Una aproximación al concepto de género en Derecho Penal francés y español. De la polémica a su validez constitucional | An approach to the gender concept in French and Spanish criminal law. From the controversy to its constitutional validity

After months of debate, the term ?sexual identity? stated in the French Penal Code has been replaced with ?gender identity?, thus finally incorporating the concept of gender within its legal text. This article, which is a humble reflection about the usefulness of this replacement, gathers the main arguments alleged for during the pre-legislative phase. This research has been carried out from a comparative perspective, since the debate which arose in France is similar to the one which took place in Spain in 2004, when the gender perspective was introduced in the Spanish Penal