The Week In Transgenderism 3/30/15

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Jazz Jennings

Jazz Jennings appeared on The Meredith Vieira Show last week to talk about being bullied at school and she gave advice to kids who may be facing the same thing everyday. It was basically, keep your head down and keep moving. There’s more to it than that and you can read what she said and watch a video of her appearance at E! online.

The world is a much different place than it was when Rene Richards came out. Recently she gave an interview about that time in the ‘70s when “transgender” wasn’t a word and she became the first transsexual to compete on the women’s professional tennis circuit. She also had thoughts on Bruce Jenner’s situation. Read what she said in The New York Times.

Tur

People in the TG community are coming to the conclusion that Zoey Tur is not the best person to be representing trans people on television. Just because you are trans doesn’t mean you’re an expert. Tur keeps coming up with reports that are factually incorrect. Though not a medical doctor Tur has made statements about the effect of hormones. She has also appeared to side with the woman who complained about a TG in the locker room at Planet Fitness. Is it time for Tur to go? Read the story on the Think Progress website.

The first trans homecoming king in North Carolina has died. Last year Blake Brockington was crowned homecoming king at his high school. This year he died by his own hand. He endured tons of negative comments on the social media and still carried on with a message of overcoming negativity and stressing the importance of being involved in the TG community. Somewhere along the line the burden became too much. Read the story in The Huffington Post.

Trans Teacher

The best laid plans of mice and trans, oft times go astray. A California high school chemistry teacher had planned to come out to her students after the summer break but when some of those students saw her dressed as a woman and on a movie date with her boyfriend she knew the photos would be on the Web before the film ended. She came to work en femme the very next school day. So much for easing people into it. What do you think she should have done? Use the comment area below to voice your opinion. Read the story in the New York Daily News.

The Danish Girl is now in production and we’ve seen another photo of Eddie Redmayne in character as Lili Elbe. It’s hats off for Eddie. In actuality, he has taken off the 1920s lady’s headgear in the one new photo you’ll find  on the US website. There are many more photos, all in the same wardrobe, at Just Jared.

Have you heard of Sir Lady Java? Neither had we and we’ve heard of a lot of trans activists. Photos of Sir Lady Java protesting in Los Angeles in 1967 are featured in an art exhibit in that city. The show is called Transgender Hirstory in 99 Objects: Legends & Mythologies. The show features art from the Museum of Transgender Hirstory in San Francisco mingled with archival items from Los Angele’s ONE National Gay & Lesbian Archive. Learn more and view some of the things from the show in The Advocate.

TGF contributor David de Alba will be appearing on stage as Judy Garland this coming June at The Oynx Theatre in Las Vegas. David recently gave an interview to a local television station and talked about Judy and his vast collection of Garland memorabilia. Watch the interview right now.

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A new film from Australia documents a mother’s gender transition and its effect on her family. Based on the director’s own experience and using a mock documentary style that follows the characters through all the Tuesdays in a year 52 Tuesdays presents what it’s like to go from female to male, for both the trans man and his family. Read a review in The New York Times.

In the wake of recent trans teen suicides some psychologists are saying what should just be commonsense; trans teens need to feel safe at school and at home. If they get rejection, even unspoken rejection picked up through body language and attitude then they are more likely to feel disconnected and suicidal. Read more in The Charlotte Observer.

If you are a young reader or know someone young who would like to learn about transgenderism there are a few books now available. Read some reviews of what’s out there in the Richmond Times.

Mandi Hauwert

So you think you might have a tough time at your workplace if you tried to transition genders. There might be embarrassing looks and diverted glances. Maybe there would be concerns about which restroom you were going to use. All that can be tough but how would you like to transition while working as a prison guard at San Quentin? That’s what Mandi Hauwert is doing. See video and read about her in the Inside Edition website.

In the March 23 TWIT we featured a link to a site called Social Resistance which had published an opinion piece from a feminist who was against including trans women in the feminist movement. Social Resistance had hoped to run another op-ed from a trans activist but unfortunately the person who was going to write that piece fell ill and was unable to submit it. Social Resistance has removed the first op-ed and published a statement about their experiment in presenting both sides of the debate which you can read here.

One trans woman spoke out boldly against the pending legislation in Florida that will criminalize going to the restroom for trans people caught in the “wrong” facility. Cindy Sullivan pointed out to the committee hearing the input from citizens that the bill’s passage could make her a criminal for going to the restroom and that could start a chain of events that could ruin her life. She called the bill “government intrusion at its worst.” Read about her testimony and watch a video of it on the Mother Jones website.

A bill that passed in the Colorado House is not aimed at restricting trans people or keeping them out of the restroom. It is meant to extend their rights by allowing them to change their official gender markers on birth certificates without being required to have gender reassignment surgery. Read about it in the Durango Herald.

Rollergirl wins.

We’ve heard a lot about “systemic discrimination” in the area of race. Does such a thing impact the way police departments treat trans people? That’s what the British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal says has been going on in the Vancouver Police Department. The ruling comes after the Tribunal was called upon to look into how the police treated a trans “rollergirl” who liked to direct traffic while rollerblading. Here’s a hint; they didn’t treat her very well. Read about it in The Globe and Mail.

Good news for trans people in Connecticut who are on Medicaid. Your lawmakers repealed a regulation that denied medically appropriate transition-related healthcare. There are still many states that have such regulations in place but Connecticut joins New York and other states that are now lifting those bans. Get the story at the Human Rights Campaign blog.

Shhh. Be very quiet. The University of North Carolina-Charlotte campus now allows trans students and staff to use the restroom of their choice. If you can believe the television station that reported on it after they got “an anonymous tip” the whole thing was done on the Q.T., the down low, in the dead of night. Read about it and view a video report on the WFMY website.

Today on TGF we inaugurate a new series of posts about developing a voice that goes with your presentation. Kathe Perez is our new contributor and she will have a post every few months on voice. As more and more people come out and express their inner gender the importance of voice training means that more and more professionals, beside Ms. Perez, will become involved and offer their voice coaching services to trans people. Read about some of them in the Star Tribune.

Saddleback

Last week an Aboriginal trans man was nominated to the position of president of the University of Saskatchewan Student’s Union. Jack Saddleback is his name and he has previously served as the Vice President of Student Affairs. Learn more about Saddleback on the CBC website.

It seems to be college drag show season again. One was held last week at Illinois State University and it featured a mix of professionals and student queens. The event benefited charity and drew over 300 people in the audience. Learn more at Vidette online.

Cuba has been closed to American tourists for decades but the Obama administration has taken steps to lift the embargo and that means the tourists will be walking the quaint streets of Havana and taking in the attractions. Like the Saturday night drag show in Santa Clara. It’s Cuba’s only drag show and Santa Clara is Cuba’s hottest town. They host the annual Miss Travesti beauty pageant too. Learn more about it in The Daily Beast.

Turner Prize-winning artist, transvestite, potter and television show host Grayson Perry was in attendance as a presenter at an event called Advertising Week Europe. Modern day, European Don Drapers no doubt descend on the event looking for the hottest new ideas to use in advertising. Perry was there to talk about creativity. If you want his advice on how to be creative you can find it in The Drum.

Our final item today comes to use from Linda Jensen who got it from Gender Mosaic member Talia Johnson. Before you read it please note that it’s satire. The Canadian government is removing “trans” from the Trans Canada Highway. Remember, it’s satire! It’s on The Beaverton website.

TWIT

The swirling cauldron of ignorance and emotion that feeds the ongoing “Restroom Wars” shows no sign of relaxing the crusade to keep trans people out of the lady’s room. The latest story comes from Virginia where parents rallied opposition to a grade school’s decision to let a 4th grade trans girl use the girl’s room. They claimed the usual things; “predatory individuals” would put their children at risk and there’d be untold havoc if this 4th grade girl was allowed in the girl’s room. The school board bowed to the pressure and banished the girl to a single toilet facility, or the boy’s room. Way to win your TWIT Award, school board. The story can be found on the Think Progress website.

Tags: David de Alba, Eddie Redmayne, featured, Grayson Perry, Jazz Jennings, news, The Danish Girl, TWIT, Zoey Tur

Category: Transgender Community News