Mistrial Declared In Duanna Johnson Beating Case

After four days of deliberations in which 11 jurors voted to convict and one holdout said no, a mistrial has been declared in the federal trial of former Memphis police officer Bridges McRae.

McRae was indicted in November 2008 and being tried for violating the civil rights of the late Duanna Johnson. He was caught on tape beating her while undergoing processing in the Shelby County Jail.

He was facing up to 10 years in federal prison and a maximum fine of $250,000 had he been convicted.

Prosecutors are considering retrying the case, but once again it means that justice for Duanna Johnson is delayed and denied on two levels.

One for the jailhouse beatdown, and the other for her unsolved murder.

The Queen's New Flick-Just Wright

I love me some Queen Latifah as much as my Canadian homegirl does.

Naah, scratch that. I think Renee has me beat when it comes to hailing the Queen.

At any rate, the Queen is about to grace us with a new movie coming out around May 14. It's called Just Right and in addition to her, it stars Common, Paula Patton, Phylicia Rashad and Pam Grier.

The trailer looks interesting, and it's directed by Sanaa Hamri, who directed Something New with Sanaa Lathan.

I'll definitely be at the local multiplex for it when it gets released.

Canadian Action Alert-Call Or Write Your MP About Bill C-389

According to my Canadian sis Mercedes Allen of Dented Blue Mercedes, Bill C-389, which would give Canadian transpeople employment/housing non-discrimination and hate crimes inclusion in one bill, is alive, well and about to come up for debate next month.

The bill was authored by Bill Siksay, and since it was a private members bill, did not die when the Sweater Vest prorogued Parliament.

To my Canadian readers, y'all know what to do. Call or write your MP and urge them to pass this bill. If you don't know who that person is, just click on this link to get you started.

Bill C-389 if passed would add gender identity and expression to the Canadian Human Rights Act and the hate crimes provisions of the Criminal Code, alongside prohibited grounds of discrimination such as race, religion, and sexual orientation.

I've written about MP Siksay's two previous attempts to pass this bill, and here's hoping that the third time is the charm as the old saying goes.

Those of us south of the 49th parallel are probably on the sidelines watching and waiting to see how this plays out. I hope the Canadian Parliament will move to grant rights to their fellow trans citizens.

It's ironic that our Canadian trans cousins may get their rights this year while the US Congress dithers on giving transpeople employment protections.

But in the interim, while you're waiting for that historic debate to happen in Ottawa, time for you transpeeps living in the Great White North to help yourselves.

Call, write, and tell your stories to your MP's. Don't assume because they belong to a certain party they won't listen. They need to know you live in their ridings, are taxpaying Canadian citizens and vote.

With any luck you'll be celebrating a success that we can point to to get our congresscritters motivated to do the right thing.

Where's the ENDA Rewrite Language?

One of the major reasons I don't participate in NCTE Lobby Days besides the fact I'm not welcome at them, is because of the HRC presence and the 'minders' that follow you as you go to various offices.

I'd also be asking questions in their lobby trainings based on my past GenderPAC lobby day experiences that would make then very uncomfortable.

The presence of those 'minders' makes it difficult for congressional staffers to tell you what's really taking place on Capitol Hill. That's why I have sources on the Hill that I ain't revealing.

One of the lessons I took away from the GenderPAC lobby days in 1998-99 is that it's not smart politics to lobby for a bill that you DON'T have a clue what the language is or know with 100% certainty that the language doesn't do harm to you.

One of the things that has me and other trans people who want effective, comprehensive legislation passed concerned is exactly why is the trans provision language being rewritten? The 2007 ENDA trans provisions language was fine.

Why is it taking so long? Why the secrecy? It also makes me queasy that a long time 'frenemy', Rep. Barney Frank, who fought our inclusion in ENDA for a decade is writing the language.

If that doesn't bother you, it should.

The congress critters know we'll go ballistic and make that 2007 explosion of trans community anger over Washington shenanigans look like a church picnic if we're either cut from ENDA again, written out of it, or the language of ENDA 2010 is NOT the inclusive language of the 2007 version, but some Frankensteinian bastardization of it.

If it isn't, then why hide that fact?

The fact it's too quiet on the Hill where ENDA is concerned only leads to building anxiety that something really shady is going on inside the Beltway. The last time I had this uncomfortable feeling was in 2007 when we got yanked out of the bill.

The same bill the head of a certain trans lobbying org said that our inclusion in it was a 'slam dunk'.

It was a slam dunk alright. A slam dunk that clanged off the congressional rim and bounced off the civil rights basketball court out of bounds.

You can peruse the blog archives to learn what I thought about it then. Unfortunately it seems like nothing's changed since 2007.

So where's the ENDA rewrite language?

PR Trans Latina Woman Found Stabbed To Death In Home

If you thought I was being over the top about trans Latinas and transsistahs taking the brunt of the anti-transgender violence, here's another person to add to this distressingly lengthening list of trans people we're going to memorialize for the 2010 TDOR.

31 year old hairstylist Ashley Santiago was found stabbed to death 14 times inside her home in Corozal, just 25 miles outside the Puerto Rican capital of San Juan. Her 2009 Toyota Corolla was missing from the driveway.

Authorities have yet to determine whether Santiago’s killer (or killers) murdered her because of her gender identity or expression, but I'd be willing to bet that 14 stab wounds is a major clue that it was.

Puerto Rico has a hate crimes statute on its legal books passed in 2002 that includes sexual orientation and gender identity. However, the statute is rarely used.

Gee, I wonder why? Is it because of the heavy Catholic influence in Puerto Rico?

If her killers are caught and brought to justice, it's about time Puerto Rican prosecutors, that you consider separating your religious prejudices from doing your jobs and using the hate crimes statute if it applies in the Santiago case.

In the meantime, while we're waiting for justice to be done in this case, the Santiago family and the trans community will mourn the loss of another one of our beautiful transsisters.

Dr. Dorothy Height Dies

Another of the sheroes of the 60's civil rights movement has moved on. Dr. Dorothy Height, the Godmother of the women's movement', passed away at Howard University Hospital at 3:41 AM EDT this morning at age 98.

Dr. Height was born in Richmond, VA on March 24, 1912 and grew up in Rankin, Pennsylvania. While in high school because of her oratorical skills she was given a scholarship to Barnard College in New York.

Unfortunately Barnard College had a policy in place at the time in which it admitted only two African-American students a year, and she arrived on campus after two others had been enrolled. She pursued studies at New York University, earning her Master's degree in psychology and her doctoral studies at Columbia.

While she was most noted for her long tenure as chair and president emeritus of the National Council of Negro Women from 1957-1988, and a past chair of the Leadership Conference On Civil Rights, she began her civil rights work in 1933 as a leader in the United Christian Youth Movement of North America.

Some of the issues she fought for at that time were stopping lynchings and desegregating the armed forces.

In addition to being mentored by women such as Mary McLeod Bethune and Eleanor Roosevelt, she counseled presidents on civil rights and women's issues from FDR to Obama.

She was one of the original 'Big Six' civil rights leaders, and was in attendance at the recent White House meeting President Obama held with African-American leaders on race and the economy.

She has garnered numerous awards and honors including induction into the National Women's Hall of Fame in 1993, the NAACP's Spingarn Medal in 1993, the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1994 by President Clinton and the Congressional Gold Medal in 2004.

She was also given during Barnard College's 1980 commencement ceremony its highest honor, the Barnard Medal of Distinction.

She had a front row seat to many of the events that shaped our lives and worked alongside the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., future congressman John Lewis, and A. Philip Randolph. She was one of the people sitting behind Dr. King the day he gave his 1963 'I Have A Dream' speech'.

She was president of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. from 1946-1957 and remained active in the organization throughout her life.


Former US Secretary of Labor Alexis W. Herman said about her, "She was a dynamic woman with a resilient spirit, who was a role model for women and men of all faiths, races and perspectives. For her, it wasn't about the many years of her life, but what she did with them."

She is one of my leadership role models, and if I ever become one tenth of what she meant to our community, I'd consider it a great achievement.

Rest Dr. Height. You have earned it.

Still Miss You 'Lufer'

Today would have been the 59th birthday of one of my fave singers back in the day, Luther Ronzoni Vandross. He was born on this date in New York City in 1951.

Wow. Has it been five years since he heft us on July 1, 2005? Doesn't seem like it's been that long, but yep, it has.

The man left behind a musical legacy that will be hard to match. There are also probably a lot of people born in the 80's and 90's who probably owe their existence to being conceived while their parents were getting busy while listening to his music.

Anyway, happy birthday 'Lufer'. You are still missed by your fans, and no one as of yet has stepped up to fill your considerable shoes.

15th Anniversary Of Oklahoma City Bombing

At 9:02 AM CDT 15 years ago, 5000 pounds of explosives inside a rented truck were detonated by domestic terrorist Timothy McVeigh near the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building.

The explosion McVeigh set off was heard 30 miles away, but the emotional shock wave covered the entire country.

The terror attack killed 168 people including 19 children, destroyed half of the building and injured another 800 people.

The anti-government hate that fueled it is alive and well. It's only increasing in intensity since an African-American moved into 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue with his family.

Domestic terrorists in this country are disproportionately part of one ethnic group, and the terrorism as pointed out in a 2009 Homeland Security report is predominately coming from the right wing.

We need to be cognizant of that fact as we remember what happened 15 years ago today in Oklahoma City.

The anti-government rhetoric is even more polarizing and more racist than it was during the Clinton administration.

We also need to spend as much time and effort cracking down on domestic anti-government terrorists as we do keeping an eye on al-Qaeda and breaking up their terror cells.

Amanda Gonzalez-Andujar Memorial Service and Candlelight Vigil Saturday

Amanda Gonzalez-Andujar is the latest transwoman we have lost to senseless anti-transgender violence. While her alleged killer has been captured, her family, friends and the trans community wait to see if justice will be done.

If you're in or near the New York metro area, on Saturday, April 24 a memorial service and candlelight vigil is being organized in her memory.

For those of you who knew Amanda or would just like to pay your respects, please join her friends, family and community members in this moment to remember her beautiful life.

The memorial service and vigil will take place from 2-5 PM EDT.

The memorial service will take place at the Metropolitan Community Church of New York (MCCNY) starting at 2 PM. The address is 446 W. 36th Street (between 9th & 10th Avenue in Midtown Manhattan).

You'll take the A,C,E trains to 34th St. Penn Station

The candlelight vigil will take place in front of Amanda's Glendale Queens home from 4-5 PM. The address is 69-30 62ND Street between Catalpa Street & Cypress Hills St. in Glendale, NY 11385.

For you peeps in there NY metro area, you'll take the M train to Fresh Pond Rd.

Remember, there but for the grace of God go all of us.

If you're able to do do, please consider attending and showing some love and support for our fallen sister and her friends and family.

'The Boondocks' Was Right! Guess Who Ann Coulter's Dating?

There was a Boondocks episode in which it speculated right wing hater Ann Coulter was going home to a brother.

(BTW..you may want to play this clip at home. language issues.)

So I cracked up when I saw the EURweb story on Jimmie Walker's new girlfriend.

“I have nothing but the highest respect for her, and I’m thoroughly impressed with everything she does – whether she’s writing Sarah Palin stuff or doing whatever,” he continued. “I’m thoroughly impressed with her.”



Talk about the sign of the apocalypse. Guess things are dyn-o-mite between them.

Hmm...will have to start watching 'The Boondocks' again on a regular basis.

Fictional Gender Transformation

A staple of fiction is the theme of gender transformations, body morphing and gender swaps. It crosses all forms of media from books to films to television, and the examples are numerous.

I thought it would be interesting to post them on the blog from time to time so here's the first installment of fictional gender transformations.

A 'Fantasy Island' episode



A 'Gilligan's Island' episode



A 'Death Stalker' episode



An episode of a French TV show



A 'Homeboys From Outer Space' Episode

Caster Semenya's Patience Running Out

19 year old South African runner Caster Semenya has patiently waited seven months for her competition status to be sorted out ever since she won the 800m world championship in Berlin last summer.

But it seems that her patience, and the patience of her attorneys is wearing thin.

"I hereby publicly announce my return to athletics competitions," Semenya said in a statement. "I am an athlete first and foremost, and it is vital for my competitiveness, my well-being and my preparations for events during the European summer that I measure my performance against other athletes."

"These processes have dragged on for far too long with no reasonable certainty as to their end."

She wants to return to international competition at a IAAF sanctioned race being contested in Zaragoza, Spain on June 24, the EAA Classic.

The IAAF medical staff has yet to complete the gender verification tests, and the ASA (Athletics South Africa) is uncomfortably caught in the middle along with Semenya until they do. They assert that until those test are completed, she is i9neligible to run either in South Africa or internationally.

Athletics South Africa acting chief Ray Mali asked "for the patience of Semenya and her advisers in the interest of all parties."

But I ask the question, how patient would you be if you were in Semenya's pumps?

She wants to run and get better with the Olympics only two years away and she's being forced to sit on the sidelines until some Monaco based bureaucrats make a decision?

To add to the drama, how patient would you be if your gender identity were subjected to worldwide speculation, attacks and derision while you're waiting for that sporting bureaucratic decision?

And while you're waiting, you sit with the knowledge that your potential competition you destroyed in Berlin are competing and honing their skills against each other.

"Some of the occurrences leading up to and immediately following the Berlin World Championships have infringed on not only my rights as an athlete," she said, "but also my fundamental and human rights, including my rights to dignity and privacy."

It's time for the IAAF medical team to end this, and get off their behinds and complete the medical verification tests as expeditiously as possible.

And after that happens, I'll be rooting for Semenya to kick some butt in every 800m race she runs from now until the Olympic Games in London and beyond.

Dawn's Headed To Cleveland

Dawn's fencing in a tournament that's taking place in Cleveland, but I won't be making the drive up there with her. The saber part of the competition starts at 1 PM Sunday, and I promised my pastor Rev. Sally McClain I'd be the worship leader for our services this weekend and next.

It's one I'm a little disappointed about because it would have been one of the last times I got to do a long distance drive with my homegirl and watch her fence for a while.

But I gave my word to Rev Sally I'd do it, and that's the end of the discussion. Edenside is where I'll be this Sunday morning and the next one.

Back to the discussion at hand.

In Dawn's last tournament in Dallas she finished in the Top 8. She's looking forward to this NAC event and changing the color of her medals to a gold silver or bronze one.

Best of luck sis, and sorry I'm going to have to miss it.

Shut Up Fool! Awards-Day of Silence Edition

Today is the 15th anniversary of the Day of Silence.

It's the GLSEN sponsored event in which students at the middle and high school levels take a vow of silence for the day to call attention to anti-TBLG name-calling, bullying and harassment.

And that's a nice segue into our award We call attention every Friday to the people that need to take a permanent vow of silence because of how stupid they sound on a regular basis.

As usual we had a lot of contenders for this week's award. The GOP, Hannity, Beck, Bigot, oops Bishop harry Jackson, Angela McGlowan, Sarah Palin...

But in the end, I had to choose one winner, and the Shut Up Fool! for this week goes to Sarah Palin's running buddy, Rep. Michele Bachmann (R-MN)

Miss Thang was quoted recently as calling the Obama administration a gangster government. Methinks Michele has the Obama administration confused with the last misadministration.


Michele Bachmann,, shut up fool.

Let's Play FQ Face

Haven't posted any ballroom community video in a while, and need to get back to highlighting it on TransGriot since they are my sisters, too.

Jack Mizrahi and others regularly chronicle and post YouTube videos about the ballroom community. Since I like the femme queen category face and runway battles, thought I'd give you TransGriot readers a taste of it.

Isis Day of Silence Video

Today is the 15th annual Day of Silence sponsored by GLSEN, the Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network.

The Day of Silence involves thousands of students at more than 6000 middle and high schools taking some form of a vow of silence for the day to call attention to anti-TBLG name-calling, bullying and harassment.

My sis Isis King has cut a promo video for it (and y'all know how much I love little sis)



Of course the haters will be out in full force trying to either disrupt it or pulling their kids out of school.

Guess Itawamba Agricultural High School in Fulton, MS will be empty today.

As someone who experienced it firsthand during my school days, may this day be a success one that starts genuine conversations about the serious issue of BTLG school bullying.

Boycott The HRC Atlanta Dinner

TransGriot Note: From Monica Helms, TAVA founder and president


Friends,
On May 1st, HRC will have its local gala dinner here in Georgia. I am urging people not to go, but for reasons that many would not expect me to give. Yes, I am a transgender activist and have been called a leader in the transgender community, but I am coming to you today as an LGBT resident of Georgia.

Georgia's unemployment rate is above the national average. Even people with jobs are struggling because while the cost of living goes up, their income doesn't. We are still in the worst economic disaster since the Great Depression. It is bad out here for Americans, and especially Georgians.

Here are the admission costs for this year's HRC dinner:

* General Admission Tickets: $200
* Federal Club: $75
* Student w/ID: $100
* Mother or Father attending with Son/Daughter: $100
* Elected Official: $100
* Ordained Clergy: $100

This is down from previous years, but is still a lot of money. Two hundred dollars is a car payment for me. It will buy groceries for nearly a month for Darlene and I. It would greatly help Gentle Spirit Christian Church, and many other people.

This is the real reason we need to boycott the HRC dinner. They have taken hundreds-of-thousands of dollars out of the State of Georgia for decades and given nothing in return. When we were having our same-sex marriage struggle in 2004, they blew us off as being a lost cause. This does not seem like a good investment for our pink dollars, but you can always ask an accountant to verify this for you.

On top of that, HRC's track record on a national level is dismal at best. You can't even point to the Hate Crime bill as one of their accomplishments, because it was a grassroots movement that helped get that bill passed in the first place.

Sadly, the first groups who suffer in bad economic times are non-profits and local PACs. For Georgia, that would be Georgia Equality. They have both. What HRC makes at just one of their Atlanta dinners could greatly help Georgia Equality fight for an anti-bullying bill, hate crimes and to fight any anti gay adoption bill. Instead, that money goes to pay for the mortgage on HRC's big building in DC and the salaries of their employees. It takes TWO Atlanta dinners just to pay for the yearly salary of HRC's president. What are you really getting for your money?

Other wonderful local organizations who need the money more than HRC are the Lesbian Health Initiative, Youth Pride, MEGA Family, Juxtaposed Center and AID Atlanta.

I urge you to not give HRC the much needed money that could go to help LGBT people here in Georgia. And, if HRC really cared about the well-being of the LGBT people of Georgia, they would donate the profits of the Atlanta Dinner to the local groups. However, none of us will live long enough to ever see that happen.

Monica Helms
President, Transgender American Veterans Association.

We're Paying Our Dues-So When Do We Get The Privileges Of Membership In American Society?

TransGriot Note: My latest post at The Bilerico Project

Today is April 15 as many of you perusing this post are aware of. With the midnight deadline looming to get that check mailed off to the IRS, depending on whether you owe Uncle Sam or are waiting for a nice refund from the Feds, you have mixed emotions about today.

But I'm going to focus on another aspect of taxes. I was driven to ponder it based upon a quote I recently read from an October 12, 1936 speech President Franklin D.. Roosevelt delivered.

He stated during that Worcester, MA speech that "'taxes, after all, are the dues we pay for the privilege of membership in an organized society."

Well, if that's the case, to paraphrase FDR, when am I and my African descended trans peeps going to get the privileges of membership in American society for the dues we've been paying into it?

It's been a four decade long battle for transpersons in the United States just to have our humanity acknowledged, and even that is questionable depending on when and what day of the week you take a hard look at it.

For trans people of African descent, we continue to fight a multipronged battle not only just to get that recognition in our own community, but inside the white dominated GLBT one as well.

There are days I ponder where we are in the overarching scheme of things as African descended trans people in this country and across the African Diaspora and wonder, is it ever going to get better for us?

My sisters and Latinas are not only paying our federal, state and local taxes, but paying in blood by taking the brunt of the anti trans violence casualties. Unfortunately our sacrifices haven't been translated into significant representation in the leadership ranks of the BTLG organizations that purport to represent trans concerns.

And far too often the political agendas these organizations adopt and pursue don't address our pressing concerns for jobs, jobs, jobs.

When there's money that needs to be raised or melanin is needed for a photo op to show the diversity of the TBLG community, our phones ring off the hook and the e-mails and text messages freely flow.

But let it be a situation in which people need to be hired for leadership in a GLBT organization, testify at a congressional hearing, get invites to the White House or need someone to speak to the media on trans issues, no e-mail or text messages come our way and our phones are silent.

Our taxes paid in many cases have not translated into the political jurisdictions in which we live doing the right thing and passing laws to protect us.

Thanks to the odious tag team of Janice Raymond and Jesse Helms low income trans women since the 80's are barred from using the Medicaid/Medicare system our tax dollars help fund to pay for SRS.

I have yet to see passed the ENDA bill that address our most pressing concern as transpeople of color and give me and every transperson residing inside the United States a fair shot at obtaining gainful employment.

We only just witnessed a few months ago the passage and signing by President Obama of the Byrd-Shepard Hate Crimes Act.

And our lives are disrespected, mocked and treated as wedge issues and political footballs by our so called allies and our enemies.

So I ask the question again I posed at the beginning of this post.

We're paying our dues. When do we not only get the privileges of membership in American society enshrined in the Constitution, but a return on our significant investment in it?


Crossposted from the Bilerico Project

Katie Washington Makes Notre Dame And Black History!

Too many times people focus on the worst my people produce. In addition, sisters don't get much love for doing something positive.

Today I get to proudly pop my collar on behalf on my people and a lovely young woman for a historic achievement.

21 year old Gary, IN native Katie Washington is a senior at Notre Dame University and has bee accepted to Harvard and four other schools for post graduate studies.

Thanks to her 4.0 GPA in biology major and Catholic social teaching minor, Katie will become the first African-American in the 168 year history of Notre Dame to be crowned as the school's valedictorian.

University officials said they couldn’t recall ever having a black valedictorian, and don’t keep record of their race.

Katie will give that valedictory address on May 16.

'I am humbled,' Katie said to the Northwest Indiana Times. “I am in a mode of gratitude and thanksgiving right now.”

'Katie works so hard,' Washington’s mother Jean Tomlin told the newspaper. 'I told her when she went to Notre Dame, ‘You are representing your family, your church and the city of Gary. Make us proud.’

Katie done more than make her family and the city of Gary proud. She made the entire Black community proud.

She'll be heading to Baltimore's Johns Hopkins University in the fall and plans to pursue a joint M.D./Ph.D.

You may want to file the name Katie Washington away in your memory banks. She's a young scholar who may be on the track of making more history.

Congratulations, Katie on the historic achievement! You're also proof along with our spacefaring sistah Stephanie Wilson that sistahs can and do excel in math and science.


H/T The Field Negro

Arrest Made In Amanda Gonzalez-Andujar Murder

The po-po's have finally caught up with the waste of DNA who allegedly strangled 29 year old transwoman Amanda Gonzales-Andujar

Rasheen Everett of Manhattan was tracked down and arrested in Las Vegas on April 9 and brought back to New York Tuesday to face charges. He's also wanted in Brockton, MA for attempting to murder his ex-wife.

Everett is charged him with second-degree murder and tampering with physical evidence.

FYI people, since GENDA hasn't been passed in New York State, Everett isn't eligible for hate crimes charges.

Remember, thanks to Matt Foreman and company dumping trans people back in the day in order to pass the gay only hate crimes law, we ain't covered. Even if trans people were included in current hate crimes law, no evidence has surfaced to elevate this crime to that level.

Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown stated that according to the criminal charges, Everett went the apartment of Amanda Gonzalez Andujar in Glendale, Queens, at 8:50 AM on March 27.

Witnesses heard screams and banging consistent with a struggle moments later, and Everett exited the building alone several hours later carrying two bags.

It's suspected Andujar's computer was in one of the bags to conceal the e-mail communication between the suspect and her.

Before exiting the apartment he poured bleach over her body. The autopsy confirmed Andujar died from manual neck compression.

If convicted, Everett faces up to 25 years to life in prison. Anybody wanna bet that his defense attorney plays the 'trans panic defense' card in this case?

I hope not, but I get more cynical with each year that passes.

At any rate, here's hoping that Amanda gets justice.