Bring About Chance Through Education

Yesterday I was at a local college with three other friends on a panel to talk about ourselves and trans-issues. Why do we do it?

I cannot speak for the others, but I do it to help those who will come after us. I believe that the way to bring about chance is to educate others. Many of the comments that we heard after the classes went something like this, I never met a transgender person before and I found out that many of my preconceived notions were wrong. For many people they have many ideas about trans-people… it’s all about sex, they are just really gay men, they are all drag queens, etc. When we do an “Outreach” we dispel many of those myths. We put a human face on an abstract image. Maybe the next time they hear someone make a derogatory comment about a trans-person, they might speak up and say, you know I met some trans-people in class and they are just like everyone else.

Over the weekend I gave three workshops at two conferences, one at a professional organization, the National Association of Social Workers, Connecticut chapter and the other two at the Trans Health and Law conference. Why? Because I hear all the time at trans support groups, “I can’t find a therapist that will treat a trans-person.” Maybe, the workshops will change that, that more therapists might be willing to have a client who is trans.

Tomorrow, I am attending a breakfast meeting of the LGBT chamber of commerce, the Connecticut Association for Business Opportunities (CABO) where I’m meeting a manager of a resort hotel to talk about how they can set up an EEO policy for trans employees.

I realize that not everyone is “Out” and for many trans-people they have real concerns about being out, they could lose their family, their friends, their job and even their lives. However, you can still help without outing yourself, just speak up when you hear someone making a derogatory comment or joke at our expense. Just say I don’t joke about people who are different or we are all human and deserve respect. You can bring about change just by speaking up and speaking out. The same is true for our allies, speak up and speak out when you hear or see someone making fun of or joking about transgender people. Your voice carries more weight than ours, because you are not speaking about your own interest, but for others.