Trans Activism Is 'Too New'? Bull Feces

One of the memes it's time to blow up that is weakly being spun in the GL community lately is that trans activism and the fight for trans civil rights is a 'new' concept.  

Oh really?

How do you explain the 1965 Dewey's Lunch Counter Sit In, the 1966 Compton's Cafeteria Riot,  Lady Java's protests that ended up taking down Rule Number 9 in 1967, the Stonewall Riots, Sylvia Rivera, Phyllis Frye, Miss Major, Alexander John Goodrum, the long list of legal cases such as MT vs JT, ...Well,you get the drift..

Trans activism around trans rights issues predates Stonewall. 

I also seem to recall making some trips to Washington DC in 1998 and 1999 with a few friends from around the country to lobby for ENDA and hate crimes law passage, being part of a group that founded NTAC during and in the wake of the 1999 DC trip and bouncing up to Hollywood for Ugly People on lobbying trips as recently as 2007 and 2009

Oh yeah, how did I forget that HRC Washington dinner protest that I and a few more of my trans friends and allies took part in as well that triggered a series of HRC dinner protests around the country in the wake of our 2007 pissivity over being cut out of ENDA?

And that's before I begin talking about some of the fights that international transpeople have waged such as April Ashley, Coccinelle, Sass Rogando Sasot,  Leona Lo, Caroline 'Tula' Cossey, Victor Mukasa, Audrey Mbuaga or the current international battles being waged by trans people in their various nations for respect, dignity and their human rights.

I would be remiss if I didn't mention the fact that some of us have given our lives for this cause as well such as Honduras' Cynthia Nicole Moreno and countless others.

As I write this, the battle continues on a wide variety of fronts around the world in terms of getting civil rights coverage and fighting for our marriage rights on a city by city, state by state and a country by country basis.

We fight tooth and nail for the right to simply live our lives with facing violence, bullying, police and other harassment, and outright discrimination.

It's not only beyond insulting, it's whitewashing of trans history and a baldfaced lie for GL people to state that trans activism is 'too new'.
     

Interview With Judge Vicky

This is an interview done with Judge Kolakowski before her election as a Superior court judge.    Thought you'd TransGriot readers would enjoy seeing and hearing the thoughts of a trailblazing personality in our community.

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Well Behaved Trans People Rarely Make History

If you think you've seen this title somewhere before, you're right.

I paraphrased it from a fave t-shirt and bumper sticker slogan that states 'well behaved women rarely make history'..


There are times when cool headed, polite discourse can go a long way toward securing our constitutionally guaranteed civil rights.  

But there are other situations in which coming meekly hat in hand and saying 'Please give us our rights' ain't gonna cut it especially with people whose heads and hearts are carved from stone or have agendas that do not correspond with yours.

That means there are going to be times in which we are going to have no other choice but to get in Fight The Power black beret wearing mode to shout, scream, raise our fists and say 'We're tired of this BS and we aren't going to take it anymore'.


There are times that events like the 1965 Dewey's Lunch Counter Sit In protest,  the August 1966 Compton's Cafeteria Riots, the 1969 Stonewall Rebellion, and the trans community rage that erupted in 2007 after we were cut out of ENDA are necessary in order for our issues and our voice to be heard.


These folks showed up, showed out, and the rest they say, is history.   

We're at a point in time where civil rights is being rolled backwards, the powers that be don't care and we need to be screaming bloody murder and using all the tools in our civil rights tool boxes in order to reverse that trend. 

If that means no more Mr. and Ms. Nice Trans, then so be it.   If that means we need to channel the spirit of Sylvia Rivera and be in the face of friends, allies and foes alike if they are impediments to our gaining our constitutionally guaranteed civil rights, then we'll have to be tough minded enough as the trans men and trans women we are to do so.

Because as history is bearing out, well behaved trans people rarely make history.

But ones who speak up, tell it like it T-I-S is and act up do. 

Miss Major Interview

I have much love for one of our iconic transwomen in  Miss Major, who is one of the few African descended Stonewall Rebellion veterans.    She talks to Ashley Love about Stonewall and a few other issues.   


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The Houston Christohaters Already Tripping About Judge Frye

Well, was wondering how long it would take our local right wing conservafools to react to Judge Phyllis Frye's historic appointment to a Houston municipal judgeship.

About 24 hours for the haters in the Houston Area Pastors Council, our local Forces of Intolerance auxiliary with 300 hate churches in its membership run by Dave Welch.. 

“This is not just a benign act. This is someone (Frye) who is very well known as an aggressive activist on sexual diversity issues and very much against the mainstream of most of the people….As we all know municipal court judges are the first step in the elevation of different judgeships. They typically go on to civil district court judges or family court judges and beyond, so this is not a benign appointment. It’s a statement. It really is. We’ll be calling on the churches to stand up and be involved,” said Dave Welch.

Dave, didn't you learn from the on-air pwning you took from Cristan not to mess with us?   

And you're right, it IS a statement.   It's a statement that we trans Houstonians are talented, intelligent tax paying citizens of the city who love Houston just as much as y'all profess you do and have much to offer our community and society.

It's past time for y'all to back up off us and let us trans Houstonians live our lives without your conservafool political agenda driven interference in it.

  

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