Sorry to clutter up the blog with all these news from France, but there is another great news today, and a historical one : French Minister of Health, Roselyne Bachelot, has just decided to remove transexualism from the list of mental disorders.

Why now? In 2005, my dear friend (and ex roommate) Louis-Georges Tin (who was also the editor of a wonderful Dictionary of Homophobia that has been translated into English in 2008) launched an International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO) that is celebrated every year on May 17th (because it was on May 17th, 1990 that homosexuality was removed from the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems by the World Health Organisation - the ICD is an international equivalent of the US DSM -- Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders). This event is being celebrated in more than 50 countries and has been officially recognized by several governments.

I must confess to having been sometimes skeptical about the advances that might result from an emphasis on "phobias" of any kind, rather than on "pride." Yet, I must also admit that I was wrong and that yesterday's decision of the French Minister of Health is a clear outcome of this International Day. Indeed, every year, Idaho picks up a specific topic and the 2009 one was transphobia. Therefore there is not the slightest shadow of a doubt that French Minister's decision, which was announced two days before May 17th, is related to the event. So, to Louis-Georges and the many activists who run this celebration : CONGRATS!

(For those of you who may be interested in my criticism of some French gay association's reaction to this news, just go to my blog... It is French stuff maybe of little interest for US readers)