The Moveable Middle

One of the primary lessons in grad school for community organizing is go for the moveable middle that is where you want to spend your resources. Don’t waste your time on people you can’t change their minds and thank your allies.

ABC News Chicago Reveals the Cruelty of Christian Conservatives
Pathos
By Patrick L Green
December 27, 2018

Transgender people are disgusting abominations who should have no rights in Trump’s America! This was the overriding theme in the comments by conservative Christians in response to ABC Chicago News’ coverage about me and my child. The cruelty, crassness and utter disregard for human decency by many of the Christian conservatives that commented on the story about me and my child on ABC are no longer shocking. But this just got personal.

I am not going to give them the attention they so crave by giving you links and names. Over the last week I have seen horrific and dehumanizing statements, memes and sentiments of hate spewed in various spaces of social media. They have been local firefighters, educators, retirees and even a police officer. If you go to their page to learn more, you will see American flags, pictures of Donald Trump, Crosses, Bible passages and other assorted showings of their dangerous and deadly version of god and America. Not only have I read them, so has my child and other transgender people and their families.

What Those Who Hate Need to Know
1. You are on the wrong side of history. We have seen their ilk before. The Southern Baptist Convention was started from a pro slavery position. They could not, in the name of their god, allow slavery to be made illegal and immoral. We’ve also seen the Christian response to hold back women’s equality, Civil Rights and many other things. Each and every time they lose. Furthermore, like the Southern Baptists did, they often have to renounce their forefathers of hate. One day, the people who speak ill of my child will be the very people a future generation will likely have to denounce with a near unanimous vote.

2. Very few people celebrate your bile and see beauty in your Christ. In their scripture they believe they have a great commission to spread the good news of the gospel. In the name of a god with no gender who is referred to as a father and a mother and a Jesus who spoke of forgiveness and love for all, they spread ill will.
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Transgender people are winning elections, entering beauty pageants, competing and winning in professional sports, getting ordained in churches, starting businesses and are integral parts of society. Over the last five years I have met many transgender teens who are now in college. They are going to be therapists, biologists, accountants, politicians, teachers, nurses, doctors, business leaders and so much more. They will continue to protect your freedom in the armed forces, put out the fires in your neighborhood and keep the peace when you have to call 911. Transgender people have been a part of your history and your present reality. Make no mistake, they are a part of your future.

The Trump administration has done everything in its power to erase us and his loyal followers have taken their clues to hate us. The haters have crawled out form the swamp and have received the green light to attack us, to discriminate against, and to harass not just us but anyone who is different.

We have to change the minds of those who are not diehard supporters of bigotry and we need to show the middle the way out of the mess that Trump has created.