2011 FIBA Americas Women's Championship Tournament In Semifinals

The FIBA Americas Championship for Women is currently being contested in Neiva, Colombia for the lone FIBA Americas ticket to the women's Olympic basketball tournament in London next summer.

After a few days of group competition the ten team field has been whittled down to the four teams left in the semifinal round that kicks off play in a few hours.   

In Group A it was Argentina and Cuba advancing to the semis.  Argentina won a critical September 27 game 65-59 against Cuba that left them unbeaten and on top of the group with a 4-0 record with Cuba finishing second.at 3-1.

In Group B it was Brazil and Canada that advanced to the semis.  Brazil beat Canada.56-39 in their group play matchup on September 25 to finish 4-0 with the Canadians finishing second in group play at 3-1 as well.

The Canadian women ballers road to the semis started with an opening Group B play 72-45 win on September 24 over Mexico.  After the loss to Brazil the next day they thumped Paraguay 77-26 on September 26.   They got a well deserved day off  before closing out group play on September 28 with their 66-49 win over Jamaica to clinch second place in Group B and face Group A winner Argentina. .    

Unlike the guys, the Canadian women have a serious shot at qualifying for London and would rather handle their business now than take their chances in what is shaping up to be a tough qualifying tournament 

In the second semifinal game Group B winner Brazil, who is also unbeaten in this tournament will face off against Group A runner up Cuba..  

The semifinal game winners move on to the October 1 championship game to decide who gets their ticket punched to London as the FIBA Americas rep.   The semifinal losers will square off in the third place game.  
  

The winner will get to exhale, savor their FIBA Americas women's b-ball championship for a moment, then begin their preparations for London. 

The second, third and fourth place teams from this tournament will still have one final chance to qualify for London at the FIBA 2012 World Olympic Qualifying Tournament from June 25-July 1 at a site to be determined  in which the last five Olympic basketball berths will be up for grabs. 

We Need You, Black Trans Elders

When I wrote the post about my DC musings and my thoughts on the plane ride home entitled 'Hard Solid Thinking About the State Of The Black Trans Community'  little did I realize how much co signing I was going to get from people who read it across the chocolate rainbow community. .

But this comment from Sharyn Grayson really made my day.

Monica Roberts...if you could see me now...you'd know that I have stood at my computer screen and given you a rousing (heartfelt) round of applause! I think it should be repeated across the country, for the outstanding leadership, innovative thought, and empowerment efforts you have demonstrated on behalf of the global African American Transgender community. Speaking on behalf of the "senior" community leaders who have been in this battle, for years...let me just say that..."we are so very tired, weary, and worn". However, we can't/will not give up the fight - just yet! We need our young sisters and brothers to "step up" now and allow us to hand-off these 'battle batons'...while we provide critical support and backup from within the ranks! All in all, I'm definitely on board with you - 100%. Please feel free to call on/include me, as needed. Thank you, so much, for all that you continue to do for us.

Thank you Sharyn and all the senior leaders who have fought and continue to fight a frustrating and sometimes lonely battle just to keep our chocolate trans people in the forefront of people's imaginations inside and outside our community .

Thank you for keeping our history alive.  Thank you for providing the leadership and role modeling what Black transpeople can and should be doing in the 2K10's.  And thank you Sharyn for reminding me on behalf of our trans elders that we have a proud legacy to uphold.     .  

I hope I'm speaking for my generation of transwomen when I say that we are determined to bring back for all Black transwomen the class, elegance, sassy  determination, style, sophistication and intelligence you ladies seemed to pull off and project almost effortlessly in far more contentious times than we experience today. 

I know our transmen are ready and just as determined to provide the innovative, quality leadership that is sorely needed for us to be a stronger part of the community

I want us to as NBJC ED/CEO Sharon Lettman-Hicks said numerous times during the just concluded Out on the Hill event for the Black trans community to 'Own Our Power', and you and our trans elders will play a vital role in that effort.  

I want to be worthy of the legacy that you, Miss Major, Tracie Jada O'Brien, Avon Wilson, and countless others unfortunately no longer here with us built.  I'm determined to role model that in the 2K10's and in whatever remaining time I have left here on this planet.  


For us to move forward as a community we not only need to know our past, we are desperately going to need you trans elders providing us with that critical backup and knowledge. 

I welcome it from you and any other trans elder who wishes to contact me, and know that when you African descended trans elders wish to say something or speak out about so issue that is bothering you, my blog is open to you and any African descended trans elder as a conduit for that message.

And transpeople across the African Diaspora, I would be honored to have you express yourselves on these electronic pages as well and you have an open invitation to do so.

My generation of  Black transpeople definitely want and need to hear it.  We need it so it will not only make us better leaders now, we can pass that hard won knowledge on to the trans younglings that will be our replacements when it's time for us to step out of the trans civil rights game.

So yes trans elders, we want and need you to be an integral part of what we are doing to build a better Black trans community.


TransGriot Note: In case you're wondering, photos are Sharyn Grayson, Tracy Africa Norman (who was a fashion model back in the day) and Miss Major

What Residual Male Privilege?

One of the things I shake my head and laugh at is when I hear that loud and wrong element of radical lesbian feminists hurl that 'residual male privilege' charge in order to justify their obsession that started in the disco era and continues today with gleefully oppressing transwomen.

What residual male privilege? 

However, I could see where a bunch of people who are trying to dismiss and deflect attention away from the fact that they have pearl clutching white female privilege would hurl that charge and if necessary, cry white women's tears to do so in order to deflect attention away from the fact that they gleefully revel in their whiteness and their ability to oppress others. 

Time to school y'all once again. 

When we start transition, the second we swallow our first hormones or take that first depo shot, we are no longer considered part of the 'old boys club' by our male counterparts.. 

That message gets sent early when male bodied people who used to value your opinion or accepted it without question now ignore it or repeatedly interrupt your conversations because that opinion happens to be coming out of a female bodied person.  


And that is breathtakingly made clear to you if you're a transwoman of color

Residual male privilege?  Where?   Maybe that's true of the WWBT's who can't seem to let it go, but for the rest of us, we laugh at the cluelessness of your way off kilter assertion
.