50 Cent Hatin' On Gay Peeps Again

While the New York and New Jersey authorities were dragging the Hudson River looking for the body of Tyler Clementi and the investigation into the series of events that led the talented collegiate violinist to jump off the George Washington Bridge to his death is going on, 50 Cent picked a bad time to put out his latest homophobic tweet.

If you a man and your over 25 and you don't eat pu**y just kill your self damn it. The world will be a better place. Lol

This isn't the first time he's been caught with his Twitter draws down or busted for his homophobia.   Jasmyne Cannick called his butt out in this February 23, 2007 post. 


GLAAD slammed him for this tweet aimed at Perez Hilton earlier last month.

Perez Hilton calld me douchebag so I had my homie shoot up a gay wedding. wasnt his but still made me feel better."

He deleted that tweet, but followed it up with two more aimed at Perez Hilton:
  

"Stop being so sensitive it's a joke. You're acting like a big baby,"

"My next song will make your sweet ass dance. Lol. Chill Out."  

So why do we care?   Because 50 Cent has a Twitter following of 2 million people. 

Bottom line, 50 Cent is an ignorant waste of DNA that isn't going to change.  He is not representative of the majority of my community and those of us who are busting our behinds in support of LGBT rights issues.

But his mouth is another reason why a serious dialogue on TBLG issues in the African descended community and especially in the hip hop world needs to get started now.

The Upcoming Coppin State African American Transgender Forum

TransGriot Note: Thanks to Sandy Rawls for sending me the info concerning this upcoming forum. A I mentioned at the beginning of this year, transpeople of African descent are tired of the vanilla flavored status quo and the 2K10s will be a decade in which a might people will awaken and begin to take control of their own destiny, just as our cis ancestors did.

And now, the press release about the upcoming Coppin State event.

The purpose of this event is to foster dialog and productive conversation on ways to improve lives in the African American Transgender Community. The Transgender community, regardless of race or orientation, faces a multitude of obstacles and challenges.

More than often, we see and hear about African American trans people finding it exceptionally difficult to live healthy, productive, and successful lives.

During this forum, we will explore our challenges and our victories, as well as facilitate a solution-based dialog to further build a healthier, dynamic and unified community.

The African American Transgender Forum At Coppin State University-Working Together to Build a Stronger Community

Admission: FREE
Contact: Sandy Rawls 443-447-3238

Location: Coppin State University
2500 West North Avenue
Baltimore, MD 21216-3698

Date: September 25, 2010
Time: 8:30am – 3:00pm
Lead Sponsors: Trans-United and Maryland Black Family Alliance

Co-sponsors: The Portal, ACLU of Maryland, Equality Maryland, (W.A.R) Women Accepting Responsibility, Baltimore Black Pride

Proposed Schedule:

8:30am - 9:10am – Registration and light breakfast
9:15am– 9:30am – WELCOME: Elbridge James and Sandy Rawls
9:35am – 9:45am – Building a stronger community-Sandy Rawls
9:45-9:55- Our Hopes, Our Dreams, Our Victories-Tona Brown

First Panel:
10:00– 11:45am –OUR ISSUES – Housing, Education, Sex Work, Hate Crimes

MODERATOR Sandy Rawls-Executive Director of Trans-United/Baltimore City HIV/AIDS Commissioner

Lindsey Harrington-Youth Group Facilitator at Trans-United/ TransS.P.I.R.E
Lisa Garnett- HIV/AIDS Prevention, and Treatment Director at Trans-United
Lauren Stokeling-W.A.R Women Accepting Responsibility
Aeon Farr- Morgan State University student/ Community Outreach coordinator at Trans-United

12:00pm – 12:45pm – LUNCH

Second Panel:
1:00pm – 2::30pm - OUR STORIES- How they contribute to solve issues in the Transgender community

Brian Watson -Program Director/Transgender Health Empowerment-Washington DC
Nevett Steele-Attorney, LGBT Community Activist
Mark McClaurin- HIV/AIDS specialist and Activist
Tonia Poteit- PA, MPA (Medical Public Health) at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Health)
Dr. Luke Johnsen HIV/STD Specialist /Baltimore City Health Department

2:45pm – 3:00pm – Closing Remarks, Working Together to Build a Stronger Community
Sandy Rawls, Elbridge James, Lea Gilmore

Time To Define Ourselves

'If I didn't define myself for myself, I would be crunched into other people's fantasies for me and eaten alive.'

That quote from Audre Lorde pretty much sums up the mental space where a lot of African descended transpeople are right now.

Because of our lack of visibility, whitewashing of our history, and lack of inclusion into the leadership ranks of the trans community, we find ourselves in the first year of the second decade of the 21st century at a crossroads.

The lack of visibility for Black transmen and transwomen has created a void in which our kids struggling with gender issues and looking for trans role models who reflect their heritage don't have them readily available. We also face the problem of being pigeonholed in the 'tragic transsexual' role because we are taking the brunt of the anti-trans violence aimed at this community and mischaracterized and nothing more than female illusionists or sex workers.

The situation has marginally improved over the last few years, but it's not even close to what our white counterparts have in term of the multiplicity of transpeople of both genders they can point to as positive role models to counteract the negatives in addition to the community support infrastructure that has been built.

It's time for us to define ourselves. National Black Justice Coalition Executive Director Sharon J. Lettman-Hicks basically said the same thing at the 2010 State of the Black Gay Union event held in Atlanta.

"Black gay people are Black people first. Whether you are gay, straight, bisexual, transgender, questioning you are still Black first. So when we speak of 'our' people, we need to think of our entire community and bringing LGBT issues to the Black community. We need to create a Black LGBT agenda to move the bully pulpit forward."

And in that context, Black trans people need to do some hard solid thinking about who we are and where we fit in in this new Black LGBT agenda. We African descended transpeople need to make sure that we are taking a major leadership role in articulating our issues.

We need to ensure that any organization that claims to represent our issues is doing the job. We don't need to be or have time to waste being in a situation in which we are once again marginalized as a Black LGBT agenda is constructed and articulated to our African American family. We've been there, done that with our issues being marginalized in the white dominated GLBT community.

It's also past time we took back our images from other people and define them for ourselves. We need to demand balance and accuracy in terms of media portrayals of African descended transpeople. That will help us immensely in terms of dealing with the predominately faith based shame and guilt issues we've long needed to cast aside.

We need to reclaim our history and build an African descended trans community that is integrated with not only our Black GLB/SGL brothers and sister and cis allies, but the TBLG one as a whole. As we proceed we need to be adamant about the Black trans community's desire to be a major player in any coalition we participate in during this decade and beyond and not an ignored junior partner.

And finally, we need to stand up to the religious bullies and scientifically illiterate people inside and outside our community's ranks who insist on misquoting scripture and mischaracterizing us for their own political and economic gain.

It's time to tell them that open season on African descended transpeople is over.

To our cis women haters, you need to realize that we are here to be compliments to Black womanhood, not detriments to it. We are your allies and join with you in the battle to defend against the demonization of the Black female image.

And finally, as children of the African Diaspora, we need to reach out to our trans brothers and transsisters who are struggling to do the same work on the Mother Continent, the Caribbean, Brazil, Great Britain and other lands across the Diaspora.

As they define themselves as transmen and transwomen in the context of their local cultures, we should listen to their concerns and help amplify their voices to our constituency in the States when asked.

African descended transpeople in this decade and beyond are taking this opportunity to let everyone know that we're sick and tired of people negatively defining us for their own nefarious purposes, and from now on we will define ourselves.

Because as Audre Lorde so eloquently stated, we've had enough of being crunched into other people's fantasies and eaten alive in them.

Working to Empower Black LGBT People

TransGriot Note: This editorial piece by NBJC executive director Sharon J. Lettman was originally published in the Bay Area Reporter on August 12.

Barbecues, backyard parties, and soul-food jams. Summer is a time for family get-togethers. A time when people all over the world take vacations so they can make memories with close friends and loved ones, but in African American communities only some of us feel comfortable going home.

In our communities, only some of us feel safe enough to be who we are in the company of those who raised us. Only some of us can show up and be all of ourselves all of the time with the people we love most. The pain of moving through our families – closeted, and, in many instances, alienated – is devastating black families everywhere.

Homophobia and the anti-gay oppression it engenders severely limits the extent to which African American LGBT people live out and open lives. In recent years, we have seen significant efforts to undermine black families due to restrictive laws and regulations based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Such laws include the 2008 proposition passed in Arkansas outlawing adoption by LGBT people, even though 21 percent of black LGBT couples are biological parents and 2.2 percent are adoptive or foster parents (2000 U.S. Census).

As America's only nationwide black LGBT civil rights organization, the newly re-imagined National Black Justice Coalition has accepted the charge to lead black families in strengthening the bonds and bridging the gaps between straight and LGBT loved ones and communities.

"Building Stronger Black Families" is the theme guiding NBJC's strategic plan and program development. As a part of our commitment, we focus on eradicating policy-based initiatives that we know weaken our families, our communities, and ultimately, our country.

Specifically, we focus on working in coalition with ally organizations to combat harmful laws that are tearing apart our families. In collaboration with Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, we work to repeal laws like "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" because African American women are discharged from the armed services at three times the rate they serve, due to DADT. Upon discharge, an individual's access to health and retirement benefits are denied and their professional record is permanently marred, affecting their ability to find new work to support their families.

In conjunction with the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the National Center for Transgender Equality, we focus on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act because everybody deserves an opportunity to excel in their chosen profession without fear of being punished or terminated due to gender identity or sexual orientation, qualities over which none of us have any control. Racism, homophobia, and transphobia combine to form powerful discriminating forces that prevent LGBT people of color from obtaining and sustaining jobs, which can lead to impoverished conditions for them and their dependents. In a 2007 NGLTF/NCTE national transgender discrimination survey, 35 percent of black transgender respondents were unemployed, which was five times the rate of the general population at the time of the study. ENDA is a federal bill that would prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

NBJC is partnering with the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network to put an end to bullying in schools because every child deserves to learn in an environment where they feel safe enough to explore their hopes and dreams without fear of being harassed or physically assaulted. Further, every child deserves to have teachers and administrators who will protect them when these incidents are reported. When children are the targets of anti-gay bullying, families that don't receive this level of support and accountability from schools suffer losses like the tragedy experienced by Carl Joseph Walker's mother. Her son hanged himself last year after enduring daily bullying and anti-gay taunts. Carl is one of several suicides of very young children linked to bullying. We will never know what Carl's promise held and his family is forever scarred by his untimely departure.

NBJC is working with a host of organizations through the Civil Marriage Collaborative DC Coalition, in a public education campaign promoting marriage equality in and around Washington, D.C., where 54 percent of the community is African American, and gay and lesbian couples can marry legally.

Polls have repeatedly shown that respondents who know an LGBT person within their family, workplace, and/or social networks have increased support for policies that foster equal rights. Increasing acceptance and respect for black LGBT people within their families and communities is essential to growing support within African American communities for LGBT issues of inclusion and equality, which, ultimately, affect us all.

NBJC is working toward a world where all of us can go home and be all of who we are, authentically and safely, with family and friends, all of the time. We hope that you will support us by participating in action alerts around policy initiatives that help level the playing field for all LGBT people and allies – regardless of race, creed or color.

If you'd like to join our movement to advance the intersection of racial justice and LGBT equality please visit us at http://www.nbjc.org or http://www.facebook.com/nationalblackjusticecoalition.


Sharon Lettman is the executive director of NBJC, which is a civil rights organization dedicated to empowering black LGBT people. Its mission is to end racism and homophobia. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., NBJC was founded on December 8, 2003, by a group of committed and passionate black LGBT people, led by activist, author, and commentator Keith Boykin, who believed there needed to be a strong voice advocating on behalf of black LGBT people.

Stop The Transphobic Hatin' On Wendy Williams

I'm not exactly a big fan of her television show, but what I hate even more is when Black women are subjected to misgendering and transphobic slurs by their detractors.

It heightens my pissivity level even more when the peeps slinging the transphobic mud share my ethnic heritage.

The latest example comes from that cesspool of homophobia and transphobia, Bossip.

They wrote a piece that talked about the cover of the May 10 issue of JET and the covers of two other magazines featuring singers Trina and Leona Lewis.

The one that got them talking was the picture of the self proclaimed 'Queen of All Media'. Since Wendy Joan Williams is 5'11" without her heels and she's generated some controversy over the years on her radio show, that has been used as an entree for attacks on her gender ID and presentation.

And now, for your viewing displeasure, some of the gems from the post's comment thread.

Hannibal 4/30/10, 03:21:PM
WENDY WILLIAMS IS REALLY TYLER PERRY

Theorius Stylez 4/30/10, 03:22:PM
Thats a guy.

drenk 4/30/10, 03:24:PM
by TV Showgirl they mean Transvestite Showgirl right…?

neenee 4/30/10, 03:34:PM
She looks like a man. what is that, the next Ru-Paul?

Delight23 4/30/10, 03:36:PM
uuuuggggghhh. Dorothy Height, as a civil rights icon and top story, was a better look. I refuse to believe that there are ovaries floating around in that thing.

leonard mckelvey 4/30/10, 03:38:PM
Look at Wendell’s hands. Wendell is a man wearing a cheap wig.

We "Blacks" Are The REAL Hebrew Israelites 4/30/10, 03:49:PM
Whew…her face is SKRONG. Not even strong..but SKRONG.
Look at those neck muscles bulging. She has a neck like a linebacker from holding up all that Tibetan Yak hair.

Mizz Frost 4/30/10, 04:55:PM
@Delight23
“I refuse to believe that there are ovaries floating around in that thing.”
OMG!! LMAO! ahh snap! I was watching her show the other day and my roomate REFUSED to believe that she is a woman, shes all like “HEll NO THATS GOTTA BE A MAN!” She looks like she belongs on a Jerry Springer show…

karen 4/30/10, 05:06:PM
“im not trying to be mean but this woman should consider getting plasic sergery. im sure it will do” wonders for her face… nothing too crazy just a nose job and a face lift… LOL

No. She should consider getting her pen*s and balls removed and boost her female hormones. This post opt tranny appeal is not working for her/him/shim.

Just Sayin 4/30/10, 05:25:PM
Wendy Williams is a dude if I ever seen one!
How he get away wit dat!
Lookin like a linebacker fudgepacker!

RedboneKillBill 4/30/10, 07:04:PM
FLATLINED @ the title!
I almost fell out of my chair laughing so dang on hard.
They airbrushed the mess outta shim.

STUPIDGIRLLOL 5/2/10, 02:48:AM
She’s hoping that those big diamonds will distract from her manly hands!

Finally, a voice of reason in the phobic wasteland that is the Bossip comment section.

msdavis 4/30/10, 06:26:PM

OMG! We really need to stop people. Wendy Williams is NOT a man. She is her parents (who are still married) daughter and her siblings sister. Wendy is a beautiful educated sister who had a long standing radio show and she was recently inducted into the radio hall of fame. She is a journalist, author and left radio to pursue yet another dream of hers in television. She’s witty, she’s real and she’s a BLACK WOMAN. For those who continue to call her a man or Wendell, that’s terrible and very disrespectful. GROW UP!

***

Grow up indeed, and pick up a fracking science book. A little more or less testo in vitro and many of the nekulturny idiots throwing shade at Ms. Williams in this Bossip comment thread could have easily been on the receiving end of the shade they are throwing.

First point I want to make is transwoman does not equal ugly NFL linebacker in a dress. Some of my transsisters are petite size 8 shoe wearing sisters next door.

As I said back in January, and it seems like this point needs repeating until it gets through some of my peeps thick curly haired heads, I'm tired of insecure people jealous of or intimidated by confident, accomplished, and talented sisters throwing 'that's a man' shade at them.

Wendy's got more money in her bank account than all of you haters put together.

The point is that you get half your genetic material from mommy, half from daddy, and we are all blends and combinations of traits that purportedly belong to the other gender. There is also as those of us who keep up with scientific discoveries and knowledge on these issues are discovering, a fine line between being born in a masculine body and a feminine one.

And it seems like Wendy is doing just fine working the one she's got despite your unsolicited peanut gallery commentary.

Back The Hell Up Off The NAACP

'The most famous initials in America are the NAACP. The most written about voluntary association in America is the NAACP. The most damned group of citizens is the NAACP.'

Langston Hughes uttered those words in 1960 while receiving his Spingarn Medal, and five decades later they are still right on target.

Over its 100 plus year history, the NAACP has become the most written about, most reviled by conservatives organization and the most recognized acronym on the planet.

I'm glad to see NAACP President Benjamin Jealous starting to take it in directions I've wanted to see it go for years such as calling out the conservative movement and its racism.

He's also starting to point out out that hello, there are Black folks who happen to be TBLG people as well and the NAACP needs to be more proactive in fighting for their civil rights as well.

One birthday gift me and my siblings used to receive on a regular basis when we were growing up were youth memberships in the NAACP.

I've been a member of the organization at various points in my life, and thanks to the recent stand they've taken against the Tea Klux Klan and other moves they have been made to modernize the organization and its message, I'm about to rejoin the ranks of card carrying NAACP members.

It's a stand that has resulted in the Tea Klux Klan proving the NAACP's point with their sheeple calling in death threats to the organization's offices and being vilified in conservamedia.

Unlike the conservatrolls swarming the NAACP's FB page, I'm well aware of the NAACP's proud history.

The NAACP's legal wing headed by legendary attorneys Charles Houston and later future Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall attacked the specious legal underpinnings of Jim Crow segregation over several decades. They fought to pass an anti-lynching law, desegregate the military, and during World War II ensured that African-American workers were hired for the jobs that opened up in defense plants around the nation.

The NAACP has been our sword and shield on Capitol Hill in terms of helping lead the charge to enact the 1964 Civil Rights Act, the 1965 Voting Rights Act, the 1968 Fair Housing Act, the 1991 Civil Rights Restoration Act and the 2002 Help America Vote Act, the most current reauthorization of the Voting Rights Act, the just passed bill to reduce crack and powder cocaine sentencing disparities among countless others.

Their Legislative Civil Rights Report Cards let us definitively know who our congressional friends and foes are on the Hill.

Is it any wonder why the conservafools want to take it down like they did ACORN?

Not no, but hell no will we as a community allow that to happen.

The NAACP has a 100 plus year track record of passing legislation that helps all Americans in addition to fighting racism. The Tea Klux Klan and the conservative movement only pays lip service to that. They talk a good game, but they are woefully short on longterm follow through.

By the way conservafools, it's not just African Americans who are members of the NAACP. It ws a multicultural group of people who founded the organization in 1909

But if you weren't watching Faux news till your brains rotted you'd know that.

But then again, you already know that, and will just write and broadcast lies about it anyway.

Thank God there are far more 'ejumacated' people of all ethnicities in this country that already know the truth about the NAACP, are aware of its history, the work it has done and its ongoing mission in its now second century of work.

So keep hatin' on the NAACP like you always have, conservafools. This drama is nothing new. You have assassinated its leaders in regional chapters like Medgar Evers. You passed laws like you did in Alabama to try to legislate it out of existence. You have demonized and denigrated it in conservative and white supremacist circles for decades just like your right wing talker and sheeple are doing now, and still the NAACP survives and thrives.

As a proud, soon to be card carrying NAACP American, I say with all deepest sincerity,

Conservafools, back the hell up off the NAACP.

Summon That Same Righteous Anger For Black Transpeople Being Mistreated At Home

“It is often easier to become outraged by injustice half a world away than by oppression and discrimination half a block from home.”

When I read that quote from the distinguished journalist Carl T. Rowan, I thought about the recent situation involving Malawi's Tiwonge Chimbalanga and Steven Monjeza.

People in the States and around the world mobilized to protest the outrage of throwing people in jail simply for who they chose to love. President Obama and other people around the world and across the African diaspora commented on it.

Numerous blog posts, news stories and thousands of Facebook messages and Twitter tweets were written about this case.

Some of them were jacked up as well.

But when it comes to the mistreatment of Black transpeople inside the borders of the United States who are being killed, facing discrimination, police brutality and violence, those same people who were vocal about what happened to 'Auntie Tiwo' and Steve are indifferent to, unconcerned about and frankly in some cases don't care to muster the same level of outrage and anger when it comes to us.

I'd like to see the same level of righteous anger mustered on behalf of Black transpeople at home. I'd like to see those same TBLG peeps and inside the Beltway organizations show the same level of compassion toward us.

I'd like to see the Black Church stop doing the dirty work of white fundamentalists and stop parroting their faith based hatred of trans people.

I'd like to see the African-American cis community stop shunning us and embrace their African descended trans brothers and sister.

The point is, we're affected by some of the same issues that ail the larger Black community, and it's past time we joined forces to help come up with ways to solve those problems.

I'd like to see our legendary community civil rights organizations do more to give us a helping hand integrating with the African-American community instead of the back of their hand.

And finally, we need our chocolate SGL counterparts to step up and be drum majors and drum majorettes for justice where it concerns us.

Patricia Underwood Discrimination Case

TransGriot Note: Since ENDA is languishing in committee right now, thought I'd bring up this piece of African-American trans history that I discovered in the digitized JET magazine archives. It was reported in JET Magazine's June 27, 1994 issue, using proper pronouns I might add.

It once again drives home the point that not only do African descended transpeople exist, the issues we face ain't nothing new, and in many cases we took positive action to fight back.

Patricia Underwood transitioned and underwent SRS in 1982, but found herself a decade later embroiled in a legal battle after being dismissed from her receptionist job because in their words 'she looked too much like a man'.

Then 31 year old Washington DC resident Patricia Underwood sued New York City based Archer Management Services Inc., a New York City-based firm with a Washington DC office where she was employed.

Because federal laws do not (and still don't) properly protect transpeople against discrimination, Underwood flied suit in U.S. District Court under the broader D.C. Human Rights Law that prohibits discrimination based on personal appearance.

She alleged in her suit she was fired because because she is a transsexual and retains some masculine traits such as her large bone structure.

Gender identity and expression in the areas of employment, schools, housing and public accommodations were added to the DC law in 2006.

"I just want to stand up and say that I am not a freak, but a person," said Underwood at the time. "I was doing the work they asked me to do well, and I don't deserve to be treated like that because of my looks."

Archer in a statement according to JET, said it "vigorously denies any allegations of wrongdoing made by Patricia Underwood." It said it believes that her claim of discrimination based on personal appearance is, "without merit ... and that all of Archer's actions related to Patricia Underwood were wholly lawful and nondiscriminatory."

The Underwood v. Archer Management Services, Inc. case was the first effort to determine if the 1977 DC Human Rights Law's looks-oriented discrimination provision applied to transsexuals.

Archer moved to dismiss the case for failure to state a claim, arguing that the Act does not forbid discrimination against transsexuals. U.S. District Judge Richey disagreed, at least in part, finding that Underwood's factual allegations arguably stated a claim of discrimination on the basis of personal appearance (i.e., the reference to "masculine traits").

Richey followed well-established Title VII precedent at the time in dismissing that portion of the complaint based on sex discrimination. Interestingly, he also dismissed the portion based on sexual orientation discrimination, finding that none of Underwood's factual allegations raised any issue about her sexual orientation (and implicitly recognizing that sexual orientation and transsexuality are distinct phenomena). 1994 WL 369468 (U.S. Dist. Ct., D.C., July 12).

Note to all you GL people claiming transpeople are covered under 'sexual orientation language' when y'all move to cut us out of legislation. This case says it doesn't.

Did Patricia Underwood receive justice? Still trying to find out if that case was eventually resolved to her and her attorney Wayne Cohen's satisfaction.

Ask The Panthers What Would Happen If The Teabaggers Were Black

There's been a lot of hue and cry from the 'white' wing about Dr. Tim Wise's 'Imagine If The Tea Party Were Black' post that's been linked to at blogs across the Blackosphere.

Some of the dismissive comments from the defenders of whiteness call it 'speculative' and tried to shout Wise's conclusions down since it didn't jibe with their vanilla flavored conservaworldview.

But it ain't 'speculation' what the reaction of whiteness and the Feds would be to an armed group of Black people calling for radical change to the system. All you have to do is pick up the history books and go back to the 1966 formation in Oakland of the Black Panther Party for Self Defense.

The BPP got the attention of California state legislators when they began exercising their rights under California law to openly carry loaded shotguns as part of their confrontational defense tactics against police brutality.

On May 2, 1967 in protest of the Mulford Act, a proposed law to ban public displays of loaded firearms, 30 armed Panthers traveled to Sacramento and legally sauntered into the Cali state Capitol building with loaded shotguns.

Thanks to their brief merger with SNCC, the rapid expansion of the BPP into major cities across the nation amassing a half million members in the process, and the fact riots against our negative treatment started occurring in many cities in 1965 and you can see how jittery the Black Panther Party made the powers that be.

The Panthers also gained support in the Black community thanks to their successful survival programs offering free breakfasts for children, free clothing distribution, classes on politics and economics, free medical clinics, lessons on self-defense and first aid, transportation to upstate prisons for family members of inmates, an emergency-response ambulance program, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, and testing for sickle-cell anemia.

The BPP Ten-Point Program called for changes that made them even more threatening.

1. We want freedom. We want power to determine the destiny of our black community.
2. We want full employment for our people.
3. We want an end to the robbery by the capitalists of our black community.
4. We want decent housing fit for the shelter of human beings.
5. We want education for our people that exposes the true nature of this decadent American society. We want education that teaches us our true history and our role in the present-day society.
6. We want all black men to be exempt from military service.
7. We want an immediate end to police brutality and murder of black people.
8. We want freedom for all black men held in federal, state, county and city prisons and jails.
9. We want all black people when brought to trial to be tried in court by a jury of their peer group or people from their black communities, as defined by the constitution of the United States.
10. We want land, bread, housing, education, clothing, justice and peace.

The exemption from military service was replaced in 1972 by a demand for completely free health care for all black and oppressed people.

Of course, the reaction to the mushrooming popularity of the Panthers in the African American community had to be stopped. FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover in September 1968 described the Black Panthers as "the greatest threat to the internal security of the country' and targeted them for 'neutralization' by the FBI's infamous COINTELPRO program.

Thanks to armed clashes with the police, infiltration, steadily dropping membership numbers and other COINTELPRO shenanigans the power of the BPP was broken by the mid 70's.

So no, don't doubt for a minute that the reaction of the media and conservafools would be quite different if the teabaggers were all Black instead of racist sore loser white people with deficient spelling abilities hatin' on President Obama.

The Black GLB Community Needs To Do A Better Job Of Trans Inclusion

One of the things I have consistently complained about ever since I started this blog on New Year's Day 2006 is the GLBT community's glaring lack of inclusion when it comes to African descended transpeople.

My own people can be just as bad. Just as you're sick and tired of being ignored and dissed by the white led GLB community, me and my trans brothers and sisters are sick and tired of being sick and tired of being ignored and dissed by our own chocolate flavored GLB peeps.

As Womanist Musings editor in chief Renee wrote in a piece called 'My GLBT Brothers and Sisters Are My Family', you cannot claim to love Blackness or Black people, if you do not love openly all of its manifestations.

For too long you have ignored the 'T' part of the African descended GLBT community. News flash to the GL end of it: some of your trans brothers and sisters happen to be same gender loving people, too.

It's also past time to realize that we can contribute far more to the building and life of the African descended GLBT community than only calling the female illusionists when you want to do an HIV/AIDS benefit show.

Some of us are blessed with skill sets that allow us to be capable of organizing one as well.

Female illusionists, pageant divas or the femme queens of the ballroom community aren't the only part of the chocolate flavored 'T', nor are we defined by our brothers and sisters who have lost their lives to anti-trans violence

There are gainfully employed college educated trans men and women who make up a large chunk of it. We are engaged, politically aware and proud people who are more than willing to step up to leadership roles in this community if given the chance to do so.

I don't want to hear the BS excuse I heard last year when I slammed the trans free 33 Black GLBT leaders list that had no trans people on it that they don't know any trans activists.

Some of you who peddled that weak crap have been too busy partying to get to know ANY GLB activists, much less trans ones. We're out there and it's past time that we start working together to not only help our chocolate flavored GLBT community, but the African descended one as well.

Your trans brothers and sisters take enough crap from society at large and elements of the white run GLBT movement. We don't need it from the GLB people that share our ethnic heritage, too.

With us being three months into the start of a new decade, I hold out hope that my GL community will lead on this issue and finally give us chocolate trans people the recognition, affirmation, help and love that we need from our own people.

Thanks blkout and Zeta Phi Beta!

Wanted to take a moment to thank blkout and the Delta Theta chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc for extending to me an invitation to participate in the panel discussion they held last night as part of their PHIner Womanhood Week.

College kids these days are doing some amazing work and stepping up to the plate in terms of holding the discussions on TBLG issues.

Despite the fact I'd been in Frankfort earlier that morning, wasn't missing this 'Black and Gay In America' panel discussion. It was also the first time I'd been on a panel in which the 'B' part of the community was represented.

While Dr. Story unfortunately couldn't be there last night, blkout's Jaison Gardiner did a wonderful job as moderator of the two hour discussion that covered a wide range of issues on and off campus.

It was an informative and interesting discussion in which some cogent and intelligent questions were asked by the audience concerning issues such as family acceptance, spirituality, how to be a better ally to the TBLG community and where we fit in the overall African descended community.

Thanks once again blkout and the distinguished sorors of the Delta Theta chapter of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. for giving me the opportunity to take part and kick some knowledge to you about my segment of the BTLG rainbow.

Tiger, Now That You Lost 'Honorary White Male' Status, Don't Come Running Back To Us For Support

Now that Mr. Cablinasian has fallen seriously out of favor with the predominately white fans of the golfing world over his marital woes and infidelity issues, I wonder how long it's going to take before he remembers he's Black and tries to appeal to us for support?

Save it homes. Seen this pattern before with the most recent examples being O.J. Simpson and the late Michael Jackson.

Been there and done that. The sad part is I'm a huge fan of the Athlete of the Decade, but I and much of the African-American community is just through with Eldrick Woods.

There are a lot of ways to be Black, but we get more than perturbed with the lot of you who have at least one African descended parent and are in severe denial about the African part of your heritage.

We get a little pissed with you peeps who are chasing 'honorary white male' status, ignore Black women as potential life partners as a part of that and our community as a whole during your pursuit of superstardom.

But when your ample round butts get into trouble or you fall out of favor with whites for whatever reason, you suddenly remember you're Black and start calling up African-American media outlets and magazines to do interviews. You then try to show you're down with the people in your bid to mend fences with the African-American community and garner our support.

Naw homes. We don't want sloppy seconds. We wanted then and still want to be your first love. But your declaration you were Cablinasian, that you had every right as an individual defining himself to make, was seen as a slap in the face by those of us who are proud to be Black.

One of the biggest surprises of President Obama's Inauguration Week last year was Tiger's participation in the Sunday 'We Are One' event.

Many peeps in the African-American community expressed surprise he was even there, seeing his reluctance to speak out on any issues political or otherwise pertaining to the African-American community over the last decade. Even when he did his short speech, he did so without mentioning President Obama by name.

If we weren't good enough for you to show solidarity and pride with beyond the superficial level when you were doing all those amazing things on the golf courses of the planet, give me and the African descended community one good reason why we should show any love or support to you in return, especially in light of the fact that many of your golfing buds like Jesper Parnevik are openly turning on you like rabid dogs?

But being we African descended peeps are a forgiving bunch, after we get over the simmering anger of being jilted and ignored for the last decade, if Mr. Woods is sincere about doing a much better job in the 2k10's and beyond about staying in better touch with his African descended roots, we'll probably make room for him at the family table.

Hell, somebody's gotta show him some love. But it's definitely going to take awhile before we warm up to you again.

Every Month Is Black History Month

We're close to celebrating another Black History Month. Unlike most people, thanks to my parents and my late godmother, I have a deep love of history in general and Black history in particular.

It drives a thirst for knowledge of my people that happens 365 days a year and 366 days in a leap year.

I'm one of those people who firmly believes that every month is Black History Month. Every month contains either the birthday of a historic figure in our history besides the January 15, 1929 one of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the anniversary of a groundbreaking event, the founding of an iconic organization such as the NAACP or the date a historic achievement occurred for our people.

For example, on this January 7 date inventor W.B. Purvis patented the fountain pen.

In 1891 writer Zora Neale Hurston was born in Eatonville, FL.

In 1955 Marian Anderson, the first African American singer in the company's history, made her debut at New York's Metropolitan Opera House as Alrica in Verdi's Masked Ball.

In 2002 Shirley Franklin was sworn in as the first African American female mayor of Atlanta.

We also can't sleep about the Black history that's being made right now in the White House, across the Diaspora, and the people that are making that history happen.

It's not just limited to the borders of the United States. Black history month is increasingly becoming an international event to reflect the fact that there's Black history being made in Canada, the Caribbean, in Europe, the African continent and wherever African descended people reside on this planet.

History is more than just remembering dates, places and larger than life personalities. It is the story of a people as well and endless What Ifs that had they occurred, could have changed the world we are living in at this particular moment in time.

And as I must remind people, just because we are GLBT people, it doesn't mean we became less Black. African descended same gender loving people and trans people have and will continue to play major roles in driving events shaping our people's history such as Bayard Rustin's involvement in the Civil Rights Movement and Marsha P. Johnson being involved in the 1969 Stonewall Riots and the events after it that resulted in the early trans rights movement.

Kelly Miller wrote in The Voice of the Negro in 1906, 'All great people glorify their history and look back upon their early achievements with a spiritual vision.'

Well, we African descended Americans come from a great people who reside on the second largest continent on our planet.

Those of us who ended up in the Western Hemisphere either voluntarily or on that involuntary boat trip have done remarkable things and contributed mightily to building this country.

And we need more than 28 calendar days to properly pay homage to that history.

Am I A Black Transleader?

Friday night I received an e-mail from a young African descended transwomen based on the East Coast who I have high regard for and admire as a trans activist. Her closest friend is another young and musically talented African descended transperson I admire as well.

Her e-mail floored me by expressing hers and the other transwoman's admiration for me. She continued to say in it she saw me as an inspirational role model and expressed her desire to have a long sit down chat with me that will result in us getting to know each other a lot better in 2010 and beyond.

I was shedding a tear or two after I finished it because I was having a bit of a crummy day before I received that e-mail.

Even though I've heard for a decade how much of a leader I am and a positive influence on the African American transgender community and the trans community in general, I kind of take it in stride because I have a cadre of close friends that ensure I never get 'big head syndrome'.

I also have my detractors and haters who at regular intervals let loose their negativity at me as well.

I just do what all people do that are thrust into leadership roles and ignore the haters. As an additional layer of defense against 'big head syndrome' I still filter whatever positive commentary that flows my way through the definition of Black leadership attributed to University of Maryland political scientist Dr. Ronald Walters.

The task of Black leadership is to provide the vision, resources, tactics, and strategies that facilitate the achievement of the objectives of Black people.

These objectives have been variously described as freedom, integration, equality, liberation, or defined in the terms of specific public policies. It is a role that often requires disturbing the peace. And we constantly carry on a dialogue about the fitness of various leaders and the qualities they bring to the table to fulfill this mission.

It is this definition of leadership I use as a measuring stick in terms of my own leadership qualities. I try to follow in addition to the Walters definition of Black leadership the sterling examples of leadership from Malcolm X, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the late Rep. Barbara Jordan from the home state, the late Rep. Shirley Chisholm, the late Coretta Scott King and a host of other leaders past and present.

I'm cognizant of the fact that people do look up to me and I never want to be a disappointment to them.

But yes, I'm also human as well. I wonder at times if I have the qualities necessary to carry out such a critical and important mission.

That mission, ladies and gents is getting our African descended cis brothers and cis sisters to recognize that their trans brothers and trans sisters have the same African heritage, history and cultural ties. Our issues as African descended trans people are the same as Black America's issues.

It is getting our cis brothers and cis sisters to accept that we aren't going away and for them to do their part in ensuring that our humanity and our human rights are respected and protected.

It is calling out and speaking truth to power to those people inside and outside the community who align themselves with the same white fundamentalist-GOP Dixiecrat Forces of Intolerance who opposed our 50s and 60's era march toward full equality and our constitutionally guaranteed civil rights.

It is also praising our allies when they do something right on our community's behalf and chastising them with Kingian love when they don't.

So do I have the right stuff to carry that mission out?

Well, the IFGE Trinity Award on the mantel is a big clue that I know a little something-something and have some skills to execute this mission.

But my fellow African American transpeople will let me know one way or the other soon enough.

The African-American Transsisterhood Initiative

Transpeople make up about 3% of the 36 million people that identify as African-American.

The 2Ks will be over in about two weeks and yet we still have problems in the African American transgender community with not knowing our history, not having working relationships with each other and not knowing other African American transpeople.

Well, the 2K10's will be starting soon. One of the things I have constantly complained about is the lack of national community and infrastructure we African descended transpeople have vis a vis our white transsisters. We need our own, and we needed it like yesterday.

To quote Kwame Toure, 'In order to participate in the greater society, we must first close ranks.' When I say African descended transpeople must close ranks, I'm talking about following the historic examples of our cis ancestors, parents, grandparents and great grandparents.

Just as they gathered together to form the organizations, fraternities, sororities and other self help groups that are household names in our communities today, that same spirit of collective organization needs to happen in the African American trans community as well.

I'm blessed to know and have the acquaintances of many African American transpeople in various locales around the country. Some are activists, some aren't. What I would like to do is step it up another level and build lasting, lifelong friendships with many of these wonderful folks as well.

So here's how I envision and propose we do that.

We are hooked up on one level or another on Facebook or other social networking media. We can start by resolving in 2010 and beyond to get to know 5 African descended transpeople you didn't have a lot of communication with or face time this year. We should also include in this effort African descended transwomen that aren't on the Net as well.

Your job as part of the African American Transsisterhood Initiative will be to select five people you've wanted to get to know as friends, and for one year do exactly that. Where they live doesn't matter. They can live in your city or outside of it, but one member of your sisterhood circle must be younger than you, another must be older than you. You can even do more than five people if you wish.

That way as you're getting to know your five peeps, you are getting to partake of the wisdom of your trans elders and your trans younglings.

That education will also be a two way street because we senior trans mamas can kick knowledge about our lives, our history and mentor our trans younglings.

At the same time we get the benefit of finding our more about the lives of our trans younglings, and they can enlighten us with fresh perspectives of looking at issues that will benefit both us and the entire AA transgender community.

One of the things that has immensely helped my growth on my feminine journey is to have been included in the sisterhood networks of some of my cis women friends. They have had my back on many issues, been a font of wisdom and knowledge when it comes to getting my gender act together, have helped me grow spiritually and get better attuned to living life as a Black woman.

At the same time me being the transwoman of the crew has opened their eyes to some of the issues I and other transwomen deal with as well and helped them realize there's not much besides superficial differences between a ciswoman or a transwoman.

I believe we African descended transwomen can benefit from forming sisterhood networks with each other, and what better time to do so than at the start of a new decade, the 2010's.

Let's resolve to finally do the work to make this decade one in which Black transwomen take control of their destinies, not be passive spectators in what happens and begin to make serious moves to take our rightful place at the African American family table.

The first and I believe the easiest step in the long journey to do that is getting to know and becoming friends with the Phenomenal Transwomen that are in our midst.