SCOTUS Votes To Oppress Trans Troops

Why am I not surprised the four white conservatives and honorary white man Uncle Ruckus Uncle Thomas voted to oppress trans people and side with the Trump misdaministration on their odious trans ban.

Trans people serve in the armed forces of 18 nations, many of them our NATO allies.   The US should be leading in this area, not regressing.  Qualified American trans people who wish to serve our country should be welcomed with open arms, not told we aren't wanted.

There are trans people who wish to serve our country because they have traditions of military service that go back several generations in their families, 

Trans people are choosing military service for many reasons just like cisgender people. 

Forcing trans people to serve with a 'don't ask don't tell' policy didn't work for gay and lesbian troops, and won't work in this regard. 18 nations allow trans military service, including the ability to transition while they are in the military and it does not affect combat readiness or break the bank. 

It will cost far less for trans related medical care than it does to provide Viagra. It will cost an estimated $2-6 million a year for trans related care vs the $45 million that it cost last year to provide Viagra. 

There's also 15,500 trans people serving, some who have already transitioned and serve critical roles in our armed forces. 

Trans people should not only be allowed to serve, they should be allowed to medically transition while on active duty if necessary and have the VA cover trans medical benefits once they leave.

A sad day for this country/.

Special Oppression Session Anti-Trans Bills Have Senate Hearings Today

It figures that while I'm in San Diego for Comic Con that the Texas GOP Senate transphobes would not only file two anti-trans bills  (SB 3 and SB 91) authored by Lois Kolkhorst, but hold a hearing on them that starts at 9 AM CDT

Texas trans folks will be in the ATX to oppose them when that Senate State Affairs Committee takes place.  .So go get 'em Texas trans folks.  Let our GOP oppressors know that these unjust bills are bad for Texas and bad for us.

Send them the message we are wide awke and cognizant of what they are trying to do.

You can sign up to testify against them starting at the Texas state capitol at 7 AM. We also need people and our allies calling these senators and asking them to oppose SB 3 and SB 91.

Call the members of the Senate State Affairs Committee too while you're at it..

TransGriot Update:  After 10 hours of hearings, it was deja vu all over again.  An 8-1 vote (7 Republicans, 1 DINO)  sent this legislative abomination to the Senate floor.

Thank Sen. Judith Zaffirini for voting NO once again as she did back in March, and let's redouble our efforts to make Eddie Lucio, Jr an ex-senator 

Texas Special Oppression Session To Start July 18

Not satisfied with the fact they didn't get all their legislative oppression done during the recently concluded 85th Texas Legislative session that ended on Memorial Day, Gov. Greg Abbott just called for legislators to come back to Austin starting on July 18 for another 30 days and $800,000 wasted taxpayer dollars.

While he caved to Lt Governor Dan 'Potty Man' Patrick, he also made it clear he wasn't happy about the gamesmanship that was played in order for Patrick to get the special session he craved.

Well Governor Abbott, ,you could have called the special session and limited it only to the sunset legislation if you were that unhappy about the stunts that Patrick and his Texas Conservafool Freedom Caucus buddies played in the House. .

Instead you rewarded their shenanigans and probably ensured they will play those games in the future.

The first bill to be taken up on the call will be the sunset legislation to keep key state regulatory agencies from shuttering their doors, but once that legislation is passed, Gov. Abbott then outlined 19 items that he will allow the legislature to take up, including oppressing Texas transgender people.

In addition to oppressing trans people, some of the other items are school finance reform, creating automatic rollback elections when local property taxes rise by a certain amount, more abortion regulations, voter fraud, school choice for special needs students and property tax reform.

And it means that once again,  me and the rest of the Texas trans community and our liberal progressive allies are going to have to roll to the ATX once again this summer to fight Texas GOP legislative tyranny aimed at our trans kids..

It's a fight that we not only must win, we're determined to win.

It Is Not Godly To Oppress Trans People

He that justifieth the wicked, and he that condemneth the just, even they both [are] abomination to the LORD.   Proverbs 17:15

One of the things that bothers me as a Christian is when our right wing pseudo faith based opposition tries to hide behind Scripture and use it to justify their bigotry and hatred.

It is a centuries old tactic for conservatives to try to use the Bible as a shield in their attempts to other and demonize people, and now they are attempting to do so against transgender people.

The Southern Baptist denomination made it the official policy of their church in 2014 to hate trans people, following the Roman Catholic Church in doing so.

One of the basic commandments of our faith is to love thy neighbor as you love yourself.  It's obvious these faux faith based so called 'christians' hate themselves since they are so busy spending their time and hate orgs money bearing false witness against transgender people.

And the most odious part of their transphobic hate rants is that they are aiming them at transgender kids and their parents

I have a major problem with that.   My pissivity about it is heightened even further when you try to claim that God is on your side when you spout your loud and wrong facts free anti trans comments

God hates injustice and the people who push it.  It's even more odious when you pastors are getting paid to push anti-trans hatred for your personal and political gain at trans kids and their parents who unconditionally love them.

Hate is not a Texas value, much less a value in our Christian faith tradition.  Love is.

It is not godly to oppress trans people, and if you pseudo faith bathed oppressors keep pushing that bald faced lie, you will reap what you sow, and the trans folks you are trying to oppress will be standing tall as your efforts to oppress them continue to fail.

Why Texas' SB 6 Is An Unjust Law

You have probably heard a lot about SB 6, the so called Women's Privacy and Business Protection Act sponsored by Sen Lois Kolkhorst at the behest of Lt Governor Dan Transphobe Patrick that I call the Texas Transgender Oppression Act.

The reprehensible clone of North Carolina's HB 2 was recently introduced by Kolkhorst and Patrick to oppress Texas trans people and use them as a vehicle to strip the ability of Texas cities to write human rights laws that protect their citizens.  

I have called SB 6 an unjust law, and here ate the reasons why I am adamant about that and will continue to do so until it is dead.

We have as of this time and in this 85th Texas legislative session no out trans people who are elected representatives in the Texas House or the Texas Senate where this bill is originating  

SB 6 was specifically compiled to dehumanize, denigrate and oppress a group of Texans in transgender people that the Republicans have committed to in their party platform to oppress.

SB 6 was compiled with no input from the Texas transgender community, and they have ignored our pleas for them not to do so.

SB 6 because it punitively attacks a minority group, is a law that degrades the personalities of Texas transgender people and does not uplift their humanity, and that makes it in Kingian terms, unjust.

SB 6, by forcing trans people to use locker rooms and bathrooms that don't match their gender presentation as a way to dehumanize them and subject them to further societal abuse and possible anti-trans violence, is also unjust because it takes away an individual's or a group's freedom, causes real harm to transgender Texans and causes chaos instead of harmony 

SB 6 is unjust because frankly, would Sen Kolkhorst obey her law and go to the men's room when she presents and lives in society as a female?   If you Senator, are not willing to do what you are attempting to compel Texas transgender women to do, then your proposed law is unjust

SB 6 is an unjust law that would, as already has been proven in North Carolina, cause economic harm, negative tension, damage its tourism industry, and dehumanize transgender people

SB 6 by multiple measures is not only an unjust law, but it must die in this session and never again be brought up for consideration.

SD House Fails To Override HB 1008

If you thought the drama over HB 1008 was over when Gov. Dennis Daugaard (R) vetoed the bill Tuesday, well it wasn't. 

Never underestimate the eager determination of Republicans and the outside groups pushing the unjust bills to oppress a downtrodden group.  They've made it clear that oppressing trans people is on the legislative agenda for their party in 2016. 

One of the reasons the anti-trans hate groups like the Liberty Counsel and the Alliance Defending Freedom chose South Dakota for this fight is because the Republicans in the Mount Rushmore State have had decades long supermajorities in both houses.  They have controlled the 70 member South Dakota House since 1976, and the 35 member South Dakota Senate since 1996.

The Republican controlled House attempted to jump start the process today of overriding the governor's veto.  They needed to get two-thirds of the House members to vote for the override resolution, and then do the same in the senate in order to successfully override Gov. Daugaard's veto and make HB 1008 law.

The vote to override in the SD House went 36-29 with five abstentions, which means it failed to get the necessary two-thirds support. to send it to the senate and turn this unjust bill attacking the humanity of SD trans kids into an unjust law.

Translation: HB 1008 is DEAD!

They failed thanks to the determined efforts of South Dakota based trans people, advocates at the local, state and national level and their allies. 

But there is still one more anti-trans bill, HB 1112 still percolating in the South Dakota legislature we have to keep our eyes on that is attacking our trans kids.

I hope the South Dakota legislature will see the wisdom of not attacking the humanity of trans kids and let that unjust bill suffer the same fate.

 

Sieg Heil Y'all-GOP Texas Is NOT A Democracy

Gov. Ann Richards and Rep Barbara Jordan must be looking down upon us from their heavenly perch, shaking their heads and wondering what the hell is going on in our beloved Lone Star State?

Two words: Teahadist Republifools

And if you thought I was being over the top partisan when I called the Republican controlled Texas government 'neo-fascist GOP oppressors' and I referred to Gov. Rick Perry and Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst as Tex Fuhrer and Deputy Tex Fuhrer, peep this hearing on SB 2 in which Sarah Slamen is dragged from the mike by jack booted stormtroopers  DPS troopers

Sieg Heil, Y'all 




   

Do Marginalized People Need to Turn the Other Cheek?

Guest post from Renee of Womanist Musings who is all that and four bags of ketchup flavored potato chips.  

Last year, I wrote a piece about Destruction's thoughts on Disney's Peter Pan. He was incredibly disturbed by the movie, because of the racism in it.  Yesterday, it received a new comment and since the piece is now buried in the archives, I have decided to elevate the comment for the purposes of discussion.

Your kid has the capacity for common sense that has eluded the world for centuries. However, is it not just as bad to return racism like that with hate as it is to be racist in the first place? He recognizes the need to stop the racism, but it's your job now to teach him how to deal with it. Taking a militant standpoint only makes things worse. Nonviolence. Kill ignorance with kindness.

Hir comments were restricted to race, because the post itself was about race; however, I think that this conversation can and should be made broader.  The suggestion that Destruction not become militant is an exhortation that is constantly aimed at historically marginalized people. Think about how the GLBT community has routinely been charged with pushing a militant gay agenda by homophobes. The gay agenda has been constructed as actually threatening to heterosexual people. Consider for a moment how the fight for gay marriage has been responded to with the suggestion that it will somehow harm heterosexual marriage. The women's movement continues to be subject to the exact same sort of discourse, even as they tell us they we are over reacting to things like rape culture.  Rush Limbaugh has made quite a living for himself attacking women's activists and suggesting that they are militant. When Disabled people protested the ableist, Jerry Lewis, they were called a militant angry fringe.  Whenever historically marginalized people respond with anger, they are accused of working an agenda or of being overly militant.

With any marginalization there comes a point when one comes to awareness of where exactly one stands.  For POC, we begin in an environment of love with our parents and over time, as we venture into the world, we become aware of what it is to be a person of colour in a White supremacist world.  For gays and lesbians, they begin to notice that something is different about them, and once they realize what their sexuality is, the awareness of what it means to be gay or lesbian in a homophobic culture quickly takes hold, as they deal with the issue of coming out or not, or negotiating the various oppressions aimed at them.  For trans people, there is the dawning awareness of realizing one's internal gender, does not match the outward gender, and what it means to be trans in a world in which cis bodies are privileged.  With this comes of course the consideration of coming out as trans, whether or not to transition, and of course all of the oppression that comes with being trans. With disabled people, there is the realization that the disability itself exists, and then negotiating a world that is not built with us in mind. No matter the ism, there is a point of coming to awareness with it, and a decision of what to do next.  The next step will be different each group, but what they all have in common is that any fight for inclusion, equal rights, or freedom from oppression will inevitably be viewed as militant, and quickly dismissed by the ruling classes.


Destruction is almost 11 years old, and in his short time on earth, he has been subjected to a ton of racism, though he is bi-racial. He understands that within his home that he is loved and valued, but the innocence has long since been cast from childhood, due to the racist attacks he has had to negotiate. Whatever feelings he develops about Whiteness, are a direct consequence of living in a White supremacist world. The idea that I should again thwart his agency by telling him how he is too feel, or react is problematic, and denies him one of the few areas of agency in regard to the oppression that he faces.

Much has been made of kumbaya approach to reacting to oppression. Turn the other cheek has become the expected response, even as marginalized people are on the receiving end of violence on a daily basis through either a physical action or hate speech. The arrogance it takes to believe that gays and lebsians should not hate a group like The Westboro Baptist Church, or Focus on the Family, or that POC should not hate groups like Stormfront, or the KKK is ridiculous.  Hating the people who wish us death and actively work to oppress us is not only human, but natural.  The very idea that hating our oppressors is the same thing as the oppression itself, speaks to a complete denial of the humanity of marginalized people, and an attempt to once again control us. 

Hate, while it isn't pleasant, isn't always as counter productive as it is made to seem.  Sometimes, hate can be the inspiration to demand change, and sometimes it helps to embolden self worth - thus a negative emotion can become a creative force. Hate should not always be the preserve of the most privileged people.  Hate, like it or not is part of the human experience;  it is an emotion like any other.  Telling marginalized people not to hate, is to deny them a common experience.  It is particularly problematic when the hate is aimed at someone intent on causing them harm.  If ze had said not to become consumed by hate then, and only then -- would ze have had a point.


Militant does not have to mean violence.  I have often described myself is militantly Black with pride.  For me, it means embracing my Blackness and loving myself in spite of all of the negative connotations inscribed to my Black, female, disabled body.  Militant can and should be an expression of self. The only reason militant has historically been seen as problematic, is because privileged people far prefer marginalized people to be passive and silent.

I am not going to tell anyone how to negotiate their oppression, because to do so would embolden my various privileges, while removing their agency. Though Destruction and I share the same racial oppression, telling him how to feel, would send the message that he should sensor himself, or that he is not entitled to his feelings, which is exactly what Whiteness has invested so heavily in teaching him.  It is one thing to abjure violence, and another thing entirely to suggest that marginalized people have to avoid feelings of anger and hatred to those who do them harm.  In the end, whatever emotions he develops towards Whiteness, will be because of his lived experience, and it is not for me or anyone else to tell him how to feel.