French transgender woman hopes to run for president
A trans woman who has set up a new political party hopes to run in the 2012 French presidential elections.
On May 8th, in an interview with ’20 minutes’, Brigitte Goldberg, president of Avenir 2012 (literally, The Future 2012) revealed plans for her party – which was formally launched two days later – and for her own presidential candidacy next year.
Although Mlle Goldberg herself is transgender, and Avenir 2012 itself owns to having sprung from Trans-Europe, the party is not exclusively for the trans community.
She said: “It is not a transsexual party. It is the first political party with a trans leader.
“We do not claim to represent the entire LGBT community”.
However, the party expresses a simple adherence to the principles of the French constitution of 1793: respect, freedom and tolerance.
Describing Avenir 2012, as a party of the centre left, with a wide range of political and economic policies outside the social arena, Mlle Goldberg told ’20 minutes’: “We have sat and watched a gradual drift to the right. A return to a moral order that is quite at odds with the views of our supporters.
“We are in favour of same-sex marriage, adoption rights for gay couples and for greater legal and medical rights for individuals who identify as transgender or transsexual.”
There is still a long way to go between a candidate being announced and their arrival at the Elysee Palace – the formal residence of the President of the French Republic.
First hurdle on the way is obtaining 500 signatures before Mlle Goldberg can even put herself forward as a candidate.
Nonetheless, she is confident of passing that obstacle easily and, with the possibility of support from the LGBT community as a whole, she believes Avenir 2012 can do well.
