to eliminate homophobia and transphobia in Germany. She also plans to make amendments to improve the country's anti-discrimination law.
"At a time when people still make fun of us, when some trans people still face (bullying) or lose their jobs, this is historic... For the first time, we're going from victims in this society to standing on our own feet," Slawik said.
While Germany has been enacting pro-gay legislation, including decriminalized homosexuality in 1969 and legalizing same-sex marriages in 2017, members of the country's LGBTQ+ community are still facing discrimination. Last year, hate crimes against members of the community had increased by more than 36% when compared to 2019, highlighting the still-growing trend of homophobia in German society.
