Doing Some Brazilian Trans Musing

One of the things I have wanted to have happen for a while as a child of the African Diaspora is to have better communications links and form lasting friendships with my Brazilian transsisters.

While I'm on my way to making that happen on my Facebook page with a few Brazilian transsisters already there and us having conversations from time to time, I need to do it more frequently.

A high priority for me has been to get to know some of my Black Brazilian trans sisters so I can have a better knowledge base to discuss African Diaspora issues from their perspective and intelligently write about them.

I also want to find out their thoughts of being Black and trans in their home country, and where they see themselves in terms of the trans spotlight inside and outside of Brazil.

While there are some differences between African-American trans folks  and Black Brazilian trans peeps, there are other aspects of having blood connections to the African continent that we are both painfully aware of.

Brazil is the largest nation on the South American continent and the fifth largest on the planet.  It is one of the Top Ten countries that I receive TransGriot readers from despite this being a primarily English language blog. 

I'm motivated toward wanting to do a better job of covering trans human rights developments that happen there.

Yes, we have known since Roberta Close hit the international spotlight that Brazil has some of the most beautiful trans women on the planet.  Some are ripping modeling runways right now. But I want to delve deeper and find out from my Brazilian transsisters and transbrothers what are their issue concerns?  How do they see themselves in comparison to the rest of the trans people who are on the international stage?

Who are their up and coming trans human rights leaders?  Who are the local trans people they think represent them well on the national and international trans human rights stage.

In addition to discussing trans themed history that involves Brazilian trans people, while I want to bring attention to the fact our Brazilian sisters are catching hell and getting eviscerated just like we are in the States, I also want to make sure that I present a balanced portrait of Brazilian trans women to my readers.

I want to tell more stories about Black Brazilian trans women as well.

Thanks to Dora and Aleikasandra for giving me your thoughts and  insights into what is happening trans wise in Brazil.  I hope the subsequent posts that result from what you shared with me do your trans community justice the next time I respectfully attempt to discuss those issues on TransGriot.

And I hope we are blessed to have more long and fascinating chats in the future.

The Task Force Is FINALLY Changing Its Name

When I began my advocacy work on behalf of the trans community in 1998, one of the few national organizations that supported us was the Task Force.

I was introduced to then executive director Kerry Lobel, and what I observed of her I liked, and not just because our birthdays were a week apart.

The Task Force at the time was one of the few national organizations that supported trans people, and that trans inclusion was evident at the Creating Change Conference I attended in Oakland a year later.

When I became the Political Director of a neophyte trans rights organization called the National Transgender Advocacy Coalition, one of the first national policy event tables I got the opportunity to sit at with other LGBT organizations was a February 2000 National Transgender Policy one held at the Task Force's DC headquarters.

And over a decade later, I was a proud member of the Houston Host Committee and conference participant for our wildly successful 2014 Creating Change Conference in my hometown.

I have a long personal connection with the Task Force, and I was extremely pleased to hear that yesterday the organization changed its name to the National LGBTQ Task Force.

The Task Force name only including gay and lesbian has been an at times contentious issue with elements of the bi and trans communities, and even reared its head during one of the plenary speeches during CC14.

The organization’s new tagline to go with the new name and logo is “Be you.”  The vision is a society that values and respects the diversity of human expression and identity and achieves freedom and equity for all.

It's past time that the B, T and Q letters were added to the name, since the Task Force as one of the oldest national LGBTQ orgs has long been doing work around trans issues.

It's just now we're included in the name of the organization.

Zeam's MSHSL Testimony

Because Minnesota is not among the 32 states that have policies or procedures for participation by transgender student-athletes, the Minnesota State High School League is debating implementing an inclusive competition policy that would allow transgender high school athletes to compete on the teams that correspond with their gender presentation

News of this was met by the Minneapolis Star Ledger, the state's largest newspaper, making the controversial decision to allow the trans hate group the Minnesota Child Protection League to post in the Sunday edition of the paper a full page falsehood filled ad seeking to stop the policy.

Trans student Zeam Porter appeared before the MSHSL committee debating the policy to give some emotional testimony in favor of it. 

“My love for basketball last year made me believe I could handle being on the wrong team. That was wrong. Constantly being misgendered and called the wrong name took away my soul. I already feel like I don’t have my body -- now I am soulless." said Porter during the hearing.

Unfortunately, the vote on the proposed policy was delayed until December.


All I have to add to this is let my transkids play sports just like everyone else matriculating on a Minnesota high school campus, and do so on the teams that correspond with their gender presentation.

Audrey Mbugua Wins Her Landmark Case!

Been talking about this on the blog since last year, and finally have some wonderful news to report.

Prominent Kenyan trans activist Audrey Mbugua has won her landmark case against the Kenyan National Examinations Council {KNEC}!

KNEC was ordered by the High Court Tuesday to change the name and gender marker on her academic certificates.   

Justice Weldon Korir said KNEC had failed to demonstrate why they couldn't make the changes requested by Ms. Mbugua, and gave them 45 days to print a new certificate without the gender marker.

The court ruled that Ms. Mbugua would have to pay for any extra costs to make the change, but you can obviously presume she was exceeding happy about this latest legal victory.

We won,” Mbugua told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. “It’s a huge watershed moment.”

Back n July, the High Court ordered the Kenyan authorities to register her lobby group, Transgender Education and Advocacy, saying their refusal to do so had no legal basis and was an abuse of power.

Mbugua has also been nominated by the Dutch government for their Human Rights Tulip Award for the innovative and groundbreaking human rights work she has been doing raising the profile of transgender human rights issues in Kenya.

This is a huge win she's been fighting hard for, and congratulations to my Kenyan sis.  Common sense and justice did prevail in this case.

Happy Birthday Dee Dee!

I met her last year at a trans POC meeting, and it has been a blessing to me and the city of Houston.  

Ever since we met, we have been collaboratively working on projects that have benefited our community as our personal friendship has exponentially grown.  One of those projects we were working on was HERO.    

And yeah, I enjoy our traditional Tuesday lunches at Frenchy's, too.

When you love and appreciate someone and admire what they do, best to tell them while they are in this plane of existence to hear it..

So here I go.   I have mad love and respect for my award winning activist trans sister, and since today is Dee Dee Watters birthday, I'll let her reveal which birthday she's celebrating. 

She deserves a TransGriot birthday shout out, and my birthday wish for her is that this busy lady take it easy on her special day.   I hope (and presume) she'll be celebrating it by being surrounded by her family and close friends.  

I also hope and pray she receives the ultimate blessing of being around to celebrate many more of them.

Happy birthday Dee Dee!

What Do You Mean Transitioning Was A 'Waste Of My Potential?'

Was talking to my mom the other night when she relayed a conversation she'd had with another one of my old neighbors in the Houston hood I'd grown up with. 

After they'd asked what my other siblings were up to, she then asked what I the eldest was doing since it is not a secret (at least I tend to think so) I transitioned 20 years ago and took the difficult path of doing so in my hometown.

When mom made a non committal "I was doing fine' answer, the person made the mistake of saying what was really on her mind and making the comment that me transitioning was 'a waste of my potential' and it was' an embarrassment'. 

Seriously?   This comment came from a woman whose sons did jail time, and when they made the local news, it was a negative story.   Compare and contrast that with yours truly.

My mom calmly told her, "We give our children life, but we can't live their lives."  As Mom is already aware of, I will determine how to live my life to not only maximize its potential, but to make me happy.  Caring about what haters think is not part of that game plan.

But I damned sure will use my electronic media platform to comment on it.

I'm more than a little tired of this ignorant thinking in the African-American community that presumes that if we don't stay in those mismatched at birth bodies, we African descended trans people don't contribute anything to the greater African-American community.  

That's bull feces.  So far you haven't given us the opportunity to prove that we transpeople of African descent can excel, or are ignoring our contributions when we do so.

And sometimes, you are our oppressors in league with others preventing that from happening.    

As I have pointed out on more than a few occasions on this blog, we have African descended trans people who have advanced degrees, are working in various vocations and excelling when given the chance to do so. 

I'm considered an authority on transgender history.  I'm an award winning writer with a blog I started in 2006 that has 5.7 million hits and counting.   I have done countless radio interviews, speak at various college and conventions on trans and other issues.  I was asked on two separate occasions if I would run for public office.   I have friendships with some amazing cis and trans people that span the globe that I probably would have never met if I hadn't transitioned.

And I still have living to do and chapters of my still evolving story to write.  

Waste of my potential?   It's because I transitioned, I'm living up to it.  I gained the courage to step out there and live my life so I can be happy.  You don't like that, tough.   While you're tripping about my transition, I'll continue to live my life to the best of my ability and look fly while doing so.
 
It is from that happiness and balance in my life I can then focus on using the gifts and talents I have to make my life and all the communities I intersect and interact with better.  

'He Wanted To Erase Her Existence'

Mayang Prasetyo, another one of our transsisters was murdered in Australia.

Along with the media in Brisbane misgendering and sensationalizing the whole thing also came a Guardian post by Amy Gray that took the opposite angle. 

Gray's post asserted that it was masculine entitlement that led to Prasetyo's death.

That Guardian article generated some commentary on my FB page when  I posted it, and the most thought provoking one of all so far was from Troy, whose trans attracted man videos you see pop up on TransGriot from time to time.

In his comment on the article Troy remarked, "Think of the last few trans women that have been murdered, thrown on the streets, dumped in the garbage. It seems their killers wanted to erase them from existence."

"That's why I'm so adamant about language. When you dehumanize someone it's easier to justify killing them."

Exactly, Troy.  Ever since I transitioned 20 years ago and became aware of the horrific levels of anti-trans violence aimed at us, there have been times when I have been stunned by the extreme level of violence that was aimed at transfeminine murder victims. 

Yaz'min Shancez's killer shot her, then burned her body. Shellie Hilliard's body in Detroit was dismembered and burned by her convicted killer.  I remember reading about other trans murders on the Remembering Our Dead list in which extreme violence was part of it.

One of my suspicions as to why that happens is because of the virulent level anti-trans hate can reach at times with cisgender males, as Joanna Cifredo noted while recounting an incident that happened to her in her blog post Passing To Survive.

That night will forever be ingrained in my memory. It was the night that I looked straight into the eyes of transphobia. I don’t think “phobia” is even the right word, he wasn’t scared of me, just the opposite, I was scared of him, instead I came face to face with pure, undiluted, hatred. As I rode home I began to think about the paralyzing fear that engulfed every pore of my being, and I began to sob uncontrollably. I started to think of all of my sisters who came face to face with hatred and weren’t as lucky as I was to have someone there defending them and were met with their mortality

Joanna is describing an instance in which she came face to face with someone who literally wanted to erase her existence from the face of this Earth because of her trans feminine status.  That person probably would have eagerly done so if it hadn't been for the fact there was a door and another cis male keeping that from happening in the incident she describes in the post

It's the sudden nature in which a transwoman can go from having a pleasant day to fearing for her life that keeps us on edge as we navigate our lives. 

My transsisters, this is just one of the things that estrogen based lifeforms unfortunately have to deal with   It is dangerous at times to walk this planet in a feminine body.

It gets even more problematic when that feminine body is a trans feminine one.  You have cisgender males who mistakenly feel they have the right to violently harm or kill a trans woman simply because the transwoman's presence in their space at that given moment for whatever specious reason offends them.

And I suspect this unfortunately happened to our sis Mayang.   For whatever reason, the man who professed to love her, killed and dismembered her before killing himself. 

How much transphobia played a role in this domestic violence situation we will probably never know, but the bottom line is still the same.  

Our sis is dead at the hands of a man who appears to have wanted to erase her existence

Janet's Interview With Tracee Ellis Ross

Janet Mock was guest hosting for Larry King recently on his Larry King Now show, and got the opportunity to interview the fabulous Tracee Ellis Ross.

She gets to chat with Tracee about her new ABC show Black-ish, her mom Diana Ross and other issues, and here's the video of it.

The SCOTUS Starts Its 2014-15 Session Today

Hide the Constitution, because the SCOTUS is in session starting today through June 2015

And yeah, have no love for the four conservafool politicians in black robes and their kneegrow sycophant who is a disgrace to the memory and distinguished legal career of Thurgood Marshall

As to what cases they will accept  for argument, while they are ducking same sex marrige for now, they are taking on a potentially important race-discrimination case to its 2014-15 docket.

It's a case that could have major implications for would-be borrowers, banks, and businesses.

As of yet don't see any voting rights cases on the docket or any others that impact LGBT rights, but you know I'll be paying close attention and will post any news of what happens there if one pops up between now and June 2015.

Today Is The Texas Registration Deadline To Vote In The 2014 Election

If you are planning to vote in this year's critical election starting on October 20, you need to be registered by today

October 6 is the deadline to be registered, and if you are planning to mail your registration in, it must be postmarked before midnight.

If you aren't liking the direction the GOP is taking this state, your only remedy for changing that is taking your soul to the election polls.

And make it a party by taking a few friends with you.

Election Day is November 4, and early voting starts on October 20.  So handle your electoral business if you haven't done so already

2014 FIBA Women's World Championship Watch-Title Number 9!

The 2014 FIBA World Championship for Women title game was held this afternoon my time in Istanbul, and the FIBA world number one ranked Team USA was facing off against Spain for the title and the automatic bid to the Rio Olympic Games that went with it.

Both teams were unbeaten, had won their respective groups and breezed through the tournament until the semifinals. 

Both teams also survived tough semifinal matchups the day before to get to the title game, with Spain knocking off the host Turks and Team USA dispatching their Australian rivals once again.

Team USA wanted to get off to a quick start and seize control of this title game from the outset, and with tournament MVP Maya Moore reeling off eight quick points to get the basketball party started, Spain quickly found themselves looking at a 15-5 double digit deficit.

Moore finished with 18 points, 4 rebounds, 2 assists and a steal as she made the All-Star Five Team along with Brittney Griner. Australia's Penny Taylor, and Spain's Sancho Lyttle and Alba Torrens.



It didn't get any better for the EuroBasket champs as they headed to the halftime locker room trailing 48-29 and 67-48 at the end of the third quarter as Team USA kept up the defensive pressure and showcased the depth of their predominately veteran roster they brought to Turkey.  

Spain did close with a late rally and held the USA to just 10 points in the quarter to make the final score 77-64.   Spain with the runner up silver medal finish had achieved their best finish ever in FIBA tournament play, and the Australians hammered host Turkey 77-44 to earn the bronze medal.

For my Canadian readers, you finished fifth after knocking off China 61-53.  I think the Canadians might have had a shot at the podium had Natalie Achonwa been able to play.

Team USA with the win repeated as FIBA world champs, captured their ninth overall world championship and most importantly, locked down the automatic bid for the 2016 Games.  

USA Head Coach Geno Auriemma said while reflecting on it, "It is very difficult to win the Championship.  There are some great teams and they are getting better all the time."

"Although just because we are expected to win, doesn't make it any easier."



One thing that definitely won't be easy is selecting 12 players from the vast talent pool Team USA has to choose from for the 2016 women's Olympic b-ball squad.

But we'll see how that plays out two years from now.

Congrats to Team USA for the FIBA repeat.
 
 

Dwight DeLee Case Hearing October 15

I was majorly pissed off along with many trans people in New York state and across the country when the conviction of Dwight DeLee in the murder of Lateisha Green was overturned on a technicality. 

DeLee was subsequently released from prison, and the case in now back in the NY Court of Appeals after the Onandaga County District Attorney asked the appeals court to review the case.  

After the conviction was overturned, the Onondaga County District Attorney asked the court of appeals to review the case. - See more at: http://centralny.twcnews.com/content/news/central_new_york/708214/dwight-delee-s-overturned-case-to-be-reviewed/#sthash.BPfsSg8V.dpuf

On October 15, the NY Court of Appeals will hold a hearing to decide if the conviction in this case will be reinstated and DeLee can go back to serving that 25 year sentence he got for killing Green back in 2008.

Should have been longer, but it is what it is..

While we're waiting along with Lateisha's family for justice to be served again, here's a petition for you to sign if you wish calling for the reinstatement of DeLee's conviction.

The message needs to be sent that killing a trans woman comes with a cost to the perpetrtors of these heinous acts and that our lives are valuable.

2014 FIBA Women's World Championship Watch-On To The Finals!

It was Semifinal Saturday in Istanbul earlier today as the four surviving teams in the 2014 FIBA World Championship For Women tournament faced each other for a spot in tomorrow's finals.

Spain was taking on the host Turks, while the unbeaten Team USA was tangling with their longtime Australian rivals who were also unbeaten despite not having Lauren Jackson on the Opals squad.

In the early semifinal game the European champions broke the hearts of the Turkish faithful dreaming of an appearance in the FIBA final by knocking them off 66-56.

Team USA handled their basketball business against Australia in the other semifinal, sending the Opals to the third place game to face off against Turkey after beating them 82-70.




Tina Charles did the damage this time with 18 points and 9 rebounds to put the USA one win away from repeating as FIBA world champs and qualifying for the Olympic basketball tournament in Rio two years from now. 

Justice For Brittany Kidd-Stergis!

There is good news to report in terms of another one of our fallen transsisters receiving justice.

In my last update on this case back in June,  Delshawn Carroll was arrested and charged with the aggravated  the murder of Stergis while in the Cuyahoga County Jail on drug trafficking charges.

On Friday Carroll was convicted of the December 6, 2013 murder of Stergis as
she sat in her car in a Cleveland westside public housing project.   Carroll tried to deny that he and Stergis had a past association with each other, but that lie was blown up by evidence frond by investigators that placed him inside Stergis' car.

Carroll was also convicted of the drug trafficking charge.  It carries an 18 month sentence that he will serve concurrently with the life sentence he will get for killing Brittany Kidd-Stergis 

Justice has been served and another murderer of our sisters will be rotting in jail for doing so

RIP Aniya Parker

We now know the name of our fallen transsister in Los Angeles.    She is 47 year old Aniya Parker., whose friends knew her as Asia. 

 LAPD may not want to call it a hate crime, but when somebody throws a punch at the victim before they shoot them, and leaves the purse behind, it doesn't take a Cal Tech degree to suspect this is a hate crime

She is the eight transperson to die this year in the United States and the second in the Los Angeles area since June.  And  fitting the pattern of all the previous trans murders in the United States in 2014, she is a trans woman of color.

A candlelight vigil was held last night at the Melrose and N. Kenmore Ave corner where she was fatally shot.

The LAPD are still looking for the 2-4 Latino men suspected of being perpetrators of this crime. If you have any information that will lead to the arrest and conviction of these wastes of DNA, you can call them at 1-877-527-3247.

To all the folks  who knew and loved Ariya, we are just as upset and outraged about the untimely  loss of another one of our sisters, and hope justice happens expeditiously in this unfolding case.

And if you have a photo of her, please send it to me.

2014 FIBA Women's World Championship Watch-On To The Semis

The quarterfinal action took place in the 2014 FIBA World Championship For Women yesterday with Spain taking on a China team that upset Belarus 72-67 and the host Turks taking on Serbia in the upper half of the bracket. 

In the lower half of it Australia took on Canada while the defending FIBA champion USA got a 2012 Olympic finals rematch with France.

France came into this game with a semblance of confidence after handing Team USA their first loss in an international basketball game since 2011.   France beat Team USA 76-72 in a September 21 prep game before the tournament started.

Spain beat China 71-55 to punch their ticket to today's semifinals and they will face Turkey after their narrow 62-61 win over Serbia. 

Turkey had to overcome a 10 point fourth quarter deficit in order to send the home country fans home happy as they punched their ticket  to the semifinals.

Australia beat Canada 63-52 to remain unbeaten in this FIBA World Championship tourney.  Their reward is facing their longtime b-ball rivals Team USA, who got payback for the friendly game loss pinned on them by France.  




France upset them in Paris back on September 21 as Team USA was sorting out the final spots on their FIBA championship squad and was missing Brittney Griner. 

This time Team USA shattered and splattered France's pipe dream of a semifinal matchup.  Team USA raced to a 29-14 first quarter lead they never relinquished thanks to 92% shooting, and sprinted to a 20 point halftime lead.   The 94-72 win secured their spot in the semis against the Opals. 
Brittney Griner led all USA scorers with 17 points

Once again we have a clash between unbeaten USA and Australia squads for the right to move on to the title game.  Should be fun to watch.
  

HERO Updates, Notes and News-October 3

Was using the computers at the Houston Public Library location downtown when I received another reminder of why the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance needs to implemented without further delay.

I was just one spot away from two other people using some HPL computers when a  twentysomething Black man made a comment to the gentleman sitting next to him after he was visited by some openly gay people that 'he hated gays' and 'you need to keep your f****t azz away from me'.

Of  course the Black gay man was offended , and asked the homophobe if he wanted to take it outside and find out just how much of a man he was.

After listening to this for about five minutes, I finally shifted to Maya Wilkes mode and was moved to speak when he made the crack that 'Black people shouldn't be homosexuals' .

Interestingly enough I'm wearing my purple Task Force Houston Host Committee t-shirt today, and I called his azz out after he said, 'God didn't create gay people' and "I don't understand why people are homosexuals'

I said to him, 'God did create gay people, and I'm sick and tired of hearing that bigotry wrapped in prayer.'

He then shot back, 'What makes you think I'm a Christian?' to which I replied, "Too many people that call themselves Christian are spouting that right wing anti-gay hate speech, and I'm tired of it."

I then ended my soliloquy with "I don't understand why people are homophobes' and shut his behind down before I went back to handling my writing business.   

The gay Black man eventually took his problem with the homophobe in question to security . 

The sistah security guard warned the homophobe that if she had one more complaint about him, out the library he was going.

After she left, he mutters some more anti- gay remarks and 'effing f*****s before he gets up from the computer and storms off.

Note to you HERO haters: A library is a public accommodation.  Since we have far too many people in the Houston area like you wanting to do more than just vocally express your anti-LGBT attitudes and discriminate against folks, that's why gender identity and sexual orientation are included in the 15 protected classes in the HERO that awaits the rapidly approaching January 19 court hearing.

And yes, as today proved, it's an ordinance that is sorely needed,
  
 

Shut Up Fool Awards-Countdown To Election Day Edition

It's the first Friday in October, and that means the clock is rapidly ticking toward October 20 and the opening day of early voting in Texas for this critical election 

I'm damned sure planning to be there bright and early to handle my civic business, and hope you are planning to do the same thing

Speaking of handling business, time to get to handling our usual Friday business of calling out all the fool, fools or group of fools who so richly deserve it.

It's this Friday's edition of the Shut Up Fool Awards.

Honorable mention number one is the NFL.  Once again they stumbled into another PR issue when a Muslim NFL player was flagged for 'excessive celebration'  when he bowed in prayer after a pick six  interception return in Monday's 41-14 demolition of the New England Patriots by Kansas City.  

After having to watch an endless parade of Tim Tebow celebrations and his and other Christian NFL players ad nauseum proselytizing, why y'all have a problem with a Muslim player doing what y'all have done for a decade or more?   15 yard flag on the play for hypocrisy

Honorable mention number two goes to the Minnesota Star Tribune for printing a full page transbaiting ad from a fearmongering anti-trans org in the run up to a decision that would approve a trans human rights policy for Minnesota students.  .

Honorable mention number three is Bruce Braley, whose comment slamming Chuck Grassley may flip the Iowa senate race and possibly imperil the Dems chances of holding the US Senate 

Video has surfaced of Braley calling Grassley (R) at a fundraiser a few months ago “a farmer from Iowa who never went to law school.”   Not a smart thing to say when your state's major business is farming and many of the voters there are survey says, farmers..

Honorable mention number four is the New York Post for its disgusting heading heralding the birth of Chelsea Clinton's first child as 'another liberal crybaby'

When will you media conservafools grow up?  Or are you in a perpetual state of cognitively impaired adolescence?    But then again, what else is new for a Rupert Murdoch owned newspaper?

Honorable mention number five to Jessica Duggar for blaming the Holocaust on the theory of evolution.   Maybe you need to dye your hair blonde and audition to become a Fox Noise fembot.
You've definitely demonstrated through your recent actions and statements you're intellectually challenged enough to be one.

id you not learned your lesson when you openThis week's Shut Up Fool honoree is former Rep Barney Frank. 

In a recent GAVoice interview, the Purple One  slammed HRC Prez Chad Griffin for his SCC apology to the trans community, then tried to pinkwash his being a trans oppressor by lying saying 'trans people don't have rights because we 'refused to lobby' and 'the votes weren't there' to pass a trans inclusive ENDA.

Interesting that the votes were there in the Senate to pass a trans inclusive ENDA last year.

You need to come clean about that transphobia Barney.   And oh yeah, Shut up fool!

What's The Latest News About Canada's C-279?

Like my Canadian trans cousins, I've been keeping track of what is happening with C-279, the trans human rights bill that passed the Canadian House of Commons last year but has been stonewalled in the Conservative controlled Senate.

And the Conservative Party needs to be called out on it.

When I last checked the Senate website, it passed Second Reading on June 6 and was referred to committee before the Senate went on their summer break.

It is now awaiting action in the Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs, which is no longer chaired by Liberal Sen. Mobina Jaffer, but Conservative Sen. Bob Runciman.

We'll see if the bill gets the fair hearing it did when Sen. Jaffer chaired the committee, much less gets out of committee and back to the Senate floor for third reading, passage and royal assent to become Canadian law

The world is watching Canadian senate.  Do the right thing, not the right wing thing.

We've Lost Another Transsister

This time in Los Angeles.

Reports are coming from the area that a fortysomething trans woman was fatally shot in the head early this morning after an attempted robbery in East Hollywood.  

She was discovered about 2:30 AM PDT by LAPD officers responding to a report of shots fired in the 600 block of North Kenmore Avenue, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

The woman was taken to the Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead shortly after 5 AM PDT, an LAPD police spokesperson said.

The unknown for now trans woman will unfortunately become the eighth transperson murdered this year in the United States.  She will also become the second transwoman in the LA metro area murdered since Zoraida Reyes was found dead back in June. 

I'm trying to get more information about our lost trans sister from local and other sources, and as soon as I have it, I'll post further updates to this story. 

But we'll have to recite another name at next month's TDOR, and this month';s just getting started. 

TransGriot Update: LAPD has finally released the name of our gone too soon sister, and she is 47 year old Aniya Parker