Hungary as a precarious context for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. Interviews with transgender people

Abstract

While lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people experience exclusion and animosity in most organizations and societies, their rights have gradually gained recognition in several countries in the world. Within the LGBT community, transgender people are the least researched group. Our empirical investigation focuses on the lived experience of transgender people in Hungary, within an increasingly precarious social context, particularly in the workplace, labor market, and certain aspects of private lives. Our findings shed light on the significant challenges they face, including a particularly harsh situation in the labor market and the subsequent impact on their workplace environment and private lives. These circumstances often force them to temporarily hide their transgender identity, although this often eventually comes out. This study, consistent with prior research of transgender individuals' lived experiences, demonstrates their critique of gender binaries, with their own lives serving as evidence for the dispensability of the gendered professions. The empirical investigation clearly shows the significant influence of the social context on the lives of vulnerable individuals. Particularly, recent legislative changes and escalating transphobic political discourse have notably worsened transgender individuals' lives in Hungary, affecting their employment and specific aspects of their private lives.