Roman Aleshin, Russia’s first transgender politician, announced on Wednesday that he was de-transitioning.
Aleshin, former head of a branch of Russia’s Civil Initiative party in the country’s Altai Territory in southern Siberia, made the announcement in a post on Telegram, saying he realized during Lent that he identified as a man and a Russian patriot.
Aleshin, formerly Yulia Aleshina, was previously described by Russian media as the first transgender female politician in the country.
Discrimination against transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals in Russia intensified after President Vladimir Putin signed into law a bill last July that prohibits individuals from altering gender identifiers on legal documents, or undergoing gender transition. It also introduces liability for doctors providing medical care to transgender individuals, the U.S. think tank the Wilson Center notes.
A man waves a damaged rainbow flag during a gay pride event in St. Petersburg, Russia, on July 26, 2014. Roman Aleshin, Russia’s first transgender politician, announced on Wednesday that he was de-transitioning. A man waves a damaged rainbow flag during a gay pride event in St. Petersburg, Russia, on July 26, 2014. Roman Aleshin, Russia’s first transgender politician, announced on Wednesday that he was de-transitioning. OLGA MALTSEVA/AFP/Getty Images
“I realized I was a man during Lent. Mom told me that I was baptized at 7 months. Before [Lent], I had mental torment; after all, moving from one psychological gender to another is difficult,” wrote Aleshin, who announced his resignation from politics in October 2022 over the country’s anti-LGBTQ+ laws.
“I went through the old albums of my ancestors, prayed for them, and this helped me take root in the idea that I am a man,” he said.
“I am a patriot of my country, that’s why I live in Russia. I apologize to the entire Russian people!” Aleshin added.
On Thursday, news website Bankfax published an interview with Aleshin in which the former politician said that he was influenced to de-transition after having conversations with his mother and relatives.
Aleshin believes his initial desire to change gender was a “punishment” for the “sins” of his ancestors, and he now wants to atone for these sins, Bankfax reported.
According to Bankfax, Aleshin does not intend to return to politics, but plans to receive a church education and become a clergyman.
The Wilson Center cited data from Translation, an initiative group aimed at helping transgender and non-binary people in Russia. It found that “97 percent of transgender people have experienced harassment or discrimination in the workplace” and that “trans people face rejection from their families 57 percent of the time.”
Do you have a tip on a world news story that Newsweek should be covering? Do you have a question about the Russia-Ukraine war? Let us know via worldnews@newsweek.com.
Uncommon Knowledge
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
A legjobb élmény biztosítása érdekében olyan technológiákat használunk, mint a cookie-k az eszközadatok tárolására és/vagy eléréséhez. Ha beleegyezik ezekbe a technológiákba, akkor olyan adatokat dolgozhatunk fel ezen az oldalon, mint a böngészési viselkedés vagy az egyedi azonosítók. A hozzájárulás elmulasztása vagy visszavonása bizonyos funkciókat és funkciókat hátrányosan érinthet.
Functional
Always active
The technical storage or access is strictly necessary for the legitimate purpose of enabling the use of a specific service explicitly requested by the subscriber or user, or for the sole purpose of carrying out the transmission of a communication over an electronic communications network.
Preferences
The technical storage or access is necessary for the legitimate purpose of storing preferences that are not requested by the subscriber or user.
Statistics
The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for statistical purposes.The technical storage or access that is used exclusively for anonymous statistical purposes. Without a subpoena, voluntary compliance on the part of your Internet Service Provider, or additional records from a third party, information stored or retrieved for this purpose alone cannot usually be used to identify you.
Marketing
The technical storage or access is required to create user profiles to send advertising, or to track the user on a website or across several websites for similar marketing purposes.
