Happy Birthday, Alexandra!

Today is the birthday of one of our iconic trans women, Alexandra Billings.

She's a multi talented singer, actress, teacher and fellow blogger. You can check out her site at Alexandra Billings.com or her blog Stillettos and Sneakers to learn more about this talented lady.

I'm also looking forward to seeing her in the movie Stealth.



Happy birthday, Alexandra. You're looking good and expanding the minds and horizons of others. May you have many more.

Happy Birthday To The Queen Of Soul!

Time for everyone to bow and curtsy in the direction of Detroit because today is the birthday of Her Royal Soulness, Aretha Franklin.

She was born on this date in Memphis, TN in 1942.

She has had a long and distinguished career in the music industry, winning 18 Grammys. She was the first female artist inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987, and has had 20 No. 1 hits on the Billboard R&B Singles Chart, starting with 'Respect' (one of my fave songs) in 1967.

She became on June 28, 1968 the second African American woman to appear on the cover of Time magazine.

She has also garnered a long list of honors culminating in being named the Number one singer in the rock era by Rolling Stone magazine. She beat out Number 2 Ray Charles, Number 3 Elvis Presley, Number 4 Sam Cooke, and number 5 John Lennon for the honor..

She was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2005 and sang at President Barack Obama's inauguration in 2009. The hat she wore that day is now housed in the Smithsonian.

PETA may not like the Queen of Soul, but who cares what they think? The rest of the planet loves and respects her.

Happy Birthday, Aretha!

Happy Birthday To 'The Greatest'

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee, time to say 'Happy Birthday' to Muhammad Ali.

Today is the birthday of 'The Greatest', who was born in Louisville, KY on this date in 1942. 1960 Olympic gold medalist, three time heavyweight boxing champ, humanitarian, just all around awesome human being.

Enjoy the video from the Ernie Terrell fight, in which Terrell dissed Ali by referring to his old name in a pre fight interview with Howard Cosell, then got his butt kicked in their Astrodome fight.

Ali chanted 'What's my name?' as he pounded Terrell.



Enjoy, and happy birthday to 'The Greatest'.

Happy Birthday Madame First Lady

Today is First Lady Michelle Obama's birthday, who was born on this date in Chicago in 1964.

The FLOTUS is looking good and handling her business a year into her husband's presidency.

So yes, I'm proud that this brilliant, statuesque and talented sister is representing my country. The fact she's an AKA is a bonus.

Happy birthday Madame First Lady. May you have many more and another seven years representing us well.

Happy 50th Birthday Flo Jo

It's hard to believe she's been gone from us for eleven years, but today would have been Florence Delorez Griffith Joyner's 50th birthday. She was born in this date in south Los Angeles in 1959

Back in the day I loved me some Flo Jo.

She was known not only for her flashy form-fitting bodysuits and six-inch fingernails, but had world-record speed. The 100m record she set back in 1988 still hasn't been threatened by the current crop of female sprinters.

Florence Griffith Joyner was a triple gold medalist at the 1988 Seoul Olympics who captivated the world with her blistering speed, glamorous looks and flamboyant style.

She still holds the world records in the 100m and 200m dashes. She set the 100m mark of 10.49 seconds during the quarter finals of the 1988 US Olympic trials at Indianapolis.


At Seoul, she won the 100m gold medal in a wind-aided 10.54 seconds and won her 200m gold medal in a world record time of 21.34 seconds.

Because she had an unbelievable competitive year, as usual any sistah who excels in the international sports world is accused of cheating. In Flo Jo's case, because of her curvy and muscular build, she was dogged by accusations of steroid use even though she never failed a drug test.

She retired after the Seoul Games to pursue other interests, and died unexpectedly of heart failure at age thirty-eight on September 21, 1998.

Athletes like her only come along once in a generation. She is definitely missed by those of us who loved to watch her run and look good blowing away her competition at the same time.

Rest in peace, sis.

Shut Up Fool! Awards-Tyra Banks Birthday Edition

Another week has flow by and it's time for our weekly exercise here at TransGriot of shining a bright spotlight on the fools in our midst.

Today happens to be the birthday of former supermodel and talk show host Tyra Banks, who was born in Inglewood, CA on this date in 1973.

As our Shut Up Fool! Awards mascot Mr. T reminds us, fools are everywhere.

It seems like we've had a bumper crop of them this week, so lets get right to the fun and festivities and see what fool, fools, or organization of fools won our illustrious award.

This week's fool is Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragan of Mexico. He earned it with this homophobic and transphobic comment that was posted on a conservative Catholic website called Pontifex. In case you missed it, here it is:

"Transsexuals and homosexuals will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven, it's not me who says it but St. Paul.".

"One is not born homosexual but they become that way. This is for various reasons: education, for not having developed their identity during their adolescence, maybe they are not guilty but by going against the dignity of the body they certainly will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven."

"Everything that goes against nature and against the dignity of the body offends God," he was quoted as saying.

You know it's bad when the Vatican calls your ass out for your stupidity.

Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi said the website should not be considered an authority on Catholic thinking "on complex and delicate issues such as homosexuality."

Lombardi quoted from the official Catechism of the Roman Catholic Church, which says homosexual acts are a "disorder" but acknowledges that many people have "innate homosexual tendencies" and should be treated with respect and not be subject to discrimination.

Whatever.

You know, y'all need to go back to what Jesus said instead of what St. Paul said.
The world would be a much better place.

On that note, let's finish our business here.

Shut the HELL up, Cardinal Barragan!

Happy Birthday, Tami!

Happy Anniversary of your 29th Birthday Tami!

Today is the birthday of another one of my favorite bloggers, and I couldn't let the occasion slide by with giving her a TransGriot shoutout.

If you've surfed by her home blog What Tami Said or checked out any of her guest posts here or in the other spots she guest blogs at such as Racialicious, you know that she not only is a wonderful and thought provoking writer, she definitely isn't afraid to tell it like it T-I-S is.

And she's cool people on top of that. One of these days I'm going to have to make that drive up I-65 north and hang out with my blogging sister for the day.

Until then Tami, have a very happy and stress free birthday, and may you have many more!

Happy Birthday Jayne Kennedy Overton!

I have much love for this statuesque trailblazing sister who was born on this date in Washington, DC.

Jayne Harrison grew up in the Cleveland area suburb of Wickliffe, OH, and began a string of trailblazing firsts. She was a member of the National Honor Society in high school and was her high school class president three consecutive years. In 1969 she became the first African American vice president of Girls State.

Just a year later, she became the first African American to win the Miss Ohio USA pageant and finished fourth runner up in the 1970 Miss USA Pageant.

She did a USO tour with Bob Hope at the close of the Vietnam War, was a dancer on the Dean Martin Show, and thanks to stints in television, movies, advertising contracts for Jovan and the Tab diet soft drink and numerous Ebony/Jet covers she was one of the more recognizable faces of the 70's.

In 1978 she became the first African-American network female sportscaster when she joined the anchor desk for 'The NFL Today' pregame show on CBS for two years. That CBS stint paved the way for the current wave of Black female sportscasters you see on the airwaves now.

She got remarried in 1985 to current husband Bill Overton and is the mother of three daughters. While she isn't in the limelight as much as she was during the 70's and 80's, I still love me some Jayne Kennedy Overton.

Happy birthday, Jayne. May you have many more.

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Happy 85th Birthday President Carter!

Today was the 85th birthday of President Jimmy Carter. He spent his milestone birthday reopening his Carter Center after it shut down in April for several months to do a multimillion dollar makeover and upgrade.

The ceremony and ribbon cutting, which drew a standing room-only crowd, were held on the front lawn of the Carter Presidential Museum and included the birthday man, former First Lady Rosalynn Carter, former Vice President Walter Mondale, Carter Library and Museum Director Jay Hakes, Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue, Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin, civil rights leader Rev. Joseph Lowery, and other dignitaries.

BTW if you wish to leave some greetings for him, click the link here.

A large section of the new state-of-the-art facility is devoted to the Carter post-presidency. It's the first time any presidential museum has done so.

The centerpiece of the post-presidency section is a large interactive exhibit with multiple touch-screen stations that will take visitors on a virtual trip with the Carters around the world.

They will meet some of the millions of people whose lives have been changed by the Center's peace and health work, learn about their communities, and gain a greater understanding of the challenges faced by people in developing nations.

Visitors also will experience what it is like to be president of the United States in a unique, extensive area called "A Day in the Life of the President," which recreates an actual 24-hour period from President Carter's schedule.

I still wish Carter would have gotten a second term. The United States would have been a much better country if he had.

Happy birthday President Carter!

Happy Birthday Isis!

Today is my little sis Isis King's birthday.

Who knew that when we celebrated the fact last year she was the first transwoman to appear on America's Next Top Model she'd become more popular and well known than the person who actually won Cycle 11?

She has continued to be a classy role model for all of us, and I wish my sis on her 24th birthday nothing but positive blessings and a happy and healthy life.

Oh yeah, have some fun for me at your birthday party as well.

Happy Birthday, Your Excellency!

Y'all know I have mad love for the Right Honourable Michaelle Jean, the current governor general of Canada.

Well, today is the Governor General's birthday. She was born in Port au Prince , Haiti on this date in 1957.

Happy birthday, Your Excellency and may you have many more.

Happy 173rd Birthday H-Town!

Happy 173rd birthday to my hometown!

It was on this day that New York entrepreneurs Augustus and John K. Allen founded the city on 6,653 acres of land near Buffalo Bayou.

They named it after Sam Houston, the hero of the Texas Revolution and the 1836 Battle of San Jacinto. It briefly became the capital of the Republic of Texas from its founding until it was moved to Austin in 1839.

It is the county seat of Harris County, the largest city in Texas with 2,208,140 residents and the fourth largest in the United States.

It has a fascinating history, and I'm proud to note that African-Americans have played a major role in driving it as well.

Hopefully my hometown will be making some more history this November by electing its second woman mayor in Annise Parker.

Too bad I'm not there to celebrate it properly by heading to Frenchy's and scarfing up a Campus Special or grabbing some Shipley's Donuts.

Missing You, Michael

Today would have been Michael Jackson's 51st birthday, and it still seems surreal to talk about him in the past tense.

As the events of his last day begin to unravel and the stories get out, we're learning more about what led up to his untimely death.

But it still doesn't change the fact that when he was onstage, he was the King Of Pop and a first class entertainer.

But it speaks to the fact I was spoiled. I didn't realize the quality type of music I had growing up and the sheer volume of music legends that graced my teen and early adult years. I'm becoming aware of it as these peeps leave us and what we have currently pales in comparison to them.

And it's sad to realize that not only is Michael Jackson gone, there won't be another singer like him in my lifetime.

Happy 75th Birthday Dr. Renee Richards

While watching MSNBC's Countdown Keith Olbermann made me aware of a milestone birthday occurring for a woman that happened to be his ophthalmologist.

Dr. Renee Richards turned 75 today.

This woman happened to be one of the transgender newsmakers during the 70's. She was one of the transpeople I was following news wise nationally, internationally and locally as I struggled to make sense of and deal with my own gender issues.

She fought for her right to play professional tennis when the USTA established a woman-born-woman policy back in the day that the New York Supreme Court overturned.

She ended up ranked as high as number 20 in the world before retiring as a player in 1981, and was Martina Navratilova's coach when Martina was dominating the women's tennis scene during the 80's.

She's still practicing medicine, and she has become less than popular in some transpeople's eyes with her increasingly conservative views and public regrets about transition.

She openly criticized the 2004 IOC decision to allow transpeople to compete in the Olympic games, calling it 'stupid'.

I disagree, but just like I speak my mind and some people don't like what I have to say, I respect her right to articulate her opinions on that subject and many others.

I need to point out to the peeps criticizing her that just as I reflect the attitudes of someone who grew up in the 60's and 70's, she is a product of her generation. She grew up in a time that was far more rigid and repressive about gender and she reflects those attitudes.

Happy birthday Dr. Richards. I hope that your remaining days on the planet are filled with whatever happiness and peace you can find.

Happy Birthday President Obama!

Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday to you,
Happy birthday Mr. President
Happy birthday to you!

Today is the 48th birthday of President Barack Hussein Obama, who those of us in the reality based world know was born in Honolulu, Hawaii USA on this date in 1961.

So it wasn't a surprise when over the weekend a so-called 'Kenyan Birth Certificate' dated March 1964 was produced by the wacko 'birthers' that claimed the president was born in Mombasa, Kenya.

Only one problem. Mombasa was part of Zanzibar in 1961.

The other glaring errors apparent to anyone who passed a history class is that Kenya didn't become an independent nation until December 1963 and didn't call itself the Republic of Kenya until late 1964.

E.L Lavender, the alleged name of the registrar is from the name of a laundry detergent, and it gets wrong the ages of President Obama's parents.

And oh yeah, wasn't the prez's mother a student at the University of Hawaii at the time?

Yeah, this birth certificate is about as authentic as a Fox News broadcast and the rapidly declining credibility of Lou Dobbs.

To you racist birthers, you have an intelligent Black president who is doing more in six months on the job than your boy George Walker Bush did in eight disastrous years.

And oh yeah, y'all hate the fact President 44 garnered more votes than any president in US history and won a decisive victory in doing so.

You sheet-wearing Google illiterate paranoid delusional clowns lost big on November 4. The country resoundingly rejected your failed political philosophy at the ballot box and is saying no to mean-spirited racist conservatism.

Deal with it.

Happy birthday Mr. President. May you have many more.

Happy Birthday, Renee!

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

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

Serves me right for reading it while half asleep.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Oh yeah, still working on that cornbread recipe.

Happy Birthday, Phyllis

Y'all know how much mad love I have for Phyllis Hyman.

I fell in love with her ever since I heard 'You Know How To Love Me' play for the first time on KYOK and Majic 102.

This multi-talented lady was a star on Broadway in addition to being a sought after model and consumate singer. She even made a cameo appearance in Spike Lee's School Daze.

Today would have been Phyllis' 50th birthday, and it's sad to think about the fact she's been gone from us for over a decade now.

You are still loved and missed by all who cared about you, including your fans.