SADIQ KHAN

Mayor of London

I don’t want to erase the past or bury my former self. I’ve carried his body forward into a new life experience.

I don’t desire to be a stereotypical portrayal of a woman and of femininity. Make-up, high heels and long hair don’t make me female, but they help me shape, sculpt and adopt a presentation where I feel more comfortable. They help me survive.

Pre-transition, as a boy, I defined my own femininity by other men and their masculinity in relation to mine. I was jealous of those that were more feminine than me. I couldn’t flaunt a female aesthetic because I’d grown up being told it was wrong. As a

‘trans femme’ and post-transition, femininity with all its stereotypical traits is all I have to cling on to, and what I continue to use to express my identity. The simple truth is, I’m feminine because I say I am. I believe my gender is mine to decide. Through trial and error I’ve discovered a place where I feel comfortable.

Nowadays, my femininity is less exterior and more interior. I do use those tools as an expression of my female self, but my femininity comes from a belief within that I have found a space where I feel comfortable. I only have to look in the mirror now and my reflection is female.

My experience of femininity is defined by being brought up by my inspirational mum, by my marriage to a strong and independent woman, by being a father to two amazing teenage daughters, by being a colleague of brilliant women in law and politics, and now by being an employer to some of the most talented people I’ve ever met.

Growing up, I learned so much from my mum. She was, and continues to be, a real inspiration to me, my brothers and my sister. She always wanted to do more to help us and she would sew clothes for 50p-a-dress for hours on end just to bring in extra money for our family. My defining words for her would include loving, devoted, utterly dependable, selfless, stoic – to list just a few.

Now, as the dad of two teenage daughters, I’m learning and being challenged about femininity every day. But when I see them and their friends I think of hope, confidence, opportunity, future and potential.

Femininity encompasses a range of traits that a woman – or indeed a man – should feel free to decide to identify with, discard or modernise. Everyone should be free to be exactly who they are and who they want to be, at any moment, with no barriers or constraints put up by society’s expectations or norms. And this is what drives me as a proud feminist in City Hall. The ambition to do all I can – both as the Mayor of London and outside of work – to make sure we have equal rights and opportunities for women in all areas of life.

It’s just unacceptable that in London today, one of the world’s greatest and most progressive cities, someone’s pay and career prospects are still dependent on their gender. Or that there is pressure on women to behave in a certain way to get on.

I want to do all I can to ensure that my daughters, and all girls growing up in London, have exactly the same opportunities in life and in the workplace as men, and are free to be who they are and what they want to be. I’ve already started to take action, including new plans to boost female representation at the most senior levels at City Hall and challenging businesses and organisations across London to do the same.

Let’s work to smash the glass ceiling once and for all. And let’s move away from any narrow, stereotypical definitions and labels that can be counterproductive. Just like no one should ever be told what they can or can’t wear on the beach – burkini or bikini, Speedos or mankini – people should be free to be who they are, what they want to be and to reach their full potential.

‘FEMININITY ENCOMPASSES A RANGE OF TRAITS THAT A WOMAN – OR INDEED A MAN – SHOULD FEEL FREE TO DECIDE TO IDENTIFY WITH, DISCARD OR MODERNISE’