Babs is a bit upset that a convicted traitor to the United States is getting her thoughts on trans matters featured in the media. Babs feels that Chelsea Manning is not the person who should be representing the trans community and she has a number of far better suited people who deserve recognition for all they have done on behalf of the community. Let the media print what they have to say.
The new year is a time most people make resolutions. They plan on eating better, taking care of things that they’ve let slide for too long, and all in all becoming a better person. As we reach the end of 2015 our correspondent in Thailand doesn’t have resolutions. Instead she has five wishes for the trans community around the globe in 2016.
Babs Casbar Siperstien helped to get anti-discrimination legislation passed in New Jersey in 2006. That passage took a full court press and featured testimony from trans people and their families, a television ad and a lot of time spent walking the halls of the state capital. Babs feels that the efforts in Houston to get the HERO bill passed fell short in reaching many of the demographics that needed to be won over. See what she believes went wrong in Houston and how it could have been handled better.
A close look at the Republican candidates for president shows that the only one of them who has been at all sympathetic to trans people is Donald Trump. He let a trans woman compete in the beauty pageant that he owned. As for the rest? They are not so good on trans rights. Find out how they all stand and how the Democratic candidates stand in our political contributor Babs Casbar Siperstein’s latest blog.
On Saturday May 30, Joseph Robinette “Beau” Biden III, the eldest son of Vice President Joe Biden died after battling brain cancer for several years. Beau Biden was a vibrant supporter of marriage equality and transgender civil rights when he was the state Attorney General of Delaware. Beau Biden was the rising star of a […]
Be a part of the political process in 2016! That’s what Babs Casbar Siperstein tells you to do in this post. Don’t whine about people trying to keep you out of the restroom of your choice. Get involved in the political process and become a delegate to the Democratic National Convention. Babs tells you how to do it. And how to get involved on your local level. Visibility means greater acceptance!
Sophie Lynne asks some questions about just who has put trans people in the crosshairs. News stories abound about the progress trans people have made but there are also news stories about the states and municipalities where legislators are targeting trans people with discriminatory bills based on a fundamental lack of knowledge about trans issues. Who are these legislators? Sophie asks that — and then answers the question.
Last Thursday night the American Conference on Diversity (ACoD) presented our own Babs Casbar Siperstein with their 2015 Advocacy Humanitarian Award during a spectacular 20th Anniversary Statewide Fundraising Gala in West Orange, NJ. What prompted this honor? Bab’s dedication to the ongoing fight for transgender rights. We present her acceptance speech today.
“Religious fascists outflank and out gun LGBT activists.” That’s what Babs Casbar Siperstein believes happened in Charlotte, NC when they tried to pass an anti-discrimination ordinance. The anti-LGBT groups descended on the City Council and intimidated its members while trans people were harassed in the hallways and restrooms. Babs asks some important questions about what happened in Charlotte.
The woman who won the chairmanship of the North Carolina Democratic Party was in a tough race with a trans woman candidate for that job. She even made a transphobic remark during the campaign but won the election. She apologized for what she said but it seems that most of the North Carolina Democrats were okay with it. Today Babs writes about the situation and some of the good that came from the trans candidate’s run.
Every week we make more progress in acceptance of trans people and more and more localities amend their human rights anti-discrimination laws to add protections for trans people. But while this goes on in the legislative bodies and the courts are charged with enforcement we still hear of incidents of violence and discrimination against us. What can we do to change that? Dana Bevan believes we need to work harder at changing our culture. Today she tells you how.
Recent changes in the military have given some hope that the estimated 15,000 plus trans soldiers will be able to serve openly in the near future. Is it reasonable to assume that since a few signs of progress have been seen that the services will quickly change their transgender policy? Babs Casbar Siperstein takes a look at the progress made.
Too often people on this Earth who claim to be religious and pious are instead intolerant and show bias. The worst of the religious right don’t just condemn LGBT people to Hell for being who they are. They want to put LGBT in Hell by having them executed. This is not just a trait of radical Islamists, or of Christian sects in Africa. Today Meggan Sommerville points to two “ministers” who preach hate.
The Transgender Day of Remembrance is this coming Thursday and Babs Casbar Siperstein blogs about the event and the its significance to the transgender community as a whole. It’s not just about hate crimes against trans people. The violence we suffer is indicative of a pervasive atmosphere of discrimination against trans people in employment, housing and civil rights. Read what Babs has to say about the progress we’ve made and the progress that is still needed.
The last full week in July was an incredible week for transpeople in America. On Monday July 21, 2014 President Obama signed an executive order doing 2 things. First, it added “gender identity” to an existing executive order protecting gay and lesbian federal workers from discrimination thus protecting transgender federal workers. (It institutionalized and strengthened […]
No, we are not talking about Top Gun or 12 O’clock High, we are talking about the tendency of transgender people to join the military. It is well documented that transgender people join the military at about twice the rate of the United States general population. Understanding of why transgender people are attracted to the […]
In my last blog post I expressed concern about actual and perceived transphobia in the State of New Hampshire, a state with all sorts of gay and lesbian rights including Marriage Equality, but without codified basic protections for transgender people. I received an update this week from former New Hampshire state legislator Mo Baxley — […]
The fight for equal rights for transgendered people has hit another snag in the state of New Hampshire. A gay legislator is working to enshrine “sexual orientation” into the language and excluding “gender identity.” Meanwhile the Human Rights Campaign says there’s no need for a new law protecting TGs in New Hampshire. All TGs there have to do is file their discrimination complaint using being trans as a disability. Get the story from Babs!
Eight term Congressman Rush Holt, a dedicated champion of transgender rights, abruptly announced that he is not seeking a ninth term. Our TG politics correspondent Babs Casbar Siperstein takes a look back at everything Holt has done to help the GLBT community while he was in congress.
Congressman Rob Andrews, a 12 term member of the House from New Jersey has resigned from office to go into a private law practice. While in Congress he was a staunch supporter of equal rights for the LGBT community. Today Bas Casbar-Siperstein thanks Congressman Andrews for his efforts on behalf of the community and in specific for his efforts to include transgendered people in anti-employment discrimination legislation.
You might wonder what “Bridgegate,” the closing of several traffic lanes on the George Washington Bridge, has to do with transgender rights. A bit more than you might think. Our political correspondent Babs Casbar Sieperstien has filed a report that debunks the idea that the bridge closing was retaliation against the mayor of Fort Lee. It may have been retaliation against the biggest ally of transgendered people in the Garden State. Get the politics and why they’re important for TGs from Babs.
Our Babs Casbar Siperstein who participated in the Transgender Day of Remembrance at the White House last year was called upon to speak at two recent TDOR events. The following post is made up or her remarks at both occasions. She talks about the progress that transgender people have made and progress that is still waiting to happen. How a society treats its transgendered people is a good measure of just how civilized it actually is.
Babs Casbar Siperstein has been reappointed to the Democratic National Committee and was re-elected to the DNC Executive Committee. She reports today on other transgendered people who are involved in politics and touches on the history of TGs working for change through the political process. She also discusses how things have changed since the time when Democratic Party felt that adding TG rights to the Party platform would scare people away. Trans-inclusive language was added to the Democratic Party platform for the 2008 convention.
Dr. Danielle Kaufman has some thoughts on the new law in California which allows students to use the restroom and locker room facilities appropriate for their gender identity. Dr. Kaufman, author of Untying the Knot, has just recently come out as a transgendered woman and from that perspective she comments on the reason the law was needed and deflates the ludicrous fears of those who oppose the law. This is Dr. Kaufman’s first contribution to TGForum and we welcome her thoughts and insights.
For all of our gains in recognition and rights there we still often face transphobia. As Babs points out in this post some of the transphobia isn’t coming from the straight world. It’s coming from the gay, lesbian and bisexual parts of the community. Is there a resurgence of gay and lesbian transphobia menacing the T in GLBT? Babs looks a a few examples, like the firing of Allyson Robinson, after only 9 months on the job at Outserve-SLDN. And what about Janice Covington being told it would be better for her to join her state’s Democratic men’s auxiliary rather than the women’s. It’s enough to make you wonder. See what else Babs has to say about G&L transphobia.
