President Obama's Ghana Speech

THE PRESIDENT: (Trumpet plays.) I like this. Thank you. Thank you. I think Congress needs one of those horns. (Laughter.) That sounds pretty good. Sounds like Louis Armstrong back there. (Laughter.)

Good afternoon, everybody. It is a great honor for me to be in Accra and to speak to the representatives of the people of Ghana. (Applause.) I am deeply grateful for the welcome that I've received, as are Michelle and Malia and Sasha Obama. Ghana's history is rich, the ties between our two countries are strong, and I am proud that this is my first visit to sub-Saharan Africa as President of the United States of America. (Applause.)

I want to thank Madam Speaker and all the members of the House of Representatives for hosting us today. I want to thank President Mills for his outstanding leadership. To the former Presidents -- Jerry Rawlings, former President Kufuor -- Vice President, Chief Justice -- thanks to all of you for your extraordinary hospitality and the wonderful institutions that you've built here in Ghana.

I'm speaking to you at the end of a long trip. I began in Russia for a summit between two great powers. I traveled to Italy for a meeting of the world's leading economies. And I've come here to Ghana for a simple reason: The 21st century will be shaped by what happens not just in Rome or Moscow or Washington, but by what happens in Accra, as well. (Applause.)

This is the simple truth of a time when the boundaries between people are overwhelmed by our connections. Your prosperity can expand America's prosperity. Your health and security can contribute to the world's health and security. And the strength of your democracy can help advance human rights for people everywhere.

So I do not see the countries and peoples of Africa as a world apart; I see Africa as a fundamental part of our interconnected world -- (applause) -- as partners with America on behalf of the future we want for all of our children. That partnership must be grounded in mutual responsibility and mutual respect. And that is what I want to speak with you about today.

We must start from the simple premise that Africa's future is up to Africans.

I say this knowing full well the tragic past that has sometimes haunted this part of the world. After all, I have the blood of Africa within me, and my family's -- (applause) -- my family's own story encompasses both the tragedies and triumphs of the larger African story.

Some you know my grandfather was a cook for the British in Kenya, and though he was a respected elder in his village, his employers called him "boy" for much of his life. He was on the periphery of Kenya's liberation struggles, but he was still imprisoned briefly during repressive times. In his life, colonialism wasn't simply the creation of unnatural borders or unfair terms of trade -- it was something experienced personally, day after day, year after year.

My father grew up herding goats in a tiny village, an impossible distance away from the American universities where he would come to get an education. He came of age at a moment of extraordinary promise for Africa. The struggles of his own father's generation were giving birth to new nations, beginning right here in Ghana. (Applause.) Africans were educating and asserting themselves in new ways, and history was on the move.

But despite the progress that has been made -- and there has been considerable progress in many parts of Africa -- we also know that much of that promise has yet to be fulfilled. Countries like Kenya had a per capita economy larger than South Korea's when I was born. They have badly been outpaced. Disease and conflict have ravaged parts of the African continent.

In many places, the hope of my father's generation gave way to cynicism, even despair. Now, it's easy to point fingers and to pin the blame of these problems on others. Yes, a colonial map that made little sense helped to breed conflict. The West has often approached Africa as a patron or a source of resources rather than a partner. But the West is not responsible for the destruction of the Zimbabwean economy over the last decade, or wars in which children are enlisted as combatants. In my father's life, it was partly tribalism and patronage and nepotism in an independent Kenya that for a long stretch derailed his career, and we know that this kind of corruption is still a daily fact of life for far too many.

Now, we know that's also not the whole story. Here in Ghana, you show us a face of Africa that is too often overlooked by a world that sees only tragedy or a need for charity. The people of Ghana have worked hard to put democracy on a firmer footing, with repeated peaceful transfers of power even in the wake of closely contested elections. (Applause.) And by the way, can I say that for that the minority deserves as much credit as the majority. (Applause.) And with improved governance and an emerging civil society, Ghana's economy has shown impressive rates of growth. (Applause.)

This progress may lack the drama of 20th century liberation struggles, but make no mistake: It will ultimately be more significant. For just as it is important to emerge from the control of other nations, it is even more important to build one's own nation.

So I believe that this moment is just as promising for Ghana and for Africa as the moment when my father came of age and new nations were being born. This is a new moment of great promise. Only this time, we've learned that it will not be giants like Nkrumah and Kenyatta who will determine Africa's future. Instead, it will be you -- the men and women in Ghana's parliament -- (applause) -- the people you represent. It will be the young people brimming with talent and energy and hope who can claim the future that so many in previous generations never realized.

Now, to realize that promise, we must first recognize the fundamental truth that you have given life to in Ghana: Development depends on good governance. (Applause.) That is the ingredient which has been missing in far too many places, for far too long. That's the change that can unlock Africa's potential. And that is a responsibility that can only be met by Africans.

As for America and the West, our commitment must be measured by more than just the dollars we spend. I've pledged substantial increases in our foreign assistance, which is in Africa's interests and America's interests. But the true sign of success is not whether we are a source of perpetual aid that helps people scrape by -- it's whether we are partners in building the capacity for transformational change. (Applause.)

This mutual responsibility must be the foundation of our partnership. And today, I'll focus on four areas that are critical to the future of Africa and the entire developing world: democracy, opportunity, health, and the peaceful resolution of conflict.

First, we must support strong and sustainable democratic governments. (Applause.)

As I said in Cairo, each nation gives life to democracy in its own way, and in line with its own traditions. But history offers a clear verdict: Governments that respect the will of their own people, that govern by consent and not coercion, are more prosperous, they are more stable, and more successful than governments that do not.

This is about more than just holding elections. It's also about what happens between elections. (Applause.) Repression can take many forms, and too many nations, even those that have elections, are plagued by problems that condemn their people to poverty. No country is going to create wealth if its leaders exploit the economy to enrich themselves -- (applause) -- or if police -- if police can be bought off by drug traffickers. (Applause.) No business wants to invest in a place where the government skims 20 percent off the top -- (applause) -- or the head of the Port Authority is corrupt. No person wants to live in a society where the rule of law gives way to the rule of brutality and bribery. (Applause.) That is not democracy, that is tyranny, even if occasionally you sprinkle an election in there. And now is the time for that style of governance to end. (Applause.)

In the 21st century, capable, reliable, and transparent institutions are the key to success -- strong parliaments; honest police forces; independent judges -- (applause); an independent press; a vibrant private sector; a civil society. (Applause.) Those are the things that give life to democracy, because that is what matters in people's everyday lives.

Now, time and again, Ghanaians have chosen constitutional rule over autocracy, and shown a democratic spirit that allows the energy of your people to break through. (Applause.) We see that in leaders who accept defeat graciously -- the fact that President Mills' opponents were standing beside him last night to greet me when I came off the plane spoke volumes about Ghana -- (applause); victors who resist calls to wield power against the opposition in unfair ways. We see that spirit in courageous journalists like Anas Aremeyaw Anas, who risked his life to report the truth. We see it in police like Patience Quaye, who helped prosecute the first human trafficker in Ghana. (Applause.) We see it in the young people who are speaking up against patronage, and participating in the political process.

Across Africa, we've seen countless examples of people taking control of their destiny, and making change from the bottom up. We saw it in Kenya, where civil society and business came together to help stop post-election violence. We saw it in South Africa, where over three-quarters of the country voted in the recent election -- the fourth since the end of Apartheid. We saw it in Zimbabwe, where the Election Support Network braved brutal repression to stand up for the principle that a person's vote is their sacred right.

Now, make no mistake: History is on the side of these brave Africans, not with those who use coups or change constitutions to stay in power. (Applause.) Africa doesn't need strongmen, it needs strong institutions. (Applause.)

Now, America will not seek to impose any system of government on any other nation. The essential truth of democracy is that each nation determines its own destiny. But what America will do is increase assistance for responsible individuals and responsible institutions, with a focus on supporting good governance -- on parliaments, which check abuses of power and ensure that opposition voices are heard -- (applause); on the rule of law, which ensures the equal administration of justice; on civic participation, so that young people get involved; and on concrete solutions to corruption like forensic accounting and automating services -- (applause) -- strengthening hotlines, protecting whistle-blowers to advance transparency and accountability.

And we provide this support. I have directed my administration to give greater attention to corruption in our human rights reports. People everywhere should have the right to start a business or get an education without paying a bribe. (Applause.) We have a responsibility to support those who act responsibly and to isolate those who don't, and that is exactly what America will do.

Now, this leads directly to our second area of partnership: supporting development that provides opportunity for more people.

With better governance, I have no doubt that Africa holds the promise of a broader base of prosperity. Witness the extraordinary success of Africans in my country, America. They're doing very well. So they've got the talent, they've got the entrepreneurial spirit. The question is, how do we make sure that they're succeeding here in their home countries? The continent is rich in natural resources. And from cell phone entrepreneurs to small farmers, Africans have shown the capacity and commitment to create their own opportunities. But old habits must also be broken. Dependence on commodities -- or a single export -- has a tendency to concentrate wealth in the hands of the few, and leaves people too vulnerable to downturns.

So in Ghana, for instance, oil brings great opportunities, and you have been very responsible in preparing for new revenue. But as so many Ghanaians know, oil cannot simply become the new cocoa. From South Korea to Singapore, history shows that countries thrive when they invest in their people and in their infrastructure -- (applause); when they promote multiple export industries, develop a skilled workforce, and create space for small and medium-sized businesses that create jobs.

As Africans reach for this promise, America will be more responsible in extending our hand. By cutting costs that go to Western consultants and administration, we want to put more resources in the hands of those who need it, while training people to do more for themselves. (Applause.) That's why our $3.5 billion food security initiative is focused on new methods and technologies for farmers -- not simply sending American producers or goods to Africa. Aid is not an end in itself. The purpose of foreign assistance must be creating the conditions where it's no longer needed. I want to see Ghanaians not only self-sufficient in food, I want to see you exporting food to other countries and earning money. You can do that. (Applause.)

Now, America can also do more to promote trade and investment. Wealthy nations must open our doors to goods and services from Africa in a meaningful way. That will be a commitment of my administration. And where there is good governance, we can broaden prosperity through public-private partnerships that invest in better roads and electricity; capacity-building that trains people to grow a business; financial services that reach not just the cities but also the poor and rural areas. This is also in our own interests -- for if people are lifted out of poverty and wealth is created in Africa, guess what? New markets will open up for our own goods. So it's good for both.

One area that holds out both undeniable peril and extraordinary promise is energy. Africa gives off less greenhouse gas than any other part of the world, but it is the most threatened by climate change. A warming planet will spread disease, shrink water resources, and deplete crops, creating conditions that produce more famine and more conflict. All of us -- particularly the developed world -- have a responsibility to slow these trends -- through mitigation, and by changing the way that we use energy. But we can also work with Africans to turn this crisis into opportunity.

Together, we can partner on behalf of our planet and prosperity, and help countries increase access to power while skipping -- leapfrogging the dirtier phase of development. Think about it: Across Africa, there is bountiful wind and solar power; geothermal energy and biofuels. From the Rift Valley to the North African deserts; from the Western coasts to South Africa's crops -- Africa's boundless natural gifts can generate its own power, while exporting profitable, clean energy abroad.

These steps are about more than growth numbers on a balance sheet. They're about whether a young person with an education can get a job that supports a family; a farmer can transfer their goods to market; an entrepreneur with a good idea can start a business. It's about the dignity of work; it's about the opportunity that must exist for Africans in the 21st century.

Just as governance is vital to opportunity, it's also critical to the third area I want to talk about: strengthening public health.

In recent years, enormous progress has been made in parts of Africa. Far more people are living productively with HIV/AIDS, and getting the drugs they need. I just saw a wonderful clinic and hospital that is focused particularly on maternal health. But too many still die from diseases that shouldn't kill them. When children are being killed because of a mosquito bite, and mothers are dying in childbirth, then we know that more progress must be made.

Yet because of incentives -- often provided by donor nations -- many African doctors and nurses go overseas, or work for programs that focus on a single disease. And this creates gaps in primary care and basic prevention. Meanwhile, individual Africans also have to make responsible choices that prevent the spread of disease, while promoting public health in their communities and countries.

So across Africa, we see examples of people tackling these problems. In Nigeria, an Interfaith effort of Christians and Muslims has set an example of cooperation to confront malaria. Here in Ghana and across Africa, we see innovative ideas for filling gaps in care -- for instance, through E-Health initiatives that allow doctors in big cities to support those in small towns.

America will support these efforts through a comprehensive, global health strategy, because in the 21st century, we are called to act by our conscience but also by our common interest, because when a child dies of a preventable disease in Accra, that diminishes us everywhere. And when disease goes unchecked in any corner of the world, we know that it can spread across oceans and continents.

And that's why my administration has committed $63 billion to meet these challenges -- $63 billion. (Applause.) Building on the strong efforts of President Bush, we will carry forward the fight against HIV/AIDS. We will pursue the goal of ending deaths from malaria and tuberculosis, and we will work to eradicate polio. (Applause.) We will fight -- we will fight neglected tropical disease. And we won't confront illnesses in isolation -- we will invest in public health systems that promote wellness and focus on the health of mothers and children. (Applause.)

Now, as we partner on behalf of a healthier future, we must also stop the destruction that comes not from illness, but from human beings -- and so the final area that I will address is conflict.

Let me be clear: Africa is not the crude caricature of a continent at perpetual war. But if we are honest, for far too many Africans, conflict is a part of life, as constant as the sun. There are wars over land and wars over resources. And it is still far too easy for those without conscience to manipulate whole communities into fighting among faiths and tribes.

These conflicts are a millstone around Africa's neck. Now, we all have many identities -- of tribe and ethnicity; of religion and nationality. But defining oneself in opposition to someone who belongs to a different tribe, or who worships a different prophet, has no place in the 21st century. (Applause.) Africa's diversity should be a source of strength, not a cause for division. We are all God's children. We all share common aspirations -- to live in peace and security; to access education and opportunity; to love our families and our communities and our faith. That is our common humanity.

That is why we must stand up to inhumanity in our midst. It is never justified -- never justifiable to target innocents in the name of ideology. (Applause.) It is the death sentence of a society to force children to kill in wars. It is the ultimate mark of criminality and cowardice to condemn women to relentless and systemic rape. We must bear witness to the value of every child in Darfur and the dignity of every woman in the Congo. No faith or culture should condone the outrages against them. And all of us must strive for the peace and security necessary for progress.

Africans are standing up for this future. Here, too, in Ghana we are seeing you help point the way forward. Ghanaians should take pride in your contributions to peacekeeping from Congo to Liberia to Lebanon -- (applause) -- and your efforts to resist the scourge of the drug trade. (Applause.) We welcome the steps that are being taken by organizations like the African Union and ECOWAS to better resolve conflicts, to keep the peace, and support those in need. And we encourage the vision of a strong, regional security architecture that can bring effective, transnational forces to bear when needed.

America has a responsibility to work with you as a partner to advance this vision, not just with words, but with support that strengthens African capacity. When there's a genocide in Darfur or terrorists in Somalia, these are not simply African problems -- they are global security challenges, and they demand a global response.

And that's why we stand ready to partner through diplomacy and technical assistance and logistical support, and we will stand behind efforts to hold war criminals accountable. And let me be clear: Our Africa Command is focused not on establishing a foothold in the continent, but on confronting these common challenges to advance the security of America, Africa, and the world. (Applause.)

In Moscow, I spoke of the need for an international system where the universal rights of human beings are respected, and violations of those rights are opposed. And that must include a commitment to support those who resolve conflicts peacefully, to sanction and stop those who don't, and to help those who have suffered. But ultimately, it will be vibrant democracies like Botswana and Ghana which roll back the causes of conflict and advance the frontiers of peace and prosperity.

As I said earlier, Africa's future is up to Africans.
The people of Africa are ready to claim that future. And in my country, African Americans -- including so many recent immigrants -- have thrived in every sector of society. We've done so despite a difficult past, and we've drawn strength from our African heritage. With strong institutions and a strong will, I know that Africans can live their dreams in Nairobi and Lagos, Kigali, Kinshasa, Harare, and right here in Accra. (Applause.)

You know, 52 years ago, the eyes of the world were on Ghana. And a young preacher named Martin Luther King traveled here, to Accra, to watch the Union Jack come down and the Ghanaian flag go up. This was before the march on Washington or the success of the civil rights movement in my country. Dr. King was asked how he felt while watching the birth of a nation. And he said: "It renews my conviction in the ultimate triumph of justice."

Now that triumph must be won once more, and it must be won by you. (Applause.) And I am particularly speaking to the young people all across Africa and right here in Ghana. In places like Ghana, young people make up over half of the population.

And here is what you must know: The world will be what you make of it. You have the power to hold your leaders accountable, and to build institutions that serve the people. You can serve in your communities, and harness your energy and education to create new wealth and build new connections to the world. You can conquer disease, and end conflicts, and make change from the bottom up. You can do that. Yes you can -- (applause) -- because in this moment, history is on the move.

But these things can only be done if all of you take responsibility for your future. And it won't be easy. It will take time and effort. There will be suffering and setbacks. But I can promise you this: America will be with you every step of the way -- as a partner, as a friend. (Applause.) Opportunity won't come from any other place, though. It must come from the decisions that all of you make, the things that you do, the hope that you hold in your heart.

Ghana, freedom is your inheritance. Now, it is your responsibility to build upon freedom's foundation. And if you do, we will look back years from now to places like Accra and say this was the time when the promise was realized; this was the moment when prosperity was forged, when pain was overcome, and a new era of progress began. This can be the time when we witness the triumph of justice once more. Yes we can. Thank you very much. God bless you. Thank you. (Applause.)

Happy Birthday, Renee!

Happy birthday to my north of the border home girl Renee!

Who knew that a beautiful friendship would start from me erroneously chewing on her about a Womanist Musings blog post she wrote?

Serves me right for reading it while half asleep.

That embarrassing day for me (that Renee never lets me forget) actually turned out to be one of the best. I've gained a sister, a loyal friend and someone who loves talking on the phone as much as I do.

I've even gotten some Timmy's stuff out of the deal.

We're both looking forward to the day that we actually meet in the flesh. Doesn't matter what side of the border, we're just looking forward to that day.

She considers me awesome, but I can honestly say the same thing about her. She speaks two languages fluently, is a wonderful writer and someone who keeps me intellectually stimulated.

I admire her for having the patience she does in raising Mayhem and Destruction and still putting out a quality blog.

So happy anniversary of your 30th birthday. May it be stress-free, full of Timmy's Icecaps and Timbits that you actually get to eat this time.

And sis, may you have many more of them as well.

Oh yeah, still working on that cornbread recipe.

Cisgender Isn't An Insult

It's been a hot topic lately on some transgender blogs, so it's time for me to weigh in with my thoughts on the word 'cisgender'.

So what is 'cisgender'?

It's a term coined around 1994 by Dutch transman Carl Buijs that refers to the alignment of gender identity with your physical body.

In other words, it is the opposite of transgender, in which there is a mismatch between your body and the gender identity housed in your brain.

So why do some peeps have a problem with it?

I believe the people having a problem with the word are walling in unacknowledged cisgender privilege. They are taken aback that there is a trans community term coined by trans people to describe them.

That throws them for a loop and they get upset because in their minds, they are the 'normal' people and as such, are the only people who get to define 'others', not the other way around.


Shoot, all you have to do is look at the comment fields on my Bilerico posts and elsewhere around the Net to see how many peeps get upset and call me 'racist' over the 'vanilla flavored privileged' term I used to describe white privilege.

Come to think of it, they call me 'racist' anytime I criticize the underlying structural assumptions that buttress whiteness.

But getting back to our current discussion.

Cisgender is a neutral term that doesn't have the negative accumulated baggage of being used to 'other' or used as a rallying cry by the Forces of Intolerance to oppress someone's human rights rights like trans has.

There are no people being made the butt of societal jokes because they are cisgender. There's no 'cisgender panic defense'. There's no one being denied a job because they are cisgender. There's no one being killed because of folks hating on you for being cisgender. There's no Cisgender Day Of Remembrance.

I repeat, cisgender means your body and the gender identity housed between your ears is comfortably aligned, nothing more, nothing less.

It means that from the time you were born until this point today in your lives, you were not only comfortable in your gender identity-body matchup, you are comfortable with the societal gender role you perform based on that body to the point that you hardly ever think about it.

If we're going to make the point that being transgender is an everyday biological/medical/social condition, we had to have some word in the vocabulary that describes most of the people walking Planet Earth who are not trans.

It's the same concept that underpins why gay people call non-gays 'straight'.

So why are y'all tripping, cisgender people? Cisgender isn't an insult.

Shut Up Fool! Awards-Renee's Birthday Weekend Edition

In honor of my homegirl Renee celebrating another anniversary of her 30th birthday July 11, this week's edition of the Shut Up Fool! Awards is dedicated to her.

May your family at least let you chow down on some of the Timbits you get to celebrate this auspicious occasion along with your fave Timmy's Icecap.

Speaking of celebrations, time to see what fool (or fools) we will shine a spotlight on this week.

Well, this week it's one of my fave sellout ministers, homohater Ken Hutcherson.

He along with his fellow Lo Impact Misleadership Coalition ministers are on my caca list already, but Kenny Boy is in the running for a Shut Up Fool! Lifetime Achievement Award as well.

He played too much NFL football with his helmet off for the Seattle Seahawks and is now running a hate megachurch in the Seattle area.

He earns the award this week for a comment I read in a recent Pam's House Blend post.

It was his commentary about last week's White House GLBT reception, and in his not so infinite wisdom the prez isn't carrying the Ken Hutcherson 'Black Like Me' seal of approval.

"But I guess we...have to ask, 'Even though he is black because his father was, what is his "black experience"?' He doesn't have any. He was raised by a white mother and a white grandmother, so this man has about as much black experience as my Doberman Pinscher -- and I guarantee [that] my Doberman Pinscher doesn't have any," he points out. "There is nothing, nothing that compares between what the Afro-Americans went through and what homosexuals are going through now."

"A person can be as black as a piece of coal, [but] if he goes against God's biblical views, I would not support him, I would not endorse him, I would not even give a smile in his direction so people could even think that I endorse him," he states, "because God is my God, the Bible is my playbook, and I run it the way it is written."

You mean like Clarence Thomas, Alan Keyes and you Ken?

Y'all are dark chocolate 'brothers' who do the bidding of your vanilla massas with sickening regularity.

Oh yeah, that 'ain't Black enough' shade hurled at President Obama is so 2008.

Ken Hutcherson, shut up fool!

Thanks Tweeps!

Wanted to take a moment to say THANK YOU to all the tweeps who had my back in my unexpected Internet wrestling match with the Food Humorless Blog.

The ironic thing was I didn't realize how much of a storm it created until I got that threatening e-mail from the webmaster of the blog.

All I did was simply call them out for disrespecting Sonia Williams, and it became a major Twitter event.

What happened was I slammed the site for putting up a disrespectful thread straight up calling Ms. Williams a transvestite. The comment threads were even worse repositories of transphobia and racism characterizations of the beauty of Black women.

I was given a heads up on it by one of my readers, left my comments in the comment thread on the blog, wrote the piece on TransGriot slamming it, then took a nap.

I check my e-mail a few hours later to see the nastygram from The Pophangover webmaster.

I'm on Twitter, but I didn't check it for several hours until most of the controversy had simmered down.

But, once again, thanks for demonstrating the power of online activism, even to the TransGriot.

It's nice to know that when I take on peeps who have stepped beyond the valley of civic decency, many of you are watching my electronic back.

Justice For Teish Update III

For those of you in the Syracuse area, on Saturday July 11 there will be a LGBT Community memorial service for LaTeisha Green from 12 Noon-4 PM EDT.

It's being coordinated by P.E.A.C.E., the Rainbow Alliance of Central New York, and the family of LaTeisha Green

It will be held at the First English Lutheran Church at 501 James St. in Syracuse, NY

The program for the memorial service will be emceed by Akosua and include La Joven Guardia del Teatro y La danza Latina, the Syracuse Gay and Lesbian Chorus, Rev. Sharon Perry and remarks from the family.

There will also be a dinner following the program and a dance with DJ Flagg behind the turntables. If you need further info you may call 315-478-1923

The Facebook group set up by Gina Morvay as of this writing stood at 4,158 members. To join, you can go to www.facebook.com and search 'Justice For Teish Green or simply click on this link.

If you're in the Syracuse area, the trial once again will be starting on Monday July 13. The Judge will be the Hon. William D. Walsh and the venue will be the Onondaga County Court.

Last month Judge Walsh made several rulings during a preliminary hearing in the case which included denying Dwight DeLee's constitutional challenge to the application of the hate crimes statute in this case, allowing the hate crime charges to proceed.

The address of the Onondaga County/City of Syracuse Criminal Courthouse is 505 South State St. Syracuse, N.Y. 13202-2104

The Transgender Legal Defense & Education Fund in addition to working closely with the Green family, the Rainbow Alliance of Central New York and GLAAD, has put together on its website a resource kit.

They plan to do frequent Twitter updates during the trial, so if you wish to access those tweets you can sign up to follow TLDEF.

Also have to respectfully ask this question. Did anyone consider doing a posthumous name change for Teish? I ask because that what Gwen Araujo's mother did in the aftermath of her murder when she got tired of the media disrespectfully using her old name.

I'm also hearing there are people trying to get TruTV to cover this trial, which they should.

It's not only a groundbreaking trial for New York State, it would highlight the fact that many of the African-American transpeople being murdered are by other African-Americans.

It also hammers home the point that 70% of the Remembering our Dead list is made up of Latina or African-American transpeople.

Embracing Trans Diversity Is Not A Luxury

TransGriot Note: Another guest post from Monica Helms, the president of TAVA and editor of the Trans Universe Blog. She's weighing in with her take on the recent Washington DC LGBT event with the melanin free transgender contingent

July 8, 2006


Over the 12 years of living my life as Monica, I have been privileged to learn many things about the TBLG community, but mostly about the trans community. The biggest lesson in my short life as a woman has been the diversity of our people. Trans individuals have covered every segment of human experience since the dawn of time. We span all races, all sexual orientations, all gender identities, all gender expressions, all social and economic levels, all job experiences, all education levels, all ages and all health issues. If every American trans person populated just one city in America, it would be the third largest city in the country and every job in the city would be covered.

When I moved to Atlanta in 2000, I received the most important part of my education on diversity, that of the African American community. Living in Phoenix most of my life, I received a big education on the Latino and Native cultures of our population, but not much on the African American culture. But, coming to Atlanta had been the biggest eye-opener for me in finding out about the rich history – and sometimes tragic history – of my African American brothers and sisters. Moving here has proven to be one of the best decisions in my life.


I may have come a long way in understanding diversity, but because of a recent event in the White House, it has been shown that maybe the rest of our community still has a lot to learn. I’m not going to get too much into the event, since it happened on June 29. In a nutshell, President Obama held a gathering of about 200 TBLG people to commemorate the 40th Anniversary of Stonewall, of which only about eight trans people received invitations. Out of that eight, two were of Latino decent. However, they didn’t have any trans veterans of Stonewall, or any African American trans people. I don’t see that as embracing diversity in the trans community.

Several questions about the event in DC have not been answered to my satisfaction. 1.) Why wasn’t Miss Majors invited to this? 2.) Who provided the list of trans people that suggested who should go? 3.) Who picked the attendees from that list? 4.) Who didn’t make the cut and why did they not make it? 5.) Had there been extensive background checks made on these people? 6.) And, why were there not any crossdressers, intersex people and gender queer people invited?

The lack of African American people at this event speaks to a larger problem facing the transgender community in general. The most vocal and most well-known African American trans person I know, Monica Roberts, wrote about this event and the lack of African American trans people in her article on TransGriot, dated July 1, 2009. It was posted in other places.

She also posted it on The Bilerico Project, where she got over 60 comments, some of them from gay white men who attacked her. She provided a list of several people who should have been there, but the most glaring omission to the guest list had been Miss Majors. She has the distinction of being the last known African American trans person who helped to start the riots at Stonewall 40 years ago.

In the comment section of the Bilerico article, she and others pointed out that several trans African Americans could not only pass the Secret Service background check, but would have represented all trans people proudly. Yet, none of them received invitations.

Why does the transgender community find it so hard to accept diversity and admit we have a problem in race relationships? As a white trans women, I get angry and disappointed in how some of my white brothers and sister treat race issues with such a low priority. In the comment section of Monica’s article on Bilerico, only one person who attended the event at the White House cared enough to answer some of the questions by others. All of the other people who attended didn’t even make an attempt to contact Monica privately on this issue. Is it that they have too many other fancy events to attend to bother addressing one of the core issues dividing our frail community?

Yes, I’m being factitious, but since they don’t want to listen to one Monica about this problem, then maybe two Monicas in stereo might get their attention. Maybe, but I’m not holding my breath on it.

The trans community has too many things that divide us to go out of our way to make some of them worse. Indeed, some make it a point to create ways to divide us, while others divide us without realize they had done it. Too many times I have seen a newbie trans woman on a diverse discussion list start off with, “Hey, girls.” If none of the trans men say anything, I try to point it out right away. Some particular life experiences tend to give people a narrow view of our community. People need to constantly be aware of the diversity of the trans community, as they transverse through it.

When it comes to race relations, the lessons become harder to learn, but not impossible. What I saw taking place from the discussion of the DC event were people who have been made aware of a problem in race relations, but choose to ignore it. The problem will not go away. The prominent white “leaders” in the trans community need to put as much effort in healing the rift between the Black leaders in our community as they do in lobbying Congress for our rights. A summit is in order. But, I don’t see any of the white leaders making an effort.

Since the beginning of the century, we have seen massive improvements on the state and local levels protecting the rights of transgender people. However, the number of People of Color ending up on the Remembering Our Dead list has grown to over 70%. We have an African American President who has shown great pride in his heritage, but hosts an event that shuns trans people of that same heritage.

We have trans organizations (TAVA included) where the top leaders are white. We have young African American trans people living in a world with few or no known heroes to emulate. We have several African American trans people who can make ALL of the trans community proud, but they get little press or exposure from the white trans leaders. We have a major problem that many white trans people seem to ignore.

Well, I refuse to ignore this any longer and I am standing up to be counted as a white person who will fight racial indifference in the white trans community. I know many of my white brothers and sisters will be counted as well. Some people say I’m a “leader” in this community. If so, I’ll stick my neck out here, as I have done so many times in the past.

“As the President of the Transgender American Veterans Association, I call for a Race Relations Summit.”

It’s not like TAVA is doing a damn thing anyway, right? I’m sure no one will respond to this. Why should they? They’re too busy with their own issues to care and TAVA wasn’t one of the national groups invited to the White House, along with our African American brothers and sisters. We will be ignored, but not forever.

As veterans, we fought along side our Brothers and Sister of Color, counting on them to watch our backs as we watched theirs. Veterans understand the need to work together, because our lives depended on it in the trenches, the fox holes and on board ships. Well friends, our lives as trans people depend on it just as much today. It would be advisable to work toward that goal. After all, embracing diversity is not a luxury, but a necessity.

If You Don't Like The Effects, Don't Produce The Cause

I borrowed the title of this post from a 1972 Funkadelic album song back in the day that a track on the America Eats Its Young LP.

The song has two interrelated themes. The beginning part of it focuses on hypocrites who want to change reality without accepting the blame if anything goes wrong.

In the latter part of the song it talks about those people who make half-hearted attempts at social change. It also whacks people who protest the "big" problems but are not willing to make changes in their own lives to respect what they claim is right for all of society.

Does that sound like a certain community we all know and loathe at times?

Now y'all know why I love Parliament-Funkadelic so much. But back to the original post.

The problem I as a chocolate flavored transperson have with the GLBT community at large is that they are not only making half-hearted and boneheaded attempts at social change, but are unwilling to make the changes in their own lives to respect others while demanding respect for themselves in our society at large.

I'm going to break it down still further. I roll my eyes at peeps in the GLBT community that can dish out criticism, but can't take it, especially after their actions cause the criticism to be leveled at them in the first place.

You produce the drama and get mad when people justifiably call you out about the effects of it.

If we are going to move this diverse community forward towards achieving our civil rights goals, the first lesson has to be that we are NOT a post-racial nation.

Racism has been a part of life in the United States for over 200 years, and the first step to eradicating it is acknowledging its existence.

The other thing is acknowledging that yes, the GLBT community as a subset of the parent society, has serious problems with racism in our midst.

Before you can even talk to my community, you not only have to deal with those inner racist demons, you have to deal with all the privilege issues that flow from it and cause problems that perpetuate the cycle of negativity.

Dawn Does Dallas

Actually, Dawn is headed to the Dallas suburb of Grapevine, TX for the US Summer Nationals fencing tournament. She bounced out of the house about an hour ago enroute to the airport and will be winging off to DFW shortly.

She finished third in last year's Women's 40's Summer Nationals saber competition held in San Jose, CA. This time she's aiming to slash and parry her way through the Baby Vets to the top step of the victory platform.

In addition to her desire to win it all, she's still fighting to hold her spot on the USA Women's 40's saber team that is slated to go to Sydney, Australia for a Down Under world championship fencing tournament scheduled to take place in October.

So good luck sis, and hope you bring another medal or two back from my home state with you.

2009 Black Weblog Awards Nominations Open

I don't do what I do at TransGriot strictly for awards, but it sure is nice to get the recognition for being one of the better bloggers out there.

The 2009 Black Weblog Awards began their nomination process June 20 and will run until July 25.

The Black Weblog Awards have been around since 2005, and I'm nominated in three categories for it. Best LGBT Blog, Best Writing In A Blog and Best Political/News Blog.

I also have two shot at each category in terms of there's a Popular vote and a Judges’ vote. The winners will be announced on September 4.

So I'll keep y'all posted as to what's transpiring on that front.

The Trans Free BET Who's Who In Black GLBT America List

I was shocked that BET.com even puts out such a list, so just out of curiosity I decided to see which peeps they chose for their 'Who's Who In Black GLBT America'.

And as I suspected, out of the 33 people selected, there were no trans brothers or transsisters on it.

And no BET and rest of world, a Black New York based drag artist does not equal to transman or transwoman. Kevin Aviance is a drag artist

While I'm happy for the people that did make it such as Jasmyne Cannick, it speaks once again to how invisible Black trans people are, even in our own damned community.

There's a transman who is the board chair of the National Black Justice Coalition in Kylar Broadus. I've talked about Dr. Marisa Richmond on more than a few occasions on this blog.

But once again the Black trans community gets shut out.

I'm in agreement with my sis Dionne Stallworth. It's time that we Black trans people really start tooting our horns, seriously raise our profiles, compile our history, interview and pump up our people and fight for our place in the GLBT spotlight.

I don't know about you, but I'm getting more than a little sick of getting dissed, erased and ignored by the entire fracking GLBT community Black and White.

Michael Jackson Memorial

Watched the moving Michael Jackson memorial from Los Angeles. Cried like a baby when I saw his daughter Paris' tearfully speaking about her father.

But I definitely have to give a Hi 5 and say AMEN to Rev. Al Sharpton

Dissing Of Sonia Williams On Semi-Homemaker Blog

One of the things I gripe about on TransGriot is how the beauty of African-American women, be they trans or cisgender is disrespected.

It's also interesting to note how quickly African descended women are labeled as 'unfeminine' vis-a-vis the model of vanilla femininity that all are supposed to bow down and aspire to.

It happens far too often to the Williams sisters, and they aren't alone in that regard either.

Thanks to reader Lurlean I was advised of a thread occurring on the Food Network Humor Blog that illustrated this perfectly.

As usual, the folks that called out the disrespect of Sonia Williams were slammed as 'lacking a sense of humor' or 'overly sensitive'.

Ain't nothing humorous about a Black woman being disrespected. It's also playing into and perpetuating the 'Black women are unfeminine' stereotype that dates back to slavery.

Since it escaped these peeps in science class, or they graduated from 'Christian' private schools that teach Flintstones science, let me school y'all on something.

You get half your genetic material from mommy and half from daddy, and we are all blends of features from our parents.

Just as there are plenty of cisgender women who have 'masculine' body builds or combinations of features considered 'masculine', there are also cisgender men who have body builds and combinations of features that are considered 'feminine'.

Just an FYI, unless a person declares themselves to be trans, they ain't. Nor is it our business if they are.

TransGriot Note: Seems like in the last few hours, the Food Network Humor blog where that crappy post was housed is down for maintenance. Interesting.

'XXY'

There's an interesting award winning Argentinean movie out called 'XXY' which is out on DVD.

The film has received widespread critical acclaim since its 2007 release. XXY has received twenty different awards in total and won the Critics Week Grand Prize at the 2007 Cannes Film Festival and the ACID/CCAS Support Award.

It received three awards during the 2008 Argentine Film Critics Association Awards including Best Film.

The film focuses on 15 year old intersex teen Alex, who has reached puberty and has a momentous decision to make in addition to all the other drama associated with being a teenager.



Alex Kraken has ambiguous genitalia, and has been living as a girl since birth. Alex has been taking medication to suppress the masculine trails that are trying to rear their heads during puberty, but has stopped taking them for the moment.

She has an understanding family that includes her marine biologist father Nestor who has written a book on sexuality. They move to a seaside village in Uruguay from Argentina in order to protect Alex from a disapproving society.

One day her mother Suli invites a surgeon from Argentina, his wife and their son Alvaro for a visit. The visit has a hidden agenda because Suli, unbeknownst to Alex and Nestor, has extended the invitation in order to discuss the possibilities of a sex-change operation.

Meanwhile, Alex bluntly tells Álvaro that she would like to have sex with him. She successfully seduces Alvaro, but their tryst that includes anal penetration is interrupted when Néstor catches sight of them through an ajar door.

Alex later apologizes to Alvaro for performing anal intercourse on him and Álvaro admits he liked it.

After Alex has a near rape encounter with three boys who forcibly remove her shorts to see her genitals, Nestor realizes that filing a police report exposes Alex's secret to the entire town.

I'll let y'all see the movie to determine how it ends.

The movie title refers to a condition called Klinefelter Syndrome, in which males have an extra X sex chromosome. The theme about intersex organisms in nature is also reflected throughout the movie and the fact that Alex keeps an aquarium full of clownfish, which start male but can end up female.

But it's an interesting peek, albeit a fictionalized account of some of the issues our intersex friends deal with. It also speaks to the increase in more parents of intersex children opting to delay genital surgery until the child expresses a preference for one gender path or the other.

Kalamazoo, MI Unanimously Passes GLBT Rights Law

Congratulations to the folks in Kalamazoo, MI, whose City Commission unanimously voted on June 29 to expand legal protections for gays, lesbians and transgender citizens in the Zoo.

According to the Kalamazoo Gazette, the new law is set to take effect July 9. It would make it a city infraction punishable by up to a $500 fine to discriminate against people because of their sexual preferences or gender identification in housing, employment or access to public accommodations.

Now comes the hard part. Defending the law you just got passed from the Forces of Intolerance. The haters are already organizing to kill the nascent law.

A group calling itself the Kalamazoo Citizens Voting No to Special Rights Discrimination announced they would begin circulating petitions seeking a November referendum on the City Commission's second attempt to outlaw employment, housing and public-accommodation discrimination based on sexual orientation.

Under the Kalamazoo City Charter, petitions challenging a commission decision must be filed within 20 days of the law's effective date to either force the commission to rescind its decision or send the issue to a general-election ballot.

The haters must gather 1,274 signatures on petitions opposing the new ordinance or the new law will take effect July 9.

July 29 is the deadline for filing petitions to challenge the ordinance.

If they are successful in doing so and the signatures are verified as valid by City Clerk Scott Borling, the unanimous vote and implementation of the new ordinance would be suspended. The commission at its next meeting would either have to rescind the ordinance or call a ballot question.

August 25 is the deadline for submitting issues to appear on the November ballot.

A similar measure originally proposed by the Kalamazoo Alliance for Equality, was adopted in December 2008 after little public opposition.

The critics, aided by the American Family Association of Michigan, gathered more than 1,400 signatures in the 20 days after the measure's adoption which forced the commission to revisit the issue in January.

The commission decided to rescind the original ordinance but named a three-member committee to gather public responses and craft a compromise measure to bring back to the commission.

The new measure was preceded by two hours of commentary from both sides of the issues before the unanimous vote.

The haters are already test driving new weasel words and Orwellian language in anticipation of a November referendum.

Charles Ybema, a spokesman for Kalamazoo Citizens Voting No to Special Rights Discrimination, said the ordinance lays the groundwork for "reverse discrimination" and "suppressing information."

"Job openings or available housing are not going to be advertised," Ybema said. "This entrenches the 'Who do you know?' phenomena. There are concerns about the rights of freedom of speech and religion. ... There are still public-restroom issues."

American Civil Liberties Union activist and Kalamazoo attorney James Rodbard said added protections for gays and lesbians are "good for business" and show the city is a place where employees are "supported and protected."

"If this does get put to a (referendum) vote, I can assure you this community will have your back and will vote to support it," Rodbard said

What bodes well if this comes down to a vote is that the city is home to Western Michigan University. If the pro-rights forces can get the student population along with the fair minded population organized and motivated to vote, the Forces of Intolerance will lose like they did in Gainesville, FL.

Justice For Teish Update II

I'm doing regular updates of news concerning Lateisha Green's alleged killer Dwight DeLee's trial starting July 13.

We have a week to go until it starts at the Onondaga County Courthouse in Syracuse, NY. I plan to do these updates until justice is served.

July 6

Things are beginning to move on the Justice For Teish front. GLAAD is hard at work putting together their communications strategy for the DeLee trial. I'm trying to coordinate my schedule with Andy Marra's so we can chat about what's transpiring on GLAAD's end.

The Syracuse media still needs some 'ejumacation' on proper pronouns and trans etiquette, so keep impressing on them how important respectful reporting of this case is to you and the rest of the world watching them.

The New York based Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund (TLDEF) is beginning to ratchet up their media efforts as well in addition to working with Teish's mother Roxanne Green.

Still keeping hope alive that something will allow me to be in Syracuse next week for the trial. I hope the local community will have someone Tweeting the trial.

Thanks to Questioning Transphobia and Bird of Paradox stumbled across this link to an article that features quotes from Roxanne Green, Lateisha's mother.

“It’s bad enough to live with families that don’t approve,” said Roxanne Green. “I never expected a gay son and I have two. It needs to stop. They hurt and I hurt. I have a boy living with me now because he can’t go home. For these kids to fear school! Teish had to go to school late and leave school early. That was the school’s idea of helping! It made Teish angry. She wanted to go when everyone else did.”

Green acknowledged that the spotlight has been hard for her at times.

“I relive a lot of things,” she said. “He really took something precious. I lost a mother when I was nine and that hurt. Losing a child is a whole different hurt.”

If there's any further news to report, I'll get it to you as quickly as I can.

I'm 'Hard To Take'? Please!

Being a blogger and leader in the TBLG community, I'm used to and relatively immune to criticism. Being on the Net and slogging through the discussion group wars for over a decade, I have seen many of the silencing techniques used by critics of POC's who write online commentary.

But I found interesting one of the comments in the storm of commentary that followed in the wake of me writing the post about the melanin free trans contingent for last Monday's recent White House GLBT ceremony.

The 'I'm hard to take' statement.

I'm hard to take? Please.

Why am I 'hard to take'?

Am I 'hard to take' because I'm unabashedly proud of being Black and trans?

Am I ‘hard to take’ because I'm beyond sick and tired of being sick and tired of my segment of the trans community being dissed, erased, ignored, and being treated as an afterthought and I'm vocal about it?

Am I 'hard to take' because I'm not afraid to call people out on their bull feces and speak truth to power?

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was 'hard to take'. Malcolm X was 'hard to take'. Mahatma Gandhi was 'hard to take'. Harvey Milk was 'hard to take'. Nelson Mandela was 'hard to take'.

Anyone who is proud of their African descent, or is part of a marginalized community who stands up for their rights is 'hard to take' by the people wallowing in privilege.

The first thing anyone sees about me before the trans issues is my skin color. I don’t have the luxury of divorcing myself from my ethnicity because I get reminded of it every second I’m breathing air on this planet.

So if my critics don’t like the fact I’m reminding people of the GLBT community racism, the marginalization of, erasure from trans history and disrespecting of an African-American trans community that is doing its part to help make TBLG history while taking the brunt of the casualties along with the Latino/a trans community, too damned bad.

I want my rights, too and I've done (and I'm still doing) my part to help make it happen.

But I’m not going to allow myself or my people to be forgotten, silenced or stifle what needs to be said about the state of race relations in the TBLG community or other broader issues of importance as I see it just to make some people wallowing in vanilla-flavored privilege comfortable.

So if that makes me 'hard to take', deal with it.

Radio Podcast Tonight At 8 PM EDT

Renee, Allison and I have another exciting show planned for you later tonight on our Womanist Musings Blogtalkradio podcast.

Since Canada and the United States both celebrated our respective independence days this week, (July 1 Canada and July 4 USA) we decided to discuss why people in both nations consider their fellow African descended citizens as 'less than patriotic' despite mountains of evidence to the contrary.

We'll have Canadian and American citizens to discuss the topic.

Renee and our guest Matt of the Bastard Logic blog will rep for Canada and tackle the north of the border issues, while Allison and I will rep and discuss the USA.

We'll discuss what we observed about our respective nations on this issue from our cross border vantage points.

The show is entitled 'Patriotism Denied The African Canadian/American Experience' and will kick off at 8 PM EDT.

We invite you to listen or comment in the chat room. The call in number is (347) 326-9452. If we get some interesting questions in the chat room we'll try our best to answer them on air.

As always, if you can't listen live, it will post to the show website later for your listening and downloading pleasure.

Hope you'll tune in for what should be an enlightening, informative and entertaining conversation.