The Week In Trans 7/26/21

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Leyna Bloom is the first transgender model to appear on the cover of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue, CBS News reports. Thanks to Alyssa Washington for a link to this story.

Laverne Cox said in an interview that she wants to play a superhero. She appears in the Amazon Prime film Jolt. Yahoo has this story.

While brainstorming possible story ideas for the series Loki, the idea of various crazy mischief “sex” scenes arose, but the thought was dismissed without being put into a script, according to Out.com.

Billy Porter is working on a new movie, about a transgender teen romance. He will be directing the film, and announced the cast. Eva Reign will be the female lead, and yes, she is transgender. Out.com has this story.

Transgender characters are showing up on broadcast television, and transgender performers are playing those parts according to them.

The Owl House anime is introducing a non-binary character. Out.com has a list of various non-binary characters on cartoons.

U.S. District Court Judge Jay Moody granted a motion to block the implementation of Arkansas’s ban on medical treatment of gender dysphoria in minors. The judge wrote, “To pull this care midstream from these patients, or minors, would cause irreparable harm.” There will still be a full trial to determine the fate of this law, but until that case is heard and a verdict rendered, the law cannot be enacted. NPR has the AP’s story. Thanks to Alyssa Washington for a link to this and other stories.

U.S. District Court Judge Joseph R. Goodwin put a hold on West Virginia’s new law on transgender athletes. The transgender girl in the case, Becky Pepper-Jackson, “will be permitted to sign up for and participate in school athletics in the same way as her girl classmates.” This story comes from Politico.

A California court ruled that an employee of a nursing home has the right to deadname a transgender patient. The law specifically talked of deliberate and persistent use of the deadname, not a casual mistake. The judge ruled that this infringes on the employee’s free speech rights. KQED public radio has this story. Thanks to Alyssa Washington for a link to this story.

Legislators in Louisiana returned to attempt to overturn Governor John Bel Edwards’ veto of a bill that prohibits transgender women in girls’ sports. The Senate voted to override the veto, but the House vote was two short of an overrid. You can read more in Forbes.

While two federal courts this week enacted injunctions to prevent anti-transgender laws from taking effect, Slate wonders if this trend will hold when the cases get to the Supreme Court.

Taya Aston of Maryland was slain this week. A man was arrested in connection with the fatal shooting, according to WTOP-TV.

The Washington Post reports on a vigil for Taya Ashton. Many of the mourners were concerned for their own safety, as well as saddened by what happened to their friend.

In Wyoming, a transgender woman was attacked while walking her dog at her apartment complex. Rilee Shipley had had a disagreement with another resident over the resident’s unleashed dogs, and apparently, the other resident was so upset that he attacked her. The Advocate has this story.

Protests continue at the Wi Spa in Los Angeles. Followers of conservative news continue to believe that a transgender person performed an act of indecent exposure there, even though some news organizations question if the incident took place. This week, those protests turned violent, as people from opposing protests argued with each other. The Los Angeles Times has this story.

The U.S. Senate confirmed Shawn Skelly, a transgender woman, as Assistant Secretary of Defense for Readiness. She served as a flight officer in the Navy, retiring after 20 years with the rank of commander. The Advocate has this story.

Them has a profile of Andrew Adams, who has been fighting for his right to use the men’s room at school for the past six year.

As the Texas legislature continues to be unable to assemble a quorum to conduct its business, Governor Greg Abbott suggested in an interview this week that he has a plan for “dealing with” medical care for gender dysphoria in minors. His plan somehow bypasses the legislature. He would not give more specifics on the conservative radio talk show he was on, but seems to want to drop it as a surprise sometime after the special session ends. This story comes from them.

The ACLU announced that they have filed suit against the state of Montana, over a new law requiring gender confirmation surgery before the state will change the legal gender marker. NBC News has this story

The City Council of Missoula went against the Montana legislature and introduced a measure to affirm the rights of transgender youth. The resolution is general in nature and does not override state law, but is a nice gesture. It will get its final vote next week, according to KPAX.

LGBTQ Nation has a long list of all the things that the Biden/Harris administration has done to promote LGBTQ equality.

Two members of the U.S. House of Representatives have introduced a resolution to apologize for the mistreatment of LGBTQ federal employees, including members of the armed services. LGBTQ Nation has this story.

Leo Baker is a skateboarder who quit Team USA to transition. They explained, “Being categorized as a woman in events was just not for me.” PinkNews has this story.

A story in HR Dive looks at how LGBTQ authenticity can be a factor in a successful career.

A group of researchers looked at the effect of testosterone as a gender-affirming treatment, specifically on reducing anxiety and depression. The study looked at the effects on the brain, as well as talking to patients about their self-perception. Science Direct has this study.

A group of activists and some researchers have introduced a resolution to try to get HIV research to account more for gender identity. This story comes from AIDSmap.

An article in them talks of how some transgender people are taking non-prescription drugs for coping purposes. This is not a practice that we recommend, but we include the article to say that it is being done.

An article in HIV plus tells of a health care center for transgender people which is operated by transgender people.

Blue Cross of North Carolina, the state’s largest healthcare insurer, will now cover gender-confirming facial surgery, among other gender-confirming treatments. An activist pointed out that such treatments can be a safety issue, as some are afraid to leave their houses looking as they do. This article comes from The Charlotte News & Observer.

Quinn, a non-binary midfielder on the Canadian women’s soccer team, competed in an early Olympics match, thus becoming the first openly-transgender person to compete in the Olympics. Quinn did compete in the Olympics in 2016, but had not yet come out as transgender at that time. ESPN has this story.

So Sato, a pole vaulter who is deaf and transgender, will compete in the Deaflympics next year. This year, he is gaining inspiration from the fact that transgender athletes are participating in the Olympics for the first time. This caught the attention of Reuters.

Three elite athletes who happen to be transgender talked about their daily routines to Teen Vogue.

Alison Perkins is a golf coach who gave out lessons to fans at the British Open, but she left early. Some fans gave her a hard time because she is transgender. PinkNews has this story.

Lui Asquith explains in PinkNews why they found sports to be toxic, and why they returned to captain the Stonewall FC women’s and non-binary team.

Although transgender and non-binary characters are becoming more common on TV, non-binary performers who play non-binary characters are being overlooked by the Emmy nominations, according to Asia Kate Dillon. This story can be found in them.

Tommy Dorfman of 13 Reasons Why tells Time magazine, “For a year now, I have been privately identifying and living as a woman – a trans woman. I view today as a reintroduction to me as a woman.” She also says, “I’m no longer interested in playing ‘male’ characters.” Thanks to Alyssa Washington for a link to this story.

Tommy Dorfman is the first on a list of 8 Trans Celebrities Breaking Boundaries in Hollywood in Seventeen.

Dawn Ennis reviews the new film No Ordinary Man for Forbes.

After Kid Cudi showed off his painted nails on Instagram, he was bombarded with transphobic comments. He called out the haters. Them has this story.

Allure magazine featured an interview with Halsey, but the singer complained that the magazine misgendered them, and took quotes out of context. Although the singer later deleted the tweets, they live on in screen captures, according to Out magazine.

The Lowell Chamber Orchestra season will feature seven living composers, including Laura Kaminski’s opera As One. The opera features a transgender lead character played by two actors. Here is a press release about the season.

Mikayla Oz talked with The Des Moines Register about cancelled shows in Wyoming, and about performing magic for children.

Ginny Lemon complained about the “misogynistic” beauty standards used to judge drag queens on Drag Race U.K. It is not the first time the drag queen has complained about the show, as them points out.

Bob the Drag Queen had some difficulty getting through the TSA screening, and decided to tweet the experience. LGBTQ Nation has this story.

A grandmother has had gushing reactions to seeing her grandchild in drag. Indeed, the grandchild, who uses the drag name Twink Trash, shows off every new outfit for grandmother, who shares pictures with her “church friends.” This story comes from The Advocate.

Caitlyn Jenner left the campaign trail, to film Big Brother in Australia. She will return to the campaign trail before the September 14 election. At least for awhile, she won’t be embarrassing herself with out-of-touch moments on the campaign trail, though she may be out-of-touch while appearing on a reality show. LGBTQ Nation has this story.

Argentina has announced that it will offer gender-neutral passports to its citizens. No other country in South America has offered gender-neutral passports. This story comes from CNN.

After the European Union and several of its member nations have tried to get Hungary to change its anti-LGBTQ law, the government of Hungary indicated this week that they are considering the possibility of putting the law up for a national referendum. It is quite likely that the voters of the country will agree with them on the issue. Them has this story.

Anannyah Kumari Alex, a well-known transgender activist in India, died this week. Police call it suicide. She was best known for talking about the “medical negligence” the trans community faces. This story comes from The New Indian Express. Thanks to Alyssa Washington for a link to this story.

Zoya Lobo is the first photojournalist from the hijra community, according to The Hindustan times.

We have been following the story of two transgender women who were arrested in Cameroon for “attempted homosexuality.” After their release from jail last week pending trial, they told their story this week via social media. Reuters has the story.

The LGBTQ community in Japan hoped to have the media which came to the country to cover the Olympics see them and hear their stories. However, just before the Olympics began, the outbreak of COVID-19 in Japan overwhelmed other stories. Get the full story from them.

Gina Chua is the new executive editor of Reuters. She is also a transgender woman of color. She discussed her new job and her career in an interview with LGBTQ Nation. Thanks to Alyssa Washington for the link to this story.

Gainesville, Florida, celebrated its second annual Black Lives Matter Trans Inclusive Movement Day. The Gainesville Sun has the story.

Winnemucca, Nevada, finally held its first Pride weekend. Even the governor got involved in the event by participating in the parade. This story can be found in LGBTQ Nation.

More than 100 members of the clergy in Louisiana signed on to an open letter, urging members of the legislature to not override Governor John Bel Edwards’ veto of legislation about transgender athletes. The letter calls the legislation “cynical and frivolous,” and says that it is aimed at “those least able to defend themselves–trans youth.” The Louisiana Illuminator has this story.

NBC News has a story of a church in Norway whose pastor held a name change ceremony for a transgender woman in the congregation.

News Review has a guest column about the false things that are too often said about transgender people.

A guardian of the old ways proudly denounced someone who announced, “My pronouns are hij/hem”, calling these “fictional” pronouns. Unfortunately for the commentator, someone recognized that hij/hem are the Dutch pronouns for he/him. Much trolling followed, as PinkNews reports.

Scientists in Japan have found a specie of algae, Pledornia starri, in which there are three sexes, and they all mate with each other. This story comes from PinkNews.

TWITs

J.K. Rowling reports that she has received threats of violence, rape, and even assassination, because of her views on transgender people. As much as her views are misguided, they are not an excuse to threaten her with violence, rape, or assassination. For making the entire community look bad, those who issue such threats get a TWIT Award. We agree with Vogue on this matter. Yahoo News gets a separate TWIT for repeating this story from the far-right Washington Examiner, rather than a more trustworthy news source.

Eli Lilly has a new commercial, which should make one feel good about the company. Unfortunately, the ad has had the opposite effect on One Million Moms. The made-up group of culture warriors complain that the commercial has too much diversity, including a line that seems to support transgender people and a picture of someone who has had a double mastectomy. For stooping so low to promote intolerance toward others, One Million Moms and its parent group, the Family Research Council, get a TWIT Award. LGBTQ Nation has this story.

Pastor Jack Hibbs claims that the existence of LGBTQ rights is a sign of the last days. (Apparently, he isn’t too familiar with the culture of ancient Greece.) He also claims that, if the theory of evolution were correct, LGBTQ people would have died off, since they do not leave offspring. Actually many LGBTQ people do have children, and did before modern fertility methods. (For example, Oscar Wilde had two sons.) For misuse of science and misuse of logic, Jack Hibbs gets a TWIT. This story comes from LGBTQ Nation.

Marjorie Taylor Greene recently had her Twitter account suspended, due to spreading  misinformation about COVID vaccines. She held a press conference to complain about the suspension, during which she found that the press was not exactly on her side. She was asked if she didn’t feel some responsibility for harm that happened to people because of her misinformation, she laughed. When asked if she believes in science, she replied that she believes in God. Apparently, she doesn’t believe in the God who told her to love her neighbor as herself, because as soon as her 12-hour Twitter suspension ended, she complained about the Congresswoman whose office is across the hall from hers, Representative Marie Newman. She complained that Representative Newman supports the Equality Act, “to destroy women’s rights and religious freedoms.” The part about destroying women’s rights is often disproven yet still gets repeated, while the part about destroying “religious freedoms” was also said about slavery and segregation. For continuing to spread untruths, and for bullying, Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene gets another TWIT Award. LGBTQ Nation has this story.

A story in The Guardian identifies Alaska Assistant Attorney General Matthias Cicotte as a member of the extremist group the Deseret nationalists, who posted racist, anti-Semitic, and homophobic messages on social media. He supported automatically throwing Black Lives Matter protesters in jail, recommended vigilante violence against progressive groups, and said that doctors who perform gender reassignment surgery should be executed. For dangerous positions which fail to treat others as you wish to be treated, Matthias Cicotte, alias J. Reuben Clark, gets a TWIT.

The Family Research Council is asking for donations with the pitch that it plans to continue pressing for bans on transgender medical care. For believing that it knows medical science better than medical organizations, and for twisting the Bible to say what it wants about a subject on which the Bible is silent, the Family Research Council gets a TWIT Award. Right Wing Watch has this story.

Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge issued a statement after a federal court forbade the implementation of the state’s ban on medical treatment of gender dysphoria in minors. “This evidence based law was created because we cannot allow children as young as 9 years old to receive experimental procedures that have irreversible, physical consequences. I will aggressively defend Arkansas’s law which strongly limits permanent, life-altering sex changes to adolescents.” For issuing a statement which is not only devoid of truth but actually at war with truth, Arkansas Attorney General Leslie Rutledge gets a TWIT. This story comes from Southwestern Arkansas Today.

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.

Tags: featured, news, Transgender, TWIT

Category: Transgender Community News