TransGriot

2012 Team USA Women's Olympic Soccer Watch- We're Going To London

2012-01-28T01:00:00.001-06:00

It was a London or bust game contested against with a team they had never lost to.

In this critical semifinal CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying match with a scrappy Costa Rica the two time defending Olympic champions had to work for it.

They were clinging to a 1-0 halftime lead courtesy of a Tobin Heath goal in the 16th minute and the Ticas had two solid scoring chances to tie the game in the 20th minute and the 27th minute. One was saved by Hope Solo while the other clanged off the crossbar.

Costa Rica kept up the pressure in the second half and American fans in BC Place didn't get a chance to exhale until Carli Lloyd scored in the 72nd minute and Alex Morgan did so in the 89th minute to clinch their spot in London.

They'll meet Canada in the tournament final who clinched their spot in the Olympics with a 3-1 victory over Mexico in the other semifinal. .

Shut Up Fool Awards- Creating Change 2012 Edition

2012-01-27T12:00:00.050-06:00

The National Gay and lesbian Task Force hosts an annual National Conference on LGBT Equality that's better known in rainbow activist circles as Creating Change.

the 2012 edition of the event started on the 25th and runs through this weekend in Baltimore, MD.

One of the keynote speakers for it is NAACP President and CEO Benjamin Todd Jealous.

That keynote speech happened last night and I hope you peeps who are there in Charm City for Creating Change have a wonderful time, get your learn on, get reacquainted with old friends, make new ones and are fired up and ready to push for rainbow community human rights when you're done.

I'll just have to hook up with y'all at a later rainbow community conference or event.

Now to move on to my usual Friday TransGriot business of calling out the fool, fool or group of fools that proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that the only change they were creating was of the negative variety.

This week's SUF nominees were Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich, Rick Santorum, John Aravosis, Ron Paul, Sen Rand Paul (R-KY), John Boehner (R-OH), Eric Cantor (R-VA), Orly Taitz, a group award for Fox Noise and GOProud and Tim Scott (R-SC)

This week's winner is racist Arizona governor Jan Brewer (R)

She made an azz out of herself with her finger wagging display of disrespect aimed at the POTUS, and now she's been caught in the racist lie she weaved claiming the POTUS was 'thin skinned' and 'angry' about her book .

A book which BTW was languishing in sales purgatory until this conveniently staged photo-op.

She also claiming now she 'felt a little bit threatened by him' Yeah, right. What next Jan? You gonna start crying 'white women's tears' all over the Conservasphere and in the media?

Jan Brewer, shut up fool!

2012 Team USA Women's Olympic Soccer Watch- London Or Bust

2012-01-27T05:00:00.005-06:00

It really doesn't matter that so far the FIFA world number ranked Team USA won its group in dominating fashion, outscored its opponents 31-0, have never lost a match in a domed stadium, on Canadian soil or is 7-0-0 against Costa Rica.

All that matters is that 7 PM CST semifinal match they are playing in a few hours against Group A runner up Costa Rica.

It's simple. Win the match and you're going to London. Lose and like the FIFA number 2 ranked Germans you'll be watching the Olympic women's tournament go on without you in a few months.

In Team USA's case their chance to threepeat as Olympic champions dies with an upset loss.

No pressure.   But as ESPN's NFL analyst Herman Edwards famously said, that why you play the games. And when you do, the unthinkable can happen like the Ticas catching the USA on a bad day, beating them and going to the Olympics at our expense.

They already had that nightmare scenario play our during FIFA Women's World Cup qualifying two years ago when Mexico upset them in the semifinals. They still had a chance to qualify via the two leg playoff against Italy and did so.

In this Olympic tournament scenario there is no last ditch chance to qualify. It's either win tonight or you'll be sitting at home this July.

In the other pressure packed semifinal matchup host nation and FIFA seventh ranked Canada takes on Mexico for the other CONCACAF Olympic berth.

Team USA is determined to make sure the upset for the ages doesn't happen and they end that semifinal match in Vancouver with a win and one of the two CONCACAF Olympic berths in their possession.

We'll see what transpires on the BC Place Stadium turf in a few hours.

.

NAACP President Ben Jealous' Creating Change Keynote Speech

2012-01-27T00:00:00.001-06:00

The 2012 edition of Creating Change kicked off on the 25th. Since Creating Change is happening in Baltimore this year, the headquarters city of the NAACP, last night NAACP President and CEO Benjamin T. Jealous was on hand to give the keynote speech for Friday's evening plenary session.

If and when I find a transcript of it or a full video for his plenary speech, I'll post it to the blog.

More Conservafool Disrespect Of The POTUS

2012-01-26T12:30:00.002-06:00

Yeah, I'm waiting to see what the latest excuses are going to be from all the wingers about this incident with Arizona's Jan Brewer (R) disrespecting President Obama by sticking her finger in his face.

She's lucky there's an election in November. The POTUS knows the GOP with their 'Great White Hope' strategy is desperately trying to do anything to trigger him and create any incident or scandal they can exploit all the way to November 6.

As for her weak azz excuse trying to justify it?    He's 'thin skinned'? Seriously? Seems like to only thin skinned person on the tarmac yesterday was Janice Kay Brewer. .

African-American voters are really tired of right-wing racist disrespect of this president. We know this president has been subjected to unprecedented levels of disrespect from the left and right in addition to death threats and at least two attempted assassinations already going back to the when he became the Democratic nominee for president.

We plan on getting even by sticking our fingers in the face of the GOP this November.   It'll be the extended middle one, right after we do our part in casting enough votes to get him reelected to office and give him a Congress he can work with at the same time.

Rev. Al And Joe Madison Debunking Newt

2012-01-26T01:15:00.000-06:00

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

2012 Team USA Women's Olympic Soccer Watch- On To The Semis

2012-01-25T12:00:00.000-06:00

FIFA number one ranked Team USA went into this marquee soccer matchup against our southern neighbors with a lot on the line and much to prove.

In addition to keeping their hopes for an Olympic threepeat alive, they came into this match against Mexico with the Group B title on the line.

They also wanted to prove that Mexico's 2-1 upset win on November 10, 2010 in Cancun was just a bad day at the CONCACAF qualifying office.

They did so in convincing fashion as Carli Lloyd scored the first of her three goals in this crucial match in the 7th minute and Heather O'Reilly followed up with another one a minute later to stake the USA to a 2-0 halftime lead they never relinquished.

Any hope that Mexico had coming out of the locker room of getting back into the match died with Lloyd's second goal in the 57th minute that effectively sealed it. She completed the hat trick in the 86th minute on a set piece play.

With the 4-0 win the USA clinched the Group B title while unapologetically piling up a +31 goal differential to do so. They now reap the rewards of topping the group with a Friday semifinal matchup with FIFA number 41 ranked Group B runner up Costa Rica and a trip to London on the line.

The other semifinal at BC Place Stadium will feature the FIFA seventh ranked host Canadians and winners of Group A playing Mexico for the other CONCACAF Olympic berth.

The anti-climactic tournament final will be played on Sunday.

The USA women are now 11-0-1 in CONCACAF Olympic qualifying, 26-1-1 against Mexico, still has never lost a match on Canadian soil and are now 9-0-0 when playing in a domed stadium.

But the most important game and streak for Team USA to maintain right now is the one that happens in the semifinals Friday against Costa Rica.

Red Hook Summer And Why Spike Lee Isn't A Racist.

2012-01-25T07:00:00.001-06:00

Guest Post by Renee, the talented and thoughtful editor of Womanist Musings.

At the Sundance film festival, Spike recently premiered his independent movie, Red Hook Summer. Spike has had several problems over the years getting funding for his films, and I firmly believe that at least part of the issue, is Spike's commitment to telling our stories without the coonery that is featured in the typical Tyler Perry film. To be clear, Spike's male privilege has at times made some of his work problematic and in fact, other than She's Gotta Have It, strong female roles have been few and far between. Even She's Gotta Have It, includes a rape as punishment for failing to agree to a monogamous relationship.

The reviews for Red Hook Summer have been decidedly bad. I have not seen the movie, so I cannot argue any faults or biases the reviews may contain. In the question and answer period, Spike Lee and Chris Rock had a verbal scuffle.

Rock, who appeared to be joking around, said, "You spent your own money ... What would you have done differently if you'd actually gotten studio money? What else would have happened? Would you have blown up some (bleep)?"

Lee, apparently unamused, responded, "We never went to the studios with this film. I bought a camera and said we're gonna do this mother(bleeping) film ourselves. I didn't need a mother(bleeping) studio telling me something about Red Hook! They know nothing about black people! Nothing!" Lee then added, "And they're gonna give me notes about what a 13-year-old black boy and girl do in Red Hook? (Bleep) no!" [Source]

I have to agree with Spike when he points out that no White studio head has the slightest clue of what it to be a 13-year-old Black boy and girl. This is especially true if we consider the class aspect that the movie seeks to interrogate. These White men of class privilege are only interested in the bottom line, and not about depicting the true experiences of kids of colour, or even why such movies are desperately needed.

A negative reaction has become common place to much of what Spike says or does. The following are some comments on the discussion between Spike and Chris Rock.

Bluelife4: I like Chris Rock. He pokes fun at any race. But Spike Lee? He's a racist.

Wallace: Spike Lee is one of the biggest racist I have ever seen. Man I'm tired of his low budget films. Enough already. Yes I am a black man. Racism from any person is wrong. I think this guy sucks. I'm a middle class worker who live one of the most racist states in the US (S.C.) and to hear this guy speak is crazy. Man grow up. Please. I think his anger comes from his height. Blame ur parents not the world.

Nicolas: Spike Lee is an angry, racist little bigot. Always has been. No such thing as "reverse racism". The whole idea that you can say racist things about your own race is laughable. Racism is racism, black, white, yellow, brown, red, blue, etc....

The Love Doctor: I've been wondering for more than 20 years, when are we going to start saying that being racist towards white people is wrong too????

I was always taught that racism is wrong period. But it seems in our modern culture, discriminating against and being racist towards white people seems to be accepted in our culture...

Duntov: Seems like an Angry African-American that continues to prey on racism for his own gain and agenda. Go away until you can talk like an intelligent human. Stop the hate and move on.

Jack Plummer: Why is it okay for a black person to be a racist?

Hustonman: On the Yahoo homepage it said Spike Lee went on a surprising tirade. Who is surprised? This agitator has had one tirade after another for twenty plus years. No class, no truth, just a little disgruntled man. A racist with a Napoleon complex.

These comments all appeared on the first page of the article, and as you might imagine, they continue in the same vein no matter how deeply into the article you go. Spike speaks without apology about race and racism in the U.S., and this makes people uncomfortable. Many either have bought into the bullshit idea that the world is now colourblind, or they very firmly believe that their thoughts, or actions, are not part of the problem -- and this includes the sell out negro -- who made sure to announce that he is Black.

Whiteness may not like to admit it, but Blacks of the African diaspora are entitled to our continued rage, and the very suggestion that we should moderate our speech to suit their comfort level is only an indicator of how far we still have to go, rather than the unreasonableness of our position. Spike Lee is not a perfect man, but he is most certainly not a racist. No Black person speaking out against White supremacy will ever be a racist.

These commenters are not the first to refer to Spike Lee as racist for his approach to race and film, and they most certainly will not be the last. Whiteness would very much love the definition of racism to be prejudicial thoughts, acts, or language against another race. It's a nice and simple definition, which allows Whiteness to be able to claim to be oppressed by people of colour. It allows Whiteness to be able to circumvent our rage, and once again center themselves in the conversation. Most importantly, it allows Whiteness to deny and alternately censure our speech on the alleged grounds that we are all equal. This is why the co-option of the term racist, is an absolute disservice to people of colour. It's ahistorical, in that it ignores the ongoing inequality in power relations between Black and White. When a White person acts, ze does so with the full institutional weight of Whiteness at their behest. An analysis of race without an acknowledgement of power is an incomplete and faulty analysis. This is specifically why it is necessary to understand and accept that racism equals privilege plus power. No matter how angry, or hate filled a person of colour may be, they do not exist with the institutional power to act on their feelings. For all of the class privilege that Spike Lee has managed to amass over the years, the fact remains that he still a Black man in America and that makes him an oppressed person.

Spike's status as a racially oppressed Black man means that his speech is not welcome, and that is particularly so when he is confronting racism. While I may not agree with everything that he says and does, there can no be denial that he continues to be relevant. He has forged ahead to make movies that White run studios have not seen as important, and it is because of this struggle that he is so derided. When he spoke of being tired of yet another White WWII war movie, Clint Eastwood's response was to tell Spike to "shut his face". If you cannot acknowledge that Black blood was shed in the battle fields of WWII, only to come home to Jim Crow, then you fail to see the truth. When he spoke about the coonery and buffonery engaged in by Tyler Perry, Mr. Perry was affronted. He was happy to ignore the tradition in which his movies were made and the negative effect that they have had on Blacks.

There are certainly many criticism that can and should be levied at Spike Lee, but being a racist is not now or ever will be a legitimate charge. The truth of the matter is that Whiteness loves to engage in revisionist history, and at times it is supported by Blacks, but finding even hundreds or thousands of Blacks to agree to their own continued colonization and oppression does not make the truth less true, or any less relevant. Truth tellers are never embraced in their lifetimes and as Dr. King has shown us through his life and death, in the end, until their speech can be used to bolster the oppressor they are relegated to being understood as angry, disgruntled and hateful. By this statement I am not saying that Spike Lee is the equivalent of Dr. King, only that truth when told without embellishment, to favor the ruling class will always be unwelcome.

The POTUS 2012 State Of The Union Speech

2012-01-25T02:00:00.004-06:00

For those of you who missed it, President Obama's 2012 State of the Union Speech.

The TSA Exists Because The Free Market Failed At Airport Security

2012-01-25T00:00:00.004-06:00

Been hearing a lot of loud and wrong carping from right wingers attacking the Transportation Security Administration

I believe their hatred of the organization is partially based on the fact the TSA operates under the premise that EVERYBODY is a potential airline travel security threat.

It gets on their vanillacentric nerves about them getting searched by people in a position of authority making a decent hourly wage despite their white privilege fueled sense of entitlement. They hate the fact that everybody has to go through security and it irritates peeps with the vanillacentric presumption that they are 'the good peepul' who should be left alone to quickly board their flights without much hindrance. It's those 'dark people' who are the 'security threats' who need to be profiled, jacked up and if necessary strip and body cavity searched to keep the 'real American' flying public safe.

The conservafools are also piling on the TSA in their zeal to reflexively hate on any job the federal government takes on and has any success at versus the documented spectacular failure of the private sector.

The conservafools spout their usual bull feces that the almighty private sector can do the job of airport security better and cheaper than a large government agency.

Um, no they can't and didn't when I worked in the airline industry for over a decade before the TSA was cranked up   Sometimes as part of my supervisory duties I ran the security tests on the private company we used at Terminal C to screen our passengers. I was alarmed and appalled about some of the things I was able to get through the screenings at times.

And oh yeah, I guess you peeps forgot why we have the Department of Homeland Security and the reason the TSA exists in the first place?

If you conservafools did, let me refresh your selective memories since it happened under a GOP president.

Does September 11, 2001 ring a bell?

The TSA was created two months after that horrific event because of the well documented failures of the vaunted private security companies to do the important job of safeguarding the nation's aviation system and passengers well before that fateful day.

The 9-11 attacks were the impetus for federalizing the airport security screening process, and the GOP has hated the Transportation Security Agency ever since.

The TSA growing pains and the well publicized PR stumbles of the agency along with the bitterly sarcastic joke that has people coming up with sometimes profane meanings for the agency's acronym ('Take Stuff Away') combined with the constant drumbeat of right wing talk radio, Fox Noise and Republican politicians hating on the TSA only exacerbated the problem.

The fact that Transportation Security Agency employees are fighting for collective bargaining rights only adds to the political hatred of the TSA in conservafool eyes as well.

The Repugs are also pissed off that current TSA head John S. Pistole granted them extremely limited collective bargaining rights that only cover transfers and shifts and not salaries. To show their displeasure they cut $270 million from the 2012 TSA budget which would force them if approved by the Senate to lay off 10% of their screeners.

Translation: that means it takes longer for you and me to get through the TSA security lines at the nation's airports with less TSA employees there to process you through it.

The Republifools are also upset that Pistole limited a program that allows 16 airports to opt out of federal protection and contract with private security companies under TSA rules. The sixteen airports already in the SPP program could continue, but no others could join without demonstrating "clear and substantial advantages"

But there is no doubt that the existence of the TSA has made air travel in the United States safer and the organization isn't going anywhere, much less being disbanded any time in the near future.

It's past time that the Congressional conservafools stop playing games with airline security for politically partisan and union busting reasons.

2012 Team USA Women's Olympic Soccer Watch- Another Crucial Showdown With Mexico

2012-01-24T13:00:00.001-06:00

The Team USA women are 25-1-1 against our southern neighbors when it comes to playing soccer against Mexico.

What's the lone loss? It's one Team USA still hasn't forgotten. It was a 2-1 Mexican win on November 10. 2010 during the CONCACAF Women's World Cup Qualifying Tournament in Cancun that not only clinched an automatic berth for them, but forced Team USA into the Third Place match vs Costa Rica and eventually a two leg playoff against Italy to become one of the last teams to qualify for the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup.

FIFA number one ranked Team USA has been on a ruthlessly efficient mission so far to make certain that no such slip ups happen in this qualifying tournament for the London Games. They know that unlike the World Cup. if they falter in qualifying, they'll be sitting at home watching the Olympic tournament on TV instead of attempting to threepeat as Olympic champions.

They face off at BC Place in a highly anticipated Group B match against Mexico to determine who wins the group and plays Group A runner up Costa Rica in Friday's knockout semifinals to determine the CONCACAF reps for London. The Group B runner up will play host nation Canada, who knocked off Costa Rica 5-1 last night at BC Place.

Team USA has never lost a game on Canadian soil, are 8-0-0 when playing in domed stadiums, have going into this match a 10-0-1 record in CONCAFAF Olympic Qualifiers and have blistered the nets with 27 goals in this tournament. But FIFA number 21 ranked Mexico has scored 11 goals of their own in group play and ain't 'scurred' of the mighty USA.

So throw those stats out tonight. The last three USA-Mexico matches they have been determined by one goal margins, and much is riding on this one.

State Of The Union 2012

2012-01-24T12:00:00.007-06:00

Now that GOP Amateur Hour (last night's latest GOP debate) is over, the adult comes into the room to lay out his vision of what needs to be done in this country in the 2K12 and beyond in the State Of The Union speech later tonight.

Hopefully we won't have any displays of conservafool disrespect of President Obama as he does so, but with this being an election year don't put anything past the Grand Old ~~Party~~ Bigots.

These are some of the talking points President Obama wants to highlight in tonight's speech entitled An America Built to Last

-- In his State of the Union Address, the President will lay out a blueprint for an economy that's built to last -- an economy built on American manufacturing, American energy, skills for American workers, and a renewal of American values.

-- The President believes this is a make or break moment for the middle class and those trying to reach it. What's at stake is the very survival of the basic American promise that if you work hard, you can do well enough to raise a family, own a home, and put a little away for retirement.

-- The defining issue of our time is how to keep that promise alive. No challenge is more urgent; no debate is more important. We can either settle for a country where a shrinking number of people do really well, while more Americans barely get by. Or we can build a nation where everyone gets a fair shot, everyone does their fair share, and everyone plays by the same rules.

-- The fact is, the economic security of the middle class has eroded for decades. Long before the recession, good jobs and manufacturing began leaving our shores. Hard work stopped paying off for too many Americans. Those at the top saw their incomes rise like never before, but the vast majority of Americans struggled with costs that were growing and paychecks that weren't.

-- In 2008, the house of cards collapsed. Mortgages were sold to people who couldn't afford or understand them. Banks made huge bets and bonuses made with other people's money. It was a crisis that cost us more than eight million jobs and plunged our economy and the world into a crisis from which we are still fighting to recover.

-- The President has been clear that we need to do more to create jobs and help economic growth. But under his leadership and thanks to action taken by this President, the economy is growing again. The economy has added a total of 3.2 million private sector jobs over the last 22 months.

-- American manufacturing is creating jobs for the first time since the late 1990s. The American auto industry is coming back. Today, American oil production is the highest that it's been in eight years. Together, we've agreed to cut the deficit by more than 2 trillion. And the President signed into law new rules to hold Wall Street accountable. He stands on a solid record and tonight will lay out a blueprint that will ensure an economy built to last over the long term.

-- For the first time in nine years, there are no Americans fighting in Iraq. We've decimated al Qaeda's leadership, delivered justice to Osama bin Laden, and put that terrorist network on the path to defeat. We've made important progress in Afghanistan, and begun a transition so Afghans can assume more responsibility. We joined with allies and partners to protect the Libyan people as they ended the regime of Muammar Qaddafi.

-- We cannot go back to an economy based on outsourcing, bad debt, and phony financial profits. The President intends to keep moving forward and rebuild an economy where hard work pays off and responsibility is rewarded -- an economy built to last.

2012 Williams Watch- Serena's Surprisingly Out

2012-01-24T00:00:00.005-06:00

Up until this match with Russia's Ekaterina Makarova, Serena had been on a roll. She's won all three in straight sets and had been on the court no longer than 79 minutes.

And then she had what you can probably categorize as a bad day at the office in surprisingly losing 2-6, 3-6 to Makarova. Seven double faults, four in one game and a first serve percentage of less than 50% will get you beat.

Then again she only tends to win the Australian Open in odd numbered years, anyway.

So chomp on those Hater Tots Serena detractors, do your happy dances and spout your bigoted rhetoric about the Williams sisters in online tennis websites, discussion boards and online newspaper comment threads.

The French Open, Wimbledon, the Olympics and the US Open still have yet to be played.

Karmic Wheel Catches Up With Eucharia Uche

2012-01-23T20:00:00.043-06:00

Remember Eucharia Uche, the lesbophobic coach of the Nigerian Super ~~Falcons~~ Phobes who boasted about eliminating suspected lesbian players off her team?

The comments generated a firestorm of international criticism and earned Uche a June 29 chat with FIFA Director of Women's Competition's Tatjana Haenni to remind her about FIFA anti-discrimination policies.

After failing to get out of group play during last year's FIFA Women's World Cup in Germany her squad also failed to qualify for the 2012 London Games.

Nigeria has also been relentlessly attacking Equatorial Guinea ever since they upset them in 2008 and became a challenger to Nigerian dominance of African women's continental football. They have been subjected to long and loud Nigerian transphobic gender griping and filed CAF and FIFA protests misgendering Equatorial Guinea players.

It was an interesting 'things that make you go hmm' moment when Equatorial Guinea was ousted from the 2012 Olympic qualifying final due to a player eligibility issue and replaced by Cameroon.

Back in October Nigeria battled Cameroon to see who would join South Africa in representing the continent at this year's women's Olympic soccer tournament.

The Super Falcons won the first game of a two leg playoff in Abuja 2-1 but lost the return leg game on October 25 in Yaoundé by the same 2-1 score.

The 3-3 aggregate score meant the London Olympic berth was decided by penalty kicks, and the Super Falcons subsequently lost the penalty kick shootout 4-3.

That means for the first time since 2000 the Nigerian women's team will not be marching into an Olympic stadium and competing in the women's soccer tournament when the Games commence, which is unacceptable to Nigerian football fans.

That failure combined with the Super Falcon failure to qualify for the 2011 All Africa Games tournament in Mozambique and their highly publicized failure at the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup led to Uche's dismissal by the Nigeria Football Federation as the national team head coach.

No word yet from the Nigeria Football Federation on who will replace Uche. The decision will be made by the end of the month and has a wide international list of candidates of both genders, but the Super Falcons and women footballers in that nation are justifiably lobbying for another female coach to replace her.

But for the Super Falcons anybody will be better than the controversial lesbophobe and former international player who excelled more in generating negative press than stacking international football wins and major tournament appearances.

And yeah, karma is a rhymes with itch isn't it?

Newtron Bomb Dropped In SC Primary

2012-01-23T12:00:00.001-06:00

Newton Leroy Gingrich won the Republican primary in South Carolina by a double digit margin Saturday night over ~~Gordon Gekko, Jr~~ Mitt Romney,

It was a battle in the Palmetto State of Greed is Good vulture capitalism versus good old fashioned Southern Strategy 2.0 racist populism in which Newt at times along with Rick Santorum made you wonder if they were running for Grand Wizard of the KKK instead of vying for the Republican party presidential nomination .

Newt garnered 40.8% of the vote in South Carolina to become the third different GOP candidate to win a Republican primary contest and guarantee that Mitt Romney would not clinch the nomination before the end of the month.

Willard had already received the bad news earlier in the week that Rick Santorum won the Iowa caucus and everyone and their mama expected him to roll in his backyard primary in New Hampshire.

It's on to Florida and another Southern state with a sizeable electorate in which Mitt's vulture capitalism and Gordon Gekko wannabe persona probably won't play well with portions of the electorate.

We'll see on January 31.

How (Not) To Write About Black Trans Women

2012-01-23T02:00:00.001-06:00

Karnythia of the Angry Black Woman blog had an interesting post I ran across entitled How To Write About Black Women in which she slammed all the tropes, memes and blanket statements aimed at Black women when others outside our community write about us.

One group she didn't mention is Black trans women, and here's where I was inspired to pick up the baton and happily run with it where Karnythia left off.

(Moni cracks knuckles)

Let's get started with this post, shall we?

Only acknowledge the existence of Black transwomen when we are murdered or the victim of a crime, salaciously involved in some scandal or news story you wish to highlight, during the November 20 Transgender Day of Remembrance, you wish to pump up your Nielsen ratings during sweeps week or you wish to use us to insult Black cis women you hate.

Ignore the African descended trans activists who have toiled for decades to represent our community or have eloquently written about those issues for years because only white transwomen do that. Don't bother quoting Black transwomen on issues of importance to the rainbow community at large, write positive stories about them speaking on trans issues or believe there are engaged Black transfeminine leaders involved in fighting for the human rights of their community and others. .

Use a sellout Black gay male drag queen, white trans activists at inside the beltway Gay, Inc organizations or local rainbow community orgs to speak as 'experts' on Black trans lives.

Violate the AP Stylebook guidelines on covering transgender people by misgendering Black transwomen at every opportunity. When known, mention their old male names even if it isn't germane to the story in order to other them and reinforce the point they weren't originally born female.

If a Black transwoman is a victim of a hate crime or discrimination, you take the police spokesperson or the right wing anti-trans organization word as gospel truth without questioning if the 'man' they are describing in their press conference is actually a transwoman.. Inject the 'deception meme' into the story, add any criminal record your research may have uncovered if they have one and make certain you use either the mug shot or an unflattering picture of her. Throw in for good measure without any evidence to back it up shady commentary or your presumption the transperson in question was soliciting

Quotes of family members or neighbors misgendering that person work for the story as well. .

When in the process of rebutting a critique a Black transwoman has written, call her 'angry', 'obsessed about race', take digs at her education and demand she produce dissertation level citations to prove her points. If that doesn't work, call her a racist. If all of the above fails, call her a 'man'.

If you're a cis female or radical feminist do all of the above, flaunt your ability to menstruate, birth them babies and add misogynist to your list of charges. If you're a white transsexual separatist, obsess about surgical status in addition to doing all of the above.

Position the Black transwoman as the 'unwoman' juxtaposed to cis women and non Black trans women you have anointed with honorary cis privilege. The Black transwoman doesn't exist except to fulfill the 'tragic transsexual' meme or as martyrs to use in order to fundraise for Gay, Inc organizations.

They are also handy for browbeating Black civil rights legacy orgs into supporting same gender marriage, taking Black legislators to task to garner support for getting marriage equality laws passed for GL people or ramrod through unjust trans rights laws without public accommodations language.

If Black transwomen object to the erasure or the misuse of their fallen transsisters lives and histories in that manner, accuse them of being divisive, refuse to engage with them, microaggressively engage in tone arguments or lob sexist, bigoted and misgendering comments at them while doing so..

Presume that your cis privileged life and your observations based on collegiate gender theory classes trump the lived experiences and everyday lives of a Black transwoman. Dismiss it when she states that race matters and aim pre-1963 Dr. King quotes at her while chiding her for not being colorblind   Obsess about the Black transwoman's sexuality and make blanket statements and presumptions that her only interests in life are partying, getting high, getting pumped and turning tricks.

Make blanket statements and assumptions that she is neither concerned about nor intelligent enough to discuss the human rights issues that affect all transpeople or that she has spirituality, hopes, dreams and aspirations in life just like any other human being on the planet.