Born as a boy, Ambre* has just made her official change of marital status. Bâtiment Entretien, the reference magazine in the world of cleanliness, offers her the opportunity to testify and tell about her long journey to finally be in agreement with herself.| ||277
Quand il arrive à Paris, au mitan des années 80, le jeune homme a 19 ans. Il ne sait ni lire ni écrire, et veut se battre pour s’en sortir.
“I wanted to be a cook, but they didn’t want to hire me. No diploma, no experience. I had to fend for myself by taking classes. But I didn't have a good time, the periods of struggle kept coming. I can say it clearly, I was homeless” rewinds the one who is now called, and officially Ambre.
“A new first name not easy to bear when you are a boy and you introduce yourself to a job interview…”.
A long story and a long fight. But let's not skip ahead.
Helped by “exceptional” social assistance that she calls “Auntie Jacqueline”, Ambre, even battered, continues on her way. First in the hotel and catering industry, where she worked as a temporary worker, followed training courses and acquired experience which is still very useful to her.
“I liked this rigor, you had to clean as you went, respect HACCP rules. I'm still moving forward! » she insists. Always moving forward. To eat and have shelter.
A requirement that leads her to work in the security sector. CQP, SST, professional card, a new job.
"Standing 12 hours a day, alongside a president of the CAC 40. It wasn't my dream job but it nourished me for 4 years. »
Then comes a new change of direction…
Very pragmatic. “I was very committed to my gender change process and I wanted a job where I was not too exposed, where I did not have to constantly face scrutiny and attacks.
The cleaning sector suited me well, and the staggered hours guaranteed a certain isolation.” After some failures clearly attributable to her “identity”, Ambre was hired atCleanyin 2017.
First as a cleaning agent, then progressing as team leader. “Relationships are good both with the two female colleagues I supervise and with the client. My approach is up to me, it is a personal decision, which I do not want to discuss. I am recognized for the quality of my work and I want to progress. I would like to pass on my experience and become a trainer, this recognition is important. The profession in general also needs to be valued and better paid! » concludes Ambre.
A feminization journey in the making...
In March 2021 the civil registry officially recorded the change of first name, but Ambre's feminization journey to fully acquire this new identity is still in the making. The necessary condition to “live normally as a woman”.
*The first name has been deliberately changed.
