TSA Still Has A Problem With Trans Travelers

Those assurances ring hollow when I continue to be told disturbing reports from a diverse group of trans people about incidents ranging from snide transphobic comments by TSA agents as people are clearing security to inappropriate questioning about our transitions and genital area searches by TSA personnel who obviously don't have a clear understanding of the protocols supposedly put in place to protect the dignity and human rights of trans travelers. 
-TransGriot  March 6, 2016  

As many of you TransGriot readers know, one of my nicknames in the community is the Air Marshal because I used to work in the airline business for over a decade, and ir was also to separate me from the other Monica in the trans activist community at the time, Monica Helms.

I have an ambivalent relationship with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), because as someone who used to do the security checkpoint tests as part of my job duties on our IAH private security peeps, I learned things that had me concerned before the 9-11 terror attacks happened.

So I understand why TSA exists.  The private security companies failed on September 11, 2001 and had been having problems prior to that date, so in order to ensure uniform airport checkpoint security standards in all US airports it required the federal government to step in and do the job.

But what I have been concerned about for several years now as a frequent flyer and advocate is the ongoing pattern of TSA harassment of trans travelers that I hear about so often that one of my sarcastic comments about it is that TSA stands for Transsexuals Searched Always 

And now, with anti-trans rhetoric and bigotry being ramped up by the Republican Party for their nefarious 2018 political gains, and a Trump Administration rolling back the trans human rights protections put in place by the Obama Administration, it seems that once again the TSA transphobes are taking their cue to ruin the travel days of transpeople across the country.

That transphobia within TSA even extends as we discovered in 2011 to its own employees as was demonstrated by Ashley Yang's terminated tenure with LAX TSA,

I'm hearing and seeing on social media increasing complaints from trans frequent travelers about harassment by TSA agents, problematic searches and disrespectful treatment   And it is not just centered at particular airports, it's happening all over the country despite TSA's claims that they have policies and training in place for trans travelers.

In the wake of the complaints the trans community lodged about air travel while trans then, on October 8, 2015 a letter signed by 32 congressmembers was sent to then TSA administrator Peter Neffenger urging him to to review the transgender travel protocols.

Obviously there is some disconnect between the TSA trans traveler policies being filtered down from management to the airport level and what's actually happening at the airports, and it needs to be dealt with soon.    It doesn't help that TSA now has an acting director in Huban A. Gowadia.  Even if she's empathetic to what's going on, will she get the 'acting' part removed from her title?

Because from where we trans Americans sit, the perception increasingly backed up by our travel experiences is that the TSA still has a problem with transgender travelers and is only flapping their gums about solving it.

Maybe it's time that the Trans Traveler 101 training needs to be done by trans folks to your TSA agents, and it needs to be shared and backed up with terminations if necessary that the TSA will not tolerate transphobia in the ranks that metastasizes into harassment of trans air travelers.

Trans folks travel by air, we're not going away, and we deserve the same level of dignity and respect that you give the cisgender peeps transiting your security checkpoints on the way to our flights.

We get enough crap from the rest of the world.  The last thing we need is another layer of disrespect dished out by people our taxes pay their salary  when we board flights for business or pleasure. ,

Moni's Texas Travel Bucket List

Since today is the anniversary of the Battle of San Jacinto that led to Texas' independence from Mexico,  I thought this would be an apropos day for this post.

I have been blessed to travel around much of the US, and much of my France sized home state.  I have done the long drive along 1-10 from Houston to LA twice, have visited the LBJ Ranch and his presidential library on the UT campus, and gone to Dallas so much I can drive around it without a map.   .

But there are still parts of the Lone Star State I haven't seen or visited.   Here's my Top 10 spots that I'd like to visit inside the Lone Star State

1. Corpus Christi

It's Selena's hometown and the gateway to another spot I'd love to visit in Padre Island.   Would love to see the Selena Museum and some of the other sights of Corpus Christi before zooming across the Queen Isabella Causeway to Padre Island.

2.  Padre Island

I was supposed to go there for a high school senior trip but didn't.   Even during my airline days I put it on the back burner of places to go see because I now had an expanded list of places and famous beaches to visit.   It's also home to Padre Island National Seashore, which protects 70 miles of the 113 mile long barrier island from the development that has turned South Padre Island iato a spring break destination.

3. The Rio Grande Valley

It's considered to be the three counties along the southernmost tip of the Texas-Mexico border, Starr, Hidalgo, and Cameron counties plus Willacy County.   Despite having a lot of friends and people I know who grew up there, I've never been to 'The Valley', which is also predominately Latinx.

I would love to visit the cities of Harlingen, McAllen, Brownsville and check out its blended culture. They do host a gender conference at UT- Rio Grande Valley, so maybe that will happen for me sooner than I think.

4. Big Bend National Park

While I'm not one of those girls who loves camping out, still have to check out Big Bend National Park and all it has to offer scenery wise.

It hugs much of the Texas-Mexico border in West Texas, and because it is sparsely populated and a long way from city lights, it is considered prime territory for star gazing and has the McDonald Observatory nearby.

5. The Panhandle

It consists of the northernmost 26 counties in the state and has Amarillo as its major city, connected to Lubbock by I-27.   It also has Palo Duro Canyon in the region just south of Amarillo, which is the second largest canyon in the United States .

Speaking of Amarillo, which is on I-40 and the fabled Route 66, it has some attractions of its own like the Cadillac Ranch sculpture and the Big Texan restaurant with it's 72 oz steak that free if you can complete its food challenge.

6/  Texarkana

While I've driven through it twice in 2006 and stopped to get gas there on my way from Louisville to Dallas for my cousin's wedding, I'd still like to see State Line Drive and the Texarkana City Hall that straddles the border between Texas and Arkansas.

7. Lockhart

In a state that is well known around the world for its barbecue, Lockhart is the mecca for it with four well known spots to pig out on it (pun intended)   And yes, this town has been on my radar for some time.

There's Smitty's,  Kreuz marker, Lockhart BBQ and Black's, and they all have people arguing constantly over which one serves the best barbecue.

8. Ft. Worth

While I have gone to Dallas frequently for a lot of reasons including family visits and the BTAC convention, that's not the case for its next door neighbor in Ft. Worth,

I've been there only once because I tagged along with my godbrother on a drive in 1981, and after Brent finished some TSTC school registration business in Waco, decided to head north on I-35 to visit his then girlfriend at TCU.

But there's a lot more to visit than the TCU campus, and that includes the Ft. Worth Stockyards, the Water Garden, the Ft Worth Zoo, and Billy Bob's Texas .

9. Waco

The home of Baylor University and county seat of McLennan County is another place I haven't visited that does have some things to see besides the campus.  The Waco Suspension Bridge that was completed in 1870 and is open to foot traffic only, is on the National Register of Historic Places.  It was the first bridge built across the Brazos River, and was used by people driving cattle along the Chisholm Trail.

And yes, just east of town was the 1993 Branch Davidian standoff.

10..Nacogdoches

It's considered the oldest town in Texas, being founded by the Spanish in 1716, two years before San Antonio was founded.

It is the home of Stephen F. Austin State University, where the Texas Transgender Non Discrimination Summit will be held this year..  It also hosts the Texas Blueberry Festival,

You Ride On An Airline Pass, Gotta Follow That Airline's Pass Rules

I worked in the airline business for 14 years and transitioned in the middle of my time there at IAH's Terminal C.   One of my perks as an CAL airline employee was reduced rate non-revenue travel on mine and every airline on the planet that we had an interline agreement with.  

And yes, Moni did her share of domestic non-revenue travel of which I will expound upon in future TransGriot posts in terms of the joys and pains of airline travel while trans in the 90's.

I was a gate agent, CSR and a gate supervisor during my time with Continental, which meant that one of my job duties was to enforce the dress code for pass riders.

When I started at CAL in 1987, the employee pass policy of the time stated employees had to wear business attire, regardless of whether we were sitting in coach or first class or doing business or leisure non-rev travel.

That meant suits and ties for the guys, dresses, slacks or pantsuits with hose for women.

When that policy was crafted, flying was considered a luxurious and status filled way to travel, and people dressed that upscale way when they did so.   It also made it easier for employees to get bumped up to first class if those were the only available seats left to put non-revs in on a full flight.

But because the airline business was changing in early 1987 and becoming a more common way to travel, folks in both classes of service started dressing more casually to do so.  The advent of frequent flyer programs like our OnePass one made upgrades happen more often, and us more formally dressed CAL airline employees following the company pass policies of the time stick out like sore thumbs when we non-revved on flights around the country and the world.

The policy was changed so that we could dress in a more business casual style, but you still had items that we CAL employees couldn't wear when we did partake in non-rev travel.   When the buddy pass program was implemented in the late 90's, that company pass policy and its rules also extended to the people that we allowed to travel on our passes.  If they violated them, the punishment could extend to suspension or in the case of an egregious violation of those policies termination of buddy pass and non-revenue travel for the employee.

So yes, I was extremely careful about who I gave my ten buddy passes per year allotment out to, and in many cases when possible and I wasn't working, I traveled with the buddy pass rider to ensure they followed our airline's non-rev policies to the letter.

Non revenue travel can also be stress inducing at times for the employee and the gate agent working the flight, especially if it's to a popular destination or during holidays. which is why I actually do more flying now that I'm not in the airline business than I did when I had the ability to fly around the world for next to nothing cost wise.

When we flew non-rev, we were also considered representatives of the company, which is why the dress code rules were around in the first place.

So when I heard this story about the teen girls being denied boarding on a United flight for wearing leggings and changing into dresses in order to fly, it brought me back to those days when I would have to diplomatically explain to someone screaming epithets at me that no, you can't travel wearing a bathing suit or Daisy Duke shorts on a flight while traveling on a buddy pass,. The flight was leaving on time from this gate, and you needed to change clothes ASAP if you wanted to fly on that pass and on that plane out of IAH today to your final destination.

I also had to explain to peeps from time to time that you couldn't fly on a pass barefoot, in flip flops, ripped jeans, tube tops or any attire that exposed your undergarments or revealed too much flesh.
.

So I had to shake my head and chuckle at all these folks who don't have an airline background commenting on what happened at that United gate in Denver.  They basically took half the story and did some loud and wrong running at the mouth facts free commentary about it.

Maybe at the time those policies were crafted for the merged Continental/United carrier, leggings weren't considered professional attire.  Fashion has evolved to where leggings have become a fashion forward item.   I also see this as a textbook case of someone getting half the story and stirring up misplaced outrage without having all of the facts.

United had every right to enforce their non-rev pass rules.  It is part of a gate agent's job to enforce those rules when they are violated whether the person violating them is a veteran UA employee or a teen traveling on a buddy pass.

How it's done depends on the circumstances.   But it still doesn't change the salient fact that if you're riding on a airline pass, whether you have an airline employee's badge or are traveling on that employee's passes, for that moment you are considered a representative of that carrier, and you still have to follow that airline's pass rules.

Texas Bullet Train Breaking Ground In 2018?

Whenever I wish to go to the Dallas-Fort Worth area, my options rights now are to either drive or ride the nonstop Megabus between the two cities via Interstate 45 which takes four hours to do, or fly.

The flight between the two cities is only a little over an hour, but that's before you factor dealing with TSA security at airports on both ends of the trip plus driving to and from the airports, be they Hobby or IAH on this end of I-45 or Love Field or DFW on the other end.

There may be a third option added soon for those of us in both cities, and it's tantalizingly close to becoming a reality in terms of high speed bullet train service between Houston and Dallas.

The Texas Central Railway trains would be based on the Tokaido Shinkansen N700 ones that have been zipping between Tokyo and Osaka for over fifty years with a pristine safety record, and would take 90 minutes to zip between the two cities at speeds of up to 205 MPH along a 10 county route.

The Texas Central Railway is a privately funded effort that aimed to get that service started by 2020, but has been delayed a bit until 2022 because they are awaiting the final environmental impact statement and ongoing negotiations with landowners along the ten county high speed train route corridor to acquire the right of way necessary for the trains to handle their high speed travel business

The surprise election of Trump also threw some uncertainty into this with all his 'America First' campaign rhetoric.

Texas Central claims they have 30% of the land needed to get the project going, and 50% of the land needed in Waller and Grimes Counties near the Houston end of the line.   They also have two preferred sites for the Dallas HSR station near downtown.   On the Houston end are trying to decide whether the HSR station will be near downtown Houston or at the METRO Northwest Transit Center.north of the Galleria.

Grimes County, which is the home of Texas A&M University, will also have a stop along the 240 mile line.

We'll.see if they meet their goal of starting construction on the line next year so it can be completed for passenger service by 2022.  But if TCR is successful in doing so, once the line is operational, I won't have to travel to Japan, France ,China or Germany to experience riding a high speed rail train.

The best part about that is I'll get to do so  in my home state.

UK Issues Travel Warning To NC and MS

It's getting harder every day for Gov. Pat McCrory (R) and the conservafool movement to claim that North Carolina has suffered 'no repercussions' for passing that unjust human rights monstrosity that NC NAACP President Rev. Dr. William Barber II calls Hate Bill 2.

Concerts are being canceled, conventions are being pulled, Cirque de Soleil has canceled all its performances in North Carolina, and corporations are canceling plans to add jobs in the Tarheel State.   Even Duke University has called for HB 2 to be repealed.

The latest blow to North Carolina is coming from across The Pond.   The UK Foreign Office has issued a travel warning for its LGBTQI British citizens traveling to North Carolina or Mississippi similar to the ones they issue for travel to Russia, Turkey or other anti-TBLG hotspots around the world.

The UK Foreign Office travel advisory to British LGBTQI citizens published today on its website reads::

The US is an extremely diverse society and attitudes towards LGBT people differ hugely across the country. LGBT travelers may be affected by legislation passed recently in the states of North Carolina and Mississippi.

 Before traveling please read our general travel advice for the LGBT community (link above). You can find more detail on LGBT issues in the US on the website of the Human Rights Campaign.’

Gotta be embarrassing to the GOP controlled NC government when Great Britain is putting your state in the same class as other anti-democratic and repressive human rights regimes around the world.

No matter how hard you try to deflect and not take personal responsibility for this mess, you own it because you caused it.  You can also fix it by repealing Hate Bill 2.

Does TSA = Transsexuals Searched Always?

'Neither should I or any trans person face dehumanization or disrespect when we are simply doing what other cis people are doing and are traveling across the country for business or pleasure.'
--TransGriot, October 10, 2016


One of the reasons that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) exists is because of the poor job private security contractors did at the nations airports prior to the 9-11 terror attacks.

Since November 2001 they have been part of the air travel experience for all Americans, and there is a love-hate relationship with the TSA that has even been commented on in movies like Baggage Claim and She's Out Of My League.  

But the interactions with the TSA when we travel are no laughing matter to transgender travelers, and it seems increasingly to trans people that we are being disrespectfully at times targeted even before the Shadi Petosky mess in Orlando.  Those concerns led to 32 Democratic congressmembers sending a letter to TSA Administrator Peter Neffenger expressing their concerns about their transgender search protocols.

Traveling while trans is already stress inducing at times. Getting singled out for scrutiny by the TSA when we know that trans bodies are regarded as 'anomalies' by this organization just adds another level to the anxiety we feel when we are taking to the skies to handle our business or pleasure travel.    

It leads us in the trans community to perceive we're being harassed despite TSA assurances our community concerns are being heard and dealt with inside the organization with trans specific training and policies.

Those assurances ring hollow when I continue to be told disturbing reports from a diverse group of trans people about incidents ranging from snide transphobic comments by TSA agents as people are clearing security to inappropriate questioning about our transitions and genital area searches by TSA personnel who obviously don't have a clear understanding of the protocols supposedly put in place to protect the dignity and human rights of trans travelers.

The TSA needs to redouble their efforts to root out transphobia in its ranks that manifests itself at our nation's security checkpoints into harassment of trans travelers.

32 Members Of Congress Urge TSA To Reform Trans Screening Procedures

One of my nicknames in the trans community is the Air Marshal for two reasons.   When I first got involved in community activism in 1998 I was working for a major airline.  Being based in Texas also meant as an trans advocate I had to hop a plane to get to either coast, Washington DC, the Midwest, the Southeast US, the Rocky Mountain states, the New England states or the Pacific Northwest where many of the trans events and conferences were happening.

And yes, that means because of my heavy travel schedule at times, I have had more than a few opportunities to engage not only with the local TSA officers at Hobby and Intercontinental Airports, but airports throughout the country. 

And it never fails that I get a patdown search either at the beginning of my trip, the homeward bound leg of it, or on both legs.  It also happens no matter whether I start my trip at Hobby or IAH.. 

While I have yet to (and hope I never have to) experience the horror of what Shadi Petosky experienced in Orlando last month, I have had more than my share in my travels across this country of patdown searches by female TSA agents, snide comments made by TSA officers running screening machines as I waited to be scanned, and twice being sent to the chemical analyzer for more screening before being sent off to my departure gate.

In the wake of the Petosky mess, a TSA investigation into her allegations was launched, and a federal lawsuit was filed in July over the regulations that govern scanners and patdown searches.

On Thursday, 32 members of Congress sent a letter to TSA Administrator Peter Neffinger to review the TSA protocols and procedures that affect trans travelers. 

As much as people hate on the TSA, the reason it exists is because the private security companies that were handling the job at our nation's airports failed massively on 9-11 and had been failing at doing so for years before that 2001 terror attack.  

As a former airline employee and someone who is a frequent air traveler, I support the existence of the TSA and their personnel who are handling their duties with the utmost level of courtesy and professionalism for the flying public.

However, the flying public also includes trans people, and there is room for improvement when it comes to interacting with trans travelers.

Neither should I or any trans person face dehumanization or disrespect when we are simply doing what other cis people are doing and are traveling across the country for business or pleasure.

The Air Marshal's Travel Day From Hell

As someone who spent 14 years in the aviation industry (and misses it at times) and is flying around the country for different events, I love traveling by air. 

Veteran trans activists still call me Air Monica or the Air Marshal because back in the late 90's when I started as an activist I became the trans community's rapid response team.   When a crisis or snap protest needed some national trans leadership support, because I was an airline employee at the time and could easily do so, if if happened on my days off, I was hopping a flight to your vicinity

So as many of you know I spent an enjoyable two days in Boston with Tiq, Kellee, Kenyon and many of the wonderful peeps who attended the National Association of Black Journalists conference there and is still going on with more seminars today.    I also had a trip from heaven up to Boston for it on Wednesday.

My panel was fun but serious business.  We discussed talking about the issue of trans coverage in the media and how Black journalists can do a better job of it because frankly, they must.

It is import that the media, and especially journalists who share our ethnic background get it right.

I got to meet many of the people involved with the organizations LGBT Task Force and get an invitation to join it.  I was also bummed I missed their reception last night.

I even had some fangirl moment when I got to see ESPN's Michael Wilbon walking the halls as eager journalism students stopped him in the halls to take photos. I thought I saw one of my journalism idols in former ABC News anchor Carole Simpson   I bumped into Mark Thompson while grabbing a Dunkin donut in the massive mall that was between my hotel and the Hynes Convention Center.

I even ran into Houston's Mary Benton, who interviewed me during the HERO fight and FOX 26 Isiah Carey when I showed up in the Sheraton bar post panel with my fellow panelists, Jonathan and Chris from the LGBT Task Force to talk about some other issues and our lives..    

And yes, seriously thinking about becoming a member of NABJ.   Next year's conference is in Minneapolis, so get ready Twin Cites. 

So as I mentioned, I had the travel day from hell and it started that morning in Boston. 

After getting up at 5:30 AM EDT to check out of my room and allow time for my train ride to Logan Airport so I can clear TSA security and make my 9:05 AM departure to MDW and home, I bounce to the Back Bay station to start my trip on the Orange Line.

I'm ready to leave the room at 6:30 AM and after dropping off my room key and getting direction from the bell captain, I made one wrong turn trying to get to it that put me in the Copley Square Mall's parking garage. I finally the station at 6:55 AM  and the MBTA ticket machines so I can purchase my ticket to start the journey to Logan.  Of the two available one is out and the other is being electronically recalcitrant and timing out my transaction before I have a chance to complete the purchase.   I know the clock's ticking and I need to make forward progress toward Logan so I hit the call box to get some help.

A friendly sister MBTA employee starts trying to get the machine to work and I miss one northbound Orange Line train in the process.  Fortunately it's rush hour, and and she makes some failed attempts to get the recalcitrant ticketing machine to do its job sends me on my way with her apologies.

But I didn't have a ticket or receipt, and flashbacking to home and METRO transit cops patrolling the METRORail trains looking for peeps trying to ride free and getting ticketed for it made for an anxiety filled MBTA train ride as I moved closer to my Orange Line transfer station to the Blue Line that would take me to Logan.

I eventually arrive at the Airport Station and just miss the shuttle bus heading to the airport.   The next one arrives five minutes later and unlike my inbound trip when I went from Terminal E straight to the station, I have to do the Tour De Logan this time including a stop at the Rental Car Center..

Then I get to Terminal E, check the monitor to find my gate and as I'm approaching TSA security realize I can't find my tickets.  The panic that registered on my face led the TSA security personnel to give me the full treatment including scan, pat down by female officer and swabbing of both hands before being allowed to proceed to the gate. 

I get to the gate, get on my flight, we leave early and get to Midway early around 10:40 AM CDT.   I gt to gate B14 and settle in for my what was supposed to be a 1.5 hour wait as visions of Pappas barbecue are dancing in my head along with my fave R&B tunes playing on my laptop.

Then I notice as I look out the windows of Gate B15 an ominous darkening of clouds heralded the pop up thunderstorm that would ruin my travel day.   Moments later it unleashed a torrential rain so intense that I couldn't see the Southwest hangar buildings or the off airport property treeline.

And once I heard our inbound aircraft making up our Houston trip diverted to Milwaukee, my feeling of impending airline travel doom was confirmed.    The short but intense storm caused 20 planes to divert and triggered a creeping delay on my originally scheduled 12:30 PM departure that got backed up to 1:45 PM, then 2:30 PM, then 3:55 PM.   Meanwhile as I'm sitting there I think about the fact the plane I got off of was continuing to San Antonio and a delayed flight next door on B12 was going to New Orleans.

As we're sitting in the ever more increasingly crowded lobby area in B12-14, plugs to recharge our electronic devices are at a premium.  A renovation project has started in the gate lobby areas to add the nice leather chairs with plugs Southwest has in many of its airports at Midway.  The comfy chairs were there, but weren't plugged in so you could charge or run your devices on them.    

Speaking of not plugged in, it was at that point we also discovered that Midway doesn't have free WiFi.  

Note to Chicago Airport Authority:  Join the rest of us in the 21st century and offer free WiFi to your citizens and passengers transiting through your airports.  It damned sure would have come in handy during this delay situation.  

A bitter joke starts circulating amongst many of the stranded travelers that MDW stands for Motherf*****g Damned Weather and other more profane combinations that you can come up with for Midway's IATA designation.   

At approximately 5 PM the news comes that Flight 2314 has been canceled.   I know my gate agents are going to be overwhelmed, so I head up the hall to B-9 to find out which one of the two remaining fights from MDW to Hobby I've been booked on.    I discover from the friendly B-9 gate agent I'm on the one that is scheduled for 7:15 PM but is delayed until 9 PM back on gate B-14.

After checking the flight, I call Tiq Milan who is still at the NABJ convention, tell him I'm stuck in Chicago and ask him to help me get in contact with some of the peeps I know in the Chitown trams community since I left my phone book with those numbers in Houston thing I wouldn't need it..

Note to self:  From now on, bring that damned phone book with you.  

I also call Mom to let her know I was stuck in Chicago, because I was supposed to be back in Houston originally at 3:10 PM.  I also tell her I'm formulating a back up plan in case this delayed one I'm on now gets canceled for whatever reason and I have to spend the night in Chicago.

I eventually get calls from Myles Brady and Jen Richards, and it's agreed that if I have to stay in Chicago, it'll be at Jen's place.  I seriously considered just saying frack it and asking to be rebooked in the morning and heading over there since I'd been up since 5:30 AM Boston time and I'd spent 6 hours in the crowded confines of MDW already, but I wasn't feeling another encounter with TSA security.  

I also had a HERO meeting I wanted to attend in Houston that started at 12 noon Saturday, and was going to do my utmost to get back to the Lone Star State for it, even if it was in the wee hours of the morning.

Those of us who were on the cancelled Houston fight by now were bonding.   Holding seats for each other if one of us got up to use the bathroom, discussing our lives and several crowding around one person's laptop so we could watch the Astros-Blue Jays game with a Cubs fan originating in.Chicago but headed to Houston to visit family.

We finally got some good news-bad news about our delayed Houston flight around 8 PM.  We have a plane, a first officer and enough flight attendants to board our flight, but would have to wait for a captain and a replacement flight attendant to round out the crew.   We also weren't boarding it until about 9:30 PM and it would be through gate B-12.

We end up boarding our flight around 10 PM and sat on board as we waited for our flight attendant and captain.  We get our sister flight attendant around 10:15 PM and our captain 5 minutes later.   After the timed out FA briefs the new arrival as to what's up, she leaves.   Gate agent places final departure paperwork in cockpit around 10:30 PM and shuts the main cabin door.   At 10:30 PM, exactly 12 hours after I arrived in MDW for what was supposed to be a 1.5 hour layover, our 737-800 pushed back from gate B-12 destination Houston and takes off a few minutes later.

But the fun isn't over yet.  Flight attendants are advised by our captain to stay seated after takeoff, and we have to deal with bumpy air for the next 15-20 minutes of the flight as we escape the Chicago area.  We ducked and dodged storms as we crossed the Midwest enroute to Texas before it smoothed out and it was safe for the flight attendants and passengers to move around in the cabin.   

But once we hit 10,000 feet I didn't care because I had a whole row to myself and enough music for the 2 hour ride back to Houston.   Made up for me losing my A boarding position once the original flight cancelled.     

Eventually we flew over Dallas (and I waved at my Dallas peeps as we did so) and an hour later we were on final approach to Hobby.   We finally touched down and pulled into our arrival gate at 1:45 AM Saturday.

After having some great travel experiences over the last year, even including the trip up to Boston, it was just a matter of time before the law of averages caught up with me and I'd have a negative one.  Airline travel can be like that sometimes.   But the one thing I'm most concerned about with any airline trip is getting me from Point A to Point B safely. 

And on that, Southwest gets an A+ despite all the weather induced drama that caused me to spead a lot more time in Chicago than I'd planned.     
       

TSA Travel Tips For Transpeeps

I recently heard about one of my transsisters having a less than pleasant experience going through TSA security on a recent flight up to being ridiculed and then subsequently searched by a male TSA officer.

Both actions are against TSA rules.

Since many of us will be traveling by air in the near or not too distant future and the TSA ain't going away any time soon,  time for the Air Marshal (my old activist nickname) to remind you about what your rights are as a trans air traveler  

*Private Screening: Screening can be conducted in a private screening area with a witness or companion of the traveler’s choosing. A traveler may request private screening or to speak with a supervisor at any time during the screening process.

*Travel Document Checker: The traveler will show their government-issued identification and boarding pass to an officer to ensure the identification and boarding pass are authentic and match. Transgender travelers are encouraged to book their reservations such that they match the gender and name data indicated on the government-issued ID.

*New Advanced Imaging Technology Software: TSA has upgraded all millimeter wave advanced imaging technology units with new software called Automated Target Recognition to further enhance privacy protections by eliminating the image of an actual traveler and replacing it with a generic outline of a person.

*Pat-Down: A pat-down may be performed if there is an alarm of the metal detector, if an anomaly is detected using advanced imaging technology, if an officer determines that the traveler is wearing non-form fitting clothing, or on a random basis. If a pat-down is chosen or otherwise necessary, private screening may be requested. Pat-downs are conducted by an officer of the same gender as presented by the individual at the checkpoint. 

Travelers who believe they have experienced unprofessional conduct at a security checkpoint are encouraged to request a supervisor at the checkpoint to discuss the matter immediately or to submit a concern to TSA’s Contact Center at: TSA-ContactCenter@dhs.gov.

Travelers who believe they have experienced discriminatory conduct because of a protected basis may file a concern with TSA’s Office of Civil Rights & Liberties, Ombudsman and Traveler Engagement at: Civil Rights for Travelers.

Travelers may also file discrimination concerns with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties at: Civil Rights and Civil Liberties.

The Transportation Safety Administration are there in the nation's airports to keep us safer when we fly, not to dehumanize transpeople as we simply try to get from Point A to Point B by airplane across this country and around the world.

So if you experience less than professional treatment from a TSA agent when you fly, report it. 

Where In The World Can I Go With My US Passport As A Trans Person?

One of the things that's on my short term to do list is getting my United States passport.  I want to have that issue out of the way in case I get invited to participate in a future international trans conference.  

The cool thing about getting a US passport is you don't need to undergo genital surgery to get the proper gender code on it and it's on the voter suppression laws list of acceptable ID because of the $135 cost.

I do like to travel, and one of the things I regret didn't get a chance to do more often before I reluctantly left the airline industry was fly internationally.

Like a lot of people I have an international travel bucket list of which in addition to seeing the classic tourist attractions like Paris' Eiffel Towel, Beijing's Forbidden City, Tokyo's Ginza district, transiting the Panama Canal and Berlin's Brandenburg Gate I also have attending international sporting events on my agenda like the Olympics, FIFA World Cups, FIBA world championships and tennis Grand Slam tournaments.  

My personal travel bucket list has a mix of well known tourist things to do plus things that are significant to my culture as a child of the African Diaspora and membership in the international trans community.    

Some of the things I'd like to do someday in addition to visiting Paris is going to the D-Day beaches in Normandy.   I want to see Robben Island prison in South Africa, look out of The Door of No Return at Senegal's Goree Island, visit Berlin, Stuttgart where my cousins are and drive on an autobahn, and travel to Holland and visit Anne Frank's annex. 

I want to go to Poland and see Auschwitz, see Mt. Fuji in Japan and ride a bullet train, visit Australia, hang out with Zoe in Canberra, see the Sydney Opera House and catch a footy game.  I want to visit London's Imperial War Museum and The All England Club, see Hong Kong, and spend some quality time with Naomi Fontanos and my transpinay sisters in the Philippines and take in the Amazing Philippines Show while I'm there.  

I'd also like to travel to Thailand, see a show at one of Thailand's trans cabarets, spend quality time with Audrey Mbugua and Lindsay during a Kenyan visit.  I'd like to visit Canada and my Canadian homegirls cis and trans across the country along with doing a dream north of the border road trip. 

But because of the anti-trans animus being stoked in large sections of the Middle East, eastern Europe, Latin America, Malaysia and Indonesia and much of the African continent, there are some of my travel bucket list items I may have to postpone or scratch off the list period for the time being. 

Can't go to Russia or Nigeria.  They both have draconian anti-LGBT laws and Russia will host the 2014 Winter Olympics in a few months.  Bye bye Red Square in Moscow and visiting St. Petersburg. 

Uganda, where Victoria Falls is located not only has a Kill The Gays one they have been trying to pass for several years now, it has rampant transphobia.  There are several sub-Saharan African nations in which transphobia is sadly on the rise.

The Middle East?  Same tired story of rampant anti-trans animus, especially in the Gulf States like Kuwait.  Egypt, the home of the pyramids has denied entry to transpeople into their country from customs and so has Dubai. 

Turkey is the second most dangerous place in the world for trans women and will be the host nation for the FIBA World Championship for Women next year.  

Brazil?  One of the most dangerous places in the world for trans women and the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics will be there.   Mexico?  Increasingly dangerous for trans women.    Greece?  Police harassment and unjust detainment of our transsisters, so that kills visiting the ancient Greek antiquity sites like the Parthenon.  The Caribbean?   We have heard the stories about Jamaica's recent anti-TBLG history.  Some of the other Anglophone Caribbean nations still have British colonial era anti-crossdressing laws on their legal books that could be liberally interpreted by the local po-po's to garner you some unwanted time in the local jails.

Bermuda?  While they just enacted a law expanding rights for gay, lesbian and bi folks, it's still open harassment season for trans people.

Central America?  Anti-trans animus and violent attacks on our transsisters in several of those nations such as Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras.  Malaysia and Indonesia?  Anti-trans attitudes spread by fundie Muslims.  Hong Kong was detaining trans women, especially transpinays as you entered customs.

And that's before we even throw in my skin color and racial profiling as a factor.   The fun of just getting on that international flight to leave the USA after going through the TSA security gauntlet and upon your return going through customs as you reenter the US.

So where the hell can I travel as a Black trans woman who wants to see the world before she departs it? 

Theoretically, it's any place on the globe I have the time, cash and desire to visit with the exception of Cuba and North Korea in which US government travel bans are in place.

But realistically, the list of countries I can safely travel to as a trans person is sadly shrinking.