The latest on Autumn at the Democratic National Convention, via Russ at Pam’s House Blend …

The event Autumn and I attended was the LGBT Caucus.

[...]

In between speakers, Autumn would grab me for quick interviews with the transgender activists. I’ll let her take care of the names and topics (feel free to edit here, Autumn) because I really didn’t catch them.

(I think that’s Vanessa Foster (middle) and Dana Beyer (right) pictured above.)

In the meantime, according to Russ, we’ll have to “stay tuned” for that “scoop” …

… until I can edit the video and scrub the audio we’re embargoing the story. Stay tuned - I get home Sunday and this will be the first video I edit and post. Let’s just say I captured a provocative conversation with someone on his controversial stance on a complicated civil rights issue. (And damn me for bringing a digital video tape camera with no way of capturing the digital video to my laptop!)

… I’m anticipating a “Barney.”

” … I am disappointed in the transgender community. They seem to think that if Nancy Pelosi and myself, George Miller and a few others waved a magic wand we could deliver it.” — Congressman Barney Frank speaking Monday in Denver with Towleroad about a trans-inclusive ENDA (Employment Non-Discrimination Act)

Some of the transgender news and views we came across on Tuesday …

#1 - Autumn spoke with Shannon Minter And Mara Keisling yesterday at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. You can hear that here. And, if it’s your cup of tea, there’s plenty more coverage of the DNC at Pam’s House Blend.

#2 - “Removing ’some’ of the inequalities” … “still a political problem” … “has enough lobbying been done?” … so, to whom do you think Barney Frank’s referring?

…

He added that the Employment Non Discrimination Act still presented “a political problem.”

It was originally designed to make it illegal to fire, refuse to hire or promote a person based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

The decision to remove trans people from the scope of the legislation caused anger among the LGBT community in the US, with many demanding an “all or nothing” stance.

“The question now is whether enough lobbying has been done to include people who are transgender,” Congressman Frank said.

“We need more lobbying on that. We had a very good hearing on that issue and it helped. Previously, we were running into problems getting it out of committee, and I think the hearing we had a major impact on that. It also depends on if we get more Democrats.”

…

Congressman attacks gays who support McCain

Kat Rose over at ENDAblog had something to say about “more Democrats” …

And wait for those 15 to be ‘educated’ by those who say that they have our best interests at heart.

And then wait for him to say 15 more are needed.

#3 - Joshua Lynsen of the Washington Blade spoke with Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley at the DNC in Denver on Monday. Lynsen asked O’Malley about Montgomery County’s (Md.) upcoming transgender rights referendum …

Blade: Last question. There is a transgender rights measure that is going to the ballot in Montgomery County in November. Do you expect to become involved in that battle at all to help protect the rights of transgender people?

O’Malley: You know, I think we passed a similar bill in the city of Baltimore when I was mayor, if my memory serves me correctly. So, you know, there are bills at the local level. There’s bills at the state level. I typically don’t get involved with local ordinances. I try to focus my attention on statewide bills. But we did it in the city of Baltimore and dogs and cats didn’t fall from the sky. You know? It was — I think these bills — I don’t know. I think it would probably be a good thing for Montgomery County to do. I don’t have the legislation in front of me, but if it’s like what we did in Baltimore, it caused no problems whatsoever.

Blade: So it’s got your thumbs up?

O’Malley: Yes.

O’Malley reiterates call for civil unions

#4 - We haven’t heard much about Susan Stanton since early April (”Wife Seeks Amicable Divorce From Ex-Largo Manager Susan“). As a follow-up to that news, the Tampa Tribune reported yesterday …

Susan Stanton, the former Largo city manager known as Steven Stanton before a sex change, has mediated his divorce from his wife of 18 years, according to court documents.

The agreement was signed off on by a Pinellas-Pasco judge on Aug. 6.

…

Transgendered Ex-Largo Manager Gets Divorce Terms

The St. Petersburg Times noted (”Stanton’s marriage comes to an end“) that Stanton “has a good relationship with her ex-wife, but she has lost most of her friends” and “has been unable to find work.”

#5 - In the UK, the late Lynne Braithwaite was honored last Friday …

A FLY-PAST of a lone Vulcan bomber across Morecambe on Friday was a
fitting tribute to a leading transgender activist, author and RAF veteran of 40 years.

The life of Lynne Janine Braithwaite BEM, who died on August 12, was celebrated at a packed Lancaster Cremator-ium where friends and family said their farewells to a remarkable person.

They included the Deputy Chief Constable of Lancashire police force, who gave a speech outlining Lynne’s involvement as a volunteer advisor on transgender issues, who toured the country speaking at various seminars and workshops – fighting for the rights of all transgender people.

The fly-past of the Vulcan bomber was in honour of the work carried out by Lynne as an engineer on the Vulcan to the Sky project – a campaign to get the Vulcan airborne again which was only achieved months before Lynne passed away.

Lynne, of Westfield Grove in Morecambe, certainly led an inspirational life.

She was born Lawrence James Braithwaite on July 1, 1934 in one of Beatrix Potter’s houses at Near Sawrey in the Lake District.

She left school to join the RAF in September 1949, retiring as a Flight Sergeant on July 1 1989.

Lynne was awarded the British Empire Medal in the Queen’s Honours List in 1976.

Her expertise was maintenance of Vulcan bombers. It was with this experience that she was called out of retirement as engineering consultant to the Vulcan to the Sky Trust.

In early 2008 the Vulcan bomber XH558 passed its airworthiness tests and flew once again. Lynne was very proud of this achievement and it was therfore entirely appropriate that the plane was present at her funeral.

After leaving the RAF Lynne ran her own business making silver model aircraft until 1992, when it went bust during the recession.

Not long after her transition to female in 1994 aged 60, she contacted Lancashire Constabulary asking what policies and procedures they had regarding transgender people.

Lynne had significant input advising on best practice for trans people as service users and employees in the police service.

Until July 2008 she remained an active member of Lancashire Northern Police Division’s Independent Advisors Group where, over the years, she was consulted on a number of policing issues and policies. At the time of her death she was also an active member of Trans Lancs group – an advisory team for the constabulary, keeping them up to date with the legal and social issues affecting trans people.

She wrote several books including ‘Diaries of a Transfemale’ and ‘From Brigands to V Bombers’.

The Press For Change website, which campaigns for respect and equality for all transgender people, paid tribute to her: “Lynne was a vibrant, indefatigable person who was always active and approach-ed life with the enthusiasm of someone decades younger. She will be greatly missed.”

Fly-past tribute to RAF veteran

Transgender news and views for Monday …

#1 - Autumn flew into Denver yesterday where she will be covering the Democratic National Convention for Pam’s House Blend. Among the other trans folks in Denver for the Convention (as delegates) are Marisa Richmond and Vanessa Foster.

#2 - Testimony concluded last Friday in Diane Schroer’s bias suit against the Library of Congress …

A federal judge yesterday concluded a four-day bench trial in a lawsuit brought by a former Special Forces commander who lost a job offer as a terrorism research analyst at the Library of Congress because he disclosed he was undergoing the medical process of becoming a woman.

U.S. District Judge James Robertson heard testimony from more than a dozen witnesses, including scientific experts, officials at the Library of Congress and Diane Schroer, the former Army colonel who brought the suit. Robertson said he would issue a ruling soon.

Schroer, who applied for the job in 2004 under the name of David and has since completed the medical transition to become a woman, testified that she was hurt when she lost the job offer after disclosing the transition to the person she thought would be her future boss. She filed the sex discrimination suit under the Civil Rights Act. The Library of Congress has argued that the Civil Rights Act does not prohibit discrimination against transsexuals or on the basis of gender identity.

Testimony Ends in Transsexual Bias Suit

#3 - JimK at Vigilance, who’s been closely following the fate of Montgomery County’s (Md.) recently-passed transgender rights law, expressed some exasperation yesterday with the wimpy, “croquet” tactics of the law’s supporters …

Look, this isn’t croquet we’re playing here, this is a fistfight. The other side has been throwing punches for months, and our side is waiting for funding so we can have a poll so we can decide what we want to tell people. “Making information available” is important and so obvious it shouldn’t need to be said. It is also not a persuasion strategy. People who want information need to be able to find it, I agree. But your average ignorant voter doesn’t care that much and isn’t going to look for it. If you want to give them information you’ve got to give it to them. In their face.

“Prohibit discrimination” is the wimpiest campaign slogan I can imagine. It’s got more syllables than impact. The people of our Blue county oppose discrimination, and would support this bill if they knew what it said. That’s why we elected the Council who passed it unanimously and the County Executive who was happy to sign it. But the anti-gay, anti-transgender bigots are making sure people don’t know what the law is about. They’re not conducting polls and adjusting their message for the “median voter,” they’re waving their arms and getting red in the face, telling lies and misrepresenting the law in any way that will get people’s attention. When one side is saying your daughter will be raped and dead girls will be turning up all over the county, “prohibit discrimination” is not an effective response.

…

Woman Fired For Wearing Pants

Over at the Maryland Politics Watch blog, Montgomery County trans woman Maryanne Arnow recounts the discrimination she has faced …

In the last year, I’ve had to face distinct increases in discrimination and denigration from the general public in the normal course of my daily life. This is occurring directly as a result of a local campaign from conservative groups that continually foster unwarranted fears, stereotypical misrepresentations, and highly negative references to transgender people, in the public eye of perception.

I have faced extreme social and workplace humiliations in the last several years since beginning my transition (change) of gender. I have applied at dozens of restaurants, retail stores, warehouses, and even major hotel chains such as Marriott, most located in Montgomery County.

…

As it now stands, it is both legal and apparently still socially acceptable to discriminate against anyone like myself in hiring, workplace, housing, public services, and public accommodations. I once again have no civil rights or legal protections at any level. Not federal, state, or county, and mainly as a direct result of the actions of these groups to force a referendum on this law.

We have been burned at the stake, in the use of guilt by association to other highly negative stereotypes such as pedophiles and sexual predators. This has nothing to do with transgender people whatsoever. This is an outright lie. It is a crass, cruel, and disgusting distortion. This is an utter fallacy to the fullest extent that it has been used by these groups.

As a fellow citizen, neighbor, wife, and daughter - as a warm and articulate person, and skilled professional Culinary Artist, I have found this intolerably painful. This is entirely unacceptable by any ethical standard that I know of. There have been direct, and deeply negative impacts on my life as a result of such discriminatory behaviors.

Enough is enough. Help restore my most basic civil rights, and overrule the falsehoods being spread by these groups, once and for all.

Living with Discrimination as a Transgender Woman

#4 - Over at Trans Universe, Angela Brightfeather would like a “simple question” answered …

That simple question is:

“Senator Obama, would you veto an exclusive version of the Employment Non Discrimination Act if it did not include employment protections for transgender people?”

It’s a tough question to ask a man who believes in not impeding any rights bill from passing, but it is an important question to ask. If the answer is anything but “Yes,” I will take my vote on November and either find someone else to vote for, or just sit this one out and encourage everyone to do the same until people come to realize that this makes common sense.

And, the big question for Senator Obama is . . . . ?

#5 - It’s raining a bit tonight in Asheville … it’s been so long I feel like streaking into the night. Night all.

Law.com and the National Law Journal have a new piece up on retired Army Colonel Diane Schroer’s pending case before the federal court in Washington, DC. This looks as if it may turn out to be the most significant case regarding transgender people and federal employment to ever reach the courts.

The ACLU has summed up the story behind Col. Schroer’s case as follows:

Diane interviewed for a job as a terrorism research analyst at the Library of Congress and accepted the position, but the job offer was rescinded when she told her future supervisor that she was in the process of gender transition. The ACLU is now representing her in a Title VII sex discrimination lawsuit against the Library of Congress. This is her testimony.

She described her case at the recent Congressional Hearing on Transgender Discrimination:

Arthur Leonard of the New York Law School said this about the case:

This is potentially very significant, partly because the case is against the federal government, which could impact federal employment policy and people all over the country. It also is addressing an emerging issue as to whether people whose gender identity differs from the norm would be protected by the law’s provisions against sex discrimination [in Title VII].

[More below the fold.]

Read the rest of this entry »

On August 9th, a memorial service was held for Angie Zapata.

The Greeley Tribune covered the service in their article Friends, family gather to say goodbye to slain woman.

My friend Donna Rose was there, and wrote about it in her blog entry Angie Zapata Vigil. She’s been collecting photos of the service, and has posted these in a slide show.

Angie Zapata Vigil - Greeley, CO - Aug. 9, 2008

[Below the fold: Donna Rose describes the service; the effect of hate crimes.]
Read the rest of this entry »

With civil rights and protections for gender identity and expression seeming to frequently hinge on the predator arguments of the religious right community (with a number of second wave feminists apparently in agreement with many of the arguments), it seems civil rights activists need to pay attention to what’s happening in the news regarding bathrooms and locker rooms.

- Transgender-law challengers submit 8,600 signatures

Moments before Tuesday’s 5 p.m. deadline, the group challenging Gainesville’s anti-discrimination ordinance turned in its final batch of petitions, totaling about 3,000 more signatures than required in order to get a citywide vote on the issue.

According to Alachua County Supervisor of Elections Pam Carpenter, more than 8,600 signatures were turned in, well above the 5,581 signatures required to place the “repealing” charter amendment on a city election ballot, likely in spring 2009.

From a related article:

According to Cain Davis, president of Citizens for Good Public Policy, fears are centered around the fact that under the law a biological man who has an “inner sense” of being a woman could legally use the women’s restroom.

“Tell the woman who gets raped, tell the family who gets their spouse killed, that it’s no big deal,” Davis said.

Per usual, no examples of when this has happened has been provided — as there are no examples of this ever having happened.

- From WingNutDaily: Judge rules voters can decide ‘coed showers’ plan; ‘Like all American citizens, Maryland voters have right to have voices count’:

A judge has ruled that voters in Montgomery County, Md., will be allowed to determine the future of a “discrimination” ban that family advocates say simply opens up all public facilities, including restrooms and locker rooms, to individuals of either sex, depending upon their “gender identity.”

“Like all American citizens, Maryland voters have the right to have their voices count,” said Amy Smith, a litigation attorney for the Alliance Defense Fund, which is arguing the case.
“Justice was served … as more than enough valid signatures were collected for the petitions, and the plaintiffs clearly failed to file their suit before the statute of limitations expired,” she said.

Maryland County’s The Gazette adds:

‘‘We’re disappointed, but the court concluded that we were right but were too late in filing,” said Jonathan S. Shurberg, an attorney for Equality Maryland. ‘‘If I didn’t think we had a strong chance to win, I wouldn’t recommend to my client that we appeal.”

Shurberg plans to request a review by the Court of Appeals, the state’s highest court. If the review is denied, he will ask for an expedited review by the Special Appeals court before the Aug. 18 deadline for ballot changes.

[Below the fold: Pre-Op Transsexual fighting to use women's locker room; Thai Schools trans restrooms]

Read the rest of this entry »

Can’t help it … but the headline on Tommi Avicolli Mecca’s article in Beyond Chron today about the Human Rights Campaign’s fundraiser in San Francisco brought to mind an image of a big room full of Roys and Silos …

~~~

Related …

Enda United: We will not be divided

Lesbian activist ousted from HRC dinner

A bit of word play here, but Autumn’s earlier post brought back memories of this story …

An avid athlete and a transgender person, Tedra Thomsen wants to play
coed softball — as a woman.

But the softball league she plays on won’t allow that.

“This snubs me basically,” said Thomsen, who explained while the sex
she was born with is anatomically male, the gender she identifies
herself with is female.

Next week the league’s recreation district will consider a policy on
transsexual athletes — a first for the Chico Area Recreation and
Park District — because of Thomsen’s concerns.

… and …

their knowledge but said the board needed to put a policy in placenow to answer Thomsen’s coed softball application request.

Also Thursday the board unanimously approved a policy addressing the
participation of transgender and transsexual athletes in recreational
sports programs. The policy — which originated when Chico resident
and softball player Tedra Thomsen, a transgender person who expressed
a desire to play on a coed softball team as a woman — states that
transsexual athletes can play in a male or female sport after sex
reassignment surgery, hormone therapy and legal recognition of their
reassigned sex. Medical documentation is also required.

Transgender athletes who don’t meet those requirements are eligible
for participation in female or male recreational sports according to
their birth sex, the policy states.

Thomsen, friends and advocates and attorneys for gender rights — some
who had traveled from San Francisco to attend the meeting — urged the
CARD board to reconsider the policy because it would mean Thomsen
cannot play as a female until undergoing sex reassignment surgery and
hormone therapy. Several said surgery was a drastic procedure and
that Olympic standards were not appropriate for a recreation league.

“I think this is not a time for hard and fast rules that might
protect someone legally, but fairness,” said one speaker in favor of
Thomsen.

CARD legal representative Jennifer Wendell, an attorney with the
Carter Law Office, said the policy — based on standards put in place
by the International Olympic Committee — is the recreation district’s
attempt at balancing CARD’s need for safety and competitive standards
with accommodating Thomsen. She said the policy will not keep anyone
from dressing, acting or being addressed and treated as the gender
they identify with.

CARD attorney Jeff Carter said CARD’s legal team would be willing to
meet with those knowledgeable about transgender issues to further
their knowledge but said the board needed to put a policy in place
now to answer Thomsen’s coed softball application request.

… and that left me wondering if there have been any updates to this story?

I haven’t heard of any … ??

(By the way, if we didn’t “archive” these news stories, they may as well never have happened in many cases.)

Back to Autumn’s post, which also brought to mind this story, speaking of (”tricky”) Libertarians …

Activists belonging to the libertarian wing of the Republican Party continue to mourn the loss of Kent Snyder, a 49-year-old gay political operative credited with propelling the presidential campaign of U.S. Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) into a national, grassroots movement that raised more than $35 million.

Snyder, who served as Paul’s campaign chair, died of pneumonia on June 26 after being hospitalized for about two months and after running up medical bills exceeding $400,000, according to friends and family members, who said he did not have health insurance.

…

When asked at the Capitol in Washington on Wednesday about concerns raised by critics that his presidential campaign did not provide employee health insurance, Paul said only that he doesn’t believe any political campaigns offer health insurance.

“I don’t know of any campaign that has health insurance for temporary and other employees,” he said. “I’ve never had it and I’ve been in this business for 30 years. I don’t know any campaign that does.”

…

Spokespersons for the presidential campaigns of Barack Obama and John McCain said both campaigns provide full health insurance coverage to their paid staff. A spokesperson for the Hillary Clinton presidential campaign said Clinton also provided health insurance coverage to campaign staffers before she ended her campaign in early June.

I don’t expect, though, I’ll be seeing “full health insurance coverage” coming forth, for me or you, from any of these folks any time soon … Paul, McCain or Obama … three whiffs and we’re out.

Some not quite out of date mood music for this Saturday night …

Well, one show has moved out of town (actually it was closer to Black Mountain and about 18 miles or so up the valley from downtown Asheville). No loss. Just another “circus” whose methods are also certainly questionable. You can read “the reviews” from Pam Spaulding and Wayne Besen.

This Friday-Saturday-Sunday is the 30th annual Bele Chere Festival. A much better show, believe me … hope you can visit here sometime.

~~~

Just a couple of local links …

Equality Asheville

Phoenix

BlogAsheville

OUTLOUD

This story may not be specifically trans-related, but this quote …

Now, said Daniel G. Fish, a noted elder law attorney, “‘She looked so young’ is no defense.’’

… did remind me a bit of some of the absurd and indecent “deception” arguments trotted out in “trans panic” defenses over the years.

As someone who cares for a parent who’s not many years younger than Rose Morat (and as someone who grew up and spent almost half their life in NYC), I’m pleased that Gov. Paterson and the New York State legislature did the decent thing passing this legislation.

(And maybe sometime soon the New York State Senate will do another decent act … and pass the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act.)

He says it’s a boycott.

The San Diego Union-Tribune is reporting that ex-gay/former homosexual/alleged mouthpiece of God James Hartline is planning to organize his thousands of followers into not tip employees of the Manchester Grand Hyatt.

We have to back up a little, so here’s the story. Doug Manchester is a large shareholder of the Manchester Grand Hyatt, which is named for his family. He contributed $125,000 to Proposition 8 — also known as the California Marriage Protection Act — which is the ballot measure that would undo the California Supreme Courts’ marriage equality ruling.

LGBT civil rights activists and union leaders have organized a boycott of the Manchester Grand Hyatt because of the $125,000 donation. The Unite Here Local 30 is supporting the boycott; Unite Here Local 30 turns out to be the local that represents workers at the Manchester Grand Hyatt.

Fred Karger, Public Relations Chair and founding President of Californians Against Hate organized a news conference about the LGBT boycott of the hotel. From a Union-Tribune article entitled Gay-rights supporters to boycott Manchester Grand Hyatt:

Fred Karger, who is helping to organize the boycott and is running an organization opposed to Proposition 8, said he is also urging the public to boycott Manchester’s other hotel, the Grand Del Mar.

“This is someone who is giving an exorbitant amount of money to write discrimination into the constitution for the very first time,” he said.

Karger said he hopes the boycott will send a message to other potential contributors to the Proposition 8 campaign.

“Our goal is to create a business loss for people who contribute,” he said. “We want to make it a little uncomfortable.”

From the Californians Against Hate website:

[More after the fold]

Read the rest of this entry »

I really get tired of going over the same crap over and over again regarding gender. The mental hebetude of conservative Christians discussing transsexual youth and adults is beyond incredible. These dullards have no personal qualifications that indicate expertise in gender issues, and even in their supposed area of expertise — Biblical scriptures — they cherry pick scriptures on sex and gender to make points on gender when other scriptures counter the evangelical message.

Chuck Colson, in a Breakpoint article entitled It’s a Sick, Sick World takes another stab at transgender people and issues — some of his previous stabs includehere, here, here, and Coming to a School Near You. In It’s a Sick, Sick World, he gets around to attacking Dr. Norman Spack, who treats transyouth with puberty delaying medications — in large part to keep these not-gender-confused children from committing suicide.

So here’s what the former Watergate conspirator and hebetudinous writer said in his most recent piece about Dr. Spack and transyouth (links added for reference; emphasis added):

He has been called “demonic,” “barbaric,” and has been compared to Nazi doctors. And when you read about his work, it is easy to see why Americans are so outraged. Dr. Norman Spack is a pediatric endocrinologist at Boston Children’s Hospital. Not long ago, he opened a clinic for what he terms “transgendered” children. Incredibly, he is giving kids as young as seven drugs that delay the onset of puberty–the first step in sex-change surgery when they are older.

…When these kids hit their teen years, they are given the option of taking cross-hormones for a few years—which will allow them to develop the characteristics of the opposite sex. Tragically, the treatment will condemn these teenagers to lifelong infertility.

…So why are doctors like Spack altering young bodies instead of treating confused minds?

The answer is that many doctors have embraced the modern teaching that sexual identity, rather than being biologically determined, is a preference or a choice. According to this, people should be allowed to choose whatever sex they want to be.

But both science and the Bible teach otherwise: God created us male and female in His image. Shots and surgeries and politically correct teachings cannot alter this fundamental truth.

Tragically, some parents are now buying into this false teaching–and allowing their children to undergo destructive treatments.

You and I need to be spreading the word that legitimate treatment is available for people suffering from gender confusion—and it is a treatment that does not sacrifice the well-being of children to the political agendas of adults.

By the way, science doesn’t teach us what the thick-witted Colson believes it does — Please see The Scientific Problem With Sex Dichotomies and BiGender and the Brain to see what science study has so far revealed.

And, the Bible doesn’t teach us what the dullard Colson — and many other thick-witted conservative Christian commentators — believes it does in Genesis 1:27 and Genesis 5:1-2. Specifically, Matthew 19:12, Galatians 3:28 and Isaiah 56:4-8 challenge Colson and his peers scriptural understanding of a very, very binary gender dichotomy.

Exactly what, in Chuck Colson’s personal life history and education (biographies here and here) indicate an expertise in gender issues or theology? His “authority” appears to be false authority based on his personal personal, spiritual conversion. Nothing in his personal story, education, or current job of running a prison ministry indicate any reason why he should be considered a knowledgeable expert on tragic transgender youth.

[Below the fold, fellow hebetudinous, conservative Christian commentator Peter LaBarbera jumps in to the fray -- pimping Chuck Colson's piece]

Read the rest of this entry »

This morning’s Raleigh News & Observer has a feature on blogger Pam Spaulding who will be covering (along with Autumn) the Democratic National Convention in Denver this August for Pam’s House Blend …

Spaulding, a Durham native, is a bit of a local celebrity these days, recognized in supermarkets and airports by her dirty-blond dreadlocks. And it’s all because of her blog, Pam’s House Blend, which turns four years old this month. The progressive, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issue-centered blog is also one of the first to acquire press credentials to this year’s Democratic National Convention, which is granting access to bloggers for the first time.

It’s a responsibility Spaulding takes seriously — even if some politicians and mainstream media don’t think a blogger deserves to have it.

“Sometimes, yes, it’s profane, sometimes it’s rude, sometimes it’s not grammatically correct, but the medium is different. It’s fast and loose,” she says. “But that does not mean that the ideas are bankrupt, that the criticism isn’t legitimate.”

Pam’s House Blend has won a number of awards, including the Distinguished Achievement Award from The Monette-Horwitz Trust, for making strides toward the eradication of homophobia; Best LGBT Blog in the 2005 and 2006 Weblog Awards; and accolades from the likes of gay activist Mandy Carter and former Democratic Senate candidate Jim Neal.

…

The rest of “Blogger gets respect” may be found here.