Colombia Allows Gender Marker Changes Without Surgery

Identity documents that accurately reflect our expressed gender identities are an important issue for trans people around the world.

The nations of Argentina, Spain, Uruguay and Denmark allow trans people in those nations to make those changes to identity documents without surgical intervention, and Ireland and Malta are on track to join that small but expanding list of nations doing so. 

Two South American nations are leading the way in the Western Hemisphere when it comes to the human rights of trans people and there was a surprising new entrant to that list in Colombia.

Colombia is conservative leaning and Roman Catholic, but has made some interesting strides on the TBLG rights front lately as the grip of the Catholic Church in the country has waned and more GLBT people have become visible in Colombian society.    A nondiscrimination law protects LGBT people on the basis of employment, and  now a major step forward for trans Colombians has occurred.

Colombia began allowing its transgender citizens to legally change how their name and gender are registered on government identification cards without having to endure intrusive physical and psychological examinations or surgical intervention to prove their gender.

Under the new policy, Colombian transgender people can simply present a written request, with their name and national identity card number, and copies of their national identity card and birth certificate. The process should be completed within five business days.

Will be nice to see the day when my own nation will allow me and other trans Americans to do what our trans cousins in Colombia can now do.

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Media Peeps, The Trans Community Has A Flag- Please Use It!

Today is Flag Day, which celebrates the day the American flag was adopted by the Second Continental Congress in 1777.

I've written some posts that have implored the TBLG community to ensure that when we have human rights events and protests, we include Old Glory in them along with our group flag to send the message that we are citizens of this country that deserve to have our human rights respected and protected.

The trans community since August 16, 1999 has had the pink, blue and white flag representing our community .   It was created by Monica Helms and first flew in the 2000 Phoenix pride parade.  The original Helms trans pride flag is now housed at the Smithsonian and ever since its creation has slowly grow to become an internationally recognized symbol for our community and international human rights movement.

While we recognize the LGBT rainbow flag, and we trans peeps have no problem when we are working intersectionally or in community with our GLB allies flying, marching under or displaying the Baker flag, it is irritating when we have a trans themed event to have the Baker flag and not have the trans pride flag prominently displayed.

Monica Helms noted the same thing in a February 25 comment on her Facebook page.

I have seen several web-based media groups writing about the multitude of situations where trans people are murdered, states voting on anti trans bills or the new Secretary of Defense saying that trans people should serve in the military. Invariably, the writers of the articles, or their editors select the first picture that comes to mind, a picture of a rainbow flag.

Excuse me! We may be part of the LGBT group, but we have our own flag and our own colors that represent us specifically. The Transgender Pride Flag has been around for 15 years and there are thousands of photos and drawings that have our colors or our flag. The original flag is even in the Smithsonian. If you are trying to show us some respect by pointing out the hatred others have towards trans people, then why not show us some respect in the photos you select for the article? Is that too much to ask?

It also irritating to see an article that is primarily about a trans person or a trans issue have a graphic that superimposes the rainbow flag and not the trans pride one.

I'm going to repeat the same question Ms. Helms asked.   If you are trying to show us some respect by pointing out the hatred others have towards trans people, then why not show us some respect in the photos you select for the article and include our flag in them?

The trans community has its own flag media peeps.  Please use it in articles or graphics that you create pertaining to my community.

More Like The Gay, Inc Job Interview For Black Trans Women

This graphic has been making the rounds in Trans World recently, and far from being representative of the lack of job opportunities for trans women in Gay, Inc organizations, it's more accurately reflective of the lack of Gay, Inc job opportunities for African-American trans women.

Since we now have America's attention, one of the things that needs to be addressed that has been a longtime sore spot with our community is the problematic pattern of trans hiring (or lack thereof) in Gay, Inc organizations that claim to be advocates for the rights of transgender people.

As an example of what I'm discussing, the LGBTQ Task Force used to have until Kylar Broadus took over that role, a cisgender woman named Lisa Mottet running their Transgender Civil Rights Project. 

While Mottet is a wonderful ally, has now moved on to NCTE and has done an admirable job in that role, it's still problematic with all the qualified trans people out there across the country doing the work (some for decades), you would still ignore them on an issue that they are more than qualified to advocate for, eloquently speak on in favor of hiring cisgender peeps to do that advocacy work.

And when they do deign to hire a trans person in a Gay, Inc org for a leadership position, it has been either predominately white trans masculine ones or a white trans woman. 

It's even more galling to notice this pattern within Gay Inc orgs when the people who take the brunt of the hate crime casualties are Latina and African-American trans women.

We Black trans women have in many cases done the work for decades and put our asses on the line for all the letters of the TBLG community including our own, but when it comes time to get paid for it, we aren't the ones reaping the rewards.  

When it comes time to getting paid to be a professional LGBT activist, far too often it is cisgender white gay males who do and get those positions and parlay those entry level positions into fast tracks to the leadership ranks of Gay, Inc organizations.


Even in the organizations that are trans oriented, the same problem crops up.  With the notable exception of TPOCC, trans organizations are not only devoid of Black trans feminine people, but have a glaring lack of melanin in their senior leadership ranks.

Kudos for our work in articles, inclusion on community leadership lists or tributes in Gay, Inc org CEO speeches while deeply appreciated, don't pay our bills or get us out of poverty.

Sustained money from a decent job at a livable wage does.

When African-American trans people are facing 26% unemployment, it would send a powerful message to the corporate ranks you push your equality indexes on if you would actually practice what you preach at others and hire transpeople for your own Gay, Inc organizations.

And yes, Black legacy orgs, I'm giving y'all the side eye as well.   This isn't just a Gay, Inc problem, and you traditional legacy orgs could also send a powerful message inside and outside our community about hiring us in these advocacy positions if you would take the bold step of leading instead of following on this issue.  

If you are wishing to become competent on transgender human rights issues, wouldn't hurt for you to hire the people who are experts at it and who are also culturally competent in the issues that ail Black America as well

Will that pattern change?   I hope and pray it expeditiously does, but that remains to be seen. 

But for our community's sake, change it must.

Another Day, Another Conservative Anti-Trans Lie Debunked

As many of us in Trans World are aware of, our right wing opponents have been busy scaring their people with the debunked bathroom predator lies in a desperate attempt to stop the passage of trans inclusive non-discrimination policies. 

They have taken those attacks to another reprehensible level by attacking trans kids, who as the US Department of  Education has pointed out, transgender students are protected under Title IX.

The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) in the U.S. Department of Education today issued official guidance which makes clear that transgender students are protected from discrimination under Title IX. Title IX is a federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in federally funded education programs and activities. Specifically, the guidance states that "Title IX's sex discrimination prohibition extends to claims of discrimination based on gender identity or failure to conform to stereotypical notions of masculinity or femininity and OCR accepts such complaints for investigation." [GLSEN, 4/29/15]

Media Matters decided to ask 17 large school districts covering over 600,000 students nationally if the right wing scenario they drone on about cisgender kids misrepresenting themselves as trans to gain access to opposite gender facilities is actually occurring.

And as you probably guessed, the conservalie isn't true.  These 17 large school districts stated there not only have been ZERO incidents of the type conservafools have been frothing at the mouth about.




So not surprisingly, the conservative lie claiming that protecting transgender students in school settings results in confusion and inappropriate behavior is demonstrably false.  It also corroborates what was discovered last year in the evisceration of the trans bathroom predator lie.
There's that pesky truth rearing its liberal biased head again.

So the next time your conservafool FOX noise watching uncle or aunt ties the bring up this lie, hit them with this avalanche of truth.

Ireland Agrees To Trans Self-Determination For Gender Recognition Bill

One of the problems that trans people around the world share is identification that matches who they are now, and barriers to acquiring that ID like requiring genital surgery.
Was nice to hear courtesy of the Transgender Equality Network Ireland that the Tánaiste and Minister for Social Protection, Joan Burton, T.D. announced that, following the agreement of Cabinet, the application process under the Gender Recognition Bill will for people aged 18 years or more, be based on the person's self-declaration by way of a statutory declaration.

The Gender Recognition Bill will also no longer contain the controversial 'forced divorce' clause that Irish trans people had serious problems with..

"TENI applauds the Government for this hugely significant move. Ireland has now taken its place as an international leader in this human rights area," said TENI Chief Executive Broden Giambrone. "The Government has shown great vision and conviction in ensuring the rights of trans people. This legislation will significantly improve the lived realities of trans people in Ireland."


Speaking after the Cabinet meeting, the Tánaiste said: "Throughout the drafting of this Bill, I have listened carefully to the views of individual citizens, representative groups and public representatives. It is essential that this important legislation is in line with international best practice. That is why we are moving to a self-declaration model for people aged 18 and over. This approach will have no impact on the treatment pathway which is completely separate from the civil registration process."

TENI Chair Sara R. Phillips said after today's announcement: "This is a momentous moment. To be given the respect to self-determine our gender is true equality. For once I can believe our community are seen as full equal citizens. Today I am so proud of our country."

Musing About The Trans People Of The African Diaspora

One of the things that has been an ongoing mission of this blog is to highlight what's happening for trans people of African descent across the Diaspora from the Americas to the Caribbean to the Mother Continent itself.

I have been fortunate in my time as a trans activist and blogger to be able to talk to other African descended trans people from Brazil, Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Kenya, Panama, South Africa and Nigeria just for starters.

Oh yeah, happy belated birthday to my Brazilian sis Dora who I got to meet and room with during BTAC.   You get the hug when you get back to UT in the fall.

Talking to the trans peeps of the Diaspora has given me an insight as an American with African heritage into what's happening not only in those nations, but also just how interconnected we are here in the States with the rest of the African Diaspora. 

It has reinforced my pride in my African heritage and being trans, and reminds me on two levels that my brothers and sisters in my extended family extend across planet Earth.

And sadly, it has also confirmed for me just how much Blackness is hated not only in my own country, but across the planet.   It's been eye opening to see that some of the issues I and other North American based trans people deal with are sadly prevalent in other parts of the world.

There are also situations in which my trans brothers and sisters in different parts of the Diaspora have been fighting tooth and nail just to get basic human rights recognition, as Audrey Mbugua has been doing for herself and Kenyan trans people for years.  Others are in the situation of moving from their native lands that were hostile to trans people and blossoming in countries more accepting of it. 

Some are in different nations just to further their education or to begin the process of morphing their bodies to be the men and women they know they are.  I'm also inspired to fight as hard as I do for trans human rights here in the States by watching my trans brothers and trans sisters in far more hostile territory in Uganda fight for their basic human right to exist.

But no matter the situation, despite the language differences and different nations we grew up in, we are all connected across the oceans and continents because of our African heritage and our trans status. 

 I'm looking forward to and welcome more of those conversations from trans masculine and trans feminine people across the Diaspora so that I can intelligently talk about those experiences.

Getting Your Education While Trans Is A Revolutionary Act

It's May, and in addition to it being prom season, we also have people walking across stages across the country to receive their diplomas.

The topic is on my mind because I'm about to deliver a keynote speech on the UT-Austin campus in a few hours for their lavender graduation ceremony, and witnessed a trans feminine friend of mine get her degree from Prairie View Saturday.

I love being on a college campus whether it is a ginormous one like the UT-Austin one is or as small as the HCC-Southeast one that I've had the honor to do numerous events and panel discussions.

The common thread with both is those campuses are in the important business of educating our next generation of citizens and future leaders

And some of the citizens being educated on our college campuses in Texas and around the country are transgender ones who either transitioned in their teens or on those campuses.

Trans people go through hell and if they manage to get their high school and collegiate diplomas, they have beaten the odds that see 71% of them drop out before finishing high school.

If they managed to beat those odds and graduate, then its getting through college while trans, which can be a feat in itself in addition to just dealing with collegiate classwork.

And a trans person getting their education while trans is a revolutionary act.

Can The Rick and Maya B&B Relationship Lead To An Enlightened Attitude Toward Trans Relationships?

Yesterday Maya Avant told her boyfriend Rick Forrester on the CBS soap 'The Bold and the Beautiful that she is trans.

Rick didn't take the news well initially, but when Maya was about to walk out of the door of that Big Bear cabin and out of his life forever with her heart breaking in the process, Rick once again declared his love for her.

We'll see how the rest of their relationship transpires, especially as media mogul Bill Spencer is about to blast Maya's trans business all over the tabloids in upcoming episodes along with the various reactions of the B&B characters to that news..

But the happy tears I was shedding as this episode transpired led to me doing some hard solid thinking in the wake of it.   I know that many relationships in which a cis man dates a trans woman don't survive her telling her partner, and in far too many instances, the trans woman faces the risk of intimate partner violence when she does disclose her status.

But the other question I pondered in the wake of this broadcast is will the broadcast of the Maya and Rick romance finally lead to a honest discussion about the stigma and attacks on their masculinity that cis men like Rick endure for dating a trans woman they love and the attacks on the femininity of the trans women that are the objects of their affection?

While we have instances in our community in which you have couples like Myles and Precious who are trans masculine and trans feminine people who love each other enough they are engaged to be married, far more prevalent are hetero normative relationships in which a trans man is coupled with a cis feminine partner and a cis man is coupled with a trans feminine partner.

It's been happening ever since Christine Jorgensen stepped off the airplane from Denmark in 1953 and Cupid's arrows stared targeting their hearts.  

Pioneering French trans woman Jacqueline Charlotte Dufresnoy married her first husband at Paris' Notre Dame Cathedral in 1960.

But that was in an era before the TERF's started attacking the femininity of trans women in the early 70's, and the rise of the gay rights movement led to a social conservative backlash and attack on the human rights of LGBT people.

The bottom line is that trans men are MEN, and trans women are WOMEN, but for far too long cis men who love us enough to pursue us and put a ring on our fingers have had their masculinity questioned.  

Some of those cis men have even experienced the discrimination their trans partners get as the trans women, especially if their trans partner was low or no disclosure until yanked into the spotlight.   And as Mister Cee discovered, your masculinity, especially when it is revealed that you like trans women, is rigidly and at times viciously policed.

That scrutiny and hostility is magnified if you are a cis man who admits that you like and prefer dating trans women as my brother Troy has pointed out to me in numerous conversations over the years.

Even Hollywood has demonized trans women and the men who love us.  The movie Ted 2 has a scene in which derogatory comments are made by the teddy bear when he finds out his friend has trans porn on his computer.

We need to have an ongoing conversation about our relationships in which the baseline for having it is that our femininity as trans women is not erased and the cis men who prefer us as their partners are not demonized for doing so. 

The cis men who love us are going to have to step up and meet us trans women halfway.  They are going to have to come out of the shadows and say in no uncertain terms they love us, we are the women they want to marry, and to kiss their behinds if you don't like it.  

If a soap opera storyline can lead to an enlightened conversation about a real world issue, then by all means lets get that conversation started.

Seattle Trans Woman Sues Blood Bank

Because I have an AB+ blood type, from time to time I would take part in blood drives when the need arose.

But after my 1994 transition, I could no longer donate blood because the US Food and Drug Administration uses a policy they implemented in 1983 that treats trans men and trans women as gay males having sex with other males (MSM's) and permanently bars us from donating blood.

While the FDA is considering new donation  guidelines for gay and bisexual men, they still haven't as yet come up with guidelines that would allow trans people to do so.

Well, a legal case percolating in Washington state may force the FDA to speed up their timetable for doing so.

Jasmine Kaiser attempted to give plasma in exchange for money at CSL Plasma, Inc in Kent, WA but was told because she was assigned male at birth she could not donate.   She was also told by CSL workers she'd be placed on a 'permanent deferral list' and they would inform other blood banks of this status.

Since Washington state has had a law on the books since 2006 prohibiting discrimination based on gender identity,.Kaiser filed suit against CSL with attorneys from Seattle women's rights group Legal Voice and the Keller Rohrback law firm arguing that CSL violated the Washington non discrimination law
CSL Plasma, Inc is also facing a similar lawsuit from another trans person in Minnesota.

They have yet to respond to the Kaiser suit, but according to the Advocate a spokesperson stated that CSL "operates its business in accordance with all applicable industry, state, federal, and international laws, regulations, guidelines, and guidance documents."

Will be interesting to see how this case transpires.

Fairfax Co. VA School Board Adds Gender Identity To Non Discrimination Policy

The Fairfax County School District is the largest in Virginia and the tenth largest in the nation, and Thursday night had a vote adding gender identity to their nondiscrimination policy on the agenda.

The haters had something on their agenda too, and it was busing in out of town haters to stir up anti-trans animus in a desperate attempt to derail doing the right thing for its trans and gender variant students, teachers and staff.

The contentious meeting took place in front of a room packed with opponents to the proposed policy change that were polite to the ten speakers allowed to comment pro and con on Policy 1450, but cut loose to rudely interrupt board members who spoke in favor of the change as they unleashed every lie from their anti-trans fear and smear playbook.

The transphobes were so out of control that five were removed from the meeting room, others were threatened with removal, and Board Chair Tamara Denarek Kaufax threatened to clear the room if they didn't cease and desist with the nekulturny behavior.

After a failed attempt by the two board opponents of Policy 1450 to delay the vote until October, the Fairfax School Board voted 10-1 with one abstention to pass it as the opponents shouted insults at the board and policy supporters and stormed out of the room.

Ryan McElveen, the Fairfax School Board member who introduced the update to Policy 1450, proclaimed, “Our board will be remembered not for postponing, not for delaying civil rights but for protecting all of our employees and all of our children.”

A statement from Chair Kaufax said that the policy will ensure everyone in the district is treated “with dignity and respect.”

And that's all transpeople and trans students want.  Policies that protect their human rights so they can focus on getting their education, and if they are staff or teachers, do their jobs to the best of their ability..

That's obviously something the professional trans haters forgot in their zeal to foment hatred of transpeople for their paymasters.

Japan's Ministry Of Education Urges Schools To Do More For Trans Students

While some school districts in the United States no thanks to conservafools are moving to oppress trans students, other nations are going in the opposite direction in their education systems.

The Japanese Ministry of Education on April 30 issued a notice to local school boards imploring them to do more for transgender students to reduce their drop out rates.

Many Japanese schools already allow trans students to dress in the uniforms that conform to their expressed gender identity and use the locker rooms and bathrooms of their choice from elementary to the high school level.

The notice not only encourages all schools to do so,but also encourages schools to take steps to accommodate gay and lesbian students.

n a 2012 document, the education ministry urged schools to care for transgender students but stopped short setting out specific measures. Moreover, no mention of sexual minorities was made.
In June 2014, the ministry revealed that schools nationwide had recognized 606 students as transgender, but noted the actual number was probably much higher as LGBTI students often have difficulty coming out.
- See more at: http://www.gaystarnews.com/article/japan-schools-told-let-trans-students-wear-uniform-use-bathroom-choice010515#sthash.agaVSKjW.dpuf

Trans students, because of the pressure to conform in Japanese society, drop out of school,  The  Ministry of Education expressed concerns about that, and in 2012 put out a notice encouraging school districts to care for transgender students, but stopped short of recommending specific measures to do so.

In June 2014 the ministry noted that schools had recognized 606 students nationwide as transgender, but surmised that the number of trans students was probably much higher.because of the difficulty of TBLGI students to come out.

Our school districts could learn a lesson from Japan's education system and do the same thing.   They will learn, as Japan has, that if you give trans kids the opportunity to be themselves, they will stay in school, get their education, and thrive personally and academically.

Hawaii Passes Bill Removing Genital Surgery Requirement For Birth Certificate Changes

Identity documents that match a trans person's current lives are vital doe multiple reasons.   ID's that have correct name and gender markers are not only wonderful for that person's sense of self and psychic well-being because they are being recognized for who they are, they prevent the trans person in question from being opened up to discrimination

Six states and the District of Columbia have led the way in removing the genital surgery requirement before they would change the gender marker on a trans person's identity documents.

Colorado's attempt to join the states that do so passed the House, but was defeated in the GOP controlled Senate.

Hawaii became the seventh state to do so when the Hawaiian legislature advanced HB 631, a bill that would allow residents of the state to submit a note from a physician or mental health professional instead of undergo a genital surgery. to change birth certificate gender markers.

It passed a key committee hearing April 30, and subsequently passed in the Hawaiian House and Senate on Tuesday.   As usual, the GOP hated on it.

"We're going down a very sketchy path here and in effect doctoring the truth," said GOP Senator Sam Slom. "You're either born a man or a woman and that's the way it is."

Umm no, Sam, you are born an infant, and grow up to become an adult  male or female.  Guess you were asleep in science class that day since you and your GOP friends have such a hard time grasping that concept. 

Attorney and Equality Hawaii parent advocate Rebecca Copeland had a different take on the just passed bill. 

"It's the lack of recognition in society that really hurts people," Copeland said. "When people look at it and it doesn't reflect who they are it can really have devastating consequences."

The bill now goes to Gov. David Ige (D) for his signature.

PBS-The Quiet Trans Revolution

More evidence that trans human rights and the transgender tipping point talked about in the Time magazine story is happening.

This PBS story interviewing Alex Myers, who transitioned in the mid 90's and became the first trans graduate of Harvard

Successful TSU 50 Shades Of Me Panel

Last night I was honored to participate on a panel discussion that discussed mental health and the trans community

The panel was entitled 50 Shades Of Me: Mental Health And The Transgender Community and took place in the Jordan-Leland Public Affairs Building on the Texas Southern University campus.

In addition to some blogger y'all know about, the panel included Atlantis Capri, Marie Angel Hernandez, Jude Feng, and Dr. Natalie Walker, and moderated by Dr. Dominique Broussard, one of the organizers of it along with Dr Andrea Shelton.

It was also the first panel I've done on a HBCU campus, and it was gratifying to me it happened on a campus in which I have deep familial ties.

The 50 Shades Of Me panel was a two hour event in which after a greeting by Dr Broussard and an opening statement by Jarvis Calhoun, there was a video played about a young trans kid named Ryland before we dove into the moderated topic of mental health and the trans community.

We discussed the impact of society, the microaggressions and macroaggressions, our personal recollections about it, and other issues that transpeople face that affect them mental health wise. 

It was also enlightening to have J Feng there to not only represent the transmasculine end of it, but talk about trans issues from an Asian-American perspective.

It was also nice to have Dr Walker there to talk about it as a cis feminine therapist who has trans clients perspective.

A pleasant surprise was Dee Dee Watters showing up in the auditorium with roses to present to the panelists. 

The panel's last 30 minutes was opened to audience Q&A before it wrapped up at 8 PM.

This was the first in a series of conversations involving the trans community that will take place on the TSU campus, and Dr Shelton and Dr.Broussard are committed to keeping this dialogue going because it needs to happen.

This was just the beginning of an ongoing conversation, and looking forward to the next one that happens.

It's Sweeps Month-Brace Yourselves For The Trans Themed Programming

When I was in trans info collection mode, my VCR was taping as much trans themed programming as I could find in the run up to my eventual 1994 physical transition.

One of the things I noticed as I taped those talk shows, documentaries and other programs of interest is that they always seemed to pop up during February, May, June and the November  sweeps months.

So what's the 'sweeps months'?   It refers to the Nielsen television ratings system that has dictated whether your fave programs stay on the air or are cancelled.

The sweeps term dates back from 1954, when Nielsen would collect the paper diaries sent to selected homes in the eastern US first, then 'sweep across the country toward the west coast.   The diaries are then aggregated to get the ratings that television programs scheduling decisions and advertising dollars for local television stations, cable systems, and advertisers.  

The November, February and May sweeps months are considered important for programming, while the July sweeps tend to be important for personnel decisions.

The May 2015 sweeps month is starting today, and will run until May 20,   The July sweeps period will be from July 2-29 and the October one will commence on October 29 and run through November 25.

It's probably why ABC's 20/20 scheduled the Bruce Jenner interview for Friday, and you've had interviews all week on MSNBC of trans kids.   While I was flipping channels last night I stumbled across a MTV Catfish show that involved a Houston area trans woman.

And naw, I haven't met the Houston trans woman featured in that show (yet).

And yes, it's always the time when the talk show circuit would schedule their trans themed programming.   Maury would run his infamous Man Or Woman shows during sweeps periods, and Jerry Springer would stick the outrageous trans themed topics on during that time as well..



And when the public is getting most of the news and information about trans people from television, and sweeps month sees higher levels of trans themed programming good, bad or indifferent, it''s always a concern that the programming in question if it's good gets praised by us, and the bad stuff gets called out. 

US Trans Survey Coming This Summer

The National Transgender Discrimination Survey that was conducted in 2010 as a joint project of the Task Force and NCTE it the largest survey ever conducted on transgender discrimination,

It was subsequently released in the 2011 Injustice At Every Turn report was not only groundbreaking, it has been the gift that keeps on giving in terms of trans advocacy work.

There were 6450 respondents that took part in the original survey, and the link to the 2011 survey on the Task Force website has been accessed more than 15,000 times by advocates, academics, media and policymakers.   It has been broken down into 24 state profiles, including Texas. I've referred to those stats generated in the 2011 report in numerous blog posts and when doing lobbying or advocacy on behalf of the community.

It was also great to know that enough trans people of color took the NTDS to come up with statistical breakdowns in the African-American, Latin@, Asian-Pacific Islander communities.

And now, renamed the US Trans Survey, will be conducted during the summer of 2015 and subsequently every five years to take the pulse of the trans community.   

And when it happens, we need in Trans World to double the over 6450 respondents that took part in the original survey and get enough participation so we can get statewide data for all 50 states..

We also need to make sure we get increased participation from trans communities of color so we get even better statistics that we can use for the next five years.

We Had An Attempted Bathroom Assault At UHD....

And thanks to timely assistance by a UHD professor, it ended before it became far worse.   And ammosexuals, it didn't require the use of a gun to stop it.

Professor Frank Vela  heard a female student screaming after a man with a knife followed her into the restroom.  The perpetrator was tackled by Professor Vela and held down until UHD police arrived to arrest the perp and cart his azz off to jail.

And naw, Dave Wilson, Dave Welch, Debbie Riddle, Max Miller, FOX Noise 26 and 'errbody' else pimping that discredited anti-trans bathroom predator lie, the perp wasn't trans* or a man in a dress.  




The perp in question  shared your ethnic background.  His name is 35 year old Daniel Griffing, and appeared before a judge yesterday.   It wasn't his first time in the criminal justice rodeo or committing the crime of sexual assault. Griffing was convicted in 2000 of sexually assaulting a small boy and was sentenced to 15 years in state prison. 

He's being held in the Harris County Jail without bond.

This is also a textbook case of what we in Trans World and our allies have been trying to point out every time the Right Wing Noise Machine deploys the demonstrably false bathroom predator lie they use every time to attack any human rights law that attempts to cover the transgender community.

And yeah, we trans women are just as concerned about people like this running loose in H-town and elsewhere in the state and country.because far too often, trans women are the prey, just like our cis sisters are.

If a man wants to get into a women's bathroom to commit the crime of sexual assault, just like Griffing. he isn't going to waste time getting in drag to do it.

Falsely demonizing and attempting to criminalize the lives of trans people isn't the way to stop sexual assaults.  So it's past time media peeps and the rest of you folks who need to 'ejumacate' yourselves about trans lives need to buy a vowel and get a clue that people like Griffing are your perps you need to be concerned about.

Not the trans woman who is simply trying to live her life to the best of her ability, and just needs to pee in the bathroom without being harassed about it.

Brazilian Trans Woman Beaten After Arrest

Trigger Warning  anti-trans violence and police brutality.

It's been way too quiet news wise about our trans sisters in Brazil, and this police brutality story was brought to my attention by my sis Aleika Barros

Model Veronica Bolina, for reasons that are still unclear, was arrested for assaulting a senior citizen in her apartment building April 12 in Sao Paulo.

She was sent to a male prison, which is problematic to begin with, and during a prison transfer allegedly got into a scuffle with a police officer that resulted in half his ear getting bitten off.

The police claimthey didn't do it, but how did Veronica end up with her hands and feet handcuffed, breasts exposed, head shaved and severely beaten to the point she was hospitalized?  

The Brazilian media predictably misgendered Veronica, and focused on her alleged scuffle with the police officer while conveniently neglecting to mention what they may have savagely done to her.

Bolina told Alessandro Melchior, the coordinator for LGBT policies in the city of Sao Paulo, that she was also attacked in the hospital she was sent to recover in from the injuries she received from the police beating.

The horrific pics are circulating on Brazilian social media and has the Brazilian trans and LGB community outraged over what has happened to Veronica.  

They are tweeting #SomosTodasVeronica (We Are All Veronica) in support of her.

Aleika and other Brazilian trans women would agree that what Veronica is accused of doing in the assault is unacceptable, and if she committed the crime, she should do the time for it.

However, my Brazilian sisters would also tell you they draw the line at Veronica being thrown in a male jail cell, exposing her to the possibility of sexual assault, having her head shaved and being savagely beaten. 

Being savagely beaten and humiliated by the police or whoever did it should never be part of a jail sentence, and it points out the  need for human rights laws in Brazil that cover trans women in a country in which 113 trans women were murdered last year,

It's even more imperative trans human rights coverage happens in a Brazil in which faith based hate is directed at the Brazilian trans community on an almost daily basis.

"Active, Intentional Dialogue"

There is still palpable anger and feelings of betrayal in Trans World over NCLR and the Task Force withdrawing their  support from an Equality Michigan sponsored petition that has the goal of ending the trans feminine exclusion for those trans women who desire to go to the Michigan Womyn's Music Festival.

The intent is to engage in 'active, intentional, dialogue with a long time foe of the trans community in the hopes she will reverse their longtime ban on trans women entering The Land'.

Active, intentional dialogue with someone like Lisa Vogel who doesn't even trcognize the humanity of trans women?   Yeah, right.  I have some waterfront property I'd like to sell you along I-10 in the Atchafalaya Swamp.

Toni D'orsay  has written a post at her Dyssonance blog commenting on the controversy:

There are folks who know Kate and Rea better than I do.  By far. One thing I do know is that both of them have a common history that is very much a commonality among many lesbian leaders of established organizations.  In something that goes back as far as the involvement of lesbians with the work for women that Eleanor Roosevelt did, there is a strong and persistent line of what we think of today as radical feminism that informs them and their outlook on the world.

I am not a lesbian, I am bisexual, and I share much of that — it is part of the time and place and the world we grew up in.

Like most, though, they backed away from the uglier parts of it as trans people moved forward and they knew the lies they were being told were lies.

But they also understand that mindset — far better than most of my peers do.  Not all — and believe me, I am not saying they are part of the TERF movement, they are merely people who understand it.  They are, after all, cis women, and one of the most potent attacks that the TERFs have been using is the whole basis behind the argument about trans women and cis women being lovers and the problems around that.

Because they incorporate an element of “lesbian hate” into their arguments. One that ignores the fact that said hate is coming from other lesbians, but that’s because they refuse to see them as women, and therefore not lesbians.

Exciting, isn’t it?

Here's the link to the rest of the Dyssonance post entitled ''Active Intentional Dialogue': Michfest, NCLR and the Task Force  that definitely needs to be signal boosted.

Another Landmark Trans EEOC Ruling

Just in time for our next lobby day in Texas (which be a Trans* one on April 27) comes this wonderful news about a case that could potentially put an end to the GOP rush to demonize trans people with bathroom bills.

The U S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ruled on April 1 in a recent case brought by trans woman Tamara Lusardi that denying transgender people access to restrooms or respecting name changes violates federal sex discrimination law.

The EEOC ruling also confirms the October 2014 ruling by the Office of Special Council that the Army had discriminated against Ms Lusardi. 

The Army also has to pay the trans lady an unspecified amount in damages and provide discrimination training in the office where Lusardi works..

Lusardi is a civilian Army employee in Huntsville, AL and filed the case after she began her transition in 2010.   She was forced to use a single stall restroom and denied use of the women’s restroom.   Lusardi also stated that a team leader persistently referred to her using male pronouns and made other hostile transphobic remarks.

This EEOC ruling in the Lusardi case expands upon its previous findings in Macy v Holder that Title VII sex discrimination protections include transgender people.  It also sends a clear message that denying trans employees access to the correct gender presentation matching restroom is discrimination.

The reason I'm surmising this would potentially put an end to the conservafool attempts to demonize trans people by using bathroom bills is twofold. 

The Department of Justice has recently begun interpreting Title VII of the Civil Rights Act to be inclusive of trans people for sex discrimination    It was the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that ended racially segregated bathrooms, and it could also be interpreted to mean that these laws that GOP legislators are rushing to try to enact will be a waste of time because they will overruled and eventually found unconstitutional.

At any rate, this is a huge win with the potential to have ripple effect beyond just Lusardi's case. ,

"From the start, this has been about getting a fair shake to work hard at a job I love," said Lusardi in a statement. "This decision makes it clear that, like everybody else in the workplace, transgender people should be judged by the quality of the work we do, not who we are."