Sometimes I get that “It’s about me.’ Not even because something really is about me, but because folk want to make it about me.

Over at the blog Gender Reality; It’s not about the clothes they have a post entitled Stop both engines…. It apparently is an ad hominem post by one of the bloggers at that blogsite — just a bit earlier in the week, another blogger at the blogsite posted another ad hominem piece entitled Autumn Sandeen – you’re a dick.

Well anywho, the Stop both engines… post is about me wearing a military uniform consistent with my gender identity. The photos on the site are three years old, but only now is when the writer of that post is objecting to my wearing of female U.S. Navy uniform.

And here’s part of the writer’s argument against me wearing a uniform consistent with my female gender identity:

We’re having a bit of a dilemma here, and for a change, it is all about the clothes. You see, some people have suggested that Sandeen is treating the female naval uniform as a costume. Others are not so charitable.

The thing is, when you look at the pictures of Sandeen, you might get the impression that she served in, and retired from the US Navy as a female.

Nope.

She never wore the female uniform. She bought it after she retired from a navy that would have kicked her out for being transsexual. It get’s worse, as she deliberately wore the very same uniform when she chained herself to the White House fence, knowing full well that she would be arrested and processed as a transsexual.

…Be proud of your service – that’s fine and admirable, but quit wearing that uniform as a costume – Autumn Sandeen never wore a female uniform while serving…

In the comment thread, the blog author of the piece responded to commenter in the comment thread who wrote “The military does not recognize her as female. Neither does the State of California. She’s playing dress up.” by writing:

To be fair to Sandeen, if she managed to get her birth certificate changed we’ll apologize to her for the error. If…

The responses are personal, even though I have no idea who the blog author or the thread commenter are.

A retired, U.S. Navy Chief wrote a comment though that I thought needed a response. First, the Chief’s comment:

Common sense and dignity govern when and where a military retiree can wear a uniform. For formal occasions, retirees and veterans can wear the current uniform or the last one worn on active duty. A local commander can authorize the wearing of other uniforms. Wearing a uniform is forbidden for business or personal gain or while participating in an event that may cast the military in an unfavorable light.

Regardless of her motives, Sandeen violated 10 USC CHAPTER 45 by wearing that costume. That was not brave, it was grandstanding to draw attention to herself, gather more fame and a lame attempt to increase her ‘credibility’ as a trans crusader. The only reason that she was not remanded by federal authorities was that they had the common sense not to provide her with a free venue and the attendant publicity where she could whine and cry about being persecuted for being transgender, as opposed to be hauled up on the carpet for breaking the law and code of uniform justice.

And here’s how I responded to the chief:

The actual violation I engaged in by wearing a Navy uniform to protest against Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is found in the U.S. Navy’s Uniform Regulations, specifically found in Chapter 6, Section 10. The relevant paragraph in the section states:

“Retired personnel are prohibited from wearing the uniform in connection with personal enterprises, business activities, or while attending or participating in any demonstration, assembly or activity for the purpose of furthering personal or partisan views on political, social, economic, or religious issues.”

The violation of that regulation made my two 2010 protests Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) offenses — specifically Article 92 offenses for which I could have been court martialed. The maximum punishment for an Article 92 offense includes 2-years confinement and a dishonorable discharge.

It would have taken a lot of effort on the U.S. Navy’s part to reactivate me, charge me under Article 92, and then prosecute me for what many perceive to be a relatively minor offence. However, if the U.S. Navy had decided to take that tact back in 2010, and I’d have been found guilty of one or more Article 92 offences at court martial, then there was a possibility that I could’ve lost my retirement pay and benefits under the Hiss Act. The Hiss act is codified under 5 USC Chapter 83, Subchapter II – FORFEITURE OF ANNUITIES AND RETIRED PAY, and loss of retirement pay and benefits for the on if the offence of wearing a uniform to protest against Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell would have depended on whether the offense rose to the level outlined in § 8312 – Conviction of certain offenses. Frankly, I’m not an attorney — I’m just not sure.

When I chose to join with GetEqual to protest Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) with a number of uniformed lesbian and gay veterans, I had two reasons for protesting. The first is that DADT was wrong and needed to be challenged. Secondly, I wanted to send a message to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and trans (LGBT) community members that for me, if an issue is an issue for even one subcommunity of the LGBT community, then it’s my issue — my hope was, and still is, that lesbian, gay, and bisexual people would in turn work on trans issues with the same intensity that I worked on a purely LGB issue.

My broader point was, and still is, that civil rights aren’t about you or about me, or about yours or my demographics. Instead, civil rights are about us — all of us. Civil rights are human rights, and we’re at our human best when we embrace fighting for the ordinary equality of all of us. I believe we haven’t started living until we can rise above the narrow confines of our individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.

Martin Luther King Jr. stated that “An individual who breaks a law that conscience tells him is unjust, and who willingly accepts the penalty of imprisonment in order to arouse the conscience of the community over its injustice, is in reality expressing the highest respect for the law.” Paraphrasing that thought, I broke a regulation to protest a law that my conscience told me was unjust, and I willingly accepted the punishment I did receive, and the potential punishments I knew I could receive. I took the action I did because I wanted to arouse the conscience of the President, Congress, and broader society over its injustice towards LGBT community members, and I protested in uniform with very much the highest respect for the military in which I’d served 20-years.

I certainly respect the Chief’s viewpoint on protesting in uniform. However, my lesbian, gay, and bisexual siblings in LGBT community can now serve openly in the U.S.’s five military services — that makes the very small part I played in DADT’s repeal worth it. Basically, I’d do what I did again — even if I knew ahead of time I’d definitely have the character of my discharge downgraded and lose my pension for protesting in uniform.

The hope of a secure and livable world lies with disciplined nonconformists who are dedicated to justice, peace and brotherhood. In whatever way one wants to define me as being nonconforming, I’ll take it if it means furthering the cause of ordinary equality.

I’m not likely going to ever convince people who believe I’m a narcissist that I’m not — it likely doesn’t matter to those folks that I’ve both a psychiatrist and a psychologist (who treat me for my actual bipolar type II/cyclothymia condition) who would disagree with them on the narcissism diagnosis. Or, that I’ve worked on issues regarding ordinary equality for LGBT people because I care about those who suffer in broader LGBT community, and especially those who suffer in the population of transsexual, transgender, and gender nonconforming people — I’m sure as hell not a part of the struggle ordinary equality for any personal fame. From experience I can say that there are big personal downsides to being well known in and out of trans community, and though I advocate being out and proud as trans, the negatives of being “famously” out and proud as trans far outweigh any personal benefit to being well known as trans.

But a trans blogger at a pro-transsexual/anti-transgender blog writing about my photos in uniform that are now more than three years old, and writing about my taking to White House fence in protest to DADT over two years after I first took to the fence — wow. For that trans blogger, it really is seemingly all about Autumn…the Autumn that she apparently hates in large part because I identify with the term transgender.

It’s been a bit of a while since we heard any news on Jan Hamilton.  Hamilton, whose doings frequently appeared on this blog when I was posting on a regular basis, is famous for being tagged Britain’s “sex-swap paratrooper” and for her lawsuit against the Ministry of Defence.  Today, the Daily Mail is reporting that Hamilton, who is now calling herself Abigail Austin, will become Scotland’s first trans police officer …

A paratrooper who underwent a sex-change operation has been accepted by the police as a trainee woman constable.

Jan Hamilton, formerly Captain Ian Hamilton, quit the Army in 2007 after 20 years’ decorated service and embarked on a full gender reassignment programme.

Now living in Glasgow, she has been accepted by Strathclyde Police to begin two years’ probationary training, making her Scotland’s first transgender police officer.

A source said that Miss Hamilton, 44, had ‘sailed through’ the initial six-month selection process: ‘Jan Hamilton scored highly in the written tests and had no problem with the fitness tests.

‘She completed the mile-and-a-half run in about 11 minutes, even though women are allowed to take up to 16.’

The source added that senior officers had given their full backing to her application.

The fact that Miss Hamilton was born a man will have no bearing on the way that she is expected to operate because she is legally recognised as a woman.

For example, she will only be able to search other women, in line with police guidelines.

She will also wear the uniform of a Strathclyde Police woman constable, including the reinforced bowler hat.

It is understood that Miss Hamilton will be working in Maryhill, one of Glasgow’s most dangerous areas and the setting for gritty television detective programme Taggart.

Over the next two years Miss Hamilton, who will earn the standard starting salary of £21,000, will study and train at Strathclyde Police’s Training and Recruitment Centre at Jackton, East Kilbride, and at the Scottish Police College at Tulliallan, Fife, as well as working as a beat officer in Glasgow.

In 2007 Miss Hamilton, as Britain’s first transsexual paratrooper, took the Army to an industrial tribunal on grounds of sex discrimination for its refusal to acknowledge her legally enforced female status.

She won her case and later received a written apology. Since then she has undergone a remarkable physical transformation.

As Captain Ian Hamilton she weighed 16 stone, boasted of having 14in biceps and was deployed on long-term engagements with the elite Parachute Regiment in Kenya, Oman, Kuwait, Cyprus, Germany and Bosnia.

As Jan Hamilton she still stands at a manly 6ft but says she is five stone lighter, has a feminine figure thanks to hormone therapy, and says she is a size 12.

Miss Hamilton is not the first transgender police officer in the UK. In 2001 North Yorkshire Police said that, after 26 years in the force, Sergeant Chris Lamb had decided to live as a woman and would henceforth be known as Sergeant Nicola Lamb.

A spokesman for Strathclyde Police said: ‘We cannot confirm or deny any information that constitutes personal information. The Force actively promotes itself as an employer to all sections of the public.’

Sex change Army hero Jan to become Scotland’s first ‘transgender’ police officer

As I think about race and racism during the week of President-elect Obama’s Inauguration and the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday, I’m stuck that Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) has released a report entitled Shared Differences: The Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Students of Color in Our Nation’s Schools. The report looks at student experiences at intersections of race, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

As many of us already suspected was true, ethnic minorities who also indentify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender experienced increased discrimination and safety issues. Key findings from the report, as reported in the media release for the report:

• Across all groups, sexual orientation and gender expression were the most common reasons LGBT students of color reported feeling unsafe in school. More than four out of five students, within each racial/ethnic group, reported verbal harassment in school because of sexual orientation and about two-thirds because of gender expression. At least a third of each group reported physical violence in school because of sexual orientation.

• More than half of African American/Black, Latino/a, Asian/Pacific Islander, and multiracial students also reported verbal harassment in school based on their race or ethnicity. Native American students (43%) were less likely than other students to report experiencing racially motivated verbal harassment.

• About a quarter of African American/Black and Asian/Pacific Islander students had missed class or days of school in the past month because they felt unsafe. Latino/a, Native American, and multiracial students were even more likely to be absent for safety reasons – about a third or more skipped class at least once or missed at least one day of school in the past month for safety reasons.

• Native American students experienced particularly high levels of victimization because of their religion, with more than half reporting the highest levels of verbal harassment (54%), and a quarter experiencing physical violence (26%).

• Less than half of students of color who had been harassed or assaulted in school in the past year said that they ever reported the incident to school staff. Furthermore, for those students who did report incidents to school staff, less than half believed that staff’s resulting response was effective.

• Native American (57%) and multiracial (50%) students were more likely than other students of color in our survey to report incidents to a family member.

• Performance at school also suffered when students experienced high levels of victimization. Students’ overall GPA dropped when they reported high severities of harassment based on sexual orientation and/or race/ethnicity. Students experiencing high severities of harassment also reported missing school more often.

• The report also looks at differing experiences based on the racial/ethnic make-up of students’ schools. For all groups, LGBT students of color who were minorities in their school were much more likely to feel unsafe and experience harassment because of their race or ethnicity than those who were in the racial/ethnic majority.

The media release spoke to why they released the report now:

GLSEN is releasing the report in conjunction with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Organizing Weekend, which takes place January 16-19. Dr. MLK Jr. Organizing Weekend provides an opportunity for students and Gay-Straight Alliances to honor the coalition-building work of Dr. King and other civil rights leaders, such as Bayard Rustin, by reaching out to others committed to working toward safe schools for all students.

For those youth who want to be activists for civil rights in their schools, Bayard Rustin has a poignant quote on the protesting, dignity, and humanity:

When an individual is protesting society’s refusal to acknowledge his dignity as a human being, his very act of protest confers dignity on him.

[Below the fold: Looking at the demographics of this report - especially the trans-related demographics.]

Read the rest of this entry »

Here in my hometown of San Diego, there’s been a long time effort to remove the Boy Scout Camp from Balboa Park. This is being spearheaded by the ACLU — the long running court case to eject the Boys Scouts from Balboa Park is regarding the Boy Scouts official policy of discriminating against atheist, non-theist, and LGBT leaders, parents, and children, and how these policies regarding religious creed violate state and federal law, as well as how these policies based on sexual orientation and gender identity violate state law. Essentially, the City of San Diego is, and has been subsidizing discrimination by the Boy Scouts on public parkland with below market lease rates. San Diego is no longer defending the below market leases in the ongoing court cases, so it’s only the Boy Scouts at this point that are arguing that they should be allowed to discriminate against leaders, parents, and children because of their religious creed, sexual orientation, and/or gender identity.

As ACLU volunteer attorney Matt Stephens described the situation back in 2004:

The Boy Scouts cannot have it both ways. Having gone to great lengths to establish that discrimination against gays and non-believers is essential to their mission, and therefore protected by the First Amendment, they cannot now turn around and ask the people of San Diego to foot the bill for that discrimination.

The 9th Circuit Court Of Appeals has mad a ruling regarding in the past week regarding Barnes-Wallace v. Boy Scouts of America. According to the San Diego Union-Tribune:

The state Supreme Court, after a nearly two-year delay, will be asked to determine whether city of San Diego leases of Balboa Park land violate the state constitution’s ban on government preference for religious groups.
The move Wednesday by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which is hearing a lawsuit challenging the leases, is the latest turn in the long-running case.

…The case focuses on a 2003 ruling by U.S. District Judge Napoleon Jones in San Diego. Jones struck down two leases that the city had with the Scouts for 16 acres in Balboa Park and on Fiesta Island. Jones concluded the Boy Scouts, which bars openly gay leaders and requires members to take an oath to God, is a religious organization and the leases amounted to government assistance to religion.

The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by a lesbian couple and an agnostic couple. The Scouts appealed, and in December 2006, the federal appeals court said it wanted the state Supreme Court first to weigh in on three questions of state law: Do the leases amount to aid to religion; if so, does that aid support a sectarian purpose; and do the leases violate the state constitution’s “no preference” ban on government favoring a religious group.

Federal courts on occasion will ask state high courts to issue opinions on unique questions of state law that arise in cases before federal judges.

Back in December of 2006, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Barnes-Wallace v. Boy Scouts of America, according to a December, 2006 San Francisco Chronicle article, that:

[Below the fold, some history of Barnes-Wallace v. Boy Scouts of America.]

Read the rest of this entry »

From The Patriot-News:

The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission is investigating a complaint filed by a transsexual woman against Harrisburg Area Community College, claiming she was suspended for not using a unisex bathroom.

Shannon Powers, director of communications for the commission, confirmed a complaint by Jamie Nicole Anderson against the Lancaster campus of HACC was filed Oct. 16. She said the agency began its investigation last month.

Because it is under investigation, Powers said she could not reveal details of the complaint. However, according to published reports, Anderson is a male-to-female transgendered student who was studying nursing at HACC.

The program required students to change into hospital scrubs, and Anderson was using the female locker room. She said she was suspended for three days for insubordination when she continued to use the locker room after being instructed to use the unisex bathroom, the report said…

When accomodating pre-op and non-op trans students of any age, a school has to make a plan to make unavoidable nudity avoidable, while providing the trans student equal access to services. Does the unisex bathroom have a locker and a shower? Does the other changing room have these? If a public school — even a community college — wants to separate out a trans student, then the school needs to equal and appropriate facilities.

Equal public accomodations for pre- and non-operative trans people in general is something public institutions are now going to have to plan for. To not plan for the reality that any school may eventually have a trans student … well, not planning for forseeable problems invites commissions looking into discrimination, and trans people filing lawsuits.

I was very surprised to hear the news that my friend Diego Sanchez is going to by Rep. Barney Frank’s (D-MA) new Legislative Assistant — a senior policy advisor to the congressman. Mr. Sanchez is going to be taking over for Joe Racalto at Rep. Frank’s Washington DC Congressional office — Sanchez’s new workplace is going to be a congressional office in Washington DC’s Labor Building.

As Rep. Frank’s Legislative Assistant, Sanchez will be responsible for tracking LGBT, healthcare, veterans, and labor issues, as well as issues regarding the 2010 census. The confluence of LGBT issues and the 2010 census will be if or how LGBT couples are counted — is the federal government going to count how many same sex couples’ have formed domestic partnerships, civil unions, or marriages within states that recognize these unions? Are they going to count the children of these relationships in a way that reflects these children’s legal parentage? Sanchez will be the one tracking this particular concern for Rep. Frank and our LGBT community, and working to see that our LGBT families are counted in a manner that accurately counts our families.

Just looking at his LinkedIn profile, there is just no doubt that Sanchez’s 30-years of experience in Healthcare, HIV/AIDS, press relations, communications, and LGBT issues, as well as his experience as being on the DNC Platform Committee and an At-Large Delegate at last year’s Democratic National Convention, shows that he’s extremely well qualified for his new position.

So why report on this new hire in Rep. Frank’s Office? Well, not only is Diego Sanchez a well-qualified candidate applying for a congressional job, but Sanchez is also Latino; Sanchez is also a transman. As a transman, he’ll be the first out trans person to ever work as a senior staffer in a DC congressional office.

And, Diego Sanchez’s hire by Rep. Frank not only breaks the DC congressional office barrier for trans people, but he breaks that barrier for trans people of color:

As a Latino, formerly as a Latina woman, and now as a transman, I’ve been a lot of ‘firsts’ but it doesn’t make me token. It makes me first to get a chance and it usually feels tardy, for me and many others who are capable but don’t get a shot.
–Diego Sanchez

Perhaps surprisingly, Sanchez isn’t the first trans person to ever work as senior staff for a congressperson. Rep. Norm Coleman (R-MN) has employed Susan Kimberly as his Chief of Staff in his home district office.

[More below the fold.]

Read the rest of this entry »

News and views for Wednesday, November 12th …

[TN, USA] “The nation’s largest gay civil rights organization is calling for a thorough investigation of the murder of a transgender woman who was preparing to sue Memphis police … The Human Rights Campaign issued a statement Wednesday, saying the Memphis Police Department needs to renew its “commitment to treating transgender people with respect and fairness.” Police say the shooting is under investigation and no arrests have been made.” — Group Wants Probe of Transgender Woman’s Death

[TN, USA] “When the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Act passed through Congress in 2007, President George W. Bush vetoed the bill. President-Elect Barack Obama has pledged to support the bill. The transgender community, however, would still be left in the cold should it pass. The Tennessee Transgender Political Coalition is pushing a Hate Crimes Enhancement bill that would add gender identity and expression to the definition. We remain cautiously optimistic about what effect, if any, hate crime legislation would have on the actual act itself, but if something like this could pass in Tennessee, well, who knows?” — Transgendered in Tennessee–Dangerous Enough For New Legislation?

[KS, USA] “Debra Davis is a hugger. She describes herself as a parent, grandmother, good friend and good neighbor. She’s also a transgender person. Davis will be relating her experiences in her presentation “Transgender: The New Face on Campus” tonight at 7 at the Courtside Room in the Burge Union. The presentation, of which Davis has given more than 1,000, has taken her to campuses across the Midwest, including previous visits to the University. Davis said she enjoyed speaking at each school because of the experiences she had at each one … Davis said the point of her presentation was to explain how people become transgender individuals. She said the issue was not clear-cut. “I don’t know if I even understand the whole thing,” Davis said.” — Speaker sheds light on transgender life

[VT, USA] ” A professional makeover: A gift Michele Todd desperately wanted to give herself for decades, but didn’t. Not because she couldn’t afford a visit to the salon. She had the money. Michele feared a new look would devastate her family and friends and get her fired from her job, because the makeover she wanted would be drastic. Michele lived most of her life as Michael. “I want to work and breathe and live 24-7 as Michele,” she explains. Earlier this year, she legally changed her name, started wearing women’s clothes in public, and now walks solely in Michele’s shoes. The 51-year-old is transgender. She was born with male genitalia but identifies as female.” — Understanding Transgender

[USA] “Is the baby a boy or girl? Few things are harder for new parents than hearing their doctor say, “I don’t know.” “It is shocking,” said Katrina Karkazis, PhD, the author of a new book, Fixing Sex: Intersex, Medical Authority and Lived Experience, which will be released by Duke University Press on Nov. 14. Shame and confusion may overwhelm parents whose infant’s anatomy doesn’t match typical male or female patterns, Karkazis said. “It’s not something you find in most books that prepare you for having a baby.”” — Stanford author explores struggles of intersex individuals, their families and doctors

Katrina Karkazis discusses the struggles that face intersex people with the school’s executive director of communications, Paul Costello. Length: 17 mins. — Interview with Katrina Karkazis

[USA] “When Dr. H. walked into the examination room, he didn’t say hello. He didn’t shake my hand. He just started the examination. Then I noticed he was wearing latex gloves. (He never wore latex gloves for routine examinations.) He didn’t want to be in the same room with me. He didn’t want to touch me. Normally he would take my pulse by touching either my wrist or my neck. He did neither. When he listened to my heart he normally rested the stethoscope on the bare skin of my upper chest just inside the collar of my shirt. He didn’t do that. (He rested it right on the fabric of my shirt.) When he was finished he wrote the prescription, handed it to me and said: “we’re finished and I’m outta here.” He left the room and that was the last time I saw him. Interesting, he detests the Transgendered, but he’s not above billing a Transgendered person’s health insurance. (That is so morally bankrupt.) Don’t put money into these doctor’s pockets.” — Doctors, Healthcare Givers and Transsexuals: Discrimination Happens Part Two

[USA] “Yep, those are the two main strains of opinions bellowed across the web when news of Kidman’s casting broke. Either shock and fawning or pure meat-head mentality. What you didn’t hear was many people calling bullshit on the casting. Well, bullshit, bullshit and bullshit … when it comes to material featuring transgendered individuals, there’s no doubt Hollywood locks itself in the safe room … even though it’s an indie, the casting of Kidman as a guy-gone-girl transsexual is a symptom of shrewd, safety-first Hollywood studio mentality. You can almost hear the financiers. She’s a star! She’ll boost box-office! She’ll create instant publicity in a role like this! So it’s not brave or novel casting, but a rather ball-less decision obsessed with the bottom line.” — Hollywood’s Ball-less Decision: Kidman as a Transsexual Male

[USA] “A change is coming to America, and it is a scary one. What will the White House look like under an Obama administration? Well, it may look similar to that of San Francisco during the annual Sodomite parade … Peter LaBarbera, president of Americans for Truth About Homosexuality, says Obama’s new non-discrimination policy will be an “open door” for gender-confused and cross-dressing federal employees …All of this is an attempt to further the so called civil-rights protections of Sodomites, and eventually lead to legislation that specifically protects homosexuals, and prohibits discrimination based on being a homosexual or “gender confused.” Unfortantely, millions of whites voted for Barack Obama without realizing that the change they voted for is not going to be in the best interest of our dearly beloved America, or their children. A change is coming, and perhaps it’s Obama wearing a dress. Until then.” — Cross-dressers in White House with Obama?

[USA] “The religious right are scared over an Obama presidency and the positive possibilities it may have for the lgbt community. So expect them to batten down all of the hatches and pull out all of their lies about hate crimes legislation, gays serving openly in the military, ENDA, and non-discrimination ordinances in general. With non-discrimination ordinances, they are going to try and exploit ignorance and fear about our transgender brothers and sisters. I see from an item on LaBarbera’s Americans for Truth (in name only) web page and the One News Now webpage, they aren’t wasting any time … ” — And it begins – One News Now and Peter LaBarbera attacks the transgender community

[Australia] “Sometimes it seems an awfully big mountain, and an awfully small teaspoon to be moving it with. I need the occasional story like this to recharge my batteries, and restore my faith in Humankind. ‘When Bishop Gayle Harris asked if we were ready to vote, she didn’t have time to specify that those in favor of the resolution should signify a yes by raising their yellow cards. Yellow cards just started rising, beginning with the left side of the hall. “Hey, what if I had started with the nos?!” she said. But the avalanche was unstoppable: a sea of yellow cards filled the room. When Bishop Harris asked those against the resolution to raise their red cards, I saw no more than 10, again, in a room of about 800 people. I imagine there were some quiet abstentions, but based on that sea of yellow cards, there can’t have been many. So the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts has now gone on record in support of transgender civil rights here in Massachusetts as well as at the federal level, and it has asked the General Convention next summer to augment its non-discrimination canon to include transgender people as part of the ministry of all the baptized.‘ Excelsior.” — A Sea of Yellow Cards Filled the Room

Alex Blaze is doing “Rebel Girl” by Bikini Kill (which reminds me of this photo which I saved for I’m not sure what reason some time back) at Bilerico Project. Check it out there.

No, this is Otis Redding’s rendition of “A Change Is Gonna Come” and the only really “queer” thing here is why it took so long …

Here we go: What I’ve been reading online today, paired with an open thread to discuss these articles, or stuff you find interesting.

- Marriage rights celebration, ‘D-List’ celeb among celebration’s highlights. Excerpt:

After 34 years of celebrating diversity and rights for the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) community in San Diego, the local organization Pride San Diego is reaping the rewards of activism and education.

Comment: I’m volunteering at the Transgender/TASC booth on Saturday, and the Scouting For All booth on Sunday.

The Scouting For All booth is extremely important to me. I have an Eagle Scout son, and I two other sons in scouting. If it were known that my two sons who are still in the Boy Scouts had a transgender parent, in accordance with how the Boy Scouts Of America’s national policy is applied, my sons would be kicked out of scouting. For me, protesting against the Boy Scouts has a lot to do with them discriminating against youth because of how their parents identify their sexuality or gender identity.

- DiversityInc: Jena 6 Aftermath: Nooses Punishable By Prison. Excerpt:

Nine months after the nation began witnessing an uptick in the number of reported noose sightings following the furor over the Jena 6 incident in Louisiana, lawmakers there, as well as in Connecticut and New York, have made hanging a noose a crime punishable by imprisonment. And more states are likely to follow.

Since September of last year, the number of reported noose incidents nationally jumped to nearly 80, according to the DiversityInc Noose Watch, the first and only tracker of national reported noose sightings.

- San Francisco Chronicle: 24% of state high-schoolers likely to drop out. Excerpt:

Nearly 1 in 4 California students will drop out during high school, state educators said Wednesday, basing their prediction on what they said is the most accurate information about student attendance they’ve ever collected.

Using a new student-tracking system, state educators found that 127,292 high school students in ninth through 12th grade quit school during the 2006-07 school year. That means 24 percent of incoming freshmen won’t stay in school long enough to graduate, researchers said, assuming that pace remains steady.

…The new dropout rate is far higher than the 13 percent educators had earlier estimated using less-sophisticated counting methods they had relied on for years.

Comment: I wonder what the graduation and dropout rates are for LGBT youth — I did a quick look this morning, and couldn’t find any statistics on the subject. I’m sure they’re out there, but I’m not sure where to look for the stats.

- MSNBC: Gore pitches 10-year shift to clean energy; Former VP praises Obama, McCain on climate issue, sees huge opportunity. Excerpt:

Just as John F. Kennedy set his sights on the moon, Al Gore is challenging the nation to produce every kilowatt of electricity through wind, sun and other climate-friendly energy sources within 10 years, an audacious goal he hopes the next president will embrace.

- Bay Windows: A novel defense: Convict’s bid for retrial hinges on alleged anti-trans discrimination against potential juror. Excerpt:

At first glance the murder trial of Roxbury gang member Sam Smith, known as “Fat Sam” according to press reports, seems to have little to do with transgender civil rights. In June 2001 a jury convicted Smith of first-degree murder for shooting and killing a member of a rival gang in Roxbury’s Ramsey Park in 1991. But Smith and his attorney, David Mirsky, are hoping that the U.S. Supreme Court will force the state to grant Smith a retrial on the grounds that one of the prosecutors in the case allegedly dismissed a juror because the juror appeared to be transgender.

- Los Angeles Times: Blue Shield sued for allegedly lying about its coverage; L.A. city attorney’s suit contends Blue Shield of California has illegally rescinded the coverage of more than 850 policyholders since 2002.

Comment: * sigh *

- The Lesbian & Gay Foundation (UK): Open meeting held for gay community and local police. Excerpt:

On Monday July 28, the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community will have an opportunity to meet representatives from Merseyside Police and the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) to discuss homophobia and hate crime.

The meeting, organised by the Police, the CPS, Terrence Higgins Trust, Wirral LGBT forum and Trans Wirral will be held from 6.30 -8.30pm at The Lauries Centre in Birkenhead.

The open meeting, ‘Merseyside Police and Hate Crime response’ allows members of the LGBT community to meet directly with representatives of Merseyside Police and the CPS to address concerns around homophobic and transphobic incidents and other safety concerns. Homophobic incidents and attacks are often under reported and this meeting will provide a forum for open and honest dialogue.

Comment: I hope this clears some air, but my guess is that bad feelings from the incident that precipitated this meeting are going to linger for awhile.

When it comes to gay owned and/or operated brick and mortar businesses discriminating against transgender people, one just has to look at gay bars as having examples of the worst offenders.

Take Colorado’s Denver Wrangler. They are so brazen in their discrimination against transgender people that they’ve posted their discriminatory policy on their website:

- Gender matching I.D. required.
- I.D. must be state issued photo identification or driver license, military I.D., US passport or visa.
- I.D. must be current (not expired).

Which class of people do you imagine has identification cards where the sex marker doesn’t match the gender presentation? If you guessed transgender people — the same transgender people who are protected against public accommodation discrimination in Colorado’s new public accommodation anti-discrimination law — you guessed correctly.

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that if the Wrangler’s policies were challenged by a complaint to the Denver Anti-Discrimination Office by even one potential transgender patron, the city’s ARTICLE IV (that covers public accommodation) indicates the bar is blatantly violating the law with an unlawful policy — I’m sure one potential transgender patron’s complaint would result in the city suing Wrangler’s. (And geez, that’s not even basing a complaint on the new state public accommodation law, of which Wrangler’s is also in violation of!)

Although…I guess I could ask my rocket scientist friend Zoe Brain to get a her opinion on whether or not unlawful discrimination is occurring. I’m not sure a rocket scientist’s opinion would add anything to the discussion, but I guess it couldn’t hurt to know what a rocket scientist thinks about this.

Wrapping this diary up, let me point out that Pam’s House Blend is going to Denver in late August for the Democratic National Convention. Whatever shall I do should the bar’s discriminatory policy be still in place when PHB makes the trip to the Mile High City? I’m sure my rocket scientist friend could provide y’all with some good guesses about some lawful behaviors I may engage in at the Denver Wrangler‘s location.

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Related:
* Q Of The Day: When Is It Okay For Gay Owned Businesses To Discriminate Against Transgender People?
* Pam’s House Blend tag for employment – housing – public accommodation
* I’m Going To Colorado In August With PHB; I’m Going To Make Use Of Public Accommodations
* If Dr. Dobson Were King, We’d All Be Wearing Depends
* When It Comes To Transgender People & Civil Rights, It Really Is Always About The Bathroom

One of the things I noticed about the An Examination of Discrimination Against Transgender Americans in the Workplace hearing is that minus the Alliance Defense Fund, there weren’t any conservative Christian organizations speaking at the hearing; minus the Traditional Values Coalition any conservative Christian organizations leaving press materials at the hearing; and minus the ranking minority member of the subcommittee (Rep. John Kline, R-MN) there were no Republicans there to ask questions of the witnesses at the hearing.

So what’s happening now there’s a conservative Christian community characterization of the hearing as if there was serious wave of opposition speaking to trans employment issues — but they didn’t actually have much presense there opposing any future gender idenity and expression inclusive legislation in person.

Some examples of online, conservative Christian commentary:

- PFOX: Congressional Hearing To Push Gender Confusion Upon All Americans

[OneNewsNow/American Family Association, Peter LaBarbera, Focus On The Family/CitizenLink, Concerned Women For America, and Traditional Values Coalition commentaries below the fold.]
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From the Los Angeles Times:

The San Diego Union-Tribune added that fourteen county clerks inquired about religious exemptions to performing marriages:

Focus On The Family/CitizenLink got the facts wrong over the numbers…

It’s easy to give easy digs on Focus On The Family/CitizenLink/Focus on the Family Action for their marriage is the union of a man and a woman language, other than I feel a need to join RadicalRuss in pointing out Sen. Obama recently started using the same language on marriage equality as conservative Christians are using — again.

Read the rest of this entry »

“To be called an ‘it,’ I’m a human being, not an ‘it.”
–Songwriter Tanya White

Here we go again with bathrooms.

Apparently last September, songwriter Tanya White was kicked out of the Beverly Hills Hotel’s women’s restroom because she looked too masculine. Oh — and apparently hotel security called her the anti-transgender pejorative “it” in the process, even though she’s a natal woman.

Well, now White and her attorney, Gloria Allred, are publicizing the incident. From the Los Angeles ABC affiliate (KABC – video included with the story):

A woman who says she was kicked out of the Beverly Hills Hotel while trying to use the restroom is demanding an apology.

Songwriter Tanya White admits she doesn’t dress like the typical woman, but she says security guards went too far when they confronted her in the women’s bathroom at the hotel last September.

White claims that even after proving she was a woman, they told her to get out and escorted her off the premises.

“The men said, ‘You need to get out of the bathroom.’ When Latrice said, ‘She’s supposed to be here, she’s a woman,’ security responded, ‘It needs to leave,’” said attorney Gloria Allred.

Very reminiscent of the Caliente Cab restaurant incident.

Read the rest of this entry »

From the Bay Area Reporter:

A shareholder proposal to amend Verizon Communications Inc.’s written equal employment policy to explicitly prohibit discrimination based on gender identity was voted down May 1, but backers of the plan say they were encouraged by the amount of support it got, and the group that proposed the resolution will bring it back next year.

Preliminary results showed that the resolution, which was opposed by the company’s board of directors, won 17 percent of shareholder approval. It takes 3 percent for a proposal to come back, which it achieved. According to Alberto Canal, of Verizon media relations, more than 2 billion votes were cast. Canal said the company has 340 employees in the Bay Area.

I believe the most disheartening piece of news from the Bay Area Reporter piece was the position of the LGBT employee group at Verizon — they apparently supported the board position (emphasis added):

When asked about the board’s stance on the resolution, Verizon’s Canal reiterated the company’s “zero tolerance” policy. He also said that GLOBE, the company’s LGBT employee resource group, supported the position.

As a customer that identifies as transgender and transsexual, next month I’ll be cancelling my service with Verizon — no matter what the financial cost. I won’t do business with a company where even its LGBT group won’t support a written policy of employment equality for its transgender employees.

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Related:
* DiversityInc’s No. 1 Employer Is Against Gender Identity/Expression In Non-Discrimination Policy
* Verizon’s GLOBE President Responds

(Oops, this didn’t post last night … )

The road to somewhere is paved with good intentions … It doesn’t look, at the moment, like there’ll be a (certainly not a) timely posting of a last week’s “transgender news in review,” which I just started last week and hope to do regularly.

Primary voting day tomorrow in North Carolina … first time that I can recall a primary here having (any Presidential) significance. Am I happy with my choices? No. But, I’ll be voting for HC, for what it’s worth. I’m hoping to get my father, who’s in his ’90′s now, out to vote. He hasn’t missed getting to the polls ever that I remember, but … this time might be the first … he’s been a bit worse for the wear recently. Bummer.

Maybe it’s just me, but I thought there were some positives in the news story about the transgender youngster in the Philadelphia Inquirer today (about which Autumn commented earlier today) — parent Valerie Huff’s comment that “The kids don’t make any big deal about it at all” and that of Mary Beth Lauer, the school district’s director of community relations, that the “students seem to be accepting their classmate’s change” — for example. On the flip side, aside from the issues that Autumn addressed, using bete noire Paul McHugh for the oppositional viewpoint, was a mighty big turnoff to me.

I was much distressed by Eight Belles’ breakdown in the Kentucky Derby on Saturday, but PETA doesn’t seem to me to have much of a clue about horse racing, frankly, and its criticisms (“euthanized in the dirt where she lay,” “Eight Belles’ jockey whipped her mercilessly,” etc.) of that day’s events are more than a bit out of touch and way over the top.

Good question: “If it’s so great to be smart, why have most animals remained dumb?”

Because it works: “Watching Bush speak you realize he’s a really dumb person who thinks everyone in the room is even dumber than he is.” (Don’t tell me it took anyone over seven years to realize that.)