Leah Spring

Thesis: Transnormativity and Structural Transphobia: Examining the Production of Trans Subjecthood and Violence in the UK

Trans people in the UK are living through a period of acute social and political violence, which is experienced unevenly. While some — although certainly not most — trans people have gained a limited degree of recognition, visibility, and legal protections, others face growing marginalisation, exclusion, and violence. This research develops the analytic of ‘transnormativity’ (that is to say “legible,” “investible” trans identity) through the rubrics of race, nation, and class to investigate how liveability is unevenly distributed across trans communities in the UK context.

The study uses conjunctural analysis to examine legal judgments, policy documents, media coverage, institutional frameworks, and state responses between 2016-26. Placing these sites of analysis into conversation, the project explores why some trans subjects are incorporated into national narratives of belonging, equality and progress, whilst others are positioned as threats, outsiders, or disposable. Ultimately, the project sets out to better allow us to map out the mechanisms through which trans bodies and trans lives in the UK are made disposable under contemporary forms of governance.

Biography:

Sociology

University of Warwick

2026 Cohort

Supervisors:

Maria do Mar Pereira

Claire Blencowe