Alan Turing. Ellen DeGeneres. Ian McKellan. Jodie Foster. Ellen Page. Stephen Fry. Gareth Thomas.

I assume that most of you reading this will instantly recognise all of those names. Perhaps it’s a poor assumption. Maybe I’m misjudging you. But I’m guessing that I’m probably not. They’re all extremely influential gay celebrities who are frequently, and quite rightly applauded in our community for the work they do and the rights that they have fought for, and still do today.

Can you name a transgender celebrity in the media who gets as much attention as the ones that I mentioned? Honestly, I could name two off the top of my head. Laverne Cox and Caitlyn Jenner. I could cheat and use Ruby Rose but she classes herself as genderfluid, so it doesn’t feel fair. But how about that. Granted, the media have been hugely supportive with regards to Caitlyn and her transition, but the cynic in me thinks that money and influence – it’s no coincidence she’s part of one of the most powerful and money-spinning families in the world, the Kardashians – has a huge part to play. So, two celebrities. And why is that? Is it just because there aren’t any transgender celebrities around? Or is there a deeper issue, one that America in particular does not want to talk about?

Amanda Lepore. Chaz Bono. Alexis Arquette. Isis King. Janet Mock. All of these names are hugely successful in their own right, for years and years. So how come we’ve never heard of them? Why are these extremely talented people not getting the same recognition and reverence that their gay counterparts get?

So let’s change gears for a second. Does the name Lucy Meadows mean anything to you? How about Leelah Alcorn? Or perhaps Jennifer Gable?

I’m guessing you might have had to Google all three of those.

Lucy Meadows committed suicide. Leelah Alcorn also committed suicide. Jennifer Gable died suddenly of an aneurysm. So what links these three women together? The fact that they were transgender, and they were all treated abhorrently, both before and after death. Meadows was a schoolteacher who was hounded by the British press after transitioning to a women. Alcorn was a seventeen year old girl who walked in front of a speeding truck because she saw no escape from her abusive parents. Gable had her hair shorn and was dressed in a suit in an open casket upon her death, and was referred to as male pronouns, all at the request of her father.

The fact is, when it comes to the LGBT movements, the ‘trans’ part is often the one that gets left behind. Yes, it’s fantastically that we can now legally marry. Yes, it’s brilliant that we can adopt a child. Yes, I love the fact that we can’t be sacked from our jobs for being gay. Yes, I’m thrilled that we’re finally moving forward in society and getting closer to equality by the day.

Last year in the UK, 48% of transgender people under 26 attempted suicide, and a further 59% said they had considered doing so.

Don’t let anyone get left behind.