Andrea's Running For Minneapolis City Council!

I posted earlier this month about Phillipe Cunningham running for the Minneapolis City Council, and now there's more wonderful trans themed political news coming out of the Twin Cities.

My tennis loving homegirl Andrea Jenkins has announced that she will be running for the soon to be vacated 8th Ward seat on the Minneapolis City Council currently held by Elizabeth Glidden, who recently announced she's not running for reelection.

"I am prepared and ready to bring positive change toward a more equitable Minneapolis," Jenkins said in a statement. "I look forward to working with the residents of the 8th Ward, and beyond, in creating the policies and programs necessary to bring sustainable improvement for everyone in our economy, housing, and services."

Jenkins worked as a policy aide for Glidden, and spent 12 years working for two different council members.   She is well known to the residents of the south central Minneapolis ward for helping to spur redevelopment in the 38th Street and Chicago  Ave area.

She is currently with the University of Minnesota as the curator for their Transgender Oral History Project, which is collecting stories from trans people in the Minneapolis area and upper  Midwest.

If she's elected she would not only become the first transperson elected to the Minneapolis City Council, she would also become the first out Black trans feminine candidate to be elected to a city council in  city of over 250,000 people.

You know I'm hoping she makes that history.

Phillipe Is Running For Minneapolis City Council

If we are ever going to get that trans congress member or senator, we are going to have to get to the point in which we elect trans people to large city councils on a regular basis.

We do a good job getting people elected to smaller city councils, but congressional candidates are selected by the major parties from people who have won state judgeships, large city council elections, state legislative and state senate races just for starters.

I met Phillipe Cunningham during the recent LGBT Pride Reception, but I'd been keeping an eye on him as a rising star in our ranks for several years prior to our June meeting as an aide to current Minneapolis mayor Betsy Hodges.

Now Phillipe is going to take the political plunge and run for the Minneapolis City Council and I couldn't be happier for him.   If he succeeds in doing so, he would not only become the first out Black transmasculine person elected to any political office in the United States , he would also become the first transperson period in the US elected to a city council in a city with more than 250,000 people. (Minneapolis FYI has 416,000 people and climbing)

Here's his campaign announcement.   If you can contribute something to his campaign, please do so.

Now more than ever we need to be building trans community political power, and the more people we get elected to public office from our community, the better.

***

I'm proud to announce my candidacy for Minneapolis City Council to represent the 4th Ward in North Minneapolis!

North Minneapolis is my home, and I am tired of seeing us excluded and ignored in too many policy discussions at City Hall. We need a voice in these discussions, and I intend to lift everyone up in our community through just and inclusive policy-making.

With the persistent racial disparities we face as a community, we need to completely rethink how City Hall governs and serves diverse communities.

I see the potential for what is possible in my neighborhood given all the strengths our community brings to the table, but we are not given the space, resources, or power to realize our community's true greatness.

Since the Mayor appointed me to work on on education, youth success and civil rights, I have seen the decision-making process in action at City Hall and how often those currently in office block progress for the Northside.

I am running to fight this injustice and improve conditions in my neighborhood. It's time for major change in North Minneapolis, and I bring a fresh perspective and innovation to working through the challenges our community faces.

I want to thank everyone who has supported me in getting ready for this journey. We deserve a strong voice on city council, and we will have it when we show our power as a community this coming year.

Please check out my website and like my Facebook page to start spreading the word:
www.CunninghamMPLS.orgwww.facebook.com/PhillipeCunninghamMPLS

Good luck Phillipe!   Hope I get to witness you making some history next year!

You Can Run CM Knox, But You Can't Hide From Us

Spent a very interesting day at Houston City Council with several Houston LGBT community leaders and our allies hanging out for our public comment session.

Eleven of us were there to call out Councilmember Mike Knox for his problematic May 2 comments demonizing the Houston trans community while attend a Target protest initiated by the same reprehensible peeps who gleefully peddled transphobia during the HERO fight.

"Equality is the same for you as it is for me. If someone has a greater right to use a bathroom than someone else as an expression of their sexuality, that's a problem,"
Council Member Mike Knox.

No CM Knox, equality is NOT the same for you and me.  HERO was wiped off the city Code of Ordinances by demonizing trans Houstonians, and I'm still pissed off about that. 

And Councilmember Knox, I'm appalled along with trans Houston and our allies about the demonization of the humanity of me and other trans Houstonians.

We also were showing up to call out his chief of staff Trebor Gordon, who tried to block Syed Ali, a longtime Muslim Republican from getting a Harris County GOP precinct chair position, and made some Islamophobic comments while doing so. There have been calls for his firing or resignation, and Gordon is allegedly not serving in that position in Knox's office any more, but we'll see about that.

It was decided to keep this council trip in stealth mode so that the opposition wouldn't have the time or opportunity to organize a counter trip busing people in from the 'burbs to attempt to shut down what we were going to say or defend Knox.

And you knew I wasn't going to miss the fun. It was also done that way so that Councilmember Knox would be in attendance at that meeting and not come up with a convenient excuse to miss it.

Knowing that Houston LGBT community leaders were lying in wait to call his butt out, he left at 2:24 PM and never returned to hear us call him out about running from being held accountable by his constituents for the transphobia and Islamophobia.

CM Knox, just a reminder that yes, we are your constituents since you are in an at-large council seat. You can run like you did today, but you can't hide from the Houston GLBT community calling you our about your comments, and sooner or later you'll have to sit in that nice leather chair around The Horseshoe and hear what we have to say.
 
And yeah, you'll do so because we vote.  2019 will be here before you know it.

Mayor Parker's Last City Council Meeting

Her third and final term doesn't officially end until January 2 and Mayor-elect Sylvester Turner is inaugurated, but her final city council meeting will be today at 9:00 AM  

It will be the last council meeting for not only Mayor Annise Parker, but term limited councilmembers Ed Gonzalez, who is running for Harris County sheriff, C.O. Bradford, and Steven Costello, who ran for mayor in this recent cycle.

Unfortunately, one of the people we will also say goodbye to is District F CM  Richard Nguyen, who lost his reelection bid in the runoff by 245 votes basically because he was targeted by the HERO haters.

He gave one of the more memorable and moving commentaries before casting his YES vote for HERO passage and serves as a Houston profile in courage.

I'll be at City Hall to check out what's happening and say goodbye to these wonderful public servants.  

Houston City Council Will Have Two Progressive Women of Color In 2016

I and many other progressive Houstonians have lamented about CM Ellen Cohen and Mayor Parker being the only progressive women on council in contrast to the conservative CM Brenda Stardig, and the fact we have had zero women of color on it since CM Wanda Adams was term limited off of council in 2012

One of the other joys of Saturday's runoff election is that when January 2, 2016  rolls in, we will have two progressive women of color joining in Councilmembers-elect Amanda Edwards and Karla Cisneros who I hope will get to serve their full terms on Houston City Council.

On January 2, thanks to the passage of Prop 2, the terms for all Houston city officeholders have been changed to where they  serve two four year terms, instead of  three two year terms or six years maximum.   The four year terms take effect in 2019..

One of the new progressive omen councilmembers is Councilmember-elect Amanda Edwards. She will take office in January in the At Large Position 4 seat in The Horseshoe to replace the term limited CM C.O. 'Brad' Bradford.  I had the pleasure of meeting the native Houstonian back in March at the HRC Houston Gala, and believe she has the right stuff to not only have a shot becoming mayor, but possibly higher public offices.

Councilmember-elect Karla Cisneros is no stranger to Houston politics.  She's a  teacher who served six  years on the HISD board and served as board president.  She will be replacing term limited District H CM Ed Gonzalez, who will be running for Harris County Sheriff (hallelujah)

On January 2. CM Cohen is going to get some help (not that she needed it) with two more progressive women yo join her in the Horseshoe, and it has been a much needed development.

Got My Houston Vote On!

The second week of early voting started yesterday. and you know I wanted to make certain that I got to weigh in on this 2015 mayoral and Houston civic election because I was voter suppressed out of the 2013 one.

But it's now 2015, and with Texas driver's license in hand that doesn't expire until 2020 and current orange voter registration card in hand, I sauntered into my fave early voting location with Dee Dee Watters and cast my ballot for who I think should be sitting in The Horseshoe and those comfortable leather chairs in January running our city.

And yeah, there's some human rights ordinance you may have heard about called HERO that I voted on as well.

After we both handled our election business, Dee Dee and I decided to have some fun doing some Trans 101 'ejumacation' for the assembled poll workers handing out push cards, including one wearing a Women for Hall shirt.   We may have flipped some minds and hearts in the process, and if they haven't voted yet, changed some NO votes on HERO to YES ones.

Speaking of voting, if you haven't done so yet, need to get to an early voting center before Friday.  After that date, you will have to wait until November 3 to make your electoral voice heard.

Moni Goes To City Hall Again!

I missed the fun last Tuesday, but I'm in the house for this week's Houston City Council public comment session that starts at 2 PM and may be just as contentious as the one last week.

Team Defend HERO will be in the house to insist our councilmembers keep the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance on the books.   They have until August 24, no thanks to a partisan Texas Republican Supreme Court order to either repeal the ordinance or put it on the ballot.

Well, I'll be there live tweeting it until it's time for me to speak, and the proceedings will also be televised and available via a live feed on HTV for those of you who wish to follow the action online.

Once again Team HERO and I will be in the Houston City Council champers to remind our city council leaders and the haters that discrimination's time in Houston has expired, and discrimination is bad for business.

Councilman Boykins, LGBT People Of Color Exist

Because I had pressing business to take care of, I was reluctantly forced to miss yesterday's Houston City Council public session in which HERO was the major topic of discussion.

And after hearing about how some of the public comment hearing transpired, wish I was in the room to counter some of the faux faith based conservamadness I was told about by people who attended it.

I was told by people who attended the meeting that District D Councilmember Dwight Boykins, the only African-American councilmember who voted against HERO last year, parted his lips to make the outrageously logic defying statement that :during all this Black Lives Matter situation , the LGBT community wasn't there.'.

Oh really?  I have a news flash for you.  Black Lives Matter was founded by Black lesbian women Patrisse Cullors, Alicia Garza and Opal Tometi.  LGBT people have been involved in Black Lives Matter from the beginning.  

And yeah, the LGBT community also includes LGBT people of color, and I'm not happy about this attempt to once again erase TBLG people of color from our respective ethnic groups and paint the LGBT community as monoracial..   

What the hell do you think my unapologetically Black trans behind and Dee`Dee`Watters are?  even when some of our people don't love us, we're standing up for the entire community to make Houston better.   And neither do I nor she appreciates our names being called by you in vain when your butt is getting chewed on for those idiotic remarks, your negative HERO vote last year and your problematic pattern of palling around with Black anti-LGBT sellout ministers

And may i remind you once again Councilmember Boykins, District D also has LGBT people, our allies, and our family members living in it who aren't happy about your anti-HERO vote.

The statement that 'LGBT people aren't part of a movement we founded is as offensive as it is a bald faced lie.  Your comment is also being interpreted in Houston LGBT communities of color as saying 'we don't exist'. 

But let me pivot and focus on the erasure part of this.  There are 2.3 million people in the Houston area.  It's estimated about 10-15% of the population are part of the BTLG community, and of those folks you'll find moi and other TBLG Houstonians of color..

#WeExist, and are part of the Houston communities of color we intersect and interact with.   We are tired of being erased by you and other straight cisgender people of color.   Many of us in LGBT World have taken part in various movements that impact our community including #BlackLivesMatter .

And you do recall yours truly was at HISD headquarters in 2013 and 2014 blasting them for attempting to shut down my HS alma mater Jesse H Jones?

But one of the reasons the Houston LGBT community is rising up to defend HERO is because our backs are against the human rights wall.  We still as LGBT Houstonians and American citizens don't have basic civil rights in Texas and federally, and now the Texas Republican Supreme Court has fracked with our local human rights ordinance that covers 15 categories, not just our community 

We're also angry when we see the city of Dallas, 262 miles up I-45 and San Antonio in 2013 to the west of us on I-10 pass laws similar to our HERO with a lot less drama that we're dealing with in Houston..   Dallas in November 2014 strengthened theirs.   These are cities that we compete with for convention business and sporting events like NCAA Final Fours and Super Bowls.

Are you aware that the trans woman who was discriminated against in 2012 by Saks, Leyth Jamal, was a Black trans girl like me?   That LGBT people of color are in various positions in our workforce?  And by you voting against HERO last year and hatin' on it now, you send a message that you don't respect our humanity, community or human rights?.

Many of us weren't in attendance at yesterday's hearing because we had to work during the 2 PM start time of this meeting, but thanks to the folks like Fran Watson, Melissa Vivanco, Ashton Woods, James Lee and the Organization Latina de Trans en Texas who were in the house and did speak in favor of keeping HERO.

Other TBLG people of color aren't showing up for movements in the community at large because they aren't out at work and don't want to be seen or outed on television.  They fear that they will be fired from their jobs if their status as members of the TBLG community is revealed, and no thanks to the partisan Texas Supreme Court we no longer have a local remedy to combat that discrimination.

And it's comments like yours that make LGBT people feel as if they aren't wanted or needed in movements built around the common issues we face as people of color.

The LGBT that don't show up also legitimately fear being victimized by anti-LGBT violence in their neighborhoods that your hate minister buddies have been stirring up for over a year with their anti-gay sermons.  

And after 11 trans women, 9 of them trans women of color have been murdered in the US this year including one Texas (so far) in that sad number, it's a legitimate concern.

Yes, Councilman Boykins, hate thoughts + hate speech = hate violence.   And it's even more odious when that debunked hate speech is coming from a pulpit with selective interpretations of scripture to try to justify it.  It's also disgusting to witness when it is an attempt to bamboozle the flock into voting against a human rights ordinance that protects their human rights at the behest of white conservative activists like Dave Welch,  Steve Hotze, Steve Riggle and Rick Scarborough who don't even live in the Houston city limits. .

When we went through those contentious HERO hearings last year, did you forget that many of the TBLG discrimination stories at those HERO hearings were being told by LGBT people of color?

So yeah, your comment just guaranteed that my 'invisible' behind will be making an appearance at City Hall next Tuesday, and I'll be accompanied by more LGBT Houstonians of color who according to your statement, aren't there.

I consider my human rights something important enough to show up and fight  for, and so will others who will be at City Hall debunking the lies of our opponents next Tuesday..

First Post-HERO Suspension Council Meeting Today

Should be a hot time in the Houston City Council chambers later this afternoon, and I'm not talking about the weather that will bring us our first 100 degree day of the summer.

The Houston City Council has a 2 PM session on Tuesdays for public comment on whatever issue you wish to bring to their attention.   And with the suspension of the HERO happening no thanks to the Texas (Republican) Supreme Court, this first public comment session since the unjust ruling will probably be a lot more contentious than usual.

People in LGBT Houston are highly pissed off about what happened to a human rights ordinance we fought tooth and nail last year to get passed, have been mobilizing for action in defense of it, and will be there to let their voices be heard.  

And I don't doubt the out of town faux faith based opposition and their kneegrow useful fools will also be in attendance urging City Council to kill HERO.

And unfortunately due to some other pressing matters, i won't be at City Council for the fun, but will be there in spirit and catching the replay of the session on cable TV later.

To all the peeps signed up to speak in defense of our human rights law, give the haters hell for me and I'll see y'all at the next Tuesday session.

Sunday Houston Trans* Political Forum Conversation

2015 is a city election year for Houston, and in addition to the increasingly crowded field we'll have to select our next mayor, we'll also have some contested at large city council seats and the controllers race on our November 4 ballot.

One thing we don't want on it is a HERO repeal, but that's up to the judge handling the case.

Yesterday at the home of Nikki Araguz Loyd the first of several Trans Political Forum conversations took place.

The idea behind it is to have politicians talk to the trans community about issues of importance to trans Houstonians.

The inaugural conversation was with Jenifer Rene Pool, who is making her third run for council in the At Large Position 1 race.

In this two hour event she fielded questions from trans Houstonians, the TransGriot and our allies about issues ranging from education to streamlining our city government permit process to expanding rail to both airports.

And yes, HERO and the discredited bathroom meme was also discussed.

Pool also discussed the importance of the trans community getting mobilized, engaged and replicating that enthusiasm and energy we put into Annise Parker's first at large city council run in 1997.

Personally, I'd love to see the Houston trans community elect one of our own to sit in one of those nice leather chairs in City Hall, but that isn't up to me.

The voters of the city of Houston will have that final say in who sits in that At Large Position 1 seat, and if the Houston trans community wants th person taking the oath of office next January in the Wortham Center to be Jenifer, then we;ll have to bust our butt to make it happen, and show up to vote for her on November 4.

Nikki Araguz Loyd who hosted the event, stated to me that there will be more of these conversations with various candidates during the 2015 election cycle, and they are in discussions with at least two to replicate this informative enjoyable conversation.

Looking forward to finding out who that next candiate for Houston public office will be.

Trans* Political Forum Today

Speaking of events to check out, Moni chatting with Houston City Council candidates continues as I head to an event starting at 2 PM being hosted by Nikki Araguz Loyd.

It's the first of a series of candidate political forums in which the Houston trans community will get to talk to candidates about issues and concerns of importance to our community like housing , unemployment, HERO, and the latest attempt by Dave Wilson to enshrine anti-trans discrimination into our city charter.

To kick this series off, the first one will involve the only declared trans candidate running for public office in this 2015 city election cycle in Jenifer Rene Pool.

Jenifer is running for the city Council at large Position 1 seat against some formidable competition, and will be interesting to hear he take of local political developments.

The Historic Houston HERO Hearing And Vote

The combined city council meeting today starts in mere moments with the HERO on the agenda.   There will be a public comment session followed by a Houston City Council vote. 

It takes nine votes to pass anything on our 16 member city council, and Mayor Parker also gets a vote in our strong-mayor system.  Since there are over 100 plus speakers signed up (and the TransGriot is one of them) it's going to be a long time before we get to the actual vote.

We've outgunned them 247-78 in terms of pro-HERO speakers vs the anti-HERO speakers, out pastored them by a 2-1 margin and we are determined to maintain those advantages in addition to packing our art-deco era council chambers with red clad supporters. 

I'm not usually a morning person, but in order to accomplish our Houston human rights goals for today I'll do whatever is necessary to make HERO passage happen.   If it means I get my behind up at 4 AM CDT like I did this morning, so be it.   

It'll be a story I can tell my soon to be three year old niece when she asks me what I did to protect and expand her human rights.    We'll also need your prayers, wam thoughts and best wishes because the hate will be flowing from the anti-HERO side.   We will have counselors  standing by to deal with that issue and doughnuts (Shipley's of course) lunch and dinner for the marathon session to come. .

But if you peeps inside and outside Beltway 8, around the Internet and the world want to check in and see what's transpiring, you can watch the proceedings at this link     We will also be Tweeting updates at #HERO and #HOUequality.  I'll also be bringing my laptop today.    

Whip counts are leaning our way, so we should have good news to report later this afternoon or evening.

We're looking forward to saying this afternoon or evening, Discrimination, I'm sorry, but your time has expired.

Handling My HERO Business Again

Once again I made the trek to 901 Bagby Street and our art deco designed City Hall to speak at and attend another meeting concerning the HERO in front of the full council. 

I was expecting it to be as contentious as the Quality of Life Committee hearing last week,  but those expectations died because many of the misguided African-American pastors who loudly expressed their opposition to it along with some of their not so righteous flock at that hearing were MIA yesterday. 

It's probably because they realize that the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance has momentum, it's the right and morally correct thing to do, and they might be coming to the realization they were played for suckers by the Pastor's Council.

In addition to myself, 77 other multiethnic speakers from our TBLG community and our allies took to the podium in front of our city council members to declare they were in favor of HERO passage   19 were against it including the usual haters like Dave 'Temporary Black Man For Electoral Purposes' Wilson and perennial council gadfly President Joseph Charles.

The local chapters of the NAACP and the Urban League also announced their support at this council hearing for the HERO. 84% of the Houston African-American community supports it.   State legislators like Sen. Rodney Ellis, Rep Garnet Coleman support it.   And in my capacity as the head of the Houston chapter of Black Transwomen, Inc., my org supports passage of the HERO

So those ministers who unleashed their faith based bigotry last Wednesday look even more foolish as this effort to pass the HERO moves forward and they realize they are on the wrong side of history. 

One of the other interesting and tear jerking moments of the HERO council hearing yesterday is that a Latino and African-American man both came out during their testimony.

The trans community was also there.   In addition to myself testifying in front of city council,  Nikki Araguz Loyd , Dr Colt Keo-Meier and Amelia Miller also did their part  to ensure the 'T' was represented. 

Another council meeting is happening today, in which we expect it will be tabled until next week.   Amendments are being offered, including to the problematic Section 17 51 (b) I expressed my concerns about in my testimony. 

We are one step closer to adding Houston to the long list of cities that protect its citizens from discrimination, and I couldn't be happier as a native Houstonian for that. 

Houston 2013 Runoff Election-Talkin' To My District D Peeps

The early voting for the 2013 City of Houston runoff elections starts in a few hours and runs through December 10, with the final runoff election date on December 14.

In case you're wondering, the only thing Mayor Annise Parker will be doing on this date is voting in the two at large council races since she already won reelection for her third and final term back on November 5. 

We have runoff races in Council Districts A, D (where I live) and District I, and the Position 2 and 3 At large City Council seats are also being contested.

In District A it's a rematch between incumbent Helena 'Madame No' Brown and the woman Brown knocked out of that seat in 2011, former councilmember Brenda Stardig.

In District I the runoff for this open seat is between Robert Gallegos and Graciana 'Graci' Garces, the former chief of staff for term-limited District I Councilmember James Rodriguez..

In Position 2 incumbent councilmember Andrew Burks, Jr was forced into a runoff against David W. Robinson, and in District 3, the open seat that Jenifer narrowly missed getting into the runoff for, Michael Kubosh will square off against Roy Morales.
 
But I want to talk to my peeps in District D for a minute.

There have been some disquieting revelations coming out lately about Dwight Boykins, who along with Georgia Provost is one of the two candidates in the District D race vying to replace term limited Councilmember Wanda Adams.

Adams is leaving City Hall to move on to the HISD Board of Trustees after winning her school board race.    

We had twelve candidates that filed to run for this race.   Whoever gets that District D City Council seat will be representing our various communities in it for the next two years.

We already have an infuriating example of a white conservative Republican anti-TBLG activist in Dave Wilson misrepresenting himself as a Black person in order to get elected to the HCC board seat that represents our community and knocking out 24 year incumbent Bruce Austin in the process. 

In Wilson we now are stuck with for the next six years someone in that seat who is polar opposite of Bruce Austin.   Wilson doesn't live in our community, is a Tea Party member and doesn't have nor cares to acquire the cultural competency necessary to successfully represent our community's interests on the HCC Board.

But back to talking about the District D council race.

With the original Red light rail line crossing District D, the Purple Line under construction that is scheduled for completion in the second quarter of 2014 and the east-west Blue Line under design that will terminate near UH combined with worries about gentrification as a result of development along those light rail lines, there have been people in the district concerned about the historic levels of money business interests have poured into Boykins' campaign.  

But the one thing that is not sitting well with people and sending red flags up is his admission that he voted in the 2010 GOP primary.   That's a major problem if you're claiming to be a Democrat in this solidly yellow dog Democratic leaning predominately African-American council district because Republicans are as well liked in my part of town as a Longhorn fan in College Station.   DINO's get kicked out of seats in this district with the quickness.. 

For you TBLG Houstonians who live in District D, Boykins has the added problem of being evasive concerning where he stands in terms of adding gender identity and sexual orientation language to the City of Houston's non-discrimination ordinance. 

If Dwight Boykins is indeed the DINO he's been revealed to be, and more concerned with doing the GOP's bidding than standing up for District D's residents, it's not only great we found out now, but at a point where we can do something about it at the ballot box and vote for the other candidate in the race in Georgia Provost between now and December 14. 

Anything you find out about Boykins after December 14 or if he wins, after he's standing up there on January 1, 2014 taking the oath of office from Mayor Parker at the Wortham Theater is too late. Character and integrity matter in this runoff election. We've already seen the evidence that the Harris County GOP and its conservative acolytes like Wilson will stoop to any level to get elected.   Their unwavering support of voter suppression legislation is ample proof of that. 

I have no doubts their shady 'win by any means necessary' campaign tactics include running for office in our neighborhoods chocolate coated Republicans with little to no paper trail or history of service to our community.   They know that because an overwhelming majority of African-Americans reject the racist Texas GOP message, they know they couldn't win in this district with their standard 'proven conservative leadership' rhetoric spouting vote NO on everything obstructionist peeps like Helena Brown, much less a cookie chomping knee-grow spouting the usual Teapublican crap.  .

So District D peeps and 'errbody' else in H-town, you have until December 14 to handle your electoral business.   

Garland TBLG Residents Address City Council

Garland DART board member Michael Cheney taking that futile walk that denied a quorum for passage of domestic partner benefits during the September 24 DART board meeting may have been the spark that finally motivated the TBLG peeps in Garland to push for their own non-discrimination ordinance.

Garland BTLG community residents accompanied by Rafael McDonnell and Dallas Gay and Lesbian Alliance President Patti Fink showed up at a recent meeting of their city council accroding to the Dallas Voice and expressed themselves not only about Cheney's walkout at the DADT meeting but the lack of a non-discrimination ordinance in Garland.

Lerone Landis told the council at the October 2 meeting he is a daily DART rider who lives in the city with his husband and their 4 year old daughter. He stated he was disappointed to learn that it was Garland’s representative who prevented the healthcare equalization plan from passing and urged the Garland City Council to pass a nondiscrimination policy for its own employees and city residents to show they are serious and committed to diversity in the city. 

Carmarion Anderson said she was embarrassed to be a Garland resident after Cheney’s stunt at the DART meeting.  “We live here and pay our taxes here,” she said and expressed her expectations to the council that she and DART's LGBT employees receive equal treatment. 

Fink called Cheney’s action at the DART meeting “shameful.” and encouraged the council to pass an ordinance that would cover city employees.

“Be on the cutting edge and bring new business to the city,” Fink said.

Garland Mayor Douglas Athas and two councilmen spoke to the group in the council chambers when the council meeting concluded  and said the city would consider the idea of a nondiscrimination ordinance.

“We have a lot of lesbian and gay employees,” Mayor Athos said. “We would never allow that sort of discrimination.”  He said he had never heard a request from any of the city’s lesbian and gay community for a nondiscrimination ordinance. But he called the ordinance “nothing to rush into because no one’s come forward” with a complaint.

Mayor Athas, just because nobody's filed a complaint concerning anti-LGBT discrimination doesn't mean you can make the conclusion jump the discrimination isn't happening in a city the size of Garland.  And as far as your comment that no one from the Garland TBLG community has requested a nondiscrimination ordinance, I guess you weren't paying attention during that meeting when Carmarion Anderson and Lerone Landis were taking three minutes each of their valuable time to address the council.


Patti Fink told the mayor that most Fortune 500 companies have a nondiscrimination policy and look to relocate in cities that have similar policies. She said that the city may not have received any complaints, but many people looking for work may have skipped applying in suburban Garland because they have no protections.

Could Garland be the next community in the DFW Metroplex to protect its TBLG residents from discrimination?   Stay tuned to this TransGriot channel to find out.

San Antonio Councilmember Elisa Chan's Transphobia and Homophobia Revealed

Well, well, well.  More interesting and revolting developments as San Antonio heads toward a September 5 vote on adding sexual orientation and gender identity to their revised non-discrimination ordinance.  

It's also giving you an example of what your LGBT brothers and sisters here in the Alamo City are dealing with as they fight to have their human rights codified into law. 

Elisa Chan, one of the San Antonio council members who is a firm NO (for now) on this proposed non-discrimination ordinance revealed her true feelings about TBLG people in this May 21 meeting at her City Hall office with members of her staff.  They were discussing the city's proposal to update its nondiscrimination ordinance by adding protections for sexual orientation and gender identity and their political responses to it..

James Stevens, one of her now former staff members was secretly taping the meeting on his cellphone (thank God)  He handed the recording to San Antonio Express-News reporter Brian Chasnoff who compiled and broke the story that I linked to in the previous paragraph. 

Bigotry, transphobia and homophobia is bad enough. When you have a public official with the power to vote on and write legislation expressing that kind of anti-TBLG hate, it's worse. 

Hope Councilmember Chan when she comes back from her 'pre-planned vacation' takes some time to ponder her jacked up attitudes and uses this September 5 vote as an opportunity to change her ways.  If not, may she get the electoral butt kicking she so richly deserves when San Antonio has their next round of civic elections and never hold public office in San Antonio, Bexar County or the state of Texas ever again.    

That's my take from my end of I-10.  Mayor Julian Castro (D) also commented on Councilmember Chan's bigotry.  

"Councilwoman Chan's misinformed, hurtful views do not reflect the views of the overwhelming majority of San Antonians. Ours is a city that respects and welcomes all people," Mayor Julian Castro (D) said in a KSAT-TV interview. "This attitude is precisely why we have to pass a nondiscrimination ordinance."

Okay, it's on like Donkey Kong now.  Here's the CAUSA Change.org petition in favor of the ordinance that they need to reach 5000 signatures on before September 5. 

Please consider calling or e-mailing the San Antonio City Council and urge then to pass the revision including gender identity and sexual orientation.   In the wake of this I hope Councilmember Ivy Taylor is considering being a drum majorette for justice instead of an oppressor like Elisa Chan has revealed herself to be. 

And now, to help you understand why its necessary to do this, here's Elisa Chan's TBLG bigotry unplugged 

Open Letter To San Antonio City Councilmember Ivy Taylor

Dear Councilmember Taylor,
I'm writing this open letter to you because I understand at the moment you are one of four San Antonio councilmembers who are undecided about how you will vote on the proposed changes to the San Antonio non-discrimination ordinance.

Section 2-550 of it would read

(a) It shall be the general policy of the City of San Antonio to prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, veteran status, age or disability, as set forth in the Divisions following, unless exempted by state or federal law or as otherwise indicated.

(b) A religious corporation, association, society or educational institution or an educational organization operated, supervised or controlled in whole or in substantial part by a religious corporation, association or society does not violate the non-discrimination policy by limiting employment or giving a preference in employment to members of the same religion.

I understand you may have some valid concerns about that, but as an African American transperson who also happens to be a proud native Texan, I believe the changes to San Antonio's are necessary, way overdue and here's why. 

In 2012 UCLA's Williams Institute released a study of 61 non discrimination ordinances that have gender identity and sexual orientation language.   That study also included Austin and Dallas.  

They found that not only did municipalities with these ordinances not have any problems attracting qualified contractors to carry out government work or operations, the 61 municipalities also reported it wasn't administratively burdensome or causing additional administrative costs.


The National Transgender Discrimination Survey entitled 'Injustice At Every Turn' was released in 2010, and it documents how much hell the trans community, and especially transpeople of color are catching by NOT being included as a protected class for non-discrimination.

In its Texas specific results, there were alarming indications of widespread harassment and discrimination aimed at transgender Texans.

• 79% reported experiencing harassment or mistreatment on the job
• 26% lost a job
• 22% were denied a promotion
• 45% were not hired

• Harassment and Discrimination at School

• Those who expressed a transgender identity or gender non-conformity while in grades K-12 reported alarming rates of harassment (85%), physical assault (46%) and sexual violence (9%)
• Harassment was so severe that it led 11% to leave a school in K-12 settings or leave higher education

• Economic Insecurity - Likely due to employment discrimination and discrimination in school, survey respondents experienced poverty and unemployment at higher rates than the general population:
• 10% of respondents had a household income of $10,000 or less, compared to 4% of the general population, which is more than twice the rate of poverty
• 10% were unemployed compared to 7% in the nation at the time of the survey

• Housing Discrimination and Instability - Survey respondents experienced blatant housing discrimination, as well as housing instability, much of which appears to stem from the challenges they face in employment.
• 8% were evicted
• 15% were denied a home/apartment
• 17% had become homeless because of their gender identity/expression
• 22% had to find temporary space to stay/sleep
• 50% had to move back in with family or friends
• 39% reported owning their home compared to 67% of the general U.S. population

• Harassment and Discrimination in Accommodations and Services
• 47% were verbally harassed or disrespected in a place of public accommodation or service,including hotels, restaurants, buses, airports and government agencies.
• 23% were denied equal treatment by a government agency or official
• 16% were denied equal treatment or harassed by judges or court officials.
• 23% of those who have interacted with police reported harassment by officers
• 41% reported being uncomfortable seeking police assistance

• Health Care Discrimination and Health Outcomes
• 16% were refused medical care due to their gender identity/expression
• 1.9% were HIV positive, compared to the general population rate of 0.6%
• 19% postponed needed medical care, when they were sick or injured, due to discrimination
• Only 43% of the respondents had employer-based health insurance, compared to 59% of the general U.S. population at the time of the survey.
• 41% reported attempting suicide at some point in their life, 26 times the rate of the general population of 1.6%

And yes, Councilmember Taylor, these things are happening to transpeople who reside in the Alamo City. 

To underscore the point these things are affecting trans people who live in San Antonio, in 2005 and 2010 two SAPD officers, Dean Gutierrez and Craig Nash were arrested for sexually assaulting trans women while on duty and later received ridiculously low sentences for it.  

There was the nationally televised 2011 case of former San Antonio Macy's employee Natalie Johnson who mistakenly believed her personal religious beliefs trumped Macy's corporate policy as she denied a gender variant person access to a dressing room.

Lone Star State shero Rep. Barbara Jordan once stated, "One thing is clear to me: We, as human beings, must be willing to accept people who are different from ourselves."

The question being asked of San Antonio at this time is does the Alamo City accept people who are different from themselves like its LGBT residents?    If the answer to that question is yes, then the second question you must ponder is in the face of demonstrated discrimination and harassment aimed at the LGBT residents of San Antonio, does the city have the will in the face of loud and wrong opposition to pass non-discrimination laws to protect the human rights of those same LGBT people who are different from themselves? 

Passage of this non-discrimination ordinance would make it clear that San Antonio is willing to accept people different from themselves. Its defeat would send the opposite message across the city, the state, the nation and the world.


Councilmember Taylor, it would make me, my fellow African-American trans Texans in San Antonio and across the state and our supporters in the African-American community proud to know that the lone African-American member of the San Antonio City Council was a drum majorette for justice.  It would make us happy that you stood up for our humanity and the human rights of our transgender brothers and sisters residing in the Alamo City.

You have the power to make history and change this negative paradigm the trans citizens of San Antonio currently experience and usher in a new birth of freedom and equality for this downtrodden community.

As a fellow African-American who also happens to be transgender, I am humbly and respectfully asking for your YES vote in favor of the revised non-discrimination ordinance.

I hope and pray that you will do so and be one of the San Antonio councilmembers next month who stand on the side of human rights and justice.

Sincerely yours,
Monica Roberts
The TransGriot

Jenifer Announces Her Run For Houston City Council

She's been hard at work at it for several months, but yesterday Jenifer Rene Pool made it official and announced her candidacy for the Houston City Council At Large Position 3 seat on the steps of Houston City Hall.

And yeah, some blogger y'all know was there for the announcement a little after 3:30 PM CDT.  I wanted to be there to witness Houston and trans history.

If Jenifer is successful in this second run for a city council seat, we'll not only get to see her sitting on the inside of our art deco city hall in one of those nice green leather chairs handling the city's business, she would become the first open transperson in the city of Houston and the state of Texas to win public office.   She would also become the first trans person in the United States elected to the city council of a major US city over 1 million in population.

We're 90 days out from the start of early voting, and Jenifer's team is hitting the trail running because they are determined to make that history happen. 

Run Jenifer Run!

Mel Wymore isn't the only trans person running for a city council seat on a large American metropolis in this 2013 election cycle. 

Jenifer Rene Pool is making her second attempt at winning a Houston City Council seat this fall by running for the City Council Position 3 At Large seat. 

Translation: She's running citywide

On Thursday Jenifer's making her official campaign kickoff announcement in front of the building where the Houston trans community hopes she'll be heading to for the next two years starting on January 1, Houston City Hall.  

Friends! Please join us this Thursday, July 11th at 3:00 PM in front of City Hall as Jenifer Rene Pool announces her campaign for Houston City Council At Large Position 3. Come out and support Jenifer and our community all while taking part in a truly historic moment in our City's history.

You can help us spread the word by "liking" and "sharing" this photo. Also, in case you have not already done so, please take a second to endorse Jenifer by clicking here -->http://goo.gl/12oHw.

If  Jenifer wins she not only would become the first open trans person elected to political office in the state of Texas and the city of Houston, she would also become the first transperson elected to a city council in a municipality with a population larger than 250,000 people.

So Jenifer's not only trying to win this race, she would get to make a little history in the process, too. 

Best of luck Jenifer and hope this run for office ends with a more successful conclusion for you.

DC Council Unanimously Passes Jones Birth Certificate Bill

Finally, some good news out of Washington DC for a change.  

As the recent birth certificate travails of a Georgia cis woman proved, it's a pain in the behind for trans women to change their documentation to match the person they are now.   The Washington DC Council just made that a little easier for trans and intersex residents of The District.

The DC Council unanimously passed on June 26 the JaParker Deoni Jones Birth Certificate Equality Amendment Act of 2013 that seeks to modernize DC's laws and makes it easier for the trans and intersex residents of the District to request birth certificates that reflect their current personal information.

The bill was named in honor of Deoni Jones, the 22 year old girl like us who was killed at NE DC bus stop last year and whose killer still hasn't been tried yet.

The bill requires those seeking to obtain a new DC birth certificate to submit a written and signed request from the person in question and a signed statement from a licensed health care professional attesting that the applicant has received treatment appropriate for a gender transition. The bill also eliminates a requirement that individuals publish their names and gender change in a general publication newspaper for three consecutive weeks.

It also allows people born outside the District of Columbia wanting to amend their name or gender to obtain a court order asking the original jurisdiction to issue a new birth certificate with the corrected information.

This June 26 vote sets up the bill to for final DC Council approval sometime in early July before the summer recess.  Mayor Vincent Gray (D) is expected to sign it into law and once the mandatory 30 day congressional review occurs, will take effect sometime in the fall of 2013.