A Nuevo León resident has won the right to be legally identified as neither male nor female, becoming just the second officially recognized non-binary person in Mexico.
A judge in the northern border state ruled in favor of Edie Galván Villareal’s application to be legally recognized as non-binary.
The judge ordered the young person’s birth certificate be altered so that NB for non-binary appears. The ruling, handed down earlier this week, comes after the Guanajuato Civil Registry Office issued an updated birth certificate to a non-binary person in February.
Galván acknowledged the legal victory in a post on Facebook. “Friends I can’t contain my excitement. I will legally be Edie and my non-binary identity will be recognized by the state,” the Monterrey resident wrote in a post on Wednesday.
“I’ve been crying from the excitement for about half an hour. Seeing my name on my INE [voting card], seeing my gender identity on my birth certificate are things that I never imagined possible,” Galván wrote.
“… The fact that the process was so easy and obstacles weren’t put in my way gives me a lot of hope for the future. Being the first person recognized as non-binary in a state as conservative as Nuevo León fills me with excitement and I really don’t have words to describe everything I feel right now. I would like to hug 13-year-old Edie and say everything will improve in a few years,” wrote the 23-year-old university student.
“… Thanks to my friends and loved ones who encouraged me to complete the process, … thanks to the legal team of [the civil society organization] El Clóset LGBT, thanks Edie for never giving up and venturing into the unknown. I love you and I love myself trans.”
With reports from Milenio
