DC Officer Kenneth Furr Indicted For Shooting At Transwomen

DC police officer Kenneth Furr has been indicted for the August 26 off-duty incident in which he discharged his service weapon at a transwoman who refused his inebriated advances at a northwest DC CVS store. 

There was a report that a possible plea bargain was in the works, but looks like those negotiations broke down.

Furr was charged with nine counts that include intent to kill while armed, six counts of assault with a dangerous weapon and two counts of solicitation. 

However, I did not appreciate the Washington Post's characterization of the shooting victims in their article about this indictment as trans prostitutes. 

But back to the story.  Furr is facing 30 years in prison if he is convicted and is scheduled to appear in court Friday before Judge Ann O’Regan Keary. 

Sam Houston State Adds Gender ID To Policy

The positive momentum in this so-called red state of Texas continues.

Sam Houston State University in Huntsville recently revised its Equal Employment Opportunity policy and nondiscrimination statement and added sexual orientation and gender identity to it.. 

Led by Vice President for Student Services Frank Parker, the SHSU President’s Cabinet voted to add the two as protected classes into three areas of SHSU policy, including Chapter V for “Component Personnel,” which outlines employment qualifications; Chapter VI for “Student Services Activities,” which outlines admissions criteria; and Chapter VII’s non-discrimination policy involving campus life and activities.

“I believe that our policies should reflect and encourage the full spectrum of diversity on our campuses and adopting this policy is just the right thing to do,” Parker said. “This policy fulfills the concept that ‘Sam Houston is a great name in education’ for all.”

It joins fellow Texas State University System member Texas State as one of two schools in the eight member TSUS system to adopt the wording.   The TSTS Board Of Regents looking at making similar changes to the system-wide policy.

Congrats Sam Houston State for making the moves that ensure that all Bearkats are welcomed on campus and protected from discrimination.  Let's hope the TSUS board f Regents continues the polsitive momentum and follows the principles lead of Texas sate and SHSU

Queerty Racism And Transphobia On Display Again

There's no love lost between me and Queerty as many of you longtime readers are aware of.  I've written more than a few times about the failures Queerty regularly gets into when it comes to race and trans people.

It seems this rainbow themed site never fails to take the low road when it concerns the way transpeople are covered, the transphobia that is unleashed in its comment threads, the racism it sinks to or with gleefully wallowing in white gay male vanillacentric privilege .

But this was the latest classless move by this site that was revived from the dead in 2011 when it disrespectfully penned the headline in its take on the Daily Mail story about Evie, President Obama's Indonesian trans nanny.

Queerty referred to Evie in its headline about the story as "a tranny ho' 

Seriously Queerty?  Your pink sheets are showing again.   And don't forget the pointed hood.

How apoplectic would you be if a trans themed publication aimed a word you consider a slur to your community at you and your readership?  Umm, never mind, we already know the answer to that question.

Queerty and other stops in the Gayosphere, this transphobia in gay circles is really getting old.

This time you got a two-fer in terms of letting your transphobia and racism shine through in your headline aimed at Evie.

As Evie's story points out, transpeople are part of the diverse mosaic of human life and we are intertwined with it to the point in which we not only make history, a transperson was the nanny for the future president of the United States.

Evie's story also reminds us of where we don't want to go in the international trans community of being unhappily forced to perform and live a gender role we don't feel comfortable with. 

The discrimination and transphobia aimed at my Indonesian transsisters is no joke, and only someone wallowing in vanillacentric privilege would see it that way. 

You Queerty peeps and your like minded acolytes may think being trans is a joke or we don't belong in 'your GL community',  but if you define your community as having the same whiteness and vanillacentric 'special right' to other, discriminate and harass people as cis straight people do without being called on it, that's a community I don't want to be a part of.

Where Is The Trans Community For CeCe?

Guest post by Pamela Hayes 

This morning, after sipping my apple juice and reading the headlines, I went online and ran across a disturbing story about CeCe McDonald, a young trans woman who got into a physical altercation with bigots, which led to a man losing his life. According to the article, CeCe is in jail on two counts of second degree murder.

Cee Cee was merely defending herself and in the course of doing so, a person lost his life. Imagine being locked up, stripped of your freedom for defending yourself. Talk about a huh moment.

What happened to CeCe could happen to any trans woman. Actually it could happen to any person. But in this post, I'm talking about trans women. Any trans woman could be out and about grabbing a bite to eat, shopping for groceries, or in the post office buying stamps and encounter a hateful bigot, who pelts her with epithets. And knocks her around a bit.

What is she to do? The natural response to that sort of thing is to fight back. Which was what CeCe did.

And unfortunately, a person was killed. But CeCe did not plot this man's murder. He lost his life while CeCe was defending herself. And she shouldn't be in jail.

But CeCe is trans, so of course, anti trans folks are undoubtedly arguing that had she not been out there like that, (translated, being a trans woman) there wouldn't have been any trouble. Well, each of us have a right to live our lives any way we damn well please. And no one has a right to accost anybody with insults or bodily injury.

CeCe's last name triggers memory of the young white girl (Chrissy Lee Polis) who was attacked and beat up in a McDonald's eatery sometime back. When that happened, the transsexual cavalry ran to her rescue. This story made the headlines. News reports were on the Internet. A defense fund was set up for this white trans woman. She didn't go out seeking help. A trans group with power sought her out.

Where is that group now? Why aren't they extending a helpful hand to CeCe? She could certainly use their support. Is a white trans woman getting beat up more important than a black trans woman who accidentally killed a man while defending herself?

Where is the ACLU? Or any human rights groups? CeCe McDonald is in trouble and she needs assistance.

Rest In Peace Rep. Donald Payne

I was shocked and saddened to hear that Rep. Donald Payne of New Jersey died today after a several month long battle with colon cancer. 

Rep. Payne was the first (and so far only) African-American elected to Congress from New Jersey and represented New Jersey's 10th Congressional District for 23 years after his initial election in 1988.

In addition to his tireless advocacy for increased United States attention on African continent issues, he was a tireless advocate for his constituents, a champion for education as a former teacher and a civil rights warrior who was returned to Congress 11 times by wide margins.

And yes, I had the pleasure of meeting him along with Vanessa Edwards-Foster during the 1999 GenderPac lobby day.   Vanessa and I had gone to Rep JC Watts (R-OK) office earlier that morning and as we were recapping what happened in the elevator it stopped and Rep. Payne got on enroute to his office to open it.     

He'd heard part of our conversation and asked what we were there to lobby for.   When we told him trans rights issues, we ended up getting to follow him to his office and having 30 minutes with him before he started his day to explain why our coverage in hate crimes and ENDA was needed.  

During my subsequent lobby trips to Washington DC I made it a point to stop by his office any time I was on Capitol Hill just to say hello.  Unfortunately, the next time I'm on Capitol Hill, I won't be able to do so

Rest in peace Rep. Payne.  I will definitely miss you.along with your constituents in the 10th Congressional District..

Justice For CeCe McDonald

There has been a story developing in Minneapolis concerning a young African-American transwoman who is being held in jail and facing second degree murder charges for defending herself against a hate attack.  

23 year old college student Chrishaun 'CeCe' McDonald and her friends (all African-American BTW) were minding their own business on the night of June 5, 2011 walking to a grocery store in South Minneapolis.   As they passed the patio of the Schooner Tavern white adults on that patio started yelling transphobic and racist slurs at CeCe and her friends.


After CeCe made it clear they weren't tolerating the hate speech coming from the white club patrons, a fight ensued after one of the white women uttered a derogatory slur at the African-American youths as she smashed her drinking glass in McDonald's face, lacerating her cheek.

Unfortunately, one of the attackers, 47 year old Dean Schmitz (who had a swastika tattoo on his body) was fatally stabbed in the fight, but the only person who was arrested when the Minneapolis po-po's arrived on the scene was CeCe.  She was denied medical treatment for her injuries, was interrogated for hours, placed in solitary confinement on top of that and forced to sign a confession that she later recanted..  

CeCe was charged with two counts of second degree murder with her bail being set at $500,000.   A petition was started that so far has garnered 9,500 signature imploring Hennepin County District Attorney Michael Freeman (D) to exercise the power he has to drop these charges just as he has done in three other self defense cases similar to Chrishaun's that involve white cis people.  

So why isn't Freeman or the assistant DA doing so in this case especially when CeCe and her friends were defending themselves against white supremacists?   Another question I'd like to ponder is has anyone talked to Congressman Keith Ellison (D) about this case?   Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D)?  Sen. Al Franken (D)?  The NAACP?   

The more national firepower on this the better.   And yes, here's the addresses and phone numbers so you can (politely please) be agents for Chrishaun's liberation

To tell Michael Freeman you support dropping the charges against CeCe:

call: 612-348-5561
email: citizeninfo@co.hennepin.mn.us
fax: 612-348-2042

In November McDonald wrote to supportcece.wordpress.com):

“To deal with racism and transphobia directly and upfront is very hard to deal with. Even hearing the words being said left me in total confusion and shock. And to be attacked in my own community by individuals who felt it was their duty to yell hate speech at not only me, but my family who was with me, and attack me for their own satisfaction of making someone else’s life miserable.

“I felt that I’ve worked very hard from where I started, to where I’m at now in my life, just to have it all taken away from me. It’s hard enough for gays and trans people to find stability in this society, and I’ve worked too hard to let anyone just take it from me. We have to stand up against those who put us down and try to oppress us.”

Yes, we do.  We also must do what we can to get DA Freeman to drop this case before it goes to trial on April 30.