Audio By Carbonatix
A Kenyan female bus conductor who has a beard has shared how she was stripped naked in a police cell to confirm her gender.
Theresia Mumbi told BBC Swahili that traffic police in the capital, Nairobi, arrested her and held in a cell with other women.
"Two officers came and told me to take off my clothes. They then examined me. I’m not sure what they saw but they told me to return to my cell," she said.
She says that the July 2018 arrest over identification documents is still fresh in her mind. She presented her documents and was let go.
Ms Mumbi's experience made her an advocate for women with unusual features and now she tells her story to create awareness and encourage others to speak out when harassed.
Ms Mumbi was diagnosed with hormonal imbalance that resulted to her having a beard.
As a young woman she had to shave her beard often until her skin got irritated by the frequent shaving.
"Some years back I had to suspend shaving at some point because my skin was becoming irritable and the stubborn sores were a problem," she said.
The beard grew and she started hiding from people opting to shop at night.
Pushed by the hard economic times she became a bus conductor to earn a living.
While at work she meets women with unique conditions and encourages them.
She is part of an association of bearded women in Kenya and during their meetings she speaks to the younger women.
DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
Tags:
DISCLAIMER: The Views, Comments, Opinions, Contributions and Statements made by Readers and Contributors on this platform do not necessarily represent the views or policy of Multimedia Group Limited.
Latest Stories
-
Imprisonment should be rehabilitative, not punitive – Ghana Prisons boss at UNGA
5 minutes -
Ga Adangbe traditional priests petition Mahama over McDan aviation licence revocation
16 minutes -
Anti-LGBTQ Bill: NDC’s arrogance is worrying – Hassan Tampuli
27 minutes -
Let’s give OSP time to mature, not to scrap it – Hassan Tampuli
30 minutes -
Nigeria convicts 386 Islamist militants in mass trials
35 minutes -
Djibouti president wins election with 97.8% of vote, state media saysÂ
40 minutes -
We don’t have mandate to deduct tax from rent allowance of security services personnel – Interior Ministry clarifies
54 minutes -
Ablakwa receives Presidential Special Envoy on Reparations to advance global agenda
1 hour -
Christina Koch becomes first woman to travel around the moon on Artemis II
1 hour -
Epstein survivors’ calls to meet King Charles and Queen harder to ignore as US visit approaches
1 hour -
UN Secretary-General names Ghana’s Anita Kiki Gbeho as South Sudan envoy
2 hours -
Mali withdraws recognition of Sahrawi Republic, backs Morocco’s autonomy plan
2 hours -
Gov’t distributes over 8,500 laptops to One Million Coders project
2 hours -
Julius Debrah, ‘man to beat’ as NDC’s James Agbey dismisses Musah Dankwah’s polls
2 hours -
GPRTU in Savannah Region to protest alleged eviction in Damongo
2 hours