Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Forging Our Own

Back in June OutServe-Servicemembers Legal Defense Network asked its executive director, Allyson Robinson, to resign under controversial circumstances. We don’t know the who story but it seems like OutServe/SLDN might be having financial problems, my guess is that once DADT was repealed all the donations from gays and lesbians dried up. We have seen that so many time, the organizations promise we will come back for you but their members say with their pocketbooks, screw you, we got ours and walk away.

Well now a group of trans-sevicemembers and their allies has started their own organization, Service Members, Partners, Allies for Respect and Tolerance for All, or SPΛRT*A.
Transgender Group Leaves OutServe-SLDN, Joins Startup Group SPART*A
The transgender group of OutServe-Servicemembers Legal Defense Network announced Monday that it is cutting ties with the embattled organization, partnering with a new splinter group formed in the wake of a public controversy.
Advocate
By Sunnivie Brydum
July 22 2013

A group of transgender veterans and members currently serving in the armed forces announced today that they are leaving the embattled LGBT military advocacy group OutServe-Servicemembers Legal Defense Network to join a new startup group focused more explicitly on securing open military service for transgender individuals.

A press release today announced the formation of Service Members, Partners, Allies for Respect and Tolerance for All, or SPΛRT*A, a "group of LGBT people and allies who are currently serving or have served in the military, and our families," that is "especially committed to our Trans members… and to gaining full equality for them in the U.S. Armed Forces. SPART*A's Facebook page is currently active, while a website for the fledgling group is still under construction.
The article also goes on to say that the Military Transgender Group has divorced itself OutServe-SLDN and said that,
...in a statement issued Monday. "This process has been painful, and strained personal and professional relationships that had previously been strong… The ultimate question we had to answer was where we need to be in order to most effectively move the issue of open service for transgender people forward. Unfortunately, it was the considered opinion of our members that OutServe-SLDN will not be able to represent our interests effectively for the foreseeable future."
So will OutServe-SLDN no longer be working to end discrimination in the military against trans-sevicemembers? SPART*A will need time to organize and get up to speed, stay tune for further updates.

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