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Transvestite pass
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Transvestite pass
A transvestite pass (German: Transvestitenschein) was a document issued by the responsible police authority of the Imperial Germany and the Weimar Republic, under the support of sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld, identifying a person as a transvestite. Transvestite at this time referred to all individuals whose gender identity or preferred clothing was discordant with that associated with their assigned sex, and so included both cross-dressing and transgender people. As gender-confirming surgery was only an emerging practice in the early 20th century, obtaining a Transvestitenschein, along with an official name change, represented the contemporary maximum extent to which many trans individuals could transition.
In early 20th-century Germany, cross-dressing was not inherently illegal. However, those who defied societal gender norms through cross-dressing risked facing legal consequences, such as arrest and charges related to public outrage and disturbances. Magnus Hirschfeld played a pivotal role in assisting individuals navigate these challenging situations by helping them obtain police documents regarding their clothing choices to establish their "objective" sexual identity. Hirschfeld was the one who submitted reports to the police as evidence in support of obtaining a transvestite pass for his patients. Hirschfeld's efforts contributed to the transformation of this pass into a more specific permit that would be recognized on the basis of state legitimacy, particularly during the Weimar Republic.
In either 1908 or 1909, the first known transvestite pass was issued to a female-to-male transvestite known as Karl Kohnheim, who was denied a name change based on legality, but was helped with getting the pass itself. From 1908–1909 up until 1933, "perhaps dozens" of such transvestite passes were granted by the German police with the support and aid of Hirschfeld. Medical assessments were also conducted with the help of Iwan Bloch. These transvestite passes were mainly given to middle-class, heterosexual, male-to-female individuals to avoid associations with gay and lesbian culture in Weimar Germany. The transvestite pass certificate stated that the "individual in question" was allowed to wear clothing that corresponded to their gender identity, meaning they could cross-dress in public spaces.
Although passes were more widely distributed by the 1920s, name changes continued to be an issue. It was not until 1919 and 1920 that full name changes on birth certificates were possible, but there were still restrictions in place that limited free access to such changes.
Notions of transvestism were sufficiently novel in the early twentieth century that the case of one holder of a Transvestiteschein made international news. The case of Countess Geraldine von Zobeltitz, a trans noblewoman from Berlin, was reported in the 11 August 1912 issue of the Asheville Citizen-Times.
As the pass gained popularity, local police departments began issuing their own version of the transvestite pass. The police version was handwritten but had a photo of the individual wearing the clothes of their chosen sex. In order to get a pass, one would need a medical report from a medical professional and give it to the police, who will make the pass. In 1922, guidance issued by the police headquarters in Berlin regarding this policy stated:
Apart from male prostitution, transvestism in general has no criminal significance. The widespread public opinion that the disguised individuals are generally criminals in disguise (pickpockets, spies, pimps, etc.) is obsolete. With regard to the male transvestites, recent experience shows that even the formerly taken-for-granted view that men in women's clothing are all homosexuals is no longer tenable. . . . On the basis of this insight emerges a duty of gentle treatment [schonenden Behandlung] of transvestites, as long as they are not engaged in male prostitution.
In the years after the Nazis came to power, most of the transvestite passes were revoked or no longer recognized by German police forces and new applications were refused.
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Transvestite pass
A transvestite pass (German: Transvestitenschein) was a document issued by the responsible police authority of the Imperial Germany and the Weimar Republic, under the support of sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld, identifying a person as a transvestite. Transvestite at this time referred to all individuals whose gender identity or preferred clothing was discordant with that associated with their assigned sex, and so included both cross-dressing and transgender people. As gender-confirming surgery was only an emerging practice in the early 20th century, obtaining a Transvestitenschein, along with an official name change, represented the contemporary maximum extent to which many trans individuals could transition.
In early 20th-century Germany, cross-dressing was not inherently illegal. However, those who defied societal gender norms through cross-dressing risked facing legal consequences, such as arrest and charges related to public outrage and disturbances. Magnus Hirschfeld played a pivotal role in assisting individuals navigate these challenging situations by helping them obtain police documents regarding their clothing choices to establish their "objective" sexual identity. Hirschfeld was the one who submitted reports to the police as evidence in support of obtaining a transvestite pass for his patients. Hirschfeld's efforts contributed to the transformation of this pass into a more specific permit that would be recognized on the basis of state legitimacy, particularly during the Weimar Republic.
In either 1908 or 1909, the first known transvestite pass was issued to a female-to-male transvestite known as Karl Kohnheim, who was denied a name change based on legality, but was helped with getting the pass itself. From 1908–1909 up until 1933, "perhaps dozens" of such transvestite passes were granted by the German police with the support and aid of Hirschfeld. Medical assessments were also conducted with the help of Iwan Bloch. These transvestite passes were mainly given to middle-class, heterosexual, male-to-female individuals to avoid associations with gay and lesbian culture in Weimar Germany. The transvestite pass certificate stated that the "individual in question" was allowed to wear clothing that corresponded to their gender identity, meaning they could cross-dress in public spaces.
Although passes were more widely distributed by the 1920s, name changes continued to be an issue. It was not until 1919 and 1920 that full name changes on birth certificates were possible, but there were still restrictions in place that limited free access to such changes.
Notions of transvestism were sufficiently novel in the early twentieth century that the case of one holder of a Transvestiteschein made international news. The case of Countess Geraldine von Zobeltitz, a trans noblewoman from Berlin, was reported in the 11 August 1912 issue of the Asheville Citizen-Times.
As the pass gained popularity, local police departments began issuing their own version of the transvestite pass. The police version was handwritten but had a photo of the individual wearing the clothes of their chosen sex. In order to get a pass, one would need a medical report from a medical professional and give it to the police, who will make the pass. In 1922, guidance issued by the police headquarters in Berlin regarding this policy stated:
Apart from male prostitution, transvestism in general has no criminal significance. The widespread public opinion that the disguised individuals are generally criminals in disguise (pickpockets, spies, pimps, etc.) is obsolete. With regard to the male transvestites, recent experience shows that even the formerly taken-for-granted view that men in women's clothing are all homosexuals is no longer tenable. . . . On the basis of this insight emerges a duty of gentle treatment [schonenden Behandlung] of transvestites, as long as they are not engaged in male prostitution.
In the years after the Nazis came to power, most of the transvestite passes were revoked or no longer recognized by German police forces and new applications were refused.
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