Historic Marco Marco NYFW All Trans Fashion Show

There's a new generation of trans models who are keeping the tradition of the long stylish line of trans models going into the 21st century.  The best part about this current generation of trans models for me is that I not only am pleased and proud to call some of them my friends, I'm happy to note that the fashion industry is embracing them.

More importantly, the fashion industry is giving trans models unprecedented opportunities to work and have a successful modeling career.

More evidence of this occurred during the recently concluded 2018 New York Fashion Week. 

On September 9 a groundbreaking fashion show took place during this year's New York Fashion Week sponsored by LA based designer Marco Morante.

His Marco Marco brand of clothing has always catered to the TBLGQ community, and this time he took it a step further by casting all 34 spots in his New York Fashion Week show with trans people. 

While it is not uncommon to have out and non disclosed trans people strutting the catwalks during the New York Fashion Week major runway shows, they tend to be in those instances cast in shows that are overwhelmingly comprised of cis models. 

The Marco Marco Collection Seven show was the first time in New York Fashion Week history that a major show was cast in which all the participating models were transgender.

“Although I have always had trans and non binary people in my shows, it became apparent to me that their presence was often overshadowed by cis gay men or cis gay men in drag,” designer Marco Morante said in an interview when asked about the casting. “I wanted to create a space to celebrate trans bodies. This was an opportunity for their presence to be undeniable and reinforce that trans is beautiful.”

Morante is one of the small cadre of designers that openly prioritizes hiring trans models for their runway shows.  

One of the participants in this historic show was my BTAC homie Dezjorn Gauthier, who rocked the runway along with models Laith Ashley, Geena Rocero, Carmen Carrera, Pose actresses Angelica Ross and Dominique Jackson, Transparent actress Trace Lysette, Gigi Gorgeous, Aydian Dowling, Gisele Xtravaganza, Claudia Charriez and Arisce Wanzer just to name a few of the trans peeps walking in the historic Collection Seven show that was attended by Laverne Cox.

Speaking of my BTAC homeboy,  Gauthier had this to say about his participation in this historic show. 

“It’s groundbreaking.  Marco is breaking the glass ceiling for transgender models especially transmen. This was more than experience for me, it was an act of resilience” 

Gauthier mentioned he will continue to use modeling as a form of advocacy to spread inspiration and empowerment worldwide. 

“It’s about creating equal opportunity for those after me and continuing the work of those before me”

Here's the video from that historic show


 

MJ Rodriguez To Receive Trailblazer Hispanic Heritage Award

You know MJ Rodriguez as Blanca Rodriguez Evangelista from the hit FX show POSE that will kick off Season 2 in 2019.   
MJ Rodriguez, the actress who plays Blanca, is poised to make history when the 31st annual Hispanic Heritage Awards take place in Washington DC at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

The 27 year old Rodriguez will be honored by the Hispanic Heritage Foundation with the Trailblazer Hispanic Heritage Award. 

It is a prestigious one in the Latinx community that has previously gone to Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Gloria Estefan, Rita Moreno, Celia Cruz, America Ferrera, Gael Garcia Bernal, Zoe Saldana, Ricky Martin and Placido Domino just to name some of the recipients of that award. 

Congratulations to MJ as her name joins that distinguished list of honorees.

Rodriguez is being recognized for her “talent, courage and social impact,” according to Jose Antonio Tijerino, President and CEO of the Hispanic Heritage Foundation. “Her story is a journey of triumph as she leads the way for transgender representation in Hollywood and beyond,” he said in a statement.

Rodriguez will become the first trans feminine woman ever to win this award, and the Hispanic Heritage Awards can be seen on PBS later this month.
 

Meet Marvia Malik, Pakistan's First Trans News Anchor!

As the Trump misadministration and their white fundie allies try to force transpeople back into the closet and strip us of what human rights coverage we've managed to achieve, other countries on this planet are moving forward on trans rights issues and making history.

Pakistan is an Islamic nation in which transpeople have been ostracized, shunned by family members, treated as a joke and at times violently attacked with a frequency only exceeded in Brazil. 

But like here in the States and in other countries, the Pakistani trans community is getting landmark legal wins that are helping to open hearts and minds in the country. 

Our trans cousins in Pakistan are celebrating as one of their own, Marvia Malik, became the first transgender news anchor in their nation.   The 21 year old Malik is no stranger to breaking barriers in her nation.  She recently became the first openly trans model to walk a fashion show runway there.

But her passion is journalism, and the private Kohenoor broadcast network based in Lahore decided to take a chance and hire her.

"I have made history in my country, and I vow to use my profession as anchor to help change the general attitude of our society towards transgender people."

"Our community should be treated equally and there must not be any gender discrimination. We should be given equal rights and be considered ordinary citizens, instead of third-gender," she said in a BBC interview.

She added: "My family knows I have modeled and they know that I work as a newscaster. It's the age of social media and there's nothing that my family doesn't know. But they have still disowned me."

She is grateful for the opportunity, and went through three months of training before she made her first on air broadcast.  Malik has done so well that the station has hired a second trans person as a copywriter   The owner of the station, Junaid Ansari, made it clear that Malik was hired for her journalism talent, not because she was transgender. 

Malik's determination to be a change agent is echoed by Farzana Jan, the head of Pakistan's Trans Action Alliance.   Jan is hopeful that Malik will not only be a positive role model, but be a catalyst for further positive change in Pakistan.

"Thank God, one of us is going on television in a serious job," Jan said. "Previously we've been presented as a joke. I hope and I believe this will help us get our rights, our protection and our respect".

Your trans cousins around the world hope that what you have expressed comes true in Pakistan. 

Congratulation to Marvia, and hope she has a long problem free career as a television anchor.   

Finn Jones Makes Texas Trans Political History

As many of you are aware of, the Texas primary elections were held on Tuesday night.   In addition to seeing who won, who lost, who made it to the May 22 runoff elections and who advanced to the November 6 general elections, some Texas trans political history was made. 

Finnigan  'Finn'  Jones is running for the Texas House 94 seat in North Texas.   Because Jones didn't have an opponent in the Democratic primary, once the voting started, Jones became the first out trans masculine Texan to win a party primary race, and the first to do so for a Texas legislative seat.

Jones said this on his FB page when I pointed out the history he'd just made.

"Wow!!! I honestly had not even thought about that. As I pointed out to her (TransGriot),  I am running for all of us. We have a right to have a voice at the table and be heard. Not just on lgbtq Rights, but on health care, public education, teacher retirement, discrimination in all forms and so much more,." he wrote. 

"I am proud to be that voice and that ear for the community. I will always listen and I will always learn and progress forward. Our citizens deserve that much from their elected officials."

Yes, we do.

Hs opponent in the general election will be the incumbent state rep Tony Tinderholt.(R-Arlington) who is considered the fourth most conservative member of the Texas Legislature, is a member of the Texas Freedom Caucus and as you probably guessed, is not a friend of our community.

Finn is going to have his work cut out for him if he is going to make the history of becoming the first trans Texan elected to our state legislature. 

But as the old saying goes, you have to be in it to win it, and Finn has cleared the first hurdle to make that happen by getting the Democratic Party nomination.

Here's hoping he makes even more history on November 6.

Trans Peeps Rocked The 2018 Oscars

Despite being in a moment in this country in which the humanity and human rights of trans people are under attack by the Trump Misadministration and their white fundie allies, the opposite is happening in Hollywood as trans people become a more visible and active part of the motion picture industry

Trans excellence was on display during last night's Oscars, with Janet Mock and actress Daniela Vega rocking the Oscar red carpets to kick the night off and us waiting to see in trans director Yance Ford's name would be called to collect his first Oscar.

Vega would also make history as the first ever openly trans presenter during the Oscars main ceremony.  She introduced Sufjan Stevens, whose song 'Mystery of Love' for the Call Me By Your Name soundtrack was nominated for a Best Original Song Oscar.

She would later in the evening join her castmates on stage as the movie she was the lead actress in, A Fantastic Woman, won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language film.

That made her the first openly trans actress to play a trans character in an Oscar winning film.



So yeah Hollywood, your not so subtle hint to not only hire trans actors and actresses for trans roles, but consider letting them have an opportunity to play cisgender characters as well

Attention then turned on this night to trans masculine director Yance Ford to see if he would make more trans Oscar history on a night that was turning into an amazing one for transkind. .

He had already made Oscar history back in January when he became the first openly  transgender director to be nominated for an Oscar.

Ford already had four previous documentaries under his belt, but his fifth one Strong Island, was up for the Best Documentary nomination



Unfortunately it was not to be his night, as the documentary Icarus got the Oscar in Ford's category..

I have no doubt we will see this gifted filmmaker again on a Oscar stage, and hopefully it will be to make an acceptance speech as he gets to hold that stateutee in his hands

But it sure would have been nice to see #BlackTransExcellence rewarded last night

Congrats to Daniela and Yance for making history and repping our community well.  It was also nice to see my sis Janet ripping the red carpet to shreds.

Will be interesting to see what transpires at next year's Oscars.

Daniela Vega To Be A 2018 Oscar Awards Presenter

The Oscars happen on March 4 in Hollywood, and the initial group of people tapped to be awards presenters has been announced.  For the first time, one of the twelve instage presenters for this year's 90th edition of the Academy Awards will be an out trans person.

Rge person given the honor of repping the trans community on that Oscar stage will be Chilean actress Daniela Vega.

The 28 year old Vega is the star of the Oscar nominated film A Fantastic Woman in which she plays Marina Vidal, the trans protagonist in this Sebastian Lelio movie.   She loses her life partner Orlando, ,and her trans status makes it difficult for her to mourn Orlando's death.

Hmm, another movie I'll have to check out.

 

A Fantastic Woman was nominated in the Best Foreign Language film category, and after getting award nominations and international acclaim for the role of Marina, there was buzz building that she could possibly be the person that finally made Academy Awards history and become the first out trans person ever nominated for an Oscar. 

While that Best Actress nomination unfortunately didn't happen for Vega this time, she did get the consolation prize of being the first out trans person ever to be named as an Oscar presenter.

Congrats Daniela for making that history, and hopefully one day you'll be back on that Oscar stage to actually claim an Oscar of your own.

It's Inauguration Day For Councilmembers Cunningham and Jenkins!

Today was the public inauguration in Minneapolis for Councilmembers Phillipe Cunningham and Andrea Jenkins, Mayor Jacob Frey and their council colleagues in the Minneapolis City Hall rotunda. 

After the public inauguration, and the mayor's inauguration speech,  they and their city council colleagues immediately went to the council chambers to meet and elect a new council president and determine who the various committee chairs would be.

It's going to be an exciting but busy day for Andrea and Phillipe in Minneapolis today.  They'll find out their committee assignments, and after that get busy with the nuts and bolts work of helping to run Minneapolis.

And looking forward to hearing them talk about it the next time I get to spend quality time with either of them.

Historic Dewey's Lunch Counter Sit In Site Permanently Closing

When the LGBT Media Journalists Convening happened in Philadelphia in 2014, the host hotel for it was right across the street from a trans historical site in Dewey's Lunch Counter.

52 years ago today a successful sit in a protest jumped off by African-American gender variant teens who were told they would be refused service if they were not in gender appropriate attire happened here.

This happened a year before Compton's Cafeteria in San Francisco and four years before Stonewall. The Deweys protest was also another instance of a trans themed protest happening in the US and one that we know of with significant African-American involvement.

Since 1978 a 24 hour eatery has been open in the former Dewey's space called Little Pete's.  I'd eaten there with a strange sense of deja vu not long after I arrived in Philly and got settled into my #LGBTMedia14 hotel room.   I spotted it while gazing out the window of my room, was still hungry from my travel day, and just decided to check it out and grab something to eat there since it was close.

I was told a few hours later at the opening LGBT Media mixer event by a Philadelphia attendee who knows my love of history that we were across the street from the old Dewey's, and subsequently told all the trans journalists we were right across the street from a trans historical site.

During a break in Saturday's LGBT Media programming, all the trans journalists in attendance,  myself, Gwen Smith, Dawn Ennis, Gretchen Hammond, Jos Truitt, Cristan Williams and Becky Juro along with NLGJA executive director Adam Pawlus walked across the street to take a photo in front of Little Pete's and pay respects to our sadly unknown elders who participated in that trans humanity centric protest.

Well peeps, if you wish to replicate that photo, better do it soon because the sad news I'm hearing is that Little Pete's will be permanently closing next month,   Its last day of business will be May 29, and after that it has a date with a wrecking ball to make room for a Hyatt Centric hotel.

It's always sad to me when a historic site closes,   Here's hoping that someone in the Philly LGBT community will work to have a historical marker placed at that spot where Black trans history was made once the new hotel is completed.

Valentina Sampaio Is Vogue Paris' First Ever Trans Cover Girl

'But only when a transgender person poses on the front cover of a fashion magazine and it is no longer necessary to write an editorial on the subject will we know that the battle is won.-Emmanuelle Alt, French Vogue editor

The French edition of Vogue magazine was founded in 1920, and despite the long list of stunning French trans women like Coccinelle, Marie-Pier Ysser, Marie-Pierre 'Bambi' Pruvot and most recently model Ines-Loan Rau, I was surprised to discover that Vogue Paris has never had a trans woman on the cover of their magazine until now.

The trans woman who has made that breakthrough fashion and French magazine history is Brazilian model Valentina Sampaio.  She recently graced the cover of Elle Brazil, and has starred in an ad campaign for L'oreal Paris.

"This month we are proud to celebrate transgender beauty and how models like Valentina Sampaio, who is posing for her first ever Vogue cover, are changing the face of fashion and deconstructing prejudice."said Vogue Paris on their Instagram account and pic of the historic cover.

The 21 year old Sampaio is also set to rip the runway for Saint Laurent soon, and will be on the March cover of Vogue Paris that hits newsstands on February 23.  It is the first time ever that a trans feminine woman has graced the cover of any French magazine.

The translated French title from the cover reads:  Transgender beauty; How they're shaking up the world.

We most certainly are.  It's also just another day and another historic accomplishment checked off the list for my sisters here in the US and around the world who are part of the long stylish line of trans models.
Vogue Paris editor Emmanuelle Alt said,"Valentina is on the cover of Vogue this month, not just for her looks or her sparkling personality, but because despite herself she embodies an age-old arduous struggle to be recognised and not to be perceived as something Other.”

Alt also said in her editorial that, “Trans people, the ultimate symbol of a rejection of conformity, are icons that Vogue supports and chooses to celebrate."

We transwomen around the world deeply appreciate you Vogue Paris for doing so.

But Alt also recognized that we have a long way to go to get to the point that seeing a trans feminine person on the cover of a fashion magazine becomes a mundane event.

I'm looking forward to speed up the day that we don't even have to find it necessary to say or argue the point that trans is beautiful, and trans women in all shapes, sizes and skin tones are beautiful in many ways.

I'm hoping that day comes along with all my sisters, and I'm here to witness it. 

Houston Trans History- Rachelle Annette 'Toni' Mayes

'If you think I can be harassed until I leave town, you're wrong.  I love Houston and I will stay."
-Toni Mayes to Houston City Council,, October 1972, 

Houston has a long, proud history of trans folks who have no problem standing up against anti- trans bigotry, harassment and oppression   It is a proud part of our Houston trans history that has continued into this century.   It's something I have learned as I began my own transition just how deep and far back Houston trans history goes, and how i'm just past of the latest generation of trans people who speak truth to power while fighting for their humanity and their human rights.

One of my trans elders I've been thinking about a lot recently is Rachelle Annette 'Toni'  Mayes, who also was known as Anne Mayes. Thanks to JD Doyle, I now know what happened with Anne Mayes, and I'm going to share her story with you so I have it down for the current and future generations of trans Houstonians.

Toni was born on December 13, 1947 and grew up here in Houston.   From her earliest memories she  knew she was a girl..   Her parents however disagreed, and she talked about in one interview how she was punished by her mother for wearing her younger sister's panties.

She ran away from home at age 14 to California with a cousin, but when she started living with two gay men there, the cousin called her parents, who brought her back to Houston

Her family after the California trip was determined to in their words 'make a real man out of her', and her mother even signed papers in an attempt to enlist her in the Navy even though she was just 15 at the time. .

But that trip to California also convinced her that she wasn't gay and something else was going on with her.   She eventually joined the Navy in 1964,  While she was as she said in an interview 'embarrassed' to be showering with 75 guys',  Mayes' time in the Navy led to her falling for a girl in Iowa, and she jumped ship in Florida to be with her.

She was arrested by the FBI for going AWOL and taken to a military jail in Illinois.  During the investigation, she was given a questionnaire that asked the question if she had ever had gay sex. While she hadn't, she saw this question as her ticket out of the Navy, so she answered the question affirmatively and got dishonorably discharged for homosexuality, as our military was doing at the time..  .
She returned to the girl in Iowa, married her and conceived a daughter with her in 1966, but her marriage broke up soon afterward and her ex-spouse retained custody of their daughter.   Mayes got married again to another woman, but that marriage also broke up in large part to her gender identity issues.

Mayes returned to Houston, started working as a television repair person, and then through a newspaper article learned that transsexuals existed.   The now 25 year old Mayes now had a name for the issue she was dealing with.  She was now aware of thanks to that article it was possible for her to become the woman she wanted to be.

Mayes was also fortunate that at that time, the nation's second full service gender identity clinic was getting started in the Houston area at the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) in Galveston   She now had the place to go to help her become her true self, and the gender transition for her started on December 11, 1971.

Like many cities at that time, Houston had an anti-crossdressing law that had been on the books. Section 28-42.4 prohibited people from wearing the clothes of the opposite sex.  Because the ordinance was vague and Council was worried about it being struck down in the courts because of that vague language, the Houston City Council in June 1972 strengthened the ordinance with this language:

 'It shall be unlawful for any person to appear on any public street, sidewalk, alley or public thoroughfare dressed with the design intent to disguise his or her true sex as that of the opposite sex'

That 1904 ordinance clashed with one of the HBIGDA/transition protocols of the time that required someone on the path for gender confirmation surgery to dress and live as their target gender for at least a year prior to doing so.

HPD, run at the time by the reviled police chief Herman Short, gleefully enforced Section 28-42.4 not only against the Houston trans community and drag queens, but also the Houston lesbian community.

While Mayes was happy that she'd begun her transition, she also found herself being frequently targeted by HPD vice squad officers.  She was arrested eight times in 1972 by HPD for violations of the anti-crossdressing ordinance.  As you probably guessed, when Mayes was arrested on that crossdressing charge, she was taken to the men's side of the Houston city jail.  

Four of those charges were dropped because they happened before the Houston City Council revised the ordinance on June 2, but there were some that stuck that she and her attorney appealed.  There were two arrests that happened literally as she stepped onto the sidewalk outside the city municipal court building moments after she'd had those previous charges dismissed.

Tired of being harassed by HPD vice officers, she filed a federal lawsuit on December 20, 1972 seeking $200,000 in damages against HPD Chief Herman Short and five HPD officers.   Mayes in addition to seeking to have the Houston crossdressing ordinance declared unconstitutional, was also seeking an injunction against further arrests  

Interestingly enough the harassing arrests of her by HPD ceased after that federal suit was filed.

The federal lawsuit seeking to declare the Houston crossdressing ordinance unconstitutional eventually went all the way to the SCOTUS, who unfortunately rejected it without comment in April 1974.   That law stayed in the Houston Code of Ordinances until Phyllis Frye got it repealed in August 1980

While the court cases were percolating at the local and federal level, Toni's transition continued to move forward.   She eventually became on January 23, 1974 the fourth person to have gender confirmation surgery done via the UTMB gender program, and on March 11, 1974 her name change petition to Rachelle Annette Mayes was granted by a state district judge

An April 1978 Houston Post article that I had clipped and saved when my teen self was coming to grips with the fact I was transgender updated us about Toni's life in the intervening years.

After an attempt to ironically join the Houston Police Department was rebuffed, she'd ended up as a successful sales rep for a local company.  She was taking courses toward a business administration degree at the University of Houston, and from time to time would lecture college classes at UH and other local colleges in the Houston - Galveston area about gender identity issues.

But as far as trans activism, she'd felt she'd more than paid her dues and was just ready to live her life.

I sadly discovered thanks to JD's research that Rachelle Annette Mayes died on November 6, 2007, just a few weeks short of her 60th birthday.

I wish I'd had a chance to meet and talk to her before that happened.  I would have loved to have had a chance to tell her thank you for being willing to fight to make it easier for the trans people in the Houston area and beyond that came behind her like me.

Rest in power and peace, Anne.   You earned it.  Something else you've earned is also having your story preserved and told forever to every trans person and trans kid who lives in the Houston area and beyond.

Moni's 2016 PBHA Robert Coles Call Of Service Award Lecture

As many of you are aware of, I went to Boston last week and the Harvard University campus to accept the Phillips Brooks House Association's Robert Coles Call Of Service Award.

The award has been given out since 2007 and it didn't occur to me until arrived at my hotel in Cambridge to see to hit Google and see who the past winners of this award were.

That's when I discovered that i was in some pretty serious company in terms of past recipients of it.   Marian Wright Edelman won the inaugural award in 2007, Vice President Al Gore and BLM co founder Alicia Garza last year.

I also discovered that I am the first trans person ever to receive this award.

Here's a link to the transcript of my 2016 PBHA Coles Award lecture, and the video.  I also answered some questions from the audience concluding the lecture before yielding to a panel of local advocates.



Thanks once again to Maria Dominguez Gray, Shaquanda Brown, Robert Bridgeman, David Dance, Jalem Towler, Dean Katherine O'Dair and the students of the Phillips Brooks House Association for making my time on the Harvard Yard a memorable time.

Hopefully I'll have a chance to come back for a future visit.
.

Arisce Wanzer's Making History

The long stylish line of trans models has led the way in breaking ground for our community not only in the modeling world, but at times through their activism on behalf of themselves and this community.

Proud to announce that for the first time in the 111 year history of the iconic Spiegel catalog, a girl like us will grace the cover of it.

Arisce Wanzer, who recently appeared as one of the stars of the reality show Strut, is the model who will be making this inevitable breakthrough.

Congratulations to her, and hope to continue seeing her do her thing in the modeling world.  It also proves once again if given an opportunity to do so, we can don anything and excel at

Openly Trans Service Member Promoted To Navy Lt. Commander

After fighting for this policy for years, since July 1, transgender members of the US Armed Forces can openly serve in our nation's military.   Ending the ban on trans troops was groundbreaking for the 15,500 trans people who are serving our country and allowed them to focus on just being the best service members they can be and not have to worry if they are going to be tossed out of the service.

It's now two months after that historic announcement, and trans history was recently made when Navy Lt. Commander Blake Dremann became the first open trans service member to be promoted post open service in a ceremony also attended by his parents in the President's Room of the Navy Memorial in Washington DC.

On his promotion stage as he advanced to  Lt. Commander from Lieutenant, everyone was transgender, including the persons who emceed the event in Air Force Major Bryan Fram and the person administering the oath in Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Operational Energy Amanda Simpson,

Simpson herself made history when she in 2010 became the first trans feminine presidential appointee, and is now the highest ranking trans person in the Department of Defense.  

Dremann is used to firsts in his 10 year Navy career.  In 2011 he was one of the first female bodied persons to integrate submarine crews.  He has been deployed 11 times and since 2015 has been stationed inside the Pentagon.

And in his off duty time, Lt Commander Dremann has succeeded Army vet Sue Fulton as president of SPART*A, which has over 500 trans active duty or veteran members.

But as Assistant Secretary Simpson said in her concluding remarks, "Today isn't about firsts.  This ceremony is about following the grand traditions of the United States Navy and the high standards of trust and service and thus specifically, Blake Dremann.   That is why we are all here."

And if we make a little trans history along the way, that's all good, too.
 

Lou Weaver Makes Texas Trans History

Still discovering who was elected to become delegates at the upcoming Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia July 25-28 and congrats to all of those who were elected to represent our state.  In case you're wondering, it's one of the things I would like to do someday.

While perusing Facebook, I discovered a little trans history was made during the just concluded Texas Democratic convention in San Antonio.

So far have discovered that we have two trans Texans headed to Philadelphia for this years Democratic National Convention.   One of the delegates representing our state is Danielle Pellet, who is pledged to Bernie Sanders, the other is Houston's own Lou Weaver, who was elected as an at-large delegate pledged to Hillary Clinton.

With that selection, Lou made Texas trans history as the first ever out trans masculine Texan to accomplish that feat.  We have had three out trans feminine Texans represent our state at previous national DNC conventions in Vanessa Edwards Foster (2004,2008), Christina Ocasio (2004) and Meghan Stabler (2012).

Danielle Pellet will also be joining him in Philadelphia as a trans delegate for the Lone Star State pledged to Sanders.

And Texas trans bragging time, Texas is so far the only state (2004) to have had at least two trans delegates attend the same national DNC convention and we've now accomplished that feat for the second time. Foster so far is the only trans Texan to have gone to the DNC national convention twice.

And we trans Texans since 2004 have now sent at least one trans delegate to the national DNC convention for now four straight conventions.

The 2012 DNC national convention in Charlotte had a record 14 trans delegates.   We already know that two from the Lone Star State will be repping our community and I hope that nationally we'll shatter that 14 trans delegates number.

Congratulation to Lou Weaver for not only making it to Philly, but making a little history along the way as he gets to witness what is sure to be a historic Democratic convention next month.

Looking forward to hearing about it the next time we cross paths.  


 TransGriot note:  Photo of Lou by Eric Edward Schell photography

Historical Trans Firsts Are Important To Note For Our Community

Those who have no record of what their forebears have accomplished lose the inspiration which comes from the teaching of biography and history."--Dr. Carter G. Woodson


I was in a Facebook discussion talking about the historic Philippine election win of Geraldine Roman to the Philippine Congress when someone went on a rant about not caring about what she called 'fake firsts'.

This white trans person then continued to say it was a waste of time to talk about who was the first trans person to do X thing, and you know I had to call that crap out quickly.

Knowing your history is never a 'waste of time' as this person put it.  It is a vital component of not only building community, but building pride in being a trans person and tracking the progress of our movement in changing the culture..

Knowing who was the first documented trans person to be elected to a state legislature (Althea Garrison, 1992), or the first out trans person to have a New York Times best selling memoir (Janet Mock) is important not only for trans elders to know, but to inspire our trans kids.

When you have elements of society trying to erase your very humanity, eviscerate your civil rights and violently erase your existence, you much do everything to build self esteem and pride in your trans youth so they don't lose hope and start feeling that their only way our is to commit suicide

Knowing that we have trans people who have and are making history, are making positive contributions to society and are doing so today  is critical.in building the self esteem and pride that not only builds community, it is a factor in helping reduce suicide rates.

So yes, historical trans firsts are important and necessary to track and remember not only here in the US, but around the world.
.

MAJOR! World Premiere Coming Next Month!

You TransGriot readers are cognizant of the fact I have been tracking the progress of the documentary film on these electronic pages for the last few years.

Just received some wonderful news from Annalise Ophelian and StormMiguel Florez, the producers of the documentary film MAJOR! that focuses on the fascinating life of one of our trans elders in Miss Major Griffin-Gracy

I'm excited to announce that MAJOR! will have its world premiere in San Francisco's Castro Theater on Friday, November 13 as part of the San Francisco Transgender Film Festival.

I've had the pleasure of getting to see a preview of it, and those of you who get to see the premiere and MAJOR! when it hits your local film festival will be in for a treat.

And here's a link to the trailer for it.

It will be a fascinating look at the life of one of our Stonewall vets, and I even learned a few things about Miss Major I didn't know

I also hope I get the chance to jet off to San Francisco and see the premiere

Breanna Sings The National Anthem

When this happened back on June 18, I was in the middle of having to move, my laptop computer was packed up and offline, and I had no choice but to put the story on the back burner until my housing situation stabilized and I could talk about this piece of trans history.

Meet 25 year old Breanna Sinclairé.  She is a classically trained operatic vocalist who graduated from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music.  On the occasion of Athletics Pride Night, she received the opportunity to sing the national anthem before a crowd of 30,000 people attending the A's game at the O.co with the San Diego Padres.

She may be the first out trans person ever to sing the national anthem (that we are aware of) at a major sporting event.  And she nailed it.

“It means a lot. I feel very honored,” Sinclairé told the Associated Press of the experience. “I used to be homeless in New York City. I think from being homeless to getting my bachelor’s degree and my master’s degree to this, it’s just kind of mesmerizing to me to have such a group of people that support me and love me and want to see me succeed. I’m so thankful for them.”

Told y'all if we trans peeps are just given the opportunity to achieve our dreams, we will excel.

Brava Breanna!   And here's some video of Breanna's performance

Miss Major Talks Stonewall

There is an upcoming movie about Stonewall that has pissed some people off because it gaywashes and whitewashes the real history of the rebellion that it was a trans, people of color and butch lesbian led event. 

Well, only proves the old saying that you have to be in control of writing the history, because if you aren't, you're not going to be happy about what is produced, especially if it is by people who don't like you.

Miss Major, courtesy of the Trans Oral History Project, talks about June 1969 night.

Laverne's Madame Tussaud's Wax Figure Revealed

While many of you were partying during Pride last weekend, a little history was taking place in San Francisco as Madame Tussaud's unveiled the wax likeness of her.

She is the first out transperson ever to be so honored, and Laverne was on hand for the June 26 ceremony.

“I hope that it gives people a sense of possibility. I think that it’s important that yes, I’m transgender, but I’m also a Black person in America. And I was raised African Methodist Episcopal,” Ms. Cox said in her speech. “So I’m standing here at the intersection of multiple identities, and so I hope that people will be inspired to believe that anything is possible.”

The wax figure will be part of the Madame Tussaud's San Francisco permanent collection, and was part of a special display for pride.

Madame Tussaud's San Francisco is located on Fisherman's Wharf, so check it out the next time you are visiting the city.