This Week in Transgenderism 6/08/09

Rioting Queens

June is Pride month, and across the country, the T is coming first in GLBT. Danica Patrick‘s pit crew look fetching in those heels, but we’d hate to see what their nails look like. Amanda Lepore is pushing her new album. It’s not safe to be transgendered in Honduras, Venezuela or Memphis. A London cabbie says she was harassed by coworkers and passengers. And a transgendered attorney makes the case for legalizing same sex marriages. And two Ohioans win the dubious distinction of being TWITs. All this and much more inside this edition of TWIT Notes.

Ignorance persists, even in semi-liberal California, where two morning show DJ’s have been harranged for their labeling of trans-kids as “freaks“. The Sacremento Bee has our first story, but there’s also reaction at Stopping the Hate, and On Top magazine.

Amanda Lepore

The “world’s most famous transsexual” has a new album coming out, and PrideSource has the obligatory interview with the artist. If you haven’t before, meet Amanda Lepore.

A civil rights group wants Honduras to better protect its transgendered citizens. UPI has more.

But wait! Venezuela may be even worse. With 20 trans murders so far this year! The BBC takes a closer look.

In the Philippines, the fight to gender identity and birth certificate changes made it to the Supreme Court. ABS-CBN has details.

OnTop Magazine also reports that Memphis may just be the most unfriendly city in the USA for transgendered peoples.

And some of the TG’s are leaving Memphis. Sydney Dupree moved to Los Angeles for a better life. Reuters catches up with her at a job fair.

Darlene Fike

And yet, others are staying, and coming out. Kudos to Darlene Fike for her willingness to fight on, in the pages of the Commerical Appeal.

Darlene also talked with ABC24 in Memphis about that city’s debate over GLBT civils rights.

TribLive has delayed reaction to the Allen Andrade conviction in Colorado.

And a judge says it’s okay for the State of New York to apply hate crime status against the man who killed Teisha Green last year in Syracuse. The Post-Standard has more.

Dominique Storm

This week’s “Meet the Transsexual” comes out of Utah, and is in the pages of In This Week.

And the Sun has a story of discrimination from a London cabbie. Management was cool, but coworkers and riders weren’t.

They came out this past weekend in Los Angeles to mark Trans-Unity Pride. The recap will come later, we’re sure, but for now, see what they had scheduled at the Examiner.

Boston’s Pride event also focused on the T in GLBT. An audio interview with one of the leaders on why is at OutTake.

Pride circa 1970

Why is Pride held in June? To mark the anniversary of the Stonewall Riots. Daily Kos has an interview with someone who was there, and who can clarify the oft-misunderstood role of the trans-community in jump starting the GLBT civil rights movement.

They’re not lining up at an Indian college to mark the “T” box under gender on the application, but when they do, Express Buzz says that box will be there.

The New York Times reports Harvard has endowed a chair for a professorship in GLBT studies, the first of it’s kind in the nation. We want to know: how comfy is the chair? Is it a rocker-recliner, or one of those cheap folding metal ones?

A New York gay activist says much attention has been placed on the same-sex marriage issue, and GENDA is getting ignored. And he’s not pleased about that either. His remarks are at the Gay City News.

Lisa Maxwell

And it goes both ways: A TG attorney in Oklahoma is supporting gay marriage. Her story is at the Daily Kos.

Frida Marin

And a drag queen first-time-in-drag-pageant winner in SoCal is speaking truth to power on the issue too. Her comments are in the OCWeekly.

Two weeks ago, we told you about the civil rights complaint against a Denny’s in Maine. This week, Bangor Daily News has tracked down the woman responsible for filing the complaint. You go, girl!

Trans-friendly Dunedin, Florida, has added the T to the list of anti-discrimination laws. But the St. Petersburg Times says the law doesn’t go far enough.

Gender Conference

The big gender confab is over in Wellington. How’d it go? Read GayNZ to find out.

A TG lawyer is among the recipients at a San Francisco awards dinner. The Bay Area Reporter has more. (Does she kiss her mother with that mouth?!?)

A new documentary is out in the UK about trans-Filipino activists. The details are at Ham & High.

Danica Patrick

Danica Patrick‘s pit crew en femme. Is it offensive? Some folks the Examiner talks to think so. We’re just happy those guys shaved their legs.

He won the title of prom queen, but won’t be wearing a dress. Newsmax has the shocking story.

An FtM footballer has joined a soccer club in Australia. The scoop is at GayNZ.

A tiny sliver of hospitals and clinics have trans-friendly policies on the books. American Medical News has more.

Famke Janssen

ZapTV says Famke Janssen will reprise her nutso TS role for the last two episodes of FX’s Nip/Tuck.

TWITs of the Week: Oddly enough they’re both from southwest Ohio!

TWIT of the Week

First up, there’s a guy near Dayton who has a strange way of getting his jollies. WDTN has more.

It’s tough to get, and hold a job in this economy. And it’s tougher still to be openly transgendered and gainfully employed. And folks like this phlebotomist in Cincinnati aren’t making it any easier. The story is in the Enquirer.

Category: Transgender Community News