'We've become so tribal in the incessant culture wars'

A prominent voice for trans rights, Munroe Bergdorf reflects on the cost of speaking out in a new film and calls for deeper allyship in her latest book. The activist tells Olivia Petter about some of her personal challenges faced in recent years

- Olivia Petter

Warning: This article contains themes of suicide and depression that may cause some readers distress.

Munroe Bergdorf used to think she could convince people. “I thought everyone could be talked around,” she says, fiddling with her fingernails. “And in recent years it has seemed like not only that people aren’t willing to listen to reason, but that we’re stuck in this conflict with each other where we don't even see each other’s humanity. I think it has actually been a real saving grace for me to see the humanity in the people that I disagree with and think, ‘Why are you like this? Where is this coming from?’”

Of course, there are limitations, particularly for someone like Bergdorf, a globally renowned trans activist, author and model. “You have to know when to disengage,” the 37-year-old adds, sitting in a colourful fabric-covered corner of a Soho restaurant, taking intermittent sips of pineapple juice.“If somebody isn’t willing to use my correct pronouns, talk to me like I’m a human being or understand that I exist and we need to find a way to live together, then there’s not really any conversation to be had.” And yet, it’s one that people seem to be continually forcing Bergdorf – along with every other trans woman in the UK – to have.

In April 2025, the UK’s Supreme Court ruled that trans women are not legally women under the Equality Act. To say this was devastating to trans communities would be a gross understatement. Under the new ruling, trans women with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) can be excluded from single-sex spaces if “proportionate”, though guidance subsequently published by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission stated that trans women “should not be permitted to use the women’s facilities” in workplaces or public-facing services, such as shops and hospitals.