The Week In Trans 7/1/19

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Maebe A Girl

Maebe A Girl is considered the first drag queen to hold elected office in the U.S. (This obviously does not include certain politicians who occasionally did a stint in drag, such as Rudolph Giuliani.) The member of the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council has announced a run for Congress. LGBTQ Nation has this story.

The Philadelphia Police Department has created new guidelines for dealing with transgender and non-binary people, whether they are suspects, witnesses, or victims. The guidelines call on the police to record and use the name and pronouns of the person. The policy also instructs police officers to take the person to the nearest medical facility if medical help is needed. If a transgender person is arrested, that person should be housed separately from others if possible, per this plan. This caught the attention of CNN.

The body of a transgender woman of color found by Kansas City Police has been identified as Brooklyn Lindsey, age 32. Her death followed an argument and gunshots, according to neighbors. The Kansas City Star has this story.

The subject of civil rights for transgender people came up at the debate of Democratic candidates for President. Corey Booker noted that many LGBTQ children quit school because of bullying over their gender identity or sexual orientation. Julián Castro mentioned transgender women when talking about abortion. (Yes, he slipped; it is transgender men who get pregnant, not transgender women.) You can read about it at Axios.

Dr. McGinn

In celebration of Pride Month, NBC News has a feature on transitioning gender in the workplace. They talked to Dr. Christine McGinn, Samantha Whiteborn, and Christine Hallquist.

In advance of the debate, Gay Star News has a few paragraphs on the LGBTQ record of each candidate who made it to the debate stage.

The Southern Poverty Law Center’s Hatewatch has noted an increase in hate speech and threats directed at transgender people on far-right websites. The gathering of neo-Nazis at Detroit Pride this year was a part of this.

Ruben J. Gonzales of the LGBTQ Victory Institute tells us that every transgender person elected to office makes an outsized contribution to public awareness of transgender people. His essay appeared in The Nation.

Senator Tammy Baldwin has introduced the first ever resolution in the U.S. Senate which recognizes the Stonewall uprising. The resolution specifically mentions that transgender women of color stood up to harassment by law enforcement. LGBTQ Nation has this story.

A recent poll by The Hill and YouGov showed that only 24% of U.S. adults approved of the Trump administration’s policies on LGBTQ rights, which sounds good on its own. The bad news is that only 38% said that they disapprove of those same policies. Moreover, after being informed of what happened during the Stonewall riots, one-third of respondents said that they would not be surprised if such a thing were to happen again. The Hill has this story.

The generation gap between young LGBTQ people and their elders is widening. It’s the subject of a story you can find in The Atlantic. Thanks to Jamie Roberts for pointing it out.

Trans YouTuber, Nakita Dragun.

CNN Business has a feature on transgender people who make Youtube videos.

Human Rights Watch reminds us that transgender people are effectively disenfranchised by voter ID laws and such. This article appeared in The Advocate.

The state of Kansas has become the latest to allow transgender people to change the gender listed on their birth certificates. Like Idaho recently, Kansas submitted to a consent agreement on a federal lawsuit, essentially refusing to argue to keep their current position on the matter. The Hill has this story.

Police in Virginia are asking the public to help them locate Erik McFadden, whom they describe as a “critical person of interest” in the case of Sage Smith, a transgender woman who disappeared several years ago and may be dead. NBC News has this story.

It is summer, and most universities and colleges have fewer students than they will in September. The Daily Californian, the student paper of the University of California, has an article about the availability of services for transgender students on campus, including access to medical assistance.

Immigration Equality got a $100,000 donation from Marriott International to help them in their work with LGBTQ and HIV-positive people seeking asylum in the U.S. Perhaps as important, they got support from Karamo Brown of Queer Eye and Laverne Cox. The Advocate has this story.

A list of four things people can do to support a co-worker who is transgender or non-binary appeared in Fast Company.

Luisa Derouen, a member of the Dominican Sisters of Peace, has an ongoing mission among transgender Catholics. She tries to keep them in touch with God and in touch with the Catholic Church. The recent document, “Male And Female He Created Them,” has caused quite a lot of concern among her transgender friends. She tells their stories in Global Sisters Report.

Zach Barack

Zach Barack talks to Syfy.com about his role in Spiderman: Far From Home.

MTV’s new reality dating show, Are You The One, features people of various genders and sexualities. That includes Kai Wes, a trans man. He is the subject of a short article in Entertainment Weekly.

Aaron Philip, a black transgender model with who was born with cerebral palsy, is on the cover of Paper magazine. CNN Style reports that this is the first magazine cover to feature a black transgender disabled model.

Alice Roberts, an academic who presents features about science on television, had to quit Twitter because of backlash from anti-transgender feminists. They objected to her presentation of scientific findings which show there are more than two sexes. It started when she retweeted a four-year-old article titled “Nature and sex redefined–we have never been binary.” People disagreed with the article, using oversimplified science to refute a call for a more sophisticated and complete view. Pink News has this story.

GLAAD and a coalition of others have called on IMDb to stop including the deadnames of transgender performers without their permission. This cause caught the attention of Pink News.

Stephene Bermon, the director of science and health at the International Association of Athletics Federations, has suggested that Caster Semenya take a psychological test for gender dysphoria if she wants to compete in races as a woman. There is no evidence that she is transgender, just that her body happens to put out more testosterone than do other women’s bodies. You can read about this in Pink News.

Lucy Finlay

Lucy Finlay is a trans woman who used to be part of the Australian Defense Force. She now plays netball and Australian Rules football on a Lutheran team, where her teammates feel that accepting her is part of their Lutheran values. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation has this story.

Hate crimes against transgender people rose by 81% in Britain in the past year. The Home Office says that this rise is due to better reporting, but Stonewall charity says that it is proof that transphobia is on the rise. The BBC got the data, while The Week provides some analysis.

LGBTQ Nation notes that in other countries, the right and even the far right seek LGBTQ voters. In the U.S., the Republican party builds on a history of denying LGBTQ voters civil rights.

In the sort of a story that will continue, Alexander Pangborn of Massachusetts has filed a law suit against his health insurance company, since they denied coverage of gender confirmation surgery. The Boston Globe has this story.

Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots by signing an executive order to provide additional protections for transgender, non-binary, and gender nonconforming students. WKBT-TV has more details.

Maria Joaquina

Maria Joaquina is an 11-year-old transgender girl who has won awards in roller skating. She wants to compete against girls, but the South American Skating Confederation will not allow her to do that. You can find out about it at BBC News.

A transgender flag in front of a church in Chicago was defaced with a black x, and the rainbow flag was defaced with the phrase, “We love kids.” WGN-TV has this story.

Police in Pakistan report that a father in that country killed his transgender child. (It appears that the deceased was MtF, in which case, the story from ABC News made a mistake in referring to the child as a “transgender son.”)

The parliament of Iceland voted to allow a third gender option, beyond male and female, and also strengthened the civil rights of transgender people. The vote was unanimous. Pink News has this story.

Gay Star News has a lot of love for the Pride festival in Reykjavik, Iceland.

The subject of how to be a better ally was covered on an episode of Ask a. . ., in this case, “Ask a transgender person.” The program comes from KUOW.

Five well-known transgender filmmakers are featured in an article on LGBTQ Nation.

A story is going around that J.K. Rowling “confirmed” having anti-transgender sentiments. Snopes looked into it and said that the evidence presented is circumstantial, with no direct quotes from the author.

Stevonnie

Is the cartoon world ready for an intersex character? Steven Universe has just revealed that a major character is both intersex and non-binary. Pride.com has this update on Stevonnie.

Refinery 29 has a gallery of joyful pictures of transgender women.

A woman wrote a lovely tribute to her transgender husband on their anniversary, and Newsweek caught hold of it.

What is a mother to do when her child comes out as non-binary, and she realizes that a term of endearment such as “little girl” no longer fits? Karuna’s mom came up with a new nickname, according to Pink News.

Kevin Dorman wanted to become a voice actor in cartoons. Instead, Kevin teaches speech, with a specialty in transgender people. Triad City Beat ran a profile.

Aaron Jackson is the founder of Planting Peace, a charity known for humanitarian and environmental causes, which owns the rainbow house across the street from the Westboro Baptist Church. Aaron Jackson is also paying Gavin Grimm’s college expenses. He says, “I feel like I just gave a scholarship to the Rosa Parks of the trans bathroom debate.” LGBTQ Nation has this story.

Desmond is Amazing

Desmond Is Amazing is now 12 years old and has a large reputation for drag. Perhaps that reputation is too large, as Desmond’s mother Wendylou is concerned about how some of the more obsessive fans feel about Desmond, according to Gay Star News.

Jamie Roberts let us know of an article in The Washington Post about a drag queen in Washington, D.C. named Muffy Blake Stephyns whose wig is so big it could block out the sun. Muffy came to the attention of a student doing an assignment to interview the most interesting person they could find. That led to a documentary film called Queen of the Capital.

TWITs

A library in Jacksonville, Florida, planned to have an event called Storybook Pride Prom. The event was aimed at LGBTQ youth, and encouraged them to dress up as their favorite character from a book. The invitation even mentioned the possibility of drag, which may have been what caught the attention of Elizabeth Johnston, the “Activist Mommy.” She posted the details of the event, including a phone number for contact. The library heard a lot of complaints about the event, and it was cancelled. For treating others with disrespect, and for being a major party-pooper, Elizabeth Johnston and her followers get a TWIT Award. LGBTQ Nation has this story.

In The Daily Wire, Matt Walsh has a piece entitled, “The Democrats Put Their Scientific Illiteracy And Moral Depravity On Display Last Night. That’s Good News For Trump.” The phrase “moral depravity” refers to the concept of civil rights for transgender Americans. Some of us are old enough to remember when allowing Black people to use the same drinking fountain as White people was considered “moral depravity.” As for “scientific illiteracy,” that largely refers to climate change, which 97% of climate scientists agree is happening now and that humans are contributing to it. However, as in the case of Professor Alice Roberts above, when peer-reviewed science is brought forth, people like Matt Walsh will argue against it by using grade-school science, and complain that the much more sophisticated science isn’t real science. For using tired, old invectives to defend prejudice, and for using bad science to refute good science, Matt Walsh gets a TWIT Award.

Madeleine Kearns of The National Review criticizes California’s proposed new policy on transgender prisoners. She claims to have concern for transgender women, whom she acknowledges are very vulnerable in a men’s prison. Yet, she worries more about vulnerable women. She tips her hand when she worries about female guards being overpowered by transgender women. The guards are not vulnerable to abuse from the prisoners; the prisoners are vulnerable to abuse from the guards. She also brings up the case of Karen White in the U.K., whom she deadnames and misgenders. She ignores the fact that authorities admitted that Karen White did not meet the eligibility requirements, and should not have been assigned to a women’s prison. For ignoring inconvenient facts, Madeleine Kearns gets a TWIT.

The Christian Post reports on a recent Gallop poll findings on transgender people. They play down support for transgender people in the military by pointing out that veterans were less supportive than non-veterans. (The forget to mention that, because of the draft, veterans tend to be older.) They play up instead the finding that people want restroom use to be based on “birth gender.” In doing so, they fail to notice that the wording of the poll conflates gender with sex. For shortsightedness, The Christian Post gets a TWIT Award. (For the record 51% said that transgender people should “use the restroom that corresponds with their birth gender,” while 44% felt that they should go by gender identity. While that is a majority, it is a much smaller spread than was found in the transgender military question.)

West Virginia Republican state Sen. Mike Azinger wrote an opinion article Sunday titled “The Shame of LGBTQ Pride” in The Parkersburg News and Sentinel. He wrote “sexual deviancy is going mainstream” and the solution “is not political correctness and tolerance.” The woman who heads up the Republican party in the state praised Azinger for his opinion. Thanks to Jamie Roberts for the story tip. You can find the story on the 13 WOWK website. TWIT Awards go to the party chair and Azinger.

TWIT is assembled by Cecilia Barzyk with additional content and editing by Angela Gardner. Care to make a comment on this post? Login here and use the comment area below.

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Category: Transgender Community News