Transitional: In One Way or Another, We All Transition

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Munroe Bergdorf is feeling exceptionally camera shy (it’s called having a mystique). But even with Zoom’s video feature turned off for our interview in late July, the British model, social activist, and now author stands out for her candor and generosity, with a cadenced “yeah” launching every answer.

In June 2019, Bergdorf was stripped of her role as an ambassador for Childline two days after being appointed, when journalist Janice Turner and others questioned her suitability for the post as somebody who had modelled for adult magazine Playboy. [21] [22] Turner also called Bergdorf a "porn model". [23] In response, Bergdorf denied ever participating in porn, and stated that it was wrong to demonize persons that do in any case. [23] Several days later, the NSPCC offered Bergdorf a "full, frank and unreserved apology" for the way in which it had handled her dismissal. The NSPCC's CEO, Peter Wanless, explained that Bergdorf had been dismissed 'because of her public statements, which we felt would mean that she was in breach of our own risk assessments and undermine what we are here to do'. [24] Bergdorf is the host of the critically acclaimed podcast The Way We Are on Spotify and fronts the hit MTV show Queerpiphany. Her first film, What Makes a Woman, premiered on Channel 4 in 2018. The slightly gauzy selling point of Transitional – that all of us transition, all the time, in different ways, and that should unite us – gives it a veneer of self-help, but it is much more effective as a memoir than a guide. The idea that we must navigate difficulties and heal from trauma is so vague that it feels almost as if Bergdorf is trying to make herself believe it. Still, when trans people are facing such a hostile climate in the UK, it is hard to begrudge her this open-arms gesture, one that aims to speak to all human experience, rather than simply her own. In this life-affirming, heartfelt and intimate book, activist and model Munroe Bergdorf shares reflections from her own life to illustrate how transitioning is an essential part of all our lives. Through the story of one woman's extraordinary mission to live with authenticity, Transitional shows us how to heal, how to build a stronger community and how to evolve as a society out of shame and into pride.

She says her story is the story of so many trans women – dysfunctional relationships, abuse, seeking solace in drugs and alcohol, mental health collapsing. At one point she was so worried that she called the police to protect her from herself. We sit in silence for a while. I’m searching for a positive. I ask Bergdorf which of the many transitions she has made that she’s most proud of. She smiles, and says despite everything there have been so many recently. Bergdorf was born and grew up in Stansted Mountfitchet, Essex. [5] [2] Bergdorf is of mixed ancestry, born to a Jamaican father and an English mother. [6] [2] Bergdorf, who was assigned male at birth, attended Bentfield County Primary School in Stansted Mountfitchet and then The Bishop's Stortford High School, an all-boys' school. Bergdorf describes growing up as a "very effeminate boy". Later, she studied English at the University of Brighton, describing herself there as genderqueer. [2]

Munroe Bergdorf wins British Community Trailblazer at GAY TIMES Honours 2021". GAY TIMES. 19 November 2021 . Retrieved 26 November 2021. Munroe Bergdorf ( née Beaumont; born 11 September 1987) [1] [2] is an English model and activist. She has walked several catwalks for brands including Gypsy Sport at both London and NYC Fashion Weeks. Bergdorf was the first transgender model in the UK for L'Oréal, but was dropped within weeks after a racial row. In February 2018, she was appointed as an LGBT adviser to the Labour Party, but resigned the following month. Bergdorf appeared in the Channel 4 documentary What Makes a Woman, which aired in May 2018. a b Humairah Adam and Morwenna Ferrier (14 September 2017). "Model fired by L'Oreal for remarks on racism will be face of rival campaign". The Guardian . Retrieved 20 September 2017. By the time she left home and moved to Brighton for university, there were other transitions to navigate. Each chapter covers a broad theme: adolescence, sex, gender, love, race and purpose. Many memories are traumatic, and her resilience is astonishing. Not everyone survives those experiences, as the book’s affecting dedication makes plain. As she contemplates her purpose, in the final chapter, she suggests that she is moving – or in the language and spirit of this book, “transitioning” – towards a more tranquil place. “I think I’m tired of chaos, and would like some peace now,” she writes.Aviles, Gwen (9 June 2020). "Munroe Bergdorf rehired at L'Oréal, 3 years after being fired over white supremacy comments". NBC News . Retrieved 11 June 2020. Arj Singh (27 February 2018). "Munroe Bergdorf: Model who said 'all white people' are racist appointed to LGBT+ board by Labour MP". The Independent . Retrieved 9 May 2018. She writes unflinchingly about growing up different; a childhood spent trying to conceal the innate femininity that would distress family members, and the ostracisation she experienced at school. Read next What about the swimming – has she swum competitively since school? “No! Nonono!” I stopped swimming competitively when I started having gender dysphoria at school.” Does she swim for pleasure now? “Yes.” Fast? “Not fast. My body’s not as hydrodynamic as it used to be because there’s a lot more of it!” She laughs.

At the age of 13, Munroe Bergdorf was a swimming sensation. But in her memoir, she barely devotes a sentence to her feats in the pool, merely saying she swam at national level, was ranked 11th in the country and didn’t have her heart in it. That’s all. She doesn’t tell us whether she enjoyed swimming, trained hard or dreamed of competing in the Olympics. Not even her stroke of choice or distance. Now I’m curious. Fancy being so brilliant at something yet so indifferent to it that it barely merits a mention in your life story.Around the same time that Bergdorf was transitioning, she co-founded nightclub Pussy Palace. [7] Modelling [ edit ] It feels appropriate that the book is coming out now – the debate about transgender rights has never been so high profile or heated. In the latest census for England and Wales, only 0.2% of the population identified as transgender (equally split between men and women), but the issue has caused a mighty schism between Scotland and the rest of Britain. While arguments rage in Westminster and the Scottish parliament over the Scottish government’s gender recognition reform bill, drafted to make it easier for people to transition, we’ve heard remarkably little from trans people themselves. Which, Bergdorf tells me, is a huge part of the problem. Moore, Matt (9 June 2019). "Munroe Bergdorft dropped as childline ambassador following transphobic hate campaign". Attitude. Swimming was not the only sport she excelled in. She was the school’s top high jumper and a gifted middle-distance runner. Did she take pride in her achievements? “Not really. Not when teachers are poking fun at the way you move, and calling you a nancy boy because you’re running away from the ball because you don’t want to play rugby.” In the book, she describes a terrifying sexual assault by a man she met on a night out who pushed cocaine up her nose and into her mouth as he raped her. “When you look at someone and you know they want to kill you, and they don’t see you as human enough to respect you when you say no, you don’t want to have sex with them, and rape you anyway, that just kills a part of you.” She chokes up. “I don’t know how I can unsee that. I still struggle to think of that period because I lost all hope. After that, I started hating myself a lot and entered abusive relationships because I didn’t think I deserved any more.” You went looking for them? “I wasn’t looking for them, but what I was attracted to wasn’t healthy. I’d see people who would display controlling behaviour as somebody who cared. I just wasn’t in a good place.” That’s awful, I say. She smiles and sniffs up her tears. “It wasn’t great.”

Dress by Richard Quinn. Jewellery by Bulgari. Stylist: Thomas George Wulbern. Photograph: Hollie Fernando/The Guardian Then, not long after moving to London to pursue a career as a DJ, she meets the man who would stalk and rape her. In September 2017, the UK-based Illamasqua hired Bergdorf as the face of its Beauty Spotlight campaign, which concerned gender fluidity. [14] [15] In a statement, the company described Bergdorf as embodying "diversity and individuality; she is not scared to be truly herself." [14] It added that it did not "stand or accept any form of racism, but we also believe Munroe’s comments have been edited out of context by a certain media title (who we won't bother naming) without telling a true story". [15] This is hands down one of the most important books that everyone should read. At least once. Without question this book is so timely with what's going on here in the UK and elsewhere. For me Munroe Bergdorf is up there with the best of humanity. She's as she always has been - essential. She reflects on studying at Brighton University, a time plagued by anorexia, bad choices, abusive relationships and getting to grips with who she truly is.In Transitional, she says the first functional, loving relationship she has had was with Ava, a trans woman she dated for three years. Bergdorf has a tiny cross tattooed on her right wrist. She got it on a day trip to Brighton with Ava, who got a matching one. Transitional is dedicated to Ava’s memory. I ask Bergdorf what happened to her, fearing the worst. She seems thrown by the question, and edges her way to an answer. “Erm … erm … she passed away in summer.” How old was she? “She was 33.” Was she ill or did she take her life? Bergdorf looks distraught. She tries to answer, but an anguished noise comes out of her mouth, part groan, part wail. “She took her own life,” she says eventually. Transitioning is an alignment of the invisible and the physical. It is truth rising to the surface. It is one of the most fundamental aspects of the human condition – a part of our experience as a conscious being, no matter who we are. a b c Husna Rizvi (30 August 2017). "Transgender model becomes face of L'Oréal". Pink News . Retrieved 27 February 2018.