Christine Beatty is a familiar name to TGForum readers. In 2010 she wrote the TransActive column here, and she was featured in the Perpetual Change column back in 2001 as part of the rock duo Glamazon. Along with her musical endeavors, she is also a TG activist, an author and a poet. She has recently published "Misery Loves Company" and has had articles appear in such publications as Chrysalis Quarterly, Transgender Tapestry, Spectator, and TransSisters.
There are many things that hold trans people back when they begin to explore presenting themselves to the world as the gender they want people to see. One of the most powerful inhibitors is fear of ridicule. Christine Beatty has some words of comfort and advice.
Back in March of this year I wrote a TransActive column entitled The Prostitution Proposition in which I explored the pros and cons of “full contact†sexwork. I covered the risks both obvious — arrest, violence, disease — and not so obvious — the possible psychological and social impact — all of this drawn from […]
To All Our Loyal Readers: I’ve spent much of my off hours this week at the LA Film Festival, so this article isn’t as robust as I’d like to have presented. (Ed. Note: Christine did speak with Calpernia Addams and includes that interview in this column.) Many if not most important choices come as double-edged […]
TransActive: How To Tell Him (or Her) by Christine Beatty Okay, to be perfectly honest I’m all written out. I just sent off my latest novel, Homegirl, to my literary manager and so I don’t feel like writing a damn thing for a few more weeks. However, I don’t want to leave all of you […]
“The issue is us versus them. Any us versus any them.â€Â With these words from her groundbreaking play Hidden: A Gender Kate Bornstein summarizes what may be humanity’s greatest downfall: divisiveness. Yet at the same time, drawing the lines also forms the basis of identity politics that can be empowering. In other words, “us versus […]
Just when you thought it was safe to go back to the movies there comes a film such a giant step backward for the transgender community, it disheartens one we may ever achieve social acceptance within the next generation of transwomen. For those of you not acquainted with the stink surrounding the latest cinematic bashing […]
It’s no big secret I worked as a pre-op TS prostitute during my first transition in 1985 and 1986, a fact I raise to illustrate what bigotry and discrimination can do. Every month or so a fellow transwoman, usually one in her mid-twenties or younger, learns I had been a prostitute back then, and then […]
“You can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar.†— Ancient folk wisdom “Profanity and obscenity entitle people who don’t want unpleasant information to close their ears and eyes to you.†— Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. Those of you who read last month’s TransActive may recall the tiny clique of angry transwomen who […]
Fanatics of every stripe are pretty much a bummer to hang out with after awhile. . . unless you’re a fellow fanatic. They tend to be shrill, angry, single minded, self-righteous, unhinged, unable to absorb reason, unwilling to examine their beliefs, repetitive to the point of agony and they don’t know how to shut the […]
Christine Beatty’s first idea for her column this month was a lighthearted take on New Year’s resolutions. She had it all planned out but something else came up at the last minute. One of us had dropped out of the community and Christine learned that the dropout had committed suicide. The lighthearted topic had to […]
Just in case you’re wondering about the title, this column is not about Walter L. Williams’ 1992 book on sexual diversity in American Indian culture, although I’m sure it’s a fascinating read. No, this month we’re talking about that one topic my mother said never should be discussed at the Thanksgiving dinner table (or under […]
No, don’t worry. . . this is not another one of those Stealth versus Out articles. Goddess knows there’ve been more than enough of those and pretty much everything has been said. If ever I think up a fresh spin on that debate I might dive back in, but not this time. No, I’m on […]
For better or worse—sadly, often for the worse—history tends to repeat itself. This has proven especially true with the federal Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), originally introduced in 1994. The transgender community has always been excluded from its protection, either from the beginning or as an unspoken bargaining chip. On June 24, 2009, Rep. Barney Frank […]
