I Wouldn’t Say Pioneers

I would not say these are trans pioneers but rather prominent leaders in the trans community, some of them are in their teens and twentys.

13 Transgender Pioneers Reflect On The State Of Queer Politics Today
“The work isn’t done until it’s done.”
Huffington Post
By JamesMichael Nichols  Queer Voices Deputy Editor,
August 14, 2016

Over the past ten months, Huffington Post Queer Voices has presented in an ongoing project called “Voices of Liberation.” Throughout the course of this enterprise, we spoke with 13 significant and historic transgender and gender non-conforming individuals to share their stories and discuss their continuous struggles to achieve liberation for all marginalized people.

In a time when conversations surrounding transgender identity are taking shape at an increasing rate in mainstream culture, the images and stories of trans people being broadcast to the public often don’t reflect the nuances of the vast spectrum of trans experiences.

As a result, HuffPost felt that a platform was needed to elevate the voices that don’t receive television or media attention and discuss their stories, work and the future of the movement.

From teenage transgender icon Jazz Jennings to adult film star and educator Buck Angel to Stonewall Rioter and legend Miss Major, these 13 people have all played their part in shaping the foundation that led to what TIME magazine declared in 2014 to be the mainstream “Transgender Tipping Point.” As we move forward as queer, trans and gender-nonconforming people into an increasingly hostile political climate, we’ve gathered the thoughts of these 13 individuals together in one place to reflect on the current state of queer politics and life, and how we should go about engaging in the fight for the liberation of all marginalized groups of people as our movement continues to evolve.

And who did they ask?

CeCe McDonald, Kate Bornstein, Laura Jane Grace, Buck Angel, Calpernia Addams, Ts Madison, Amos Mac, Caroline Cossey, Andrea James, Miss Majors and Jazz Jennings, I am not saying that they are not activists but what I am saying is that a number of them are not “pioneers” or “played their part in shaping the foundation “ some of them are in their twenties or thirties and one is still in her teens.

I am old but I wouldn’t call myself a pioneer because I just came on in 2000. While Kate Bornstein, Miss Majors, Buck Angel, Calpernia Addams, Caroline Cossey, and Andrea James are the ones that I call pioneers. Also I would call people like Monica Roberts, Phyllis Frye, Monica Helms, Vanessa Edward Foster, Jessica Xavier, Dallas Denny, and many, many others paved the way for us.

But I would also like to comment on “The State Of Queer Politics Today” I think it all depends upon where you live, it can be heaven or hell. If you are lucky enough to live in a Blue State you will probably have protections in place for LGBT people but if you live in a Red State it could be hell for you.

We have made great gains on the federal level but that was all by presidential executive order or by regulations or in the courts and we had a number of high placements of trans people by presidential appointments, but they can all be wiped away by the next  election.

A lot will hinge on the elections because not only are we electing a president we are also electing the justices to the Supreme Court, we are electing the next Attorney General of the United States, and the heads of the Department of Education because these all will be appointed by the next president.

Violence Cannot Get A Free Ride

Religions cannot get a free ride on violence because they claim that the punishment will go against their religious beliefs.

Hasids who beat gay black man try to dodge service in ‘diverse’ neighborhood
NY Post
By Emily Saul
August 9, 2016

Two Shomrim thugs who copped a cushy plea deal to dodge jail for beating a gay black man are now refusing to even do their community service — because it would be in a “culturally diverse neighborhood.’’

Pinchas Braver, 22, and Abraham Winkler, 42, admitted to helping to beat fashion student Taj Patterson as he walked down a Williamsburg street in December 2013.

Patterson was pummeled so badly, he suffered a broken orbital socket and torn retina, leaving him permanently blind in one eye.

Braver, Winkler and a third man — all members of the Orthodox Jewish watchdog patrol group — were charged with gang hate crime, which can carry a prison sentence of up to 25 years.

Braver and Winkler agreed to plead guilty to unlawful imprisonment in exchange for three years’ probation, paying $1,400 in restitution and performing 150 hours of community service in a “culturally diverse neighborhood.’’

But now…

Sentencing of Brooklyn Hasidic men on trial for beating gay black man delayed due to questionable community service
New York Daily News
By Christina Carrega-Woodby
August 10, 2016


Braver, 22, and Winkler, 42, will also receive three years probation and pay $1400 in restitution.

Their attorneys advised Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun during a sidebar conference on Tuesday that their clients want to participate with Chai Lifeline for their community service.

According to the organization’s website, they offer a number of services for Jewish children with life threatening illness.

“The people have concerns with the organization, under the plea the community service was to be in a culturally diverse atmosphere,” the judge said after the parties took a brief break to quickly research the organization.

This should now be allowed! The assault was hate crime, they attacked the person because he was gay and by allowing them to do their community service in their own religious community would reinforce their biases. In addition they agreed to do the community service in a culturally diverse atmosphere, they are reneging on their agreement.

But that is not all, the organization that they are from receive government funding for their community policing.

City Freezes Funding To Brooklyn Jewish Neighborhood Patrol After Member's Arrest
Gothamist
By Nathan Tempey
April 21, 2016

The city is stopping $35,000 in taxpayer funding to the Boro Park Shomrim, an ultra-Orthodox Jewish volunteer neighborhood patrol group, after federal agents arrested one of its leaders for allegedly bribing police to issue gun licenses to people who would otherwise have been ineligible.

The money was set aside for the group last summer by Brooklyn councilmen David Greenfield and Chaim Deutsch, and the mayor's office is holding off on signing for the payments until, a spokeswoman said, City Hall assesses that the Shomrim group is "a responsible vendor."

Politico New York reported that the city gave the organization $425,708 from 2010 to 2015, including two $10,000 grants from Mayor Bill de Blasio when he was the neighborhood's councilman.

This isn’t the first time that this neighborhood patrol group got into trouble for harassing people.

In 2010, Shomrim members accosted and beat a man named David Flores, who they accused of public masturbation, and he shot four of them in the ensuing struggle, none fatally. At trial, he was cleared of 15 charges in connection with the shooting, and convicted only of weapon possession, after jurors found that the volunteer patrolmen may not have had cause to stop Flores, and may have been the aggressors.

These two men cannot be allow to receive special treatment because of their religious beliefs, they should face the same punishment as anyone else would receive.

Why I Am Voting Democrat

One of the top reasons is this ad…

You will never see an ad like this coming from a Republican. Instead you will find the Republicans falling over one another to go to conferences like this,

Rubio, Trump face criticism over religious conference held two months after Pulse massacre
Tampa Bay Times: The Buzz
By Alex Leary, Times Washington Bureau Chief
August 10, 2016

Criticism continues to mount over an appearance of Marco Rubio — and now Donald Trump — at a religious conference in Orlando this week that comes two months after the Pulse shootings that devastated the gay community and generated international mourning

“Just when you think Donald Trump and Marco Rubio couldn’t go any lower, they announce plans to court anti-LGBTQ activists in Orlando. On Thursday, Donald Trump and Marco Rubio are going to seek votes from people who fundamentally believe we are not equal, who support dangerous and harmful conversion therapy and who have worked to export anti-LGBTQ hate abroad,” Human Rights Campaign said in a news release.
[…]
Rubio last week said in a statement to the Tampa Bay Times: “The event I will be speaking at in Orlando is a gathering of local pastors and faith leaders. Leave it to the media and liberal activists to label a gathering of faith leaders as an anti-LGBT event. It is nothing of the sort. It is a celebration of faith.”

Well Senator Rubio, if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and looks like a duck it is a duck. If they talk about anti-LGBT topics at the conference it is an anti-LGBT conference.

But that has not quieted critics who say his appearance shows he is out of step with the country and incredibly insensitive given the timing and some of the speakers who will join Rubio.

For instance, Mat Staver, chairman of the Liberty Counsel, said that some mourning after the Pulse shooting amounted to a “homosexual love fest …. That’s not something that we need to celebrate, this is a tragedy that is against all Americans.”

Liberty Counsel are behind many of the anti-trans laws that have been popping up in state legislatures around the nation. You might remember here in Connecticut when the town of Enfield was sued for wanting to hold their high school graduation in church, it was Liberty Counsel that represented the town and also they were the law firm who represented the Rowan County, Kentucky court clerk Kim Davis.

The Republicans are doing everything they can to prevent us from getting our civil rights. They are using hate and religion against us.

When You Stir Up Hate…

You don’t know where it will flow. You have no control over the mob mentality because hate know no boundaries.

This dad was beaten up for taking his little girl into a Walmart men’s room to pee
Pink News
By Joseph Patrick McCormick
May 26, 2016

A dad has been beaten up for taking his 5-year-old daughter into a men’s room in Walmart to pee.

Christopher Adams, a father of two, took his son, Kyler, 7, and his daughter, Emery, 5, into the men’s room at his local Walmart.

The father says his family went shopping on Sunday, and that he took the kids into the restroom when they needed to pee.

Speaking to KSL-TV, Adams says he was met with confrontation by a man who said he thought Emery should not have been allowed into a men’s bathroom.

“This guy walks in and goes to the bathroom, the urinal,” Adams said.

“Then he just, like, turns to me and starts freaking out, dropping the F-bomb — and what he was freaking out about was that my daughter was in the men’s bathroom.”

Saying the man said it was “inappropriate” for the girl to be in the restroom, Adams said he tried to get his kids out of the man’s way.

But before they could leave, the man beat-up Adams, punching him as he turned away, bruising his eye.

First there is a double standard, a woman who brings a little boy into the women’s bathroom doesn’t have any problems but when a man brings in a little girl to the men’s bathroom many people think the worst.

Then there is all the hate being generated against trans people using the bathroom of their gender identity. Awhile back a woman was attacked in another Walmart then it was a Walmart in Danbury Connecticut.

The attack comes amid a national battle over trans bathroom rights, with several states having passed laws to limit trans people to the bathroom corresponding with their birth gender.

More than a million people people have joined a boycott of the superstore in recent weeks led by far-right anti-LGBT groups, after the store confirmed that transgender people were able to use their preferred bathroom.

It comes after Target confirmed it “welcomes transgender team members and guests to use the restroom or fitting room facility that corresponds with their gender identity.”

A number of protesters have taken to disrupting Target stores directly – with one man sparking a lockdown in Illinois, while in another incident a woman waved a Bible while warning customers “the devil will rape your children”.

When you stir up hate it bring out those who are looking for a place to direct their hate, it give them permission to vent their hate. We see it in North Carolina where reports of violence and harassment against people who don’t fit the stereotypical image of a binary gender.

He Hit The Nail On Its Head

A Catholic bishop got it exactly right when he wrote in his blog…

ORLANDO, ORLANDO WE LOVE YOU
Today I write with a heavy heart arising from the tragedy which occurred in the early morning hours yesterday at a Gay, Lesbian, Transgender night club in Orlando, our neighbor to the east. Yesterday, the best I could muster was to send these words by text message to my brother, Bishop John Noonan, bishop of Orlando: “John, I am so sorry. With love to and for all.” Today with a new dawn, I once again have some thoughts which I wish to share.

Our founding parents had no knowledge of assault rifles which are intended to be weapons of mass destruction. In crafting the second amendment to the Constitution which I affirm, they thought only of the most awkward of pistols and heavy shotguns. I suspect they are turning in their graves if they can but glimpse at what their words now protect. It is long past time to ban the sale of all assault weapons whose use should be available only to the armed forces. If one is truly pro-life, then embrace this issue also and work for the elimination of sales to those who would turn them on innocents.

Second, sadly it is religion, including our own, which targets, mostly verbally, and also often breeds contempt for gays, lesbians and transgender people. Attacks today on LGBT men and women often plant the seed of contempt, then hatred, which can ultimately lead to violence. Those women and men who were mowed down early yesterday morning were all made in the image and likeness of God. We teach that. We should believe that. We must stand for that. Without yet knowing who perpetrated the PULSE mass murders, when I saw the Imam come forward at a press conference yesterday morning, I knew that somewhere in the story there would be a search to find religious roots. While deranged people do senseless things, all of us observe, judge and act from some kind of religious background. Singling out people for victimization because of their religion, their sexual orientation, their nationality must be offensive to God’s ears. It has to stop also.

Third, responding by barring people of Muslim only faith from entering the country solely because of their stated faith until they can be checked out is un-American, even in these most challenging of times and situations. There are as many good, peace loving and God fearing Muslims to be found as Catholics or Methodists or Mormons or Seventh Day Adventists. The devil and devilish intent escape no religious iteration.

Will we ever learn? I hope so but until the above three points are taken seriously by society, sadly, tragically, we can expect more Orlandos. May the souls of those faithful departed who met their God early Sunday morning rest in peace, and those recovering from deep wounds heal, help and hope.

+RNL

He is so right when he says that religion is stirring up the hate, Catholics to some extent but it is those other religions that call for our death or call us perverts and other names that are stirring up the violence against us. It is those so called “Family Institutes” that want to criminalize us and want to force us back into the closet that are doing the damage. Also it is the Republican Party that is also agitating the hate against us.

But the Bishop is also right in what he said about guns.

For over two hundred years we had realistic gun control states and cities could limit the types of guns and who could have them but it was the Reagan Supreme Court that turned everything into the Wild West again with gun toting crazies walking down the street with semi-automatic weapons.

As the Bishop said when the Constitution was written never in their wildest dreams could they imagine semi-automatic weapons, guns that could fire as fast as you pulled the trigger. One time I went to Sturbridge Village and in one building they had a display of flintlock muskets and they had a sign there that called all the men in the village to “muster” on the town green, the Sturbridge Village website said,

To supplement the meager armed forces, most early 19th-century farmers and craftsmen were required by law to serve in local militia units - the forerunner of today's National Guard. Every spring these citizen-soldiers were "called to muster" for a day of training.

That was the purpose of “A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." It was for the citizen soldier or to protect your home from Indians, not for a person to be able to walk down a city street with a semi-automatic weapon capable of shooting as fast as you can pull the trigger.

Saturday 9: Into You

Crazy Sam’s Saturday 9: Into You (2016)

On Saturdays I take a break from the heavy stuff and have some fun...
... Because Cat suggested it. Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.


1) In this video, Ariana Grande and her boyfriend take off on a motorcycle. Are your trips usually carefully planned? Or would you prefer to just spontaneously get up and go?
I usually plan my trips if they are over night trips.

2) As they ride through the desert, they pass several cacti. This makes Sam sad, since she had a potted cactus on her desk and managed to kill it in no time. Do you have luck with house plants?
I have a black thumb. I drowned bamboo which is very hard to do.

3) This song mentions the appeal of acting "a little bit scandalous." Tell us about a time you were the subject of gossip.
Oh that is an easy one.
When I was laid off from work, one of my technicians somehow found out that I am trans and the day I left he told everyone. One my blog I usually get around a hundred to a hundred and twenty hits a day and on that day I got over five hundred hits! From the log I can tell the ISP (the internet connection that you get your internet from, it will say Comcast Hartford) and the log showed they were all from the company ISP.
But I had the last laugh; I got tons of emails saying how happy they were for me.

4) Ariana's mother is an executive at a company that makes, among other things, alarm systems. Is your home protected by a security system?
Yes, I put it in myself and programed it.
One of the jobs that we got at work was to build a very, very sophisticated security systems and that is all I can say about it because it is classified.

5) Ariana has her own fragrance, "Ari," available at major department stores. When you're at the mall, do you accept the scent strips you're handed? Or do you say, "no, thank you."
I take them and put them in my lingerie draw.

6) Ariana has said Mariah Carey is her "favorite human being on the planet" and her biggest musical influence. Who is your favorite female vocalist?
Oh my… here we go again with picking out the best. How can you pick one?
There are Linda Ronstadt, Carol King, Carly Simons, Patti Smith, Karen Carpenter, Stevie Nicks, Joni Mitchell, Joan Baez, Janis Ian, Emmylou Harris, Bonnie Raitt, the Wilson sisters, k. d. Lang, and the list just goes on and on. How can you pick just one out of this great list of singers?

7) A big fan of horror movies, she admits Freddy Krueger of the Nightmare on Elm Street movies was her favorite growing up. Do you like scary movies?
Nope, they are too scary.
But it is really that I just don’t like the violence associated with them. I remember the old Vincent Price movies, they were scary without all the blood and guts.

8) She had a brief relationship with rapper Big Sean. Do you like rap music?
Nope. I heard a couple of good rap songs but they are few and far between.

9) Random question: Which kid were you in school -- Class Clown, Brain, Jock, Stoner, Cheerleader, Teacher's Pet? 
It depends on what school were you talking about. High school I was a nerd, college I was a stoner, and grad school the teacher’s pet.

We Are Not The Only Ones Fighting Religious Bias

North of the border they are also having problems right-wing conservative Christians.

City removes bus shelter ads about transgender people in public washrooms
Transgender rights advocates say with city's new pro-LGBTQ pledge, the ads never should have been thereCBC News
By Samantha Craggs,
Posted: Aug 11, 2016

The City of Hamilton is rushing to remove three Christian Heritage Party (CHP) ads from local bus shelters that urge restrictions on which public washrooms people who are transgender can use — ads that have local activists fearing the city's pledge to be more transgender-friendly is merely lip service.

The ads, which appear to show a man entering a door marked "Ladies Showers," include the phrase "Where is the justice?"

The CHP also distributed 3,500 flyers to Hamilton Mountain homes. The flyers encourage residents to contact city councillors to especially keep transgender women out of women's washrooms.

When informed of the ads on Wednesday, the city called them offensive and apologized.

"The city will be removing the ads and we are sorry for the offensive nature of them," spokesperson Jasmine Graham said in an email. "We strive to be a welcoming community and are committed to equity and inclusion."

It always amazes me that that people who call themselves “Christians” have no problem lying and using hate for their bigotry.

Sports…

From lesbians in the stands to trans athletes we have a target on our backs.

Seattle Mariners tell lesbian couple to stop 'being affectionate'
At first the Mariners apologized to the lesbian couple, but now the team spokesperson says reports claim the women were inappropriately kissing during the game, something the couple denies.
Out Sports
By Cyd Zeigler
August 10, 2016

An incident involving a lesbian couple at a Seattle Mariners game Friday night has the team both apologizing to and pointing fingers at the couple. The two women are left wondering why they were told that their basic displays of public affection were deemed inappropriate by the people who complained, including a Mariners staffer.

On Friday, Giuliana Garcia and Calista Nabors attended the Mariners' home game against the Anaheim Angels. Garcia, a San Francisco Giants fan, was there to watch the Angels' new pitcher, Tim Lincecum, a former Giant who lasted three innings that night against some hot Mariners bats.

Sometime around the seventh inning, the couple was on the concourse waiting for friends when they were approached by an usher and told that a complaint had been filed against them; They needed to stop "being affectionate" because this was a "family friendly environment" and their actions were against the park's code of conduct, the women said they were told. That code of conduct bans "displays of affection not appropriate in a public, family setting."

The team issued an apology and offered to treat them to another game and they said that “hugging and embracing is totally fine.” which satisfied the couple, but then…

Hale said the usher received two complaints — one of them from a fellow Safeco Field staff member — that the two lesbians were "making out" with one another and should be stopped. Plus, despite Swisher telling the couple that the usher regretted the encounter, Hale told Outsports that the usher's own written statement maintained that the couple was "making out" and that the usher "felt it was not appropriate for the public setting."
[…]
"That's not true at all," Garcia said. "They never said that to us. The entire line they've given me is that they recognized we were just embracing and we shouldn't have been approached in the first place. So that's interesting that they have never shared that complaint to me in any correspondence. We would never make out in public. We would never do that in public. It was just a quick kiss."

I don’t watch much sports (almost nothing at all) but I do see highlights on the news and I don’t know how many times you see a couple kissing and they even put it up on the big screen but it seems like if a lesbian or a gay couple does the same thing it becomes an incident of public displays of affection. It seems to me that the Seattle Mainers have a double standard when it comes to PDA.

And now to…

The Colorado Springs Independent has an article about a trans athlete and her transition. They tell the story her turmoil in deciding to transition in sports.

Bearden finds her true self as transgender athlete
Good Dirt
By Tim Bergsten
June 29, 2016

[…]
For the first time, Bearden shared his story with another person. He told his mother that from about age 6 — perhaps much younger — he had identified as a female. He had wanted to wear his sister's clothes. He wanted long hair and pierced ears. He longed to play on the girls sports teams and to be a Girl Scout. In high school he wore girls clothes under his clothes "so that I could feel comfortable in my own skin."

His mother, of course, accepted him. And Jonathan Bearden began the process of becoming the transgender Jillian Bearden, a female cyclist and runner determined to help other transgender people meet the challenges of daily life, and create awareness about the transgender issue.

The next steps ... Jillian told her wife, Sarah, who helped her find a psychiatrist specializing in helping transgenders. They attended therapy sessions and "worked on our relationship and this idea that there was going to be another woman in the house," Bearden says. They are raising daughter Anna, who calls Bearden "Mama." Bearden also has a son, Conor, who still calls her "Dad."

And then the long process of transitioning.

Throughout her life, she loved cycling. Not long ago she was a strong, accomplished male rider in the Ascent Cycling Series mountain bike races. USA Cycling allows male-to-female transgender riders to compete in sanctioned races, as long as their hormone levels are kept at prescribed levels. Bearden was invited to join a women's cycling team and says the riders have been accepting and supporting. She does well in races, but she is not the fastest girl on the course.

She stepped to the starting line in April for the XTERRA 12K trail race at Cheyenne Mountain State Park, where she finished second in a battle with elite runner Amanda Lee of Boulder. At the time, Lee did not know she was racing against a transgender woman.

But not everyone is okay with a trans athlete,

Lee says some women runners may be angry about racing against, or losing money to, a male-to-female transgender...

Because of her hormone therapy she lost muscle mass and her testosterone levels are lower than a woman of her age. After two years of Cross Gender Hormone therapy our muscle mass compares to that of a natal woman or man and there is no reason why we can’t compete in our true gender.

I Hope They Continue With The Show

The other day Her Story was nominated for an Emmy in the newly created category of outstanding short-format live-action entertainment program.

Her Story: the transgender-themed web series up for a 'shock' Emmy
Jen Richards hoped her show about trans women looking for love in LA would change media perceptions – and it succeeded more than she could imagine
The Guardian
By Zach Stafford
August 10, 2016

When Jen Richards, a transgender film-maker and writer, began developing the web series Her Story, she never imagined it would be as successful as it has been – let alone become the first indie web series to be nominated for an Emmy.

Last month, however, the six-part fictional web series about queer and trans women navigating love and life in Los Angeles accomplished just that when it was nominated in the newly created category of outstanding short-format live-action entertainment program, continuing a growing trend of more representation of queer and trans people within the media.

“We were shocked – still shocked – more than anything,” Richards said, referring to the entire team’s reaction after learning about the nomination. “Obviously we submitted it ourselves for consideration and we had this chance, but it was such a long shot. And after we saw who else got nominated in the category it made it even more unbelievable because we are the only show not by a major television network.”
[…]
Beyond just telling more authentic stories, Richards also wanted to challenge the representation of transgender people in the media.

Currently, most coverage about their lives isn’t positive, she says, and seems to primarily focus on either the battle to access bathrooms in states like North Carolina or the all-time high levels of reported homicides against trans people in the US.

Due to the series focusing so much on finding love, Richards felt that she had an opportunity to “model a possibility” for transgender viewers that went against what they see represented in the news about their lives – especially when it came to relationships.

Please, please continue the story line. I just love the show and if they just continue it until there is a resolution between the characters, there needs to be closure to the storyline.

From Russia With Love

There is a new link to Russia with our politics, a new Russian connection beside Trump and this time it is with Jill Stein. It seems that Dr. Stein attended the Russian news agency Russia Today’s 10^th Anniversary party with Russian President Putin.

This photo shows her sitting at the table with Putin and Michael Flynn, Trump’s military adviser this past December (You can see the whole video of Russian President Putin speech here).

Those seated around the table as reported by Russian Insider are,

Back row, left to right
Michael Flynn - top US spy chief until 2014  Wikipedia
Vladimir Putin
Serb film director Emir Kusturica
Emir Kusturica's wife
Willy Wimmer - prominent German politician  Wikipedia
Jill Stein - Candidate for President for the American Green Party
Sergei Ivanov - Putin's chief of staff - seen as #2 person in terms of political importance in Russia

Front, left to right
Unrecognized
Alexey Gromov - deputy chief of staff responsible for media

Dr. Stein has a video of her trip to Russia where she talks about peace which you can watch here on Russia Today’s YouTube channel where she talks about her peace initiative at the RT conference in Moscow and about world militarism. What gets me is that she is talking about rein in U.S. exceptionism and she met with the person who invade a country without provocation to cease territory in the Crimean, sponsored a Ukrainian civil war and gave missiles to the rebels who shot down a commercial airliner. She praised the person who wants to reignite the cold war. In addition she talks about human rights in a nation that is persecuting LGBT people and other minorities. As one commenter put it “Praising Russian human rights? Could this woman be any more craven?”

What is Russia Today?

The Columbia Journalism Review writes this about RT,

What Is Russia Today?
The Kremlin's propaganda outlet has an identity crisis

[…]
Russia Today was conceived as a soft-power tool to improve Russia’s image abroad, to counter the anti-Russian bias the Kremlin saw in the Western media. Since its founding in 2005, however, the broadcast outlet has become better known as an extension of former President Vladimir Putin’s confrontational foreign policy. Too often the channel was provocative just for the sake of being provocative. It featured fringe-dwelling “experts,” like the Russian historian who predicted the imminent dissolution of the United States; broadcast bombastic speeches by Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez; aired ads conflating Barack Obama with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad; and ran out-of-nowhere reports on the homeless in America. Often, it seemed that Russia Today was just a way to stick it to the U.S. from behind the façade of legitimate newsgathering.
[…]
Just over a month after the speech, the Kremlin announced the solution to its image problem. It would not change its defiant rhetoric of exceptionalism. Instead, it would launch a new international television channel that explained its actions—and its terms—to the rest of the world. It would be in English and would broadcast twenty-four hours a day.

Though the project had roots in the cold war-era “Radio Moscow,” which beamed news from the Soviet Union around the world, it is better explained by Putin’s obsession with television. As a child of the post-World War II generation, Putin, like his Western counterparts, was raised on it. As president, he took tapes of the day’s news broadcasts home to watch and analyze how he was covered. To Putin, television was the only way to get his message across while retaining full control of that message. One of his first moves as president was to force out the oligarchs running the independent television stations and bring their channels under state ownership—and censorship. Soon, the heads of television stations were meeting every Friday with Vladislav Surkov, Putin’s chief political strategist, to set the agenda for the coming week. The instincts of self-censorship took care of the rest.

So Russia Today is the propaganda arm for Putin and it is their anniversary that Dr. Stein celebrated.

The Unicorn Is Under Attack!

The peaceful gender unicorn is under attack by the right wing fanatics.

Beware The Gender Unicorn: Franklin Graham Takes Aim At The Transgender Community
Americans United
By Rob Boston
August 10, 2016

Part of my job involves monitoring the activities of Religious Right groups, which means every day my email box receives messages from groups like the Family Research Council, Alliance Defending Freedom and American Family Association (AFA).

The AFA has lately been going around the bend about something called the “gender unicorn.” This unicorn, which has apparently surfaced (metaphorically speaking) in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools in North Carolina, has Franklin Graham, son of the famous evangelist Billy Graham, in quite a tizzy.

Terms like “brainwashing” and “gender-bender morality” were being tossed around. I knew I had to check it out.

“Parents, watch out,” Graham blared in a story distributed by OneNewsNow, an AFA “news” service. “They are using this unicorn to grab the imagination of children and make this seem acceptable.”

He added, “Parents should be enraged and so should we. The Communists used brainwashing in Eastern Europe and Russia, and they took the parents out of the decision-making process and the state began to make decisions about morality. This is a dangerous path.”

OK, so what’s really going on in the Charlotte schools? I did a little digging. It turns out that the school system sponsored training for its teachers and staff on the challenges facing transgender students. Education officials wanted to make sure that all students are welcome in the schools, including those who are transgender.

The gender unicorn does exist. As the Charlotte Observer noted, the unicorn is a cartoon figure that was created by Trans Student Educational Resources, a national transgender youth group, to help people understand terms that are often used by the transgender community, such as “gender identity,” “gender expression,” “genderqueer,” “cisgender” and “sex assigned at birth.”

This training was for teachers, not students, and it’s designed to keep kids safe, ensure that their rights are protected and that they’re treated with the respect they deserve.

Circle the wagons, the trans people are coming to a bathroom near you! Heaven forbid! Their children might meet people who are different from them and find out that they are just people like them and we can’t have that.

Another State Joins The Club

Pennsylvania just joined the states where you can change your gender on your birth certificate without surgery.

Trans birth-certificate suit settled
Philadelphia Gay News
By Tim Cwiek
August 9, 2016

Under an updated state policy, trans folks born in Pennsylvania are now permitted to change the gender on their birth certificates without undergoing gender-confirmation surgery.

The updated policy went into effect Aug. 8, said Philadelphia-based trans attorney Julie Chovanes.

With valid identification, a $20 payment and a doctor's verification that the person is transitioning, trans people may now change the gender on their birth certificate without a court order.

The updated policy also permits trans youths to change the gender on their birth certificate, with parental consent.

In May, Chovanes filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of two trans people who wanted to change the gender on their birth certificate without undergoing gender-confirmation surgery.

The case was settled on Aug. 8, the same date that the updated state policy went into effect, Chovanes said.

According to the Washington Post,

Today, state policies on this issue differ a great deal. The District of Columbia, New York City and 10 states -- California, Oregon, Washington, New York, Connecticut, Maryland, Vermont, Massachusetts, Hawaii and Minnesota -- allow individuals who can provide a notarized doctors note that a person has received the treatment deemed necessary by the individual and their doctor to live their life in a way that is consistent with their gender identity to do so.

That's what trans activists call the "modernized standard," because it does not mandate expensive surgery or hormone treatments that every trans person does not want and some along with their doctors do not feel they need. And, that's also the standard required by the Social Security Administration for Social Security cards, as well as U.S. passports and birth certificates issued to Americans born abroad.

But…

Thirty-seven states currently have a higher standard, though -- requiring people to provide medical proof that they have undergone sex reassignment surgery in order to request an altered birth certificate. North Carolina is part of this latter group.

Three states -- Idaho, Ohio and Tennessee -- do not allow changes to birth certificates at all. Tennessee has a state law explicitly forbidding changes to the sex section of a birth certificate. And, this month, lawmakers in Kansas held a hearing to consider a request from officials in that state's health department that would limit changes to birth certificates to rare situations where, as the Associated Press reported, "a person or his or her parents could document that the gender was incorrectly recorded at the time of birth." Kansas health department officials say they are being asked to make changes to birth certificates that extend beyond the authority granted to them by Kansas's 1970s-era birth certificate law.

And there is not any chance of a federal law to require states to change their requirements for birth certificates because birth certificates are the province of the states and federal government has no jurisdiction over them.

A Lie Told Often Enough…

This meme has been in going around the internet, my question is where is your proof?

The Republicans have been using voter fraud to justify imposing laws to make it harder for minorities to vote. Judges in North Dakota, Wisconsin, North Carolina, and Texas have struck down parts of the voter ID laws and in Texas the courts are hearing cases against the Texas law and as a result Texas has rolled back some of the provisions of their law.

Here in Connecticut you only need a driver license or a bill or document with your name and address on it and each election the Secretary of State does a random audit of towns ballots and voters and they have found "We note that the audits did not detect any cards whose data raised concerns about the integrity of tabulation." The law contains a detailed description of the audit process:

“The manual audit… shall consist of the manual tabulation of the paper ballots cast and counted by each voting machine subject to such audit. Once complete, the vote totals established pursuant to the manual tabulation shall be compared to the results reported by the voting machine on the day of the election or primary. The results of the manual tabulation shall be reported on a form prescribed by the Secretary of the State which shall include the total number of ballots counted, the total votes received by each candidate in question, the total votes received by each candidate in question on ballots that were properly completed by each voter and the total votes received by each candidate in question on ballots that were not properly completed by each voter. Such report shall be filed with the Secretary of the State who shall immediately forward such report to The University of Connecticut for analysis. The University of Connecticut shall file a written report with the Secretary of the State regarding such analysis that describes any discrepancies identified. After receipt of such report, the Secretary of the State shall file such report with the State Elections Enforcement Commission.”

Those same results have been found nationwide by organizations. In Florida the Department of Law Enforcement conducted an investigation to arrest all those people who were voting fraudulently, do you know how many they found in the 2012 presidential election? Two. That’s right only two cases.

The Christian Science Monitor reported that,

Overall, voter fraud is quite rare. Between the years of 2000 and 2012, there were only 867 proven cases of voter fraud in the United States. In fact, some studies have found this number to be even lower, depending on the definition of credible voter fraud. One study, which tracked all accusations of voter fraud across the country from 2000 to 2014, determined only 31 of them, out of one billion ballots cast, to be credible voter fraud. Throughout history, both parties have been found guilty of this crime. However, in the years since 2012, the Republican Party has been far more prevalent in the news regarding this matter than the Democratic Party. Case after case of voter fraud has been brought to light, and it seems that just about every one involves Republicans.

An article in Salon said this about Texas,

The statistics bear me out. From 2002 to 2005 only one person was found guilty of registration fraud. Twenty people were found guilty of voting while ineligible and five people were found guilty of voting more than once. That’s 26 criminal voters -- voters who vote twice, impersonate other people, vote without being a resident -- the voters that Republicans warn about. Meanwhile thousands of people are getting turned away at the polls.

In an opinion piece in Politico writing by Tova Andrea Wang who wrote…

Yet law enforcement statistics, reports from elections officials and widespread research have proved that voter fraud at the polling place is virtually non-existent. The motivation for ginning up this bogeyman is often to intimidate certain groups of voters and, ultimately, make it harder for minority or disadvantaged groups to exercise their right to vote. It is no accident that these operations have repeatedly focused on minority communities.

A CBS affiliate wrote this about voter fraud in North Carolina…

Elections officials in North Carolina said most of the voting fraud allegations they investigate turn out to be unfounded. Over the past five years, the state has referred about 350 cases to district attorneys for investigation, mostly in cases of felons who cast a ballot without first getting their voting rights restored. There are more than six million registered voters in the state. States already have ways to check the identity of voters when they register and when they go to cast a ballot. North Carolina’s current law requires residents to provide documents proving their name and address in order to register to vote. Those who register improperly can be charged with a felony.

Meanwhile in Pennsylvania the Republicans actually boasted about how the voter ID laws will give the elections to the Republicans…

House Majority Leader Mike Turzai was caught on tape this summer boasting about his colleagues' success: "... First pro-life legislation -- abortion facility regulations -- in 22 years, done. Voter ID, which is gonna allow Governor Romney to win the state of Pennsylvania, done."

Law officials said in court case against the law in Pennsylvania,

…in a stipulation agreement signed earlier this month, state officials conceded that they had no evidence of prior in-person voter fraud, or even any reason to believe that such crimes would occur with more frequency if a voter ID law wasn't in effect.

    "There have been no investigations or prosecutions of in-person voter fraud in Pennsylvania; and the parties do not have direct personal knowledge of any such investigations or prosecutions in other states,” the statement reads.

As the saying goes “if you tell a lie big enough and keep repeating it people will believe” and that is what the Republicans are doing.

Okay, You Probably Heard This Already…

A trans model was in the opening ceremonies for the Olympics.

Transgender Supermodel Lea T Made Olympic History At Rio Opening Ceremony
The Huffington Post Canada
By Al Donato
Posted: 08/06/2016

When it comes to transgender representation, the Rio Olympics' opening ceremony pedaled towards progress.

As cyclists with named placards led athletes into the Parade of Nations, Brazilian-born supermodel Leandra Medeiros Cerezo introduced the world to Team Brazil.

Known as Lea T on the catwalks, she's the first transgender woman to hold a role in any Olympic ceremony.

Her part in the opening event was smaller than expected. Early rumours suggested that she would be strutting alongside model Gisele Bundchen, in a tribute to the iconic Brazillian ballad "The Girl From Ipanema." Bundchen ended up sashaying through the tribute alone.

And then there is Chris Mosier, the first trans athlete in the Olympics,

Nike airs first commercial featuring a transgender athlete during Olympics
New York Daily News
By Nicole Bitette
August 9, 2016

They just did it.

Nike debuted the sneaker company's first ever commercial featuring a transgender athlete.

The latest ad shows Chris Mosier, the first transgender athlete to make the U.S. men's Olympic team, comparing his transition to the brand's "Just Do It" mindset.

The 35-year-old duathlete began his transition 2010 and called making it on the Olympic team as a man "a dream come true."

But it all hasn’t been smooth sailing for him,

The Chicago product had a tough road just to get to the starting line alongside his fellow runners and cyclists. Mosier couldn't use the bathroom during a June qualifying race for Team USA in North Carolina because of that state's controversial HB2 law, Rolling Stone reported.

Someday I hope it will not be news when we take part in the Olympics, we will just be another contestant or performer.

---

I went up to the cottage in New Hampshire Saturday and then Sunday afternoon I drove over to Rutland Vermont to take part in a discussion at a Quaker conference, I am not Quaker but I was invited by a friend to come and talk about…

A Conversation among the Ls, Gs, Bs, Ts and Qs (Queer, Questioning and Qurious)
Diana, a recent transgender activist, and Christine, a longtime lesbian feminist activist, will hold A Conversation among the Ls, Gs, Bs, Ts and Qs (Queer, Questioning and Qurious) that is open to all. A Quaker meeting is one of the few places where both speakers and audience can feel safe sharing honestly about very personal issues, where answers tend to be complex and gray rather than simple and clear. The presenters will start the conversation with personal experiences, then open it up to the audience. Our watchwords are ‘respect’ and ‘understanding’; ‘political correctness’ is not in our vocabulary.

The Monday “Opportunities” as they call them got a little sided tracked and we talked about the plight of LGBT people in Uganda, it was off topic but it was a very important discussion about the underground railroad that the Quakers are running to get LGBT people out of Uganda.

AMERICAN QUAKERS ARE RUNNING AN 'UNDERGROUND RAILROAD' TO HELP LGBT UGANDANS FLEE
Newsweek
By Zoe Schlanger
July 11, 2016

A group of American Quakers are operating what they call a “new underground railroad” to help a few LGBT Ugandans flee their country, where a recent law imposes harsh penalties for homosexuality.

The Friends New Underground Railroad (FNUR), based in Washington state, sees itself as continuing the work of Quakers who historically helped slaves escape the American South. As of this Monday, they say they have worked with unnamed Ugandan “conductors” to fund and coordinate passage out of the country for 107 lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender Ugandans, nine of whom have reached Sweden, while several dozen others are “being processed for asylum status in countries around the world,” according to the group’s FAQ page.

The American group coordinates funds for passage to the Ugandan border with Kenya, and the Ugandan conductors make all decisions with regards to who will be helped, according to Buzzfeed. Once over the border, the LGBT individuals are delivered to local safe houses and organizations before potentially moving on. FNUR tells Buzzfeed that none of their charges have ended up in Kenyan refugee camps, where life for LGBT people can be very dangerous.

Buzzfeed reported Friday on the controversy surrounding the Quakers’ project. While other groups working to oppose Uganda’s new anti-homosexuality law acknowledge the Quaker group’s good intentions, they worry that FNUR lacks the expertise or on-the-ground experience to sustain the project long-term.

And that was what the discussion was about. I mentioned that Scott Lively is being sued by an Uganda LGBT organization under the Alien Tort Statute ("ATS"; also known as the Alien Tort Claims Act), I wrote about it here, here and here.

On the way home Tuesday I took the long way home, instead of dashing across Vermont to I-91 I went down Route 7 to Bennington and then Route 9 across Vermont to I-91 in Brattleboro. Along Rt. 9 you cross over Hogback Mountain and I stopped to take a panorama photo.

You know how they say don't take pictures toward the sun, always have the sun over your shoulder.
Well this is a good example of why you don't want to shot into the sun, but sometimes you have to. The photo is from the top of Hogback Mountain looking south that I took this morning on the way back from Rutland. I had no choice since the view is only to the south. You can see how the sky on the left side of the photo is washed out.

A Trans-Woman Who Lives As A Woman

While I am at a conference in Vermont, I am posting some oldies but goodies. I will be returning to live blogging on Wednesday.

From August 2, 2013

---

That was what Lt Colonel Cate McGregor in the Australian army used to describe herself and it resonated with me. Because that is how I identify; she goes on to say that she knows that she will never be “a woman” and that she will always be transgender.

I sometimes say that “I am a woman with a unique history” I believe that no matter how much you pass and assimilate into society you will always know your history others might see you as a woman, but you will know your history. I was talking to a friend today and the topic about scouting came up; I said that I made cattail pancakes in the scouts. Now we both knew I meant the Boy Scouts, but if she didn’t know my history she probably would have thought Girl Scouts.

I was talking to a trans-woman at a conference who was saying she was talking to the woman next to her on the plane who was noticeably pregnant, when the other passenger saw a picture of my friend’s daughter she asked her if she had a difficult labor. What would you say if you were asked that question, no I’m really her father?

At a support group meeting once there was a woman crying that I had never seen at a meeting before and I thought she was a spouse of a member. When we did our check-in it turned out that she was in deep stealth and had transitioned over 30 years before and was married with adopted children. They went to buy a house and the credit check came back AKA John Doe and the husband wanted to know what that meant; when she told him he threw her out of the apartment, changed all the locks and filed for divorce.

So when I hear a trans-woman say that “I’m a woman” I think “really?” Would a woman have to think twice what say about childbirth? Would a woman have to think twice before saying that she was in scouting?

That is why I like what Lt Colonel Cate McGregor said, “A trans-woman living as a woman” and I would add that before I transitioned I was a trans-woman living as a man.

I don’t really care if you say “I am a woman.” But I would say ask yourself, really?

Busy, Busy, Busy

I am in Vermont at a conference until Tuesday so my next post will be on Wednesday,

f5.6, 30 sec., ISO 4000 & EV+5

Think Before You Vote

There is a lot more than the presidential elections at stake, depending on how you vote in this election can affect a generation. Up to three Supreme Court appointment could shape the direction of the country for a generation.

Election could determine transgender case at Supreme Court
Times Argus
August 05, 2016

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court’s order blocking a transgender male from using the boys’ restroom at his Virginia school underscores how the presidential election results will shape the high court.

One of the court’s nine seats has been vacant since Justice Antonin Scalia died in February, and as many as three older justices could retire in the coming years.

The sometimes-polarized court won’t decide what to do about the transgender bathroom case until around the election, and possibly months later. The justices probably will know by then whether the person picked to succeed Scalia will push the court to the left or to the right.

The transgender issue is just one of many high-profile social and political issues on which the new ninth justice could hold the decisive vote.

And it is not just trans issues at stake,

The justices also could soon be asked to block an appellate ruling striking down North Carolina voting provisions, including the state’s voter ID law. If the high court is evenly divided, the ruling would remain in effect. Breyer, who dissented in a 2008 ruling upholding Indiana’s voter ID law, is less likely to provide a fifth vote to keep the North Carolina law in place, especially after appellate judges said it was enacted to make it harder for African-Americans to vote.

Many of you say you cannot vote for Clinton because of your conscious; let me ask you what will your conscious say if three more conservation justices are appointed?

And we have more rulings like:
Hobby Lobby which allowed companies to force their religious beliefs on their employees,
Or Citizens United which allow unlimited campaign contributions,
Or that the courts overturn marriage equality, rule Title VII and IX does not cover trans people,
And some of the court cases coming up are voter ID laws and gerrymandering voting districts.

How will you justify allowing the conservative packing the court?

Something We Don’t Talk About

It happens more often than we think, trans people detransitioning but questions persist.

Detransition, Desistance, and Disinformation: A Guide for Understanding Transgender Children Debates
By Julia Serano
August 3, 2016

Over the course of those two-plus decades, I have witnessed the slow evolution from the old gatekeeper system — which engaged in pathological science and often harbored antagonistic attitudes towards its trans clients/research subjects — toward what is gradually becoming our contemporary trans healthcare system — one that works in partnership with trans communities, and which increasingly has trans people’s best interests at heart.

This evolution was not merely the result of trans activists “fucking shit up” (although admittedly things were contentious at times, and there were plenty of protests along the way). Rather, this change was facilitated by a more general trend within research and medicine — away from the paternalistic “Doctor Knows Best” attitudes of the mid-twentieth century, towards today’s recognition that practitioners and researchers need to actually be concerned about, and seek feedback from, the communities that they serve. This transition has not been perfect, nor is it complete (as many old-guard gatekeepers still adhere to the old ways). But the changes that have occurred in my lifetime have been immensely promising.
[…]
You’ve probably seen some of these articles. They raise concerns about “80% desistance,” and offer examples of trans people who have since “detransitioned,” and they will leave you with the impression that trans health practitioners are engaging in some kind of reckless sociological experiment. Whenever transgender people object to these misrepresentations or the old gatekeeper ideologies, these pundits and journalists will decry “transgender activists are attacking science!” without ever acknowledging the countless trans advocates, researchers, and health providers who actually agree with us on many of these matters.

So what is behind these detransitions?

Many of the aforementioned problems begin with an over-simplification of either trans terminology and/or the breadth of transgender experiences, so that is where this guide will begin. I will also provide necessary background regarding gender transition in adults before addressing the more controversial topic of transgender children.

My thoughts are that one of the requirements for transitioning is living in your true gender which is designed to weed out those who transitioning is not for them and that is what it is doing. Ms. Serano lists her thoughts on why.

1. The distinction (and lack thereof) between transgender and transsexual
The word transgender historically (as well as within the context of this essay) refers to people who defy societal expectations regarding gender.
[…]
Unfortunately, in mainstream discussions (as well as within certain segments of the trans community), the word “transgender” is increasingly (mis)used to specifically refer to people who identify and live as members of the gender other than the one they were assigned at birth — that is, people who have historically been described as transsexual. Some people who fall under this category don’t like the label “transsexual” (just as some don’t like “transgender”), but I will be using it here because the distinction between people who socially and/or physically transition (i.e., transsexuals), and those transgender-spectrum individuals who don’t transition, is germane to this conversation.

She also lists, “There are many transsexual trajectories.” Just because a person doesn’t transition doesn’t mean they are not trans. It takes a lot to transition, you have to be ready to give up your whole life and start anew and for many that is too much for them to handle.

She goes on…

3. What Is Transphobia?
So when I just mentioned trans people being harassed on the streets, or denied jobs or housing, most reasonable people would agree that those are examples of transphobia. But transphobia isn’t merely the “fear” or “hatred” of transgender people. No, it is best thought of as a double standard that is pervasive in our society, and which presumes that cisgender (that is, non-transgender) bodies, identities, and experiences are valid and the unspoken norm, whereas their transgender counterparts are deemed illegitimate, inauthentic, defective, and suspect in comparison.

I think that this is a big one. I takes a lot to stand up to the discrimination and all the negativity, it takes its psychological toll on us.

She continues,

5. Who should transition?
A subset of transgender people experience discomfort or distress with their birth-assigned gender and/or a strong desire to be the other gender — in the medical literature, this experience is referred to as gender dysphoria. It is not some “invented condition” or mere “gender confusion” — it is very real, intensely felt, and can become all-consuming and even debilitating over time.

While low-level gender dysphoria may be mitigated in various ways (perhaps through crossdressing, gender experimentation and exploration, etc.), the only remedy known to effectively reduce or eliminate intense gender dysphoria is gender transition. There is a large body of clinical evidence demonstrating this — this is why transitioning is medically sanctioned.

Once again, there are no tests to determine for sure whether any given transgender person should (or should not) transition. What happens in practice is that, if a person’s gender dysphoria and/or desire to live in their identified gender is intense enough, they will seek out the means to transition — either through the healthcare system, or if that’s not available, through other means. As I chronicle in chapter 7 of Whipping Girl, gatekeepers used to have extremely stringent criteria for approving gender transition (largely based upon childhood history, sexual orientation, and “passability”), and this ultimately forced many trans people who strongly felt the need to transition to either lie to gatekeepers about their history and/or transition DIY outside of the healthcare system. 

You must be true to yourself, all the therapist does is to guide you to find your true self. If you are lying to yourself the therapist might not find that out if you are good at hiding your thoughts and that is one of the reason we live in our true gender before we have surgery, to find your inner self.

She goes on to list other reasons and another one is…

7. Using people who detransition as pawns
I discussed people who detransition briefly in step #2. There are numerous reasons why a person might detransition: some of them visceral and personal (e.g., perhaps transitioning didn’t feel right for them), and others directly related to societal transphobia (e.g., the loss of jobs, housing, family, support system, safety). It could also be some combination thereof.
[…]
The dynamic here is quite similar to the “ex-gay” phenomenon. Conservative forces who insist that homosexuality is a “treatable disease” or merely an “alternative lifestyle” love to tout the existence of “ex-gays” (some of whom may identify that way and regret their earlier homosexual ways). This stance understandably makes gay communities even more entrenched in their positions, and increases the likelihood that they will distance themselves from anyone who professes a shift in sexual orientation from gay to either bisexual or heterosexual. As a bisexual person myself, I am disappointed by gay and lesbian community tendencies to demonize those who experience shifts in orientation, just like I am opposed to trans people who want to throw people who detransition under the proverbial bus.

I know a person who did detransition and she did it because she could never find a job, she was couch surfing and faced harassment because she couldn’t integrate in to society. She was tall, large boned and masculine looking. I believe that she is trans and suffers from Gender Dysphoria even through she is living her life in her birth gender.

Then she asks,

9. Why does “80% desistance” even matter?
I’ve considered writing this essay for a while now. But the article that finally drove me to it is Singal’s most recent piece: “What’s Missing From the Conversation About Transgender Kids.” In it, he tries to defend the “80% desistance” statistic, which purports that 80 percent of children who experience gender dysphoria (or “gender identity disorder,” as it was called in previous versions of the DSM) eventually grow up to be comfortable in their birth assigned gender (often identifying as lesbian, gay, or bisexual). There are numerous reasons to be suspicious of how that number is derived, as explained by Brynn Tannehill, Kelley Winters, and Kristina Olson and Lily Durwood (plus my thoughts here).

As far as I know there has been no scientific study of people who transitioned and detransitioned. What are their sources to arrive at that number? How do they define desistance? Did they all follow the Standard of Care?

You Have To Wonder

How the recent Supreme Court action will affect the judge in North Carolina ruling on HB2. The hearing seemed to go our way but that was before the Supreme Court refused to issue a stay in the Virginia case.

North Carolina Tried to Defend HB 2 in Federal Court. It Didn’t Go Well.
Indy Week
By Jordan Green
August 3, 2016

Attempting to explain why North Carolina has a compelling interest in requiring transgender people to use the bathrooms that align with their biological sex, Governor McCrory's lawyer lost control of his argument before he'd even begun.

U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Schroeder, a George W. Bush appointee, was trying to understand how HB 2 makes bathrooms, changing rooms, and locker rooms safer during a hearing in Winston-Salem on Monday.

"If a transgender female goes into a women's public restroom, there's a risk of public exposure," Butch Bowers, the governor's lawyer, posited.

"How can there be public exposure?" an incredulous Schroeder responded. "There are no urinals in a women's bathroom."

It went downhill from there, as Bowers and two other attorneys for the defendants, representing the General Assembly and the University of North Carolina, argued against a preliminary injunction that would block the bathroom provision of HB 2. The state ACLU has filed suit against the state, along with a transgender man employed by UNC-Chapel Hill, two transgender students at UNC-Greensboro and UNC School of the Arts, respectively, and three lesbian women. The federal government has filed a separate lawsuit, alleging that HB 2 violates the sex discrimination provisions of Title IX. The two lawsuits are expected to be consolidated for a trial scheduled for November 14.

We will probably hear from the judge before the November 14^th court date. The article ended by saying,

Schroeder's decision will likely be guided by a ruling from the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals in April, which found that Gavin Grimm, a transgender high school student in Virginia, has the right to use the bathroom he prefers. Bowers, McCrory's lawyer, seemed to hedge his bets. He requested that any injunction be "narrowly tailored" to the named plaintiffs and to Title IX requirements that school systems not engage in discrimination. He also asked that it only apply to bathrooms.

"I'm going to endeavor to get you a decision as soon as I can," Schroeder promised. "I know that school is about to crank up for some unfortunate or fortunate students."

But the law is not just affecting trans people but also women.

I’m Proof Bathroom Bills Are Not Just a Transgender Issue
Time
By Sally Kohn
May 9, 2016

I’m a lesbian and I fear public restroom confrontations

I hate using public restrooms. Airports and rest stops are my least favorite. I avoid locker rooms whenever possible. But really every restroom is bad. In fact, it happened to me just the other day in my fancy office building in New York City. I was at the sink, washing my hands, when a woman walked into the restroom and did a double take, first looking at me and then looking back at the sign on the still-open door of the restroom. Was she in the wrong place? Or, implicitly, was I?

I am a biological female who identifies as a woman. I am not, for any intents or purposes, transgender. But as a non-gender conforming butch lesbian, I have my own tiny window into our nation’s current political debate about bathrooms—the always looming fear that easily slips into shame, and the occasional outright harassment, all because I have to pee. And that’s from using the bathrooms that I “should” be using according to vicious anti-transgender bills sweeping the nation.

She goes on to make the point…

What these “bathroom bills” are actually about is enforcing traditional gender codes and norms in an increasingly diverse and shifting America. Single-sex restrooms just like single-sex dormitories have always been rooted in compulsory heteronormativity and the sense that we have to protect women from men who can’t expect to be reigned in. This still echoes today, as when an all-male elite club at Harvard University suggested that allowing women to join would increase the potential for sexual assault. And notice that no one seems to worry about pedophiles being forced to use the little boy’s room instead. The point is that girls need protecting.

These laws were passed by conservative Republicans who have the image of a perfect women to them, long blonde hair, well breasted, wearing a skirt or a dress and in high heels… the image of a beauty pageant queen. It is totally foreign to them the image of a butch lesbian.

We’re In The Olympics

With the Olympics getting ready to start this Friday there are a couple of article about trans people taking part in it.

First Transgender Woman to Host Olympics Ceremony in Brazil
Telesurtv
August 2, 2016

A transgender supermodel will be the first transgender person to participate in an Olympics inauguration ceremony.

Brazilian model Lea T will become the first transgender woman to participate, along with other local celebrities, in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, which are set to begin on Aug. 5.

"I can’t say anything yet, we need to keep the surprise, but the message is clear ... include everyone, no matter their gender, sexual orientation, race or religion. We are all human beings and we are part of society. My role at the ceremony will help send this message, " Lea T told BBC.

So it looks like she will be taking part in the opening of the Olympics and in other news trans people will be able to take part as long as they are on hormones.

IOC rules transgender athletes can take part in Olympics without surgery
Female-to-male athletes can compete ‘without restriction’, while male-to-female athletes must undergo hormone therapy, according to new guidelines
The Guardian
Associated Press
Sunday 24 January 2016

Transgender athletes should be allowed to compete in the Olympics and other international events without undergoing sex reassignment surgery, according to new guidelines adopted by the IOC.

International Olympic Committee medical officials said on Sunday they changed the policy to adapt to current scientific, social and legal attitudes on transgender issues.

The guidelines are designed as recommendations – not rules or regulations – for international sports federations and other bodies to follow and should apply for this year’s Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

“I don’t think many federations have rules on defining eligibility of transgender individuals,” IOC medical director Dr Richard Budgett said. “This should give them the confidence and stimulus to put these rules in place.”

Under the previous IOC guidelines, approved in 2003, athletes who transitioned from male to female or vice versa were required to have reassignment surgery followed by at least two years of hormone therapy in order to be eligible to compete.

Now, surgery will no longer be required, with female-to-male transgender athletes eligible to take part in men’s competitions “without restriction”.

Meanwhile, male-to-female transgender athletes will need to demonstrate that their testosterone level has been below a certain cutoff point for at least one year before their first competition.

So more good news.

It makes sense to go by the testosterone levels and not if they had surgery because even if they had surgery they could still have higher testosterone levels by artificial means. Also there are a number of medical reasons that make having surgery risky.

Breaking News… Supreme Court Blocks Trans Rights!!!!

This just in Supreme Court just blocked student’s rights to use the bathroom of their gender identity… putting Title VII and IX protection in jeopardy.

Supreme Court grants emergency order to block transgender male student in Virginia from using boy's restroom
LA Times
By David G. Savage
August 3, 2016

The Supreme Court intervened for the first time Wednesday in the controversy over transgender rights and blocked a lower court ruling that would have allowed a transgender boy to use the high school restroom that fits his “gender identity.”

In an unusual 5-3 order, the justices granted an emergency appeal from a Virginia school board which said it is fighting to “protect the basic expectations of bodily privacy of Gloucester County students.”

The school was seeking to be exempted from the Obama administration’s position that schools nationwide are required to allow transgender students to use the bathroom they prefer.

Justice Stephen G. Breyer signaled he did not support the school’s emergency appeal, but said he joined the court’s four conservatives as a “courtesy” to put the issue on hold until the justices can review the matter when they return in the fall.

“In light of the facts that four justices have voted to grant the application referred to the court by the Chief Justice, that we are currently on recess and that granting the stay will preserve the status quo,” he wrote, “I vote to grant the application as a courtesy.”

This fall’s elections are now even more important, with vacancies of up to three Supreme Court judges possible the election of the next president is increasingly important. It can chance the direction of the country for a generation.

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There are many people who say that in good conscious they cannot not vote for Hilary Clinton, but I ask in good conscious can you not vote for her? In good conscious can you let all the protections that the LGBT community has won under the current presidency be wiped out? Most of the third party candidates are not on the ballot in enough states to win the Electoral College and others are polling so low that they are not even in the double digits.
There is so much to lose that my conscious will not let me vote other than democratic. The loss of presidency and having a Republican control Congress and president is will spell disaster for the United States.

This Is What I Have Been Saying

That we can see male privileges from both sides; trans men gain privilege while trans women lose privilege and there is a difference.

“Cultural sexism in the world is very real when you’ve lived on both sides of the coin”
Time
By Charlotte Alter
August 2016


Over the last three years, transgender awareness has exploded. From Orange is the New Black to Transparent, from Janet Mock to Caitlyn Jenner, America has a growing fascination with the lives of transgender people, most recently in light of recent debates over controversial bathroom laws. But the spotlight on trans issues has mostly been focused on transgender women, and transgender men have been largely left out of the narrative. Our cultural obsession with feminine beauty contributes to the imbalance. “Women’s appearances get more attention, women’s actions are commented on and critiqued more than men, so in that world it just makes sense that people will focus more on trans women than trans men,” says Julia Serano, a transgender activist and author of Whipping Girl. (Because most surveys ask people to identify as male or female but not cisgender or transgender, the size of the transgender population in America is unclear, though one study suggests there are about 700,000 trans people in the U.S.; it’s nearly impossible to know how many of them are trans men.)


Yet experiences of trans men can provide a unique window into how gender functions in American society. In the last few months, I’ve interviewed nearly two dozen trans men and activists about work, relationships and family. Over and over again, men who were raised and socialized as female described all the ways they were treated differently as soon as the world perceived them as male. They gained professional respect, but lost intimacy. They exuded authority, but caused fear. From courtrooms to playgrounds to prisons to train stations, at work and at home, with friends and alone, trans men reiterated how fundamentally different it is to experience the world as a man.

“Cultural sexism in the world is very real when you’ve lived on both sides of the coin,” says Tiq Milan, a friend of the future groom.

That now as women or men they see how women are treated when it comes to work. Many trans women that I know get disrespected at work, one trans woman that is a manager got asked to get the coffee for her meeting by one of the clients.

Many trans men I spoke with said they had no idea how rough women at work had it until they transitioned. As soon as they came out as men, they found their missteps minimized and their successes amplified. Often, they say, their words carried more weight: They seemed to gain authority and professional respect overnight. They also saw confirmation of the sexist attitudes they had long suspected: They recalled hearing female colleagues belittled by male bosses, or female job applicants called names.

I remember a trans guy friend saying it was almost like he got a brain now. He said that all of a sudden he became an expert on cars, that if he said that their muffler bearing was going people would nod their heads in agreement. While trans women that I know said it was like getting a lobotomy, no one paid attention to what they are saying.

So when guys ask “what male privilege?” we know what that is from both sides. We know what it is like to lose it or gain it.

Republicans Being Republicans

This time it is Marco Rubio attending an anti-LGBT conference in of all places Orlando.

Marco Rubio To Headline Radical Anti-LGBT Event
Right Wing Watch
By Brian Tashman
July 27, 2016

When Marco Rubio cited the deadly attack on a gay nightclub in Orlando as a reason he was changing his mind and running for re-election to the U.S. Senate, many LGBT allies immediately noted that the Florida senator and failed presidential candidate has never been an ally of the LGBT community.

“To be using the tragedy in Orlando as a time to reflect on his Senate career, when his career and his promises on the campaign trail have been anti-LGBTQ consistently, it’s just staggering to think he would be using this moment for his own personal ambitions,” said Jay Brown of the Human Rights Campaign at the time.

It comes as no surprise, then, to see that Rubio is slated to address an event in Orlando next month that will feature some of the country’s most vehement anti-LGBT activists.

The Orlando-based Liberty Counsel Action, an extreme anti-LGBT group whose affiliate is famous for representing Kentucky clerk Kim Davis in her stand against the Supreme Court’s marriage equality decision, announced in an email today that the Florida Renewal Project will be hosting an event called “Rediscovering God in America” in August. The event will be headlined by Rubio, who will speak alongside anti-LGBT activists David Barton, Bill Federer, Ken Graves and Mat Staver.

It is okay to subjugate a part of society as long as it gets you votes and donations.

The Washington Blade writes,

“The event ‘Rediscovering God in America Renewal Project’ is a who’s who of some of the country’s most hateful anti-LGBT persons,” Cruz [Eliel Cruz, executive director of Faith in America, an affirming religious organization] said. “It’s incredulous a senator of the United States is willing to collude with individuals who are dedicated to oppressing LGBT people. The beliefs shared by this group actively harm LGBT people. This is not the America we want. God will not be found anywhere near that event.”

Senator Rubio co-sponsorship of the First Amendment Defense Act which would grant special rights for people to discriminate against LGBT people just by saying the magic words “it is against my religion,” there can be not test to prove that it really is a religious belief or bigotry.

We Sometimes Forget

That prisoners have rights, that they are entitled to medically necessary healthcare. The Supreme Court has ruled that it violates our Constitution to deny them proper medical treatment.

ISSUES ONGOING AROUND TRANSGENDER INMATES IN IDAHO
Idaho Press-Tribune
By Ruth Brown
August 1st, 2016

Stover entered an Idaho prison in 1988 for a charge of lewd conduct with a child younger than 16. She was 18 years old at the time and had not yet come out publicly as a transgender person.

While laws and policies around the treatment of transgender inmates have changed over the years, Stover and the American Civil Liberties Union still urge the prisons to change policies regarding where those inmates are housed and what kind of medical treatment is provided.

The state of Idaho currently has 18 transgender inmates, all of whom identify as female but are housed in men’s prisons. Now 46, Stover, of Boise, was released from prison in December and will remain on parole for the rest of her life.

Connecticut has less than a half a dozen trans inmates and they are also housed in a male prison and that creates problems for everyone, the article goes on to say…

Public copies of the lawsuits outlined her complaints while incarcerated, including multiple incidents of sexual assault by other inmates, inmates “selling” her in exchange for money for prison commissary as a form of extortion, and harassment by guards. At least two of the lawsuits were settled outside of court.

In states that have a large enough transgender prisoner population like California can have a separate wing for trans inmates but what do you do for states like Connecticut where you have only four or five trans inmates? That is a problem that is being faced around the country.

Because of my visit last week I am starting to research the issue, one of the websites that I just found and have to read is National Institute of Corrections, their LGBTI Laws and Policies page looks interesting because it has sample policies from other states.

This Is Amazing!

When you consider that the Union Leader is a conservative newspaper and that they led the opposition in calling the trans non-discrimination the “Bathroom Bill” in New Hampshire has an article supporting us.  So this story in the Sunday paper about a trans boy transitioning, “For NH transgender students, life is about much more than bathrooms” is amazing,

So when he and his family decided that Benjamin would transition to being a boy at school last year, his mom had confidence.

"This peer group has been phenomenal for responding to him being adopted, his epilepsy, and now this," Valiante said.

Her optimism proved justified: On the first day of fifth grade, his teacher called out "Ben" on the roll call, and the school day continued like any other.

Valiante calls Grinnell - where Ben became the first openly transgender student - and the Derry school district models for how to support a transitioning child. 

Derry is not too far from our cottage and is a small rural town that shares a high school with the neighboring town.

Last week, New Hampshire Attorney General Joseph Foster signed on to an amicus brief with 11 other states agreeing with federal guidelines that say public school students should be allowed to use the bathrooms that comport with their gender identity - not necessarily the gender on their birth certificates.

Twenty-one other states are suing President Obama's administration over the directives. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Nebraska, takes issue with a May 13 letter sent to states by the federal departments of Justice and Education. It warns states that they could lose federal funding if they require transgender students to use bathrooms corresponding to their gender at birth.

This blew me away because when the non-discrimination bill was voted on not even the sponsors of the bill voted for it. The way the Union Leader and other news outlets pounded the bill calling it the “Bathroom bill” it scared even the sponsors. Now they are filing a legal brief in favor of Title IX is a complete 180^o turn.