Upoming Trans Strategy Conference

TransGriot Note: Arianna and the folks at GIEC sent me the note about this upcoming invitation only trans event.

This is a dynamic and engaging conference for prioritizing and planning an effective strategy of vigorous ground activism/advocacy/action, to include:

*Education of the general public and institutions, especially of areas where Trans people are rarely heard of or considered, utilizing in depth heart to heart discourse, common ground engagement and positive bridge building.

*Blunting stigmatization of Trans people, as well as ending the gross misappropriation, silencing and "invisibling" of Trans people by some elements of the LGB and Cisgender sectors in society.

*Building a Trans Activism machine that can act independently, with any ally support as an added "bonus", not total dependency.

*Finally challenging Transphobic institutions, initiating supported litigation when called for.

*Launching a response and communications network for Trans people based on existing successful models and creativity.

*Officially launching Counter - Media platforms and resources that can broadcast positive and empowering images of Trans people, thus challenging the negative media image(s) of Trans people;

- increasing and raising the volume of our voices.

*ENDA - and alternatives to this if necessary.

*Creative solutions for mitigating Anti - Trans violence.

*Significant ally organizations and others, such as the ACLU, Lambda Legal, Sylvia Rivera Law Center, TIP, Radical Women,GLAD, NLGTF, GLAAD, NOW, TFA, TransUnited, TransHaven, GASS, TransAngels, Gender Justice, contributive UK/European/Asian/Latin American/African entities, MAGNET and Board members of the Guardian Angels, are just some being invited to attend.

*There will also be opportunities for individuals or groups at the conference to make presentations - please let us know at least 2 weeks in advance, provide an abstract or outline of what you would like to present.

The cost of this conference is free, although donations to be used for trans people in need, would definitely be appreciated!

Location: Soka University of America, Aliso Viejo, CA (conference area TBA)
Date: Saturday September 4th - Sunday September 5th, 2010
Time: 10:30 AM on Saturday / 12:30 PM on Sunday

If any maps, directions are needed for the area, please don't hesitate to request them.

-An electric cart for those with disabilities is available with advance reservations specifying that the cart is needed.

-Breakout sessions can be flexibly scheduled throughout the conference.

-There will be a special motivational and success training presentation on Saturday (time TBA).

-We'll also host a live "2-way" online video feed at the conference, so that remote attendees will have a chance to significantly contribute - we'll be giving out secure pass words and log-on information beforehand.

Meals and catering
-Breakfast/Brunch and Dinner on campus subsidized by the GIEC, will be available during the conference. -The Bistro Cafe on the campus of Soka University serves fresh, very well prepared great all-you-can-eat buffet meals prepared by contract chefs.

-If there are any dietary needs (such as vegetarian, vegan or modified diet) please let us know ahead of the conference.

Detailed information for hotel and residential host lodging will be arranged and announced very soon.

Scholarships will be available for those needing financial assistance to attend this event (for travel, lodging and subsidized meals)

This conference will be invitation only and security will be provided

Contact:
Email: arikitty09@gmail.com
Phone: 714-227-0252

TransGriot Update: Questions are arising as to whether this is a legitimate conference. It's not on the Soka University website for scheduled September monthly events.

Michigan GOP Secretary of State Race To Be Decided At GOP State Convention

Michigan held their primary election on Tuesday. If you were perusing the election results online and looking to see who won the Republican nomination for Secretary of State, don't bother.

It wasn't on the ballot because the GOP nominee for Michigan Secretary of State will be decided August 29 at the Republican party convention on the Michigan State University campus.

So why am I posting about this on a left of center trans blog? Keep reading.

One of the six GOP candidates vying for the Secretary of State position is a young 'African-American' half term state legislator named Paul Scott.

He got my undivided attention by using transphobia to get a leg up in the crowded GOP field to replace current term limited Republican Secretary of State Terri Lynn Land.

Back in January Scott had this to say about what he would do if he was elected Michigan's Secretary of State:

I will make it a priority to ensure transgender individuals will not be allowed to change the sex on their driver’s license in any circumstance.

Did you see that, trans Michiganders? If Paul Scott becomes the nominee and beats Democratic nominee Jocelyn Benson on November 2, he will make it policy that you and future trans Michigan residents will not be allowed to change the gender codes on the drivers licenses you pay for.

Jocelyn Benson is a Harvard Law School graduate who in 2004 helped develop a nationwide election protection program for the Democratic National Committee. In 2007, she worked to block closure of a Secretary of State branch office in Buena Vista Township. Prior to Harvard Law, Benson worked for the Southern Poverty Law Center investigating white supremacist organizations.

Damn, wish she was running in my state.

So y'all know what you need to do. If you are a transperson or a trans ally who lives in Michigan, you need to be doing whatever it takes to ensure that Jocelyn Benson is elected as Michigan's next Secretary of State.

Fatine Gets To Stay In The UK

In August 2006 Ian Young, who was working as a security guard at the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, sat next to a beautiful 32 year old young woman in the crowded Starbucks at the base of the Petronas Towers.

Little did the then 26 year old know at the time he would be sitting next to his future wife. He also didn't know at the moment she was trans. Fatine and Ian struck up a conversation and at the end of it when she got up to leave Young asked her out.

Fatine transitioned at age 17 and after revealing her trans status to him, he still took her out to a local bar. A friendship and romance was kindled that night which eventually led to her moving to the UK and marrying Young.

But Fatine's paperwork to remain in the UK with her husband met some resistance and she faced deportation to a Malaysia that is not exactly friendly to trans people thanks to increasing Islamic fundamentalist anti-trans sentiment.

The UK Home Office wanted her to go back to Malaysia and reapply for admission into the UK, and she had already had some questionable nitpicking occur with her application in addition to outright transphobia in the Kuala Lumpur office because gender code on her Malaysian passport didn't match the presentation of the person in possession of the passport.

The publicity surrounding her love story also plucked some nerves in Malaysia's Muslim community and generated death threats on her FB page. Had she been deported, as a Muslim she faced being arrested and tried under Sharia law upon her arrival, so she applied for asylum in the UK.

I'm happy to report that it was recently granted, and now Fatine can focus on living her life with the man she loves.

I love happy endings.

Louisville Conservative Radio Host Calls President 'Half-Breed'

One of the radio stations I steered clear of while I was living there was the Clear Channel owned WHAS-AM.

WHAS 84 is the Louisville radio dial home of Rush, Beck and later Michael Weiner (oops Savage) after kicking a long time popular moderate talker off the air.

The host that stepped in it was conservative talker Mandy Connell, who has the lead in show to OxyContin Man. She replaced the late Francene Cuccinello in that time slot, who passed away unexpectedly back in March.

She made the derogatory comment about the president on Tuesday's show.

She quickly apologized for it Wednesday morning according to the Ville Voice, but the fun has already started in Da Ville.

“The only thing I can do is express my embarrassment that was the phrase that came to mind and apologize for the offensive way I was trying to convey my point about the President’s mixed heritage. It was inappropriate, and truthfully, I was shocked when that tumbled out of my mouth. My only excuse is that when talking for three hours without the opportunity to choose words in advance, sometimes my brain doesn’t do the good or right thing. I am human.”

And so is President Obama, Ms. Connell, but you conservatives conveniently forget that on a regular basis.

The controversy has already stirred up progressive Louisville and hit the pages of the LEO and other local alternative media outlets.

This was what I had to say on the LEO's comment page:

Love the people wallowing in vanilla flavored privilege who are too scared to put their names on their disrespectful comments.

African-Americans and other people of color are sick and tired of white conservative people who comfortably and consistently make bigoted and borderline racist comments, especially those who do so on the radio and television airwaves.

Then y'all have the nerve to get your backs up when we call you on it.

You don't as part of the dominant ethnic group with a long negative history in this regard get to tell my community what we should and should not be upset over.

The local NAACP has already commented on it as well. Haven't seen anything official yet from Chris and the Fairness Campaign.

Louisville NAACP president Raoul Cunningham stated in a LEO interview, “I think it was a very poor choice of words. I know she doesn’t care for Obama or his policies, but to refer to him as a half-breed is disrespectful of the office of president.”“And racially, the term is derogatory in today’s society. It’s just not an acceptable term.”

If you wish to have your say, here's the phone number for WHAS-AM Station Manager Kelly Carls at (502) 479-2222 or send an e-mail: info@whas.com.

A better strategy would be as Raoul Cunningham suggested later in his interview would be to monitor Connell's show more closely. If she repeats the negativity toward POC's, then whack her with boycott pressure on the peeps who advertise on her show.

Polar pointed out to me when I lived there that once upon a time WHAS-AM used to have distinguished moderate voices gracing its airwaves such as legendary UK basketball voice Cawood Ledford, Milton Metz, Wayne Perkey, Joe Elliott, and Gary Burbank.

Now it's just all right wing all the time. Except during UK basketball season.

But stations like WHAS-AM have to be shown that pimping on-air bigotry and race baiting isn't profitable.

TransGriot update: Chris Hartman, the chair of the Fairness Campaign sent out a press release Thursday condemning the comment as “an irresponsible racial slur.”

65th Anniversary Of Hiroshima Atom Bombing

At 8:12 AM on August 6, 1945, a B-29 bomber called the 'Enola Gay' piloted by Col. Paul Tibbets dropped an atomic bomb codenamed 'Little Boy' over the city of Hiroshima, Japan and made a sharp high speed banking turn away from the city.

The bomb detonated 1900 feet (545 meters) over the city at 8:15 AM local time killing 140,000 people instantly or died later due to the radiation sickness. Three days later a second bomb codenamed 'Fat Man' was dropped over the city of Nagasaki killing another 70,000 people. Japan surrendered August 15, ending World War II.

Ever since then, Japan has commemorated the atomic bombings in a ceremony at Hiroshima's Peace Memorial Park. For the first time ever a current UN secretary general and a US ambassador to Japan attended the event which occurred yesterday our time.

Along with UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, US Ambassador to Japan John Roos was there to as the State Department noted in a statement 'to express regret for all of the victims of World War II.'

Roos' attendance was mildly controversial in some US circles who assert the atomic bombings paradoxically saved lives on both sides because the scheduled November 1945 invasion of Japan never happened.

The US has never formally apologized for it, but at the same time it points out Japan jumped off the Pacific War as they call it with a surprise December 7, 1941 air attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

On this anniversary, let's hope and pray it's the last time nuclear weapons are used in any conflict and that progress is made to eliminate them from the planet.

Shut Up Fool! Awards-Houston's Hot Edition

For the first time this summer the H-town thermometer passed 100 degrees as it tends to do in the month of August. This is usually the worst part of a Houston summer unless we get a tropical storm or hurricane tossed in with it.

It's Friday, and you know what that means loyal TransGriot readers. It's time for our weekly exercise in finding out who exhibited outrageous levels of stupidity that raised the temperatures of of rational thinking people everywhere.

As usual, we had a long list of fools to choose from such as David Axelrod, who tried to explain the president's position on the Prop 9 ruling and turned himself into a pretzel while doing so, the usual Faux News buffonery from Beck, Hannity, Megyn Kelly, and crew, Sarah Palin, and Sharron Angle made another strong bid for a SUF award.

But this week's winner is Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen.

She's a new mom who recently said in a Harper's Bazaar UK interview that "I think there should be a worldwide law, in my opinion, that mothers should breastfeed their babies for six months."

Excuse me?

Gisele Bundchen, shut up fool!

.

Death In Renee's Family

Was saddened to hear from my Canadian homegirl about a death in her family.

She just told me her 20 year old nephew Jesse James Cox AKA 'Gentle Giant' as he was known to their family and his friends died earlier today.

Jesse earned that nickname because of his 6'5" stature and easygoing nature.

Unfortunately, the family's grief over their loss is magnified by the fact they are unable to pay for the funeral.

Renee has a sidebar donation box at her Womanist Musings blog asking for donations to help defray the costs for his funeral.

Any amount will do.

My condolences to your nephew's family and as always you, the unhusband, Mayhem and Destruction are in my prayers as well.

Kagan Confirmed To Supreme Court

The Supreme Court official photo at the beginning of the term this October will be even more diverse this fall.

For the first time in US history there will be three women serving on the Supreme Court at the same time with the confirmation earlier today of Elena Kagan to the court.

The 50 year old Kagan becomes the fourth female justice in US history and the 112th Supreme Court member. She was confirmed on a 63-37 vote with all except one Democrat (Ben Nelson-NE) voting for her, both independents and five Republicans.

She'll be sworn in on Saturday.

The ideological balance still remains 5-4 conservafools, which is one very cogent argument for an Obama second term.

Nikki Araguz Update 10-Araguz Case Press Kit

I have the advantage of living in the Houston area and being acquainted with many of the players in this ongoing story so I can pick up the phone, shoot them an e-mail or just go to the Center and ask what's up.

But for those of you who are thousands of miles (or kilometers) away, you don't have that advantage.

Well, here's the Nikki Araguz Press Kit. They have put this together not only to get Nikki's side of the story out, but to cut through the lies and distortions of the other side.

Enjoy another recent press conference on the case in which Nikki's story gets told





Oh yeah, to get the press kit, please click on this link to get your own copy of it.

Happy 21st Birthday Angie

Today is a day that should have been a happy occasion for a young Latina transwoman who lived in Colorado.

But sadly it isn't thanks to a waste of DNA who is now serving a life sentence in a Colorado prison for his crime.

Today would have been the 21st birthday for Angie Zapata.

I think back to how happy I was when I hit that milestone birthday, and I wonder what Angie would have felt on this day being surrounded by a loving family and friends.

I wonder how she would have celebrated this day, and how far along she would be on her feminine journey now.

I wonder what goals she would have set her sights toward achieving, and what level of youthful optimism and boundless determination she would have exerted to making them become a reality.

I wonder if she would have found someone worthy enough to love her and who was focused on the wonderful person in front of them.

But instead of her family watching her happily blow out 21 candles on her birthday cake and tearing the wrapping paper off numerous birthday gifts, they will be taking a somber trip to the cemetery where Angie has been laid to rest.

It's been two years since she was taken away far too soon, and as the trans community in Colorado and elsewhere strives to never forget what happened to her, we also pray on this day that the pain her family and friends feel over her loss is mitigated as time heals their wounded hearts.

May God bless the Zapata family.

Happy 21st birthday, Angie. Your extended family around the world will never forget you nor allow what happened to you to be forgotten.

Another Legal Win For Vandy Beth!

Vandy Beth Glenn came one step closer to getting her job she was wrongfully terminated from in 2007 back.

On Tuesday a federal judge ordered that Glenn be reinstated to her legislative editor job in the Georgia General Assembly.

"I’ve always know we were in the right," a tearful Glenn said in a GA Voice courtroom interview after the hearing. "This is our time. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people are no longer disposable. We can’t be thrown out with the trash and this decision affirms that."

No date was set for Glenn's return to her job and they are willing to pay her until the issues are sorted out. A hearing is scheduled for 9:30 AM EDT on August 6 concerning whether to stay the reinstatement.

She's already been harmed enough. Let Vandy Beth return to work without delay.

Down Goes Prop 8 (For Now)

In a federal district court in San Francisco, US District Judge Vaughn Walker ruled today in the Perry v. Schwarzenegger case.

The plaintiffs and their attorneys Ted Olson and David Boies argued that California's passed Proposition 8 ballot initiative denying marriage rights to same-sex couples was unconstitutional.

After months of testimony, Judge Walker's ruling struck down Proposition 8.

This is the conclusion to his 138 page opinion:

Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license. Indeed, the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution the notion that opposite sex couples are superior to same-sex couples. Because California has no interest in discriminating against gay men and lesbians, and because Proposition 8 prevents California from fulfilling its constitutional obligation to provide marriages on an equal basis, the court concludes that Proposition 8 is unconstitutional.

And the full remedies ruled:

Plaintiffs have demonstrated by overwhelming evidence that Proposition 8 violates their due process and equal protection rights and that they will continue to suffer these constitutional violations until state officials cease enforcement of Proposition 8. California is able to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, as it has already issued 18,000 marriage licenses to same sex couples and has not suffered any demonstrated harm as a result, see FF 64-66; moreover, California officials have chosen not to defend Proposition 8 in these proceedings. Because Proposition 8 is unconstitutional under both the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses, the court orders entry of judgment permanently enjoining its enforcement; prohibiting the official defendants from applying or enforcing Proposition 8 and directing the official defendants that all persons under their control or supervision shall not apply or enforce Proposition 8.

Stay tuned. Perry v. Schwarzenegger is definitely headed to the 9th Circuit Court of appeals and probably to the Supremes.

I also find it deliciously ironic that Judge Walker is a Reagan-Daddy Bush judicial appointee, so take that 'strict constitutionalists.'

But this is only a civil rights battle won. The civil rights war over this issue is not even close to being finished.

Hypermasculinity Is Killing Our Kids

One of the things I've been sickened about lately is kids who are being beaten because they aren't acting 'masculine enough' for the male adults in their lives.

17 month old Roy Jones is dead and 20 year old Pedro Jones has been arrested on manslaughter charges.

Why? Because he 'was trying to make him 'act like a little boy instead of a little girl'.

 

3 year old Ronnie Paris, Jr. died in 2005 and his then 21 year old father is now doing 30 years in a Florida prison because he didn't want his son growing up to be a 'sissy' or 'soft'.

So he forced him to slap box with him daily, smacked him upside the head and pushed him into walls until his child slipped into a coma January 22 and died six days later from swelling on both sides of his brain.

Then there's 2 year old Dre'Ona Blake, who is no longer here because her daddy beat her to death in 2008 because she wasn't progressing at potty training fast enough to his liking.

Dre'Ona's waste of DNA daddy DeAndre Blake killed transwoman Tiffany Berry in 2006 and was walking the streets of Memphis,TN for two and a half years at the time on bond. According to Berry's family, he didn't like the way Tiffany had touched him, so he killed her.

When I was growing up in the 70's and averaging a fight a week in elementary because I was perceived as not masculine enough, the last thing most boys wanted to be called growing up was a 'punk' or 'sissy'. I watched many a fight get started because of it.

But now, in an age where kids manage to get their paws on handguns, those same fistfights I had to deal with in the 70's have escalated into people getting shot and killed simply because they get pissed for you calling them a 'punk' or 'sissy'.

Homophobia and transphobia feeds into these hypermasculine attitudes,and it has got to stop. We need to have some serious ongoing discussions about gender identity and gender roles in communities of color.

We need to slay the hypermasculinity dragon in our community because it's killing our kids.

Activists Need To Get Paid,Too

There's an interesting thread and discussion going on at Pam's House Blend which was triggered by a letter Texas Tech student Nonnie Ouch wrote to the Dallas Voice complaining about Lt. Dan Choi's speaking fees and agent.

So what does the TransGriot have to say on the subject?

Activists need to get paid, too. Even Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. got paid for his speeches and essays.

It's hard to do activism if you're worried about keeping a job, a roof over your head, clothes on your back and food in your cupboard.

Add to that in my case the expenses for a gender transition. While most of the heavy lifting in my case has been done, I still have to get hormones and do femme maintenance.

Bear in mind also that if you're holding a job in corporate America, the wingers aren't above fracking with our employment to disrupt our lives if they get the opportunity to do so as I found out the hard way.

It costs money to travel, do conferences, get passports for international conference travel or international speaking engagements, eat, or stay in your state capital or DC hotels to lobby.

Hotel rates get raised in your state capital when the legislature is in session. DC definitely isn't cheap, even if you chop expenses by staying in a budget motel near a METRO line in Maryland or Virginia and ride the subway into DC to the Capitol South Station. METRO passes still cost money.

Money is one of the issues related to why you don't see many POC's speaking at conferences or involved in GLBT activism. Bigotry, transphobia and class privilege is another. The big white dominated inside I-495 orgs don't hire us, and that's especially true for transpeople.

But that's another post.

We TBLG people of color don't get called or asked very often to speak at various events, be it on college campuses, LGBT conventions or just to speak to a college class on GLBT issues.

In my case, I'm a Trinity Award winning activist who has been active since 1998. I can not only authoritatively talk about the intersection of trans issues with the African American community,I can discuss trans history and current events easily as well amongst many others. I've had an announcement on this blog's sidebar for two years about my willingness to speak at those events inside and outside the TBLG community as well, and my phone or e-mail doesn't get blown up as much as I would like it to.

I don't ask for much. I don't mind traveling in coach, staying in budget motels, on campus or even people's homes to help cut costs. If it's for certain trans events such as a TDOR, I don't ask for my speaking fee.

But if you feel like what I have to say is important enough for Moni to be there live and in living color, then respect me and my time by paying for it.

Because if you don't or won't, somebody else will.

But don't think because I have this blog I'm making tons of money. I wish that were the case.

This is a social justice, educational and political commentary blog. In the blogosphere those types of blogs don't make the kind of money a pop culture one does. I get almost 2500 readers a day, many of them repeat readers, and not enough love in the TransGriot tip jar button in the left hand sidebar.

If just 1/10 of the daily readers that visit here left me as little as $5 on a consistent basis it would give me and other social justice bloggers and activists some regular income to do some things,

I'm just getting to the point where I have built up a body of work to where I get honoraria. I'm not anywhere near Dan Choi or Sarah Palin levels, but it's deeply appreciated when it's offered and I receive it. I plow it back into living my life and keeping TransGriot alive.

But if you want your activists front and center out there doing the work to combat the Forces of Intolerance and create a better liberal-progressive world, the reality is we need to get paid so we can comfortably live our lives and fight for you full time.

I'd love to be able to hone my skills at a Creating Change or lobby in Austin or Washington when needed. But to do that, the GLBT community and the progressive movement in general is going to have to get out of this mindset that activism requires a vow of poverty.

Because right now, we're facing an uphill battle fighting a war against enemies who are fully funded. Their only job is to spend their workdays thinking of creative ways to deny you your civil rights,  lie on the network talking head shows and get paid handsomely for doing so.

Nikki Araguz Update 9 - Myth Busting, Cristan and Kat Style

Cristan Williams of the Houston TG Center takes on the media lies about the Araguz case being pimped by the opposition attorneys in her latest video.



And enjoy Katrina Rose's latest musings on the case courtesy of ENDABlog

Happy 49th Birthday President Obama!

Today is the 49th birthday of the 44th President of the United States, Barack H. Obama.

He's had an up and down year, and how good the rest of it is will be determined on November 2.

But today I kick back, bow in the direction of Washington DC and Honolulu, Hawaii and give thanks to God that President Obama is sitting in the Oval Office instead of Sen. John McCain.

I also give thanks to God that Sarah Louise Heath Palin is still living in Wasilla, Alaska and not the vice presidential mansion.

As a birthday gift to Orly Taitz, the birthers and all her conservamininons, I..

Never mind, this is so delicious I must serve this up to you on a platter along with that delicious presidential birthday cake.

Presenting Amendment 14, Section 1 of the United States Constitution:

Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.

Would you like some Hawaiian punch to go with that?

Or would you prefer a nice steaming cup of STFU, Hawaiian blend?

Oh yeah, this section is also pertinent to you right wing peeps in Arizona who insisted on passing those 'Hate On Latinos' laws that will soon be going down in federal court flames.

But back to the birthday boy. Next year is the Big 5-0. Happy birthday Mr. President.

May the rest of this one and the next year go a little more smoothly than this one has. Somehow, with all the sniping on the left and the white hooded hatred on the right, I doubt it will.

But, go ahead and blow out the candles on that birthday cake. I have a pretty good guess what you wished for ;)

White Gay Community-I Don't Ever Want To Hear That 'Blacks Are To Blame For Prop 8 Loss' Meme EVER Again

One of the myths that will not die about the 2008 California Prop 8 loss that I occasionally see in gayosphere discourse is the 'Blacks Are To Blame For Prop 8 Loss' based on the misinterpretation of jacked up exit poll data in several Los Angeles County precincts.

That meme, combined with gay shock, awe and later anger over the loss, coupled with Dan Savage's and Wayne Besen's big (and wrong) mouths, an LA Times November 7 column printed the Sunday after the election by Jasmyne Cannick that pointed out the flaws in the No on 8 campaign in the African-American community, Los Angeles County narrowly passing Prop 8, highly publicized bigoted comments and racism from white gays that broke out in the wake of that loss combined with their constant attacks on President Obama, and you have a recipe for the animus that is lingering just below the surface of relations between the Black and White gay communities.

This meme has not died despite analysis of poll data from several sources within days of the election and common fracking sense.

That common sense and a little critical thinking should have told them a group comprising 9% of California's population of 35 million, spread across 15 counties couldn't be THE factor for the Prop 8 loss.

In addition, that meme was suspect in light of the fact that Alameda County, one of the counties that 'so called homophobic' ethnic group was concentrated in along with Latino@'s, voted against Prop 8.

Well, another nail in that long debunked meme's coffin comes from a Dave Fleischer headed team of analysts who sifted through the Prop 8 data. Their findings were just published in an article in today's Los Angeles Times.

So what group tipped the balance in terms of the Prop 8 election?

I quote from the Fleischer penned LA Times article:

The shift, it turns out, was greatest among parents with children under 18 living at home — many of them white Democrats.

So, once again, many vanilla flavored peeps got hoodwinked and bamboozled into voting against someone's civil rights.

Now that you know that the real deal is, it's time to rectify the problem and put together a well thought out strategy before you try another statewide referendum in Cal-EEE-fonya or elsewhere.

And the next time I see, read or hear of anyone in the gayosphere uttering or writing that tired meme, I'm going to eviscerate them.

TransGriot Interviewed At 'Talk About Gay Racism'

Lincoln is a transman who's been a Christian since the age of 15, loves being active in the LGBT communities, helping people understand the Bible, and working to make the world a better place.

He's also the editor of 'Talk About Gay Racism', to which I gave an interview that was posted today.

If you wish to read it, surf on over to TAGR via this link and check out what I had to say about various subjects there.

I'm A 2010 Black Weblog Awards Finalist!

The nominations have been reduced to the five finalists in each category for the 2010 Black Weblog Awards, and I have good news!

In the 'Best LGBT Blog' Award category TransGriot is a finalist!

My competition in that category is pretty stiff. It's 2007 winner Pam's House Blend, 2006 winner Rod 2.0 beta, B. Scott, and The Skorpion Show

Renee's Womanist Musings made it for best International Blog

While I didn't start blogging for awards, it sure is nice when the hard work you put into it is recognized by a finalist nomination.

So time to get busy and start voting. Hopefully I'll have some good news in September when they announce the winners.

Letter To Lea T.

TransGriot Note: Sass Rogando Sasot is one of the international trans activists I look up to for inspiration as the founder of the transpinay group STRAP. She recently penned an open letter to Brazilian model Lea T.


"I guess when your heart gets broken,
you sort of start to see cracks in everything.
I'm convinced that tragedy wants to harden us
and our mission is never to let it."

- Janeane Garofalo in Felicity

Dear Lea T,

I don't know how will this ever reach you - or whether you can find time in your busy life to even read this. But still, I hope that life's wonder can find a way to let you hear what this lass from Manila has to say.

I would like to congratulate you for your current success and fame. Certainly you are more than aware that you have now been christened as "the fashion world's first transsexual supermodel." I'm pretty sure that a lot of transwomen all over the world are delighted by your breakthrough into the world of modeling. Without doubt, you serve as an inspiration for those who dream to catwalk on the ramps of international fashion and grace the pages of famous magazines.

Your naked photo in the August 2010 edition of French Vogue is what really got into me. A simple yet powerful photo that celebrates our body, our existence, our totality. You stand there with a quiet dignity in your eyes, with a sense of self-possession of your uniqueness, and with a distinctive and courageous beauty. To use what Sharon Stone said about the beauty of Meryl Streep, your photo has all the appeal of an "unmade bed." But more than all these, your photo is like a lover's affectionate assurance to his/her partner that "she shouldn't be ashamed of her body for there's nothing wrong with it."

Whether it's your intention or not, you now have also become a spokesperson of transsexual issues, specifically that of transwomen. I've read your feature story in The Guardian on 1 August 2010, "Lea T and the loneliness of the fashion world's first transsexual supermodel." That article bared your soul, revealing the suffering that you carry on your modelesque shoulders. A lot of transwomen feel your pain as they do share your story of family rejection, societal ridicule, and the accompanying depression.

Surely these things have hardened you and caused you to have, as what you called it, "the war in your head." I feel that this also led you to be pessimistic about love, calling it a "luxury" . Furthermore, you gave a disheartening reflection saying that "those transsexuals who do enter into serious relationships often do so by keeping their past from their partners." Then went on saying, "We transsexuals are born and grow up alone. After the operation we are born again, but once again alone. And we die alone. It is the price we pay."

Lea, I don't know how far one can argue about the benefits of being a pessimist over being an optimist. Both spiritual teachings and scientific studies show that optimism is beneficial and that pessimism is harmful. I don't know if you heard about studies showing that optimism boosts the immune system; and that persistent pessimism is hazardous to ones health.

Well, there's no need to list down all these empirical studies to prove that optimism fares better than pessimism. Relying on our ancient old instinct, we find that we are more motivated, glowing, and engaged when we move more into the light of optimism. But, please, don't mistake optimism for wishful thinking. Optimism is simply putting things into perspective, and realizing that whatever unfortunate things that happen to us, they too will pass. It is simply understanding that "what was and what is" are not "what will always be." Things change. Whether change will lead to the road of "better" or "worse" depends on our attitude, persistence, and faith in the benevolence of life.

There's always a danger in giving a sense of eternity to our suffering. For transsexual people like us, we do this by internalizing the transphobia that we experience/d in our lives, leading us to make our transsexualism as an eternal disabling factor in our lives: "I'm a transsexual, therefore I will never find a job"; "I'm a transsexual, therefore I will never find love"; "I'm a transsexual, therefore I will never _______." But when we go deeper into ourselves and engaged in self-reflection, can we honestly find the value in staying imprisoned in the cages in which we keep ourselves?

Lea, love is not a luxury. Finding someone to share your happiness with and keeping that person in your life may be hard but it's not hard in the sense of impossible. It is hard for every one - not just for us transsexuals. It is hard for it's not easy to be vulnerable. Staying behind our walls seems to be more comfortable than allowing ourselves to experience the exquisite joy and pain of being in love. But it is love that allows you to heal. It brings into surface all that is damaged in you so you can touch them with compassion, thereby allowing the possibility of transformation.

You may say that those who find love, without having to hide their 'past' from their partners, may just be lucky. Perhaps. But just like in other areas of our lives, luck cannot work without readiness. Take yourself for example. You are where you are right now because of luck and of your readiness: You were at the right time, at the right place, with the right attitude.

I hope that you let your current affluence and influence inspire you to see the astonishing goodness of life. Hold on to this goodness. Whatever loneliness you are experiencing, just let it be, but don't indulge in it. Our loneliness are just waiting for us to embrace it with compassion and affection. And what allows us to be able to do this is love.

You were born with love. You'll die with love. It is not a goal to be achieved nor a luxury you can forego. Love is a foundation for living.


My warmest,
Sass Rogando Sasot