Follow Up To Yesterday’s Post

Special noon edition.

In yesterday’s post We Face This Bigotry Everyday I post about the trans man being outed on Survivor, there was an article about the decision to show his outing.

‘Survivor’: CBS Supports Producers’ Handling Of Transgender Outing Episode – Update
Deadline
By Liz Calvario
April 13, 2017

UPDATED, 2 PM: CBS released a statement Thursday expressing support for the way producers handled Wednesday night’s episode, in which a contestant told his tribemates that a fellow contestant is a transgender man, outing his castmate against his will. You can read the statement below in full:

“After the tribal council scene in last night’s Survivor was filmed, we consulted with Zeke Smith and with GLAAD in advance of the broadcast, including the issue of how Zeke would tell his story after the episode aired. This is his second consecutive season on Survivor. From his first season through the current edition, we have always been guided by the principle that this is his story to tell, and it remains so.

We support how Jeff Probst and the producers handled a very sensitive situation and marvel at the grace Zeke exhibited under extraordinary circumstances. We also have respect for how Jeff Varner has expressed remorse for his mistake, both in the episode and in his subsequent dialogue with the media. In the end, we believe this episode, accompanied by Zeke’s own remarkable writing and speaking on the subject, has provided an unexpected but important dialogue about acceptance and treating transgender people with respect.”

I don’t think that I can criticize CBS and the producers of the show if they asked Zeke first if it was okay to show the footage, it seems like CBS and the producers did the right thing in asking.

But in no way does it let Jeff Varner off the hook, he had only one thing that motivated him in outing Zeke… MONEY or one million dollars to be precise.

And I still want to know how Jeff Varner found out Zeke is trans.

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Update 4:00PM

I came across two more articles that I want to share.

The first is from GLAAD,

Nick Adams, Director of GLAAD's Transgender Media Program, said:

"Zeke Smith, and transgender people like him, are not deceiving anyone by being their authentic selves, and it is dangerous and unacceptable to out a transgender person. It is heartening, however, to see the strong support for Zeke from the other people in his tribe. Moments like this prove that when people from all walks of life get to know a transgender person, they accept us for who we are."

GLAAD's Transgender Media Program worked with Zeke Smith and CBS for several months to ensure that when the episode aired Zeke would have the opportunity to speak for himself about his experience.

And in a comments…

Before any more conversations/actions an issue needs to be addressed. Mr. Varner the "outer" is a GAY MAN. Mr. Varner has said this himself and on the progam (sic) mentioned "that he has been fighting for gay righrs (sic) for a long time". REALLY???? REALLY?????

So here was have a gay man who should have known better than to out a person.

The other article is,

Outing Transgender People Isn’t Just Wrong... It’s Potentially Deadly
This week’s “Survivor” controversy sheds light on a fatal issue.
Huffington Post Queer Voices
By Noah Michelson
April 14, 2017

Zeke Smith was outed on national television on Wednesday night during one of the most shocking episodes of “Survivor’s” 34-season history.

In a strategic ― but wholly reprehensible ― move, contestant Jeff Varner revealed that Smith is transgender, thereby attempting to curry favor with the rest of his tribe with this disclosure and avoid being voted off the show.

“There is deception here. Deceptions on levels... that these guys don’t even understand,” Varner said. “Why haven’t you told anyone that you’re transgender?”

Smith and the other players were stunned ― and outraged ― and after his indefensible scheme backfired, Varner was sent packing.
[…]
“I think [Varner] hoped others would believe that trans people are dangerous and fraudulent,” Smith told People. “That reasoning is infinitely worse than him outing me because it’s the same one used to discriminate against, attack and murder trans people. What’s great is that nobody bought it.”

Unfortunately, too many people still do “buy” the lies that are told about trans people and those lies can have deadly consequences. In fact, seven trans people, all of them trans women of color, have been murdered in 2017, and that’s just the victims that we know about. In 2016 at least 27 trans people were killed.

“It’s crucial to note that when people can make the choice to keep their trans identity private, as Zeke was able to until recently, they sometimes do so to shield themselves from the potential safety risks that come with being openly trans,” Jay Wu, Media Relations Manager for the National Center For Transgender Equality, told The Huffington Post in an email on Thursday. “Framing privacy as ‘deception’ plays into some of the same tropes that can lead to discrimination and violence against trans people. Trans people face discrimination in all areas of life―including finding housing, seeking work, and going to school.”

We are the ones who get to decide where and when or even if we want to share our history.