Baylor Lady Bears Visit The White House

Y'all know how much I love my Houston hoopster homegirl Brittney Griner and her Baylor Lady Bear teammates who completed an unbeaten 40-0 run to a NCAA women's basketball title and made me look like a hoops genius in terms of picking my NCAA women's March Madness bracket..

They got to visit the White House and President Obama yesterday and present the POTUS with a Baylor jersey and autographed basketball. 



“I could not be prouder of this team,” President Obama said during this event. ”As the father of two daughters who are tall and beautiful just like them, it is great to have role models who can show that women can be strong and athletic and competitive, but also play as a team.”

And this Lady Bear team had a dominating and record setting season on the way to beating the Skylar Diggins led Notre Dame Fighting Irish for the championship.   They also kept the NCAA women's championship trophy in the Lone Star State for the second consecutive season.

Can they repeat?   We'll see starting in November.

Say Hello To We Happy Trans*

When I started TransGriot six years ago to give voices to the African-American trans community, I have the mission of not only talking about the good stuff that happens in our spaces and making trans people of color less invisible to the world, but also calling out and talking about the negative things that happen as well.  

Was pleased to discover this website called We Happy Trans* has popped up on the scene.   It was created by Jen and Noah  with the goal of highlighting the good news and info that is part of trans world, and I'm happy to signal boost them to my readers.

But here's what the founders have to say about We Happy Trans* , their mission and what their goals are for this site.:

We Happy Trans was created so that trans people could share stories of positive experiences, so the wider world could see that, like any other community, we too thrive, struggle, and overcome; to give further evidence that we too have writers magically shaping words to reflect and elevate shared human experience, and eloquent speakers calling to the better angels of our nature; that we too have bold, visible heroes, as well as quiet warriors or ordinary life; that we too laugh, cry, gossip and occasionally engage in petty squabbles; that we are Christians, Jews, Muslims, atheists, pagans, Buddhists, Hindus, Theosophists, magical panty wearing Mormons, and seekers; we read Shakespeare and watch reality t.v.; occupy queer neighborhoods, small towns, dance halls, local pubs, schools, offices, theaters, prisons, NPOs, nursing homes, hunting parties and coffee klatches in every conceivable place on earth, and possibly beyond; that we are parents, friends, children, second-cousins once-removed, neighbors, strangers, lovers and mortal enemies; that we too are every possible variation of X-sexual; are freaks, utter bores, hysterically funny, plain odd, droll, absurdist and everything between; that we contain multitudes.

We are you. We are here, now.

And I'm glad you are.  Welcome to the Transosphere and may you have a long, healthy, happy and productive run in it.

Chik-Fil-A Comes Out...

As an Anti-gay oppressor

For those of you who love their waffle fries, nuggets, and chicken sandwiches (and yeah I'm guilty as charged on that), consider this the next time you're making your choices of how to spend your hard earned rainbow dollars and t-bills at a local neighborhood fast food restaurant.

Chik-Fil-A president and COO Dan Cathy finally came out of the closet about the chain being anti-gay.

"Well, guilty as charged." Cathy flippantly said in an interview with the Baptist Press.

It was obvious there was a problem based on their WinShape Foundation donations to anti gay groups such as Exodus International ($1,000), The Family Fascist Research Council ($1,000) and $1,188,380 to the Marriage and Family Foundation

But the pushback from the rainbow community is just as strong. I suggested that Chik-Fil-A franchises be protested by rainbow community members for  their anti-same gender marriage stance.

Maybe the process can get started by having sit-ins, kiss-ins, pray-ins featuring liberal-progressive pastors and gay couples walking into their various locations dressed in wedding attire.

I'm just sayin'.

In addition to the scathing commentary coming from the rainbow blogosphere about Cathy's homobigoted comments, in February Northeastern University halted plans to open a Chik-Fil-A restaurant on its campus.

An online petition created by NYU freshman student Hillary Dworkowski has garnered over 5,000 signatures and calls for the school to close its Chik-Fil-A franchise that is reportedly the only one in Manhattan.

So yep, it's on between the rainbow community and Chik-Fil-A and I'll have to get my chicken sandwiches from Mickey D's for the foreseeable future.

4th Texas Transgender Nondiscrimination Summit Starting Tomorrow

The clock is ticking toward the start of the 4th Annual Texas Transgender Nondiscrimination Summit that will be kicking off July 20-21 on the UH-Clear Lake campus.

A new addition to the TTNS this year is a July 19 pre-conference Trans Health event sponsored by the Transgender Education Network of Texas (TENT)   It will run from 8:30 AM-5 PM and is an all day event designed to focus of the health policy concerns and needs of trans students on our Lone Star State colleges and universities.

The TTNS will start at 9 AM CDT on Friday and the University of Houston-Clear Lake campus is located at 2700 Bay Area Blvd in Clear Lake, near NASA's Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center.

The keynote speakers for TTNS 2012 will be on July 20; Dr. Jean Latting, author of Reframing Change and on July 21 Dr. Genny Beemyn, Director Stonewall Center, University of Massachusetts.

Registration is $10 for students and $20 for all other attendees.

4 Million Hits!

Another day, another TransGriot milestone moment.

At 3:09 AM I had the 4 millionth person come surf by and visit my blog.  

Once again I sincerely thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedules to do so.  From the feedback I get from you TransGriot readers I've been fortunate to meet you enjoy the posts and me telling it like it T-I-S is about many issues inside and outside the trans community.

As long as I'm blessed to keep this now six year old electronic forum operating, that's going to be the modus operandi of this blog.  It will also be unapologetically Black, trans and proud to be both.   

You readers unconditional love and respect for what I do keeps me motivated and focused on providing a quality blog that you'll want to come back to and recommend to your friends.

Thank you once again for helping me reach another milestone.  Now on to 5 million hits!

Black SGL Peeps, Don't Forget The T

Black SGL peeps have had it going on for a while and have been intertwined with the kente cloth life of African-Americans for generations.  

They were thinkers, leaders and creative forces in the Harlem Renaissance.  Bayard Rustin was a major leader in the civil rights and gay rights movements.  Lorraine Hansberry helped finance some of the activities of the civil rights movement.  They are advisers to presidents, members of our community legacy organizations from the NAACP to Divine Nine fraternities and sororities  and in some cases power players in gay and non-gay organizations

People such as LZ Granderson and Jonathan Capehart get air time on cable news shows as pundits on issues other than GLBT ones.  Others are getting themselves elected to major city councils, judgeships and state legislatures.  Others are actors, writers in major newspapers and magazines and even appear in popular culture on television shows, movies and book characters.

There is an old Greek proverb that states  "A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in.” 

Hey I ain't mad at y'all. You have worked hard to get to this early 21st century moment in which you are sipping sweet tea under the shade of those trees that people planted during the last century.   But as you sip your sweet tea, don't forget that your African descended trans brothers and sisters are sweltering, thirsty for that human rights blend of sweet tea and catching hell under the blazing hot sun of ignorance fueled intolerance.  

We chocolate transpeeps want to replicate the same accomplishments for our segment of the chocolate rainbow community.  We want our humanity respected and laws to protect our human rights.  We want realistic, balance portrayals of Black trans lives in popular culture.   We want our heroes and sheroes recognized and our transkids to be able to confidently believe they have a future as big as their dreams can make it and to make them happen..

We want to plant trees for our trans brothers and sisters to sit under as well.  

What I and other Black trans people are concerned about is that you Black SGL peeps, enjoying the fruits of this early 21st century power surge may be on the verge of replicating the same mistake white gays did in throwing the trans community under the human rights bus.

Time for a wake up call and a family conversation on a few points. 

Frankly, we're tired of being ignored, dissed and treated like afterthoughts in Black SGL circles. Black transpeople are busting their ample behinds just like y'all are to be respected and recognized.

Bear in mind Black GL community, that the equality trees you sit in the shade of and sip your sweet tea under are watered with the blood of Black transpeople that we cannot allow to die in vain.   

It offends me and my fellow transpeople that some of you are arrogant enough to think we don't deserve to sit under those human rights shade trees and share sweet tea with you. 

If this hasn't occurred to you yet, need to point out African descended transpeople and our allies are not going to let you Black SGL peeps throw us under the bus without a fight.  Neither are we going to allow Black SGL peeps that are inclined to do so to forget the T part of our chocolate rainbow community.

Elements of you  in our chocolate rainbow family can be just as transphobic as elements of our white gay and lesbian counterparts are and be just as clueless in terms of where transpeople fit in the TBLG community.  You need to recognize that some of us transpeeps identify with the LGB and are same gender loving folks like y'all.  

If we have transphobic SGL folks you will be put in check just as we will do the same to Black trans people who exhibit homophobic tendencies.   We don't have time for disunity when we have much more pressing problems to solve in the chocolate rainbow community..

I will point out and continue to do so as long as this blog lives and I am standing six feet above the ground that we have a shared history.   We African American trans people are intimately connected to many of the same issue concerns that African-American SGL people and African-American cis people are grappling with such as HIV/AIDS, ENDA, marriage equality,  economic empowerment, police harassment, education, and voter suppression just to name a few.   We have a wonderful almost decade old organization in the National Black Justice Coalition that is helping all of us own our power as our nascent TPOCC grows to become muscular enough to represent our interests.

That relationship needs to continue because in many ways transpeople are the keys to helping you SGL people reach your human rights goals as we simultaneously grow to own our power and shed the shackles of shame, guilt and fear in being proud trans African-Americans.

You also have a golden opportunity to be better than your white LGBT counterparts have been in terms of uplifting your Black trans brothers and sisters as you continue to climb to greatness.  We Black trans people want to make that journey with you and do our parts to uplift the African-American LGBT community and the greater ones we intersect with.

It's not only for our mutual benefit, but for future generations of BTLG people and the African-American community as well.

It's your call on whether that happens, but the first step in it is not forgetting the trans portion of the Black LGBT community.  

Annoy The GOP-Use Facts And Logic

Another graphic floating around the Net that is so dead on target in describing the unwashed masses of Republifools.  Your defense against the Fox Noise talking point spewing sheeple is burying their bull feces in an avalanche of facts and logic.

Seems like they have an aversion to facts and logic.   Just look at the 2012 Texas Republican Party platform with the plank in it that opposes teaching kids how to critically think.

That way they have good little conservafools and avoid the embarrassing situations of promoting little Jonathan Krohn's as the future of their movement and giving them CPAC speaking spots, only to see them three years later renounce conservatism after they turn off the conservative talk radio and begin to think for themselves.

Why are Republifools so averse to facts and logic?   Time for Moni to school y'all, so grab a chair.

Bottom line is that conservafools know that their political theory is designed to buttress white supremacy,  keep the superrich 1% paying as little in taxes as possible, destroy the New Deal, and return this country to the Robber Baron age of unfetter laissez-faire capitalism.

They need easily bamboozled people that will believe their conservamedia lies that it's the Black president's fault that their jobs went overseas.  The reality is that it's the so called 'job creators' who look like them that are closing down their plants.

The vulture capitalists offshore their manufacturing jobs to China and India, make mad loot as they do so and laugh all the way to Cayman Islands and Bermuda banks to deposit it.

They chuckle in their quiet rooms about how stupid the white working class conservafool voters are to continue a 150 year pattern of voting for economic policies that don't benefit them in the name of vanillacentric ethnic solidarity . .

Conservatism carries the stench of vanillacentric privilege and oppresses people of color.   If you think that I'm being harsh about that conservaracism point, then explain the voter suppression laws that conveniently sprang up in the wake of the election of Barack Obama to the presidency, the anti-immigration Juan Crow laws, or the rise of the Tea Klux Klan.

Racism=prejudice plus power, and the fact that 2040 and your minority status is rapidly approaching means that you conservafools are in panic mode to delay the inevitable.  Instead of pushing to mess with the Voting Rights Act and repeal affirmative action laws you better keep them in place for your grandkids and great grandkids.   

And let's be real for a moment.  If conservatism were so superior to liberalism, they why the need for Orwellian laws when you conservafools get into power, the outright distortions and lies by GOP politicians, voter suppression of non-whites, the hermetically sealed conervamedia environment, the hive mind conservamentality and the reluctance to have honest open debate with liberals in which we compare and contrast our visions for the America we wish to create?

You conservafools already know the answer to that question.  Your vision of trickle down economics and vulture capitalism doesn't work for the vast majority of the country and doesn't stand up to facts and rigorous scrutiny.   If conservatism benefited people of color, you'd have far more Black people at your Republican conventions than the 36 total you had in 2008.    It'll be interesting to see how many show up in Tampa.

But conservatism fails to lift people out of poverty because of your hatred of poor people and the government intervention and policies it will require to tackle the systemic economic inequality issues that cause poverty in our country.   All the GOP does is talk.  The Democrats since FDR have acted.   

That's why you conservafools must have a 24 hour propaganda network and loud talk radio Noise Machine to distract people from the facts and logic that conservatism is a racist, failed political and economic system.

So liberal progressives and Democrats, annoy a conservafool in your family and a GOP politician near you.   Continue to use facts and logic to blow up their talking points and lies.

And if you are a conservafool who really believes if you cut taxes for the wealthy it'll magically jump start the economy, I have some Louisiana waterfront property between Lafayette and Baton Rouge along I-10 to sell you in the Atchafalaya Swamp.

Devastating Obama Campaign Ad Whacks Mitt v 2012

When I finally got around to catching up on what I missed while traveling back to Houston after my double secret weekend in Washington DC, noted the inside I-495 Sunday talk show chatter over this devastating Obama campaign attack ad.   

It  pimp slaps Mitt v. 2012 over his propensity of being Bain Capital's Outsourcer In Chief and making mad loot for it that Romney shelters in offshore bank accounts in exotic island locales.

The most delicious part of the ad is it uses Romney's dreadful January off key singing of 'America the Beautiful' while doing so.




The Romney campaign tried to respond with their own ad attacking the POTUS with the backdrop of the POTUS singing Al Green's 'Lets Stay Together', but had to yank it after a copyright infringement claim was filed.  

(snicker snicker) That's what y'all Republicans get for hatin' on the liberal progressive peeps in the music industry.

And to apologize to you TransGriot readers for assaulting your ears with such horrid singing, let hme post so video that shows you how it should properly be done.

4th Anniversary Of Angie Zapata's Murder

Four years ago today we were beginning to hear the story about a young Latina transwoman who was found dead in her Greeley, CO apartment and how a reporter initially got the pronouns wrong.

Her name was Angie Zapata.    

She's no longer with us, and the waste of DNA who took her life was convicted and is still getting 'three hots and a cot' in a Colorado prison.   The national media that descended upon Greeley for the trial has long since dispersed to cover other issues.

But we can't forget Angie.   We know her family and those who loved her won't.   But the rest of us in the rainbow community cannot forget there is a War on Transwomen, especially in light of the fact there have been more Latina and African-American transwomen who have lost their lives to anti-trans violence. 

Angie's case was solved and Allen Andrade is doing jail time for it.   But another murder of young trans women is approaching its ten year anniversary next month and crying out for resolution in the persons of Stephanie Thomas and Ukea Davis in Washington DC.    The Chicago po-po's have been glacially slow in trying to apprehend Paige Clay's killers.  

And another November 20 Transgender Day of Remembrance is rapidly approaching.

But today is about remembering what happened to Angie and how her life tragically ended before she even had an opportunity to begin living it.  

Yo Jennifer, Attractive Black Women Do Engage in 'Relationships Like That'

Had to say something about Florida Lt. Governor and conservafool Jennifer Carroll (R), who is embroiled in a Sunshine State sex scandal and made this jacked up comment. 

"The problem is that when you have these accusations that come out, it's not just one person you're attacking. It's an entire family. My husband doesn't want to hear that. He knows the type of woman I am. I mean, my kids know the type of woman I am. For twenty-nine years - I'm the one that's married for twenty-nine years. The accuser is the one that's been single for a long time. So usually black women that look like me don't engage in relationships like that."

Oh really, Jennifer?   You don't get out much do you?   Guess you haven't heard of the term 'lipstick lesbian'.

I've been around the rainbow community since 1980, and I have seen, met and count as friends more than a few femme Black women with jaw-dropping beauty and Coke bottle shaped bodies capable of launching erections on any man or non-op lesbian transwoman, but prefer relationships with other women.

Women who look like you damned sure have engaged in 'relationships like that' for decades and will continue to do so whether your 49 year old clueless behind believes that or not.   Some of them have been in relationships far longer than your 29 year marriage.  

You don't (or won't) know about Black women who engage in 'relationships like that' because as they so eloquently put it at times, it isn't anyone's business who shares their bed or who they choose to be intimate with.

Hmm, is she the first closeted female Republican that has been busted?   Stay tuned to how this scandal develops especially since Carroll is the lieutenant governor under the very unpopular Rick Scott and she's been used as a shield to deflect racism charges.

And yeah, you know she's in the running for this week's Shut Up Fool! Award
..

Cristan's Take On Chloe Sevigny's Hit and Miss

The BBC is now several episodes into broadcasting a show called Hit and Miss about Mia, a pre-op trans assassin who discovers she has a child from a previous relationship.

The character is played by Chloe Sevigny.  Hit and Miss has gotten some buzz based on the premise of the show and I even heard about the show during my double secret weekend trip.

Cristan Williams had this to say on her Ehipassiko blog about it.

I decided to see for myself what all the fuss was about and watched the 6 available episodes. If you like assassin shows, it’s your standard fare. Now, about Sevigny’s portrayal of a pre-op transwoman… It’s good. At times my reaction to her portrayal of gender dysphoria is visceral and may be a trigger for some. At other times, I rolled my eyes at some aspects of the scripted portrayal. Having said that, the good outweighs the bad.

Here's the rest of Cristan's thoughts about the show .

Time To Pay Us Black Trans Speakers, Too

One of the things that irritates me and other African-American trans community people who have gotten the opportunity to do speaking engagements is running into a meme, mindset or mistaken belief by organizers and planners of these events.

It's a mistaken belief that because we African-American trans speakers don't get as many of these speaking opportunities vis a vis our white counterparts, we are so starved for the attention that we'll do these for free or severely reduced rates.

We African-American trans peeps have bills to pay and need to replenish our bank accounts like just like our white trans community counterparts do.  To be honest, it's our stories that urgently need to be heard by society in addition to us getting the visibility that white trans people have had since 1953.

Our chocolate trans people not only need to be heard because they bring fresh perspectives and innovative thinking to the ongoing rainbow community human rights discussion, frankly y'all need the 'ejumacation' about what our lives are like and what we think about the hot topic issues inside and outside our rainbow community. 

And Black trans speakers also need to be standing up at podiums inside the Black community as well doing the 'ejumacation' and sharing our knowledge as Kylar just did at the recently concluded NAACP convention in Houston..

Black transpeople need to be showcased far more frequently than they are nowadays because it will blow up the erroneous perception in communities of color and society that thoughtful, visionary trans people like us don't exist.   It also is concrete evidence we have out and proud unapologetically Black trans people who are involved in the rainbow human rights struggle and we Black trans people have some ideas about where the movement needs to go..

And yes, those fresh perspectives are worth paying for to hear them.if you have the ability to do so.

Two years ago Dan Choi was getting flack because either he or his agent was allegedly asking for $10,000 before he'll even step to the microphone to speak.  It was something a then Texas Tech student complained about and I rebutted in my Activists Need To Get Paid, Too post.

My fee is not even close to that.  

A few years ago in the wake of my keynote speech at the 2008 gender conference I was part of at the University of Colorado, I had an inquiry come in about my availability to speak at a large west coast city's pride march.   They were willing to go as far as fly me roundtrip out from Louisville and put me up in a hotel, but when I asked for a mere $500 on top of that there was cricket chirping silence.

Considering my profile in the trans activist community and status, they were getting off extremely cheap.  I also believe that had I been a melanin free trans human being I would have been standing at the podium that day and had more money than that mere $500 in my purse on the way back to Da Ville.   

I'm also hearing the same complaints from other African-American activists who have had a few colleges or groups balk at paying speaking fees when we are quite aware they had no problem shelling out far more money for white activists who don't have one-tenth of the activist resumes many of us have put together.

But yes, if you want to help speed up that day when trans African-Americans can do our parts to help uplift our community and be financially stable enough to be able to donate to your causes, y'all have make that investment in our talents as well.

Time to pay the Black transman and Black transwoman for their stories and valuable time that they are willing to spend to enliven you event when you summon the courage to ask them to do so.

Introducing NBJC's Leadership Advisory Council

Y'all know how much love and confidence I have for and in the National Black Justice Coalition.  

I not only love the fact they are like the TransGriot unapologetically Black, I love the fact the NBJC is also about us Black trans and SGL peeps 'owning our power' as NBJC Executive Director Sharon Lettman-Hicks is fond of saying.

They are building working coalitions with others to help us do precisely that and are like yours truly driving home the point that Black LGBT people are part of the kente cloth fabric of African-American society.

Stepping off electronic soapbox, getting to the main point of this post. 

NBJC recently rolled out its Leadership Advisory Council.   The 40 members of the LAC are a distinguished body of exemplary thought leaders with the purpose being to serve as both an incubator of ideas and a conduit connecting some of the most authentic advocates in our community to the NBJC leadership. LAC members update NBJC on significant developments at the core of our community's needs, strategically assess the direction of the organization and deepen NBJC's impact on federal, state, and local initiatives. They represent a wide range of geographical regions, professional disciplines, subject matters and generations.

Some of the trans people involved are Kye Allums, Valerie Spencer, and Louis Mitchell.

"LAC members have unapologetically served as positive messengers, advocates and ambassadors for NBJC in their own communities and professional and social networks," says Sharon Lettman-Hicks, NBJC Executive Director. "The LAC also creates a unique opportunity to highlight the brilliant and important social justice work of many Black LGBT leaders across the country."

Congratulations to all the NBJC LAC members and looking forward to hopefully seeing and meeting you at Out On the Hill this September.

2012 Trans Faith In Color Conference- I'll Be There

Been in the works for a few weeks, but now I can officially tell you TransGriot readers that I'll not only be in the house for the upcoming Trans Faith In Color Conference, I've honored with the opportunity to give the keynote speech at it.

Been wanting to attending this August 17-19 event in Charlotte, NC for a while, and now I get to fulfill that wish with the added bonus of the speech.

It'll be at the Hilton University Place in Charlotte, and it's sponsored by the Freedom Center For Social Justice, Southerners On New Ground (SONG), and the Arcus Foundation just to name a few of the groups that are assisting with helping put on this event.  

I'll be revealing more details as the event draws closer to happening, and I'm looking forward to seeing you folks when I get to the Tarheel State.

Getting Close To 4 Million Hits!

Sometime this week I'll pass another blogging milestone in terms of having my 4 millionth visitor peruse this blog. 

I thank all of you longtime readers who have donated funds to help me keep it going.  I thank you pees around the world who shouted out to the rooftops and inside and outside your influence circles how much you like it.  I thank the people who send me links and leads for potential posts and all the people who have given me awards for what I write here.

And thank you TransGriot fans for telling me when we do meet when I'm out and about how much you love what I do.

I also have to thank my haters (and you know who you are).  Thank you haters, for motivating me to keep doing what I do here on these electronic pages.  Being unapologetically Black and trans, striving for even greater heights of blogging excellence, telling the stories and shining a bright spotlight on trans African-Americans.

And yep, I come up with the posts you don't wanna hear and that 'nobody will read'   

Home Sweet Humidity

Well peeps, I'm back in H-town after my double secret Washington DC trip in which I spent this weekend handling some activism business I can't talk about. 

And don't ask because I signed a confidentiality agreement to ensure I can't talk about it.  

Yeah, what I experienced this weekend was that serious 

But what I can talk about is how we did so on a well-fed stomach, I saw another one of my blogs avid fans and readers Saturday night (Hi, Karen!) and got to see the MLK Jr. Memorial all lit up in nighttime mode.

Was a little bummed I had to leave before it was over, but got a nice surprise when I arrived at Hartsfield-Jackson Airport in the ATL.  When I arrived at gate C-4 from DCA discovered my Hobby departure gate changed to C-2 from C-21.   I had to use the restroom, and when I emerged from it Kylar Broadus was standing near that spot waiting for his connecting flight back home checking his e-mail on his cell phone.

I stopped when I heard his voice say, 'You look familiar."  We both laughed, then had an impromptu meeting at my gate while I killed time waiting from my Houston flight to board.

I was also greeted by something else when I arrived back in Houston I haven't experienced there in a few days:. sunshine and humidity.   My departure flight on the Thursday Houston-ATL leg was delayed, and then ATC ground stopped after we pushed off the gate due to an early morning thunderstorm that snarled air traffic.

Thank to Jeri and her wonderful roomie Robin for letting me crash at their place Thursday evening and for the invite to the double secret event.

At any rate, I'm home in one piece.  Had a wonderful time seeing everyone in DC I was collaborating with on the double secret stuff.  For you DC folks who missed me this go round, you''ll get another chance soon, probably when the 2012 edition of Out On The Hill kicks off in September.

 

'Style Exposed' Trans Documentary

Robert Jason, the director tapped to produce Janet Jackson's upcoming documentary on the international trans community entitled 'Truth', produced this 2011 one chronicling the lives of four trans New Yorkers called 'Style Exposed: Born Male, Living Female'.

One of the things I didn't like about this documentary is that once again, the lone Black trans woman in it was the one who was A) an escort  B) battling a drug addiction and C) living up to the many of the negative stereotypes we are saddled with.    





Part 2




Part 3

And The Last FIBA Olympic Mens B-Ball Qualifiers Are...

Russia, Lithuania and Nigeria.

Nope, that isn't a typo.   The Nigerian men qualified for the Olympics while Angola, the perennial Afrobasket champions and African continent Olympic representatives will be watching the London Games tournament at home on television..

In our last episode of 'As The Olympic Basketball Bounces' the Men's FIBA Olympic Qualifying tournament in Caracas was in the quarterfinal stage.  

Greece suffered their first loss in the tournament at the worst possible time to Nigeria 80-79 while the Russians rolled over Angola 80-65.  In the other bracket Lithuania beat Puerto Rico 76-72 and the Dominican republic rolled over Macedonia 86-76 to get to the semis

In the semifinal action that took place on July 7 the winners of those games would get two of the Olympic slots while the loses would play the next day for the final London Olympic berth.

Russia finished the tournament unbeaten with a 4-0 record and clinched one of the Olympic spots with a 85-77 victory over Nigeria.  Their Lithuanian next door neighbors rolled over the Dominican Republic 109-83 to claim the second Olympic berth. 

That left Nigeria and the Dominican Republic to battle it out for the final Olympic spot on July 8.  Nigeria dribbled their way to an 88-73 win to punch their ticket to London.

After the three final Olympic qualifying teams were determined, a draw was held to see which groups the qualifying tourney teams would play in when the men's Olympic basketball tournament prelims start on July 29.

Lithuania and Nigeria ended up in Group A with the USA, Argentina, France, and Tunisia  while Russia ended up in Group B with Australia, Brazil, China, Spain and Great Britain. 

Should be fun to watch... .  

Miss Universe Pageant's Transphobic Holdouts

We are indebted to Jenna Talackova for cracking a glass ceiling and helping bringing down the odious 'natural born women' rule that discriminated against transwomen like her who wished to participate in their national Miss Universe system pageants. 

Thanks to Jenna's efforts the glass pageant ceiling has been shattered.  Policy changes have been implemented that will allow transwomen to compete in their national Miss Universe pageants starting in 2013.

Transwomen around the world who have dreamed about entering their national pageants just like any other cis woman and possibly winning it now can start working to make that dream come true. 

There are still some transphobic Miss Universe national franchise holdouts upset about the rule change and coincidentally both that have publicly stated so are Roman Catholic countries.  Thanks to the efforts of STRAP in facilitating an intelligent debate on the subject, the Philippines will not be one of them. 

Until STRAP got their formidable selves involved and changed the climate to a 'just the facts' debate, the Philippine franchise holders and public opinion was leaning in that direction. Banning transwomen from competing would have been problematic and a travesty in light of the fact the Manila based Amazing Philippine Beauties trans pageant takes place in that nation .

Mexico is one of the Miss Universe national organizations that announced on April 12 they would bar the participation of trans women.

"The rules have been followed since 1994 and it will continue in this respect as it has throughout the history of the competition," according to celebrity news website, Celestrellas and Univision.  

You're still hiding behind that 'natural born women' rule which even The Donald knew wouldn't stand up in court and even the Miss Universe system isn't backing.  So what's your excuse now to justify continuing to bar Mexican transwomen from competing? 

You may want to reconsider that hardheaded stance in light of the fact Erica Andrews won the 2006 Miss International Queen trans pageant in Thailand a few years ago.

The other holdout is Venezuela, which transphobically huffed, puffed and said the same thing.   Their pageant will be held on August 30 in Caracas and as of this writing there will be no transwomen on the stage.  

According to the Global Beauties pageant blog, Osmel Sousa, the president of the Miss Venezuela organization said during an April 24 press conference that "The Christian Venezuelan people would never accept the participation of transgenders in the Miss Venezuela contest.” 

There's a lot of things Christians 'would never accept' back in the day, Mr. Sousa.  There are some little c 'Christians' in my country who still think I'm 3/5ths of a human being and as a descendant of slaves shouldn't have United States citizenship.  

Stop hiding behind scripture to mask your transphobia.   Besides, your surgically enhanced cis women haven't been getting the job done lately at the Miss Universe competition stage since 2009 and the major reason you won in 2008 was Miss USA Crystle Stewart slipping and falling during the evening gown competition with her strongest event yet to come. .You may need to let some transwomen in to help y'all step up your beauty pageant game.

But here's hoping the transphobic Miss Universe holdouts eventually relent and allow the transwomen in their respective nations to compete for their national and Miss Universe crowns.

Shut Up Fool Awards- July Friday The 13th Edition

It's a scary day for some peeps when it pops up on the calendar while other take it in stride as just another Friday.

But Friday the 13rh for some people brings apprehension . .

This Friday the t13th brings something else, another round of nominations for my weekly TransGriot Shut Up Fool Awards.

This Friday we're going to discover what fool, fool or group of fools, exhibited spine-tingling ignorance and displayed a frightening grasp of unrepentant stupidity..

All right, let's get busy shall we?

This week's group nominations went to the Republican Party, Fox Noise, and The Texas GOP,

Our individual nominees were GOP chair Reince Priebus, Mitt Romney, Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) , Sen Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Gov. Tom Corbett (R-PA), Gov Bobby Jindal (R-LA), Gov Chris Christioe (R-NJ), Sen Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Gov Rick Scott (R-FL),

Honorable mention goes to Ted Nugent for is comment that the US would have been better off if the South had won the Civil War. 

Um, not no but Hu-ell no it wouldn't have.  .  They lost 150 years ago Ted, and you and your Confederate flag waving 'state's rights' loving NRAoid chickenhawk friends need to get over it.   I plan to have a serious party on April 9, 2015.   BTW that's the day he Confederacy surrendered.

Our winner this week is Rep Allen West (R-FL)   This cookie chomping knee-grow not only is battling Mitt Romney for 2012 Shuit Up Fool of the Year honors, but predictably parted his lips to say something else jaw droppingly stupid by claiming the president wan to to make all Americans his slaves.  



Thank God the elections are a little more than 110 days from now.  

Allen West, (Mr T. take it from here)