Russia’s first transgender politician has reverted to the gender he was assigned at birth, issuing an apology to the nation and stating that he was a “patriot”.
Roman Aleshin, 34, who had previously gone by the name Yulia Aleshina, said in a post on Telegram that he had made the decision during Orthodox Lent, when his mother told him he had been christened at seven months old.
“I went through old albums of my ancestors, prayed for them, and it helped the idea set in that I’m a guy,” he wrote, adding: “I’m a patriot of my country, that’s why I live in Russia. I apologise to the whole Russian people!”
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Aleshin said that the
