Black Media, I Expect Higher Standards From You When It Comes To Covering Black Trans People

When I traveled to Boston for last summer's National Association of Black Journalists conference (NABJ) to discuss with fellow panelists Kenyon Farrow, Kellee Terrell and moderator Tiq Milan how to cover Black trans folks, it was with the intent of not only fostering that discussion, but impressing upon the attendees of that panel how accurate reporting about Black trans people from our media peeps is critically important.

In the first two months of 2015, seems like some Black media peeps needed to have some seats in that panel discussion as well.

Been more than pissed off to see disrespectful reporting aimed at my transsisters who have tragically lost their lives.   I've been even more irritated to note that some of the culprits guilty of transphobic reporting and failing to read their AP Stylebooks have been African-American journalists.

I expect disrespectful reporting from non-Black cisgender journalists and media outlets.   But I have a severe problem with it when the disrespectful reporting happens on the Tom Joyner Morning Show, newspapers, my hometown television and radio stations and other Black controlled media outlets and blogs

I don't even waste my breath or bandwith calling out Bossip and Sandra Rose. They are unrepentant cesspools of media transphobia that couldn't spell journalistic integrity even with the help of spell check.  But I do have higher expectations and standards for Black journalists when it comes to respectfully reporting on Black trans people.  

And here is the money paragraph once again from the AP Stylebook that has been there since 2001.

transgender-Use the pronoun preferred by the individuals who have acquired the physical characteristics of the opposite sex or present themselves in a way that does not correspond with their sex at birth.

If that preference is not expressed, use the pronoun consistent with the individuals live publicly.

If you have questions, peruse those AP Stylebook pages.   There are also the styleguides from the NLGJA and GLAAD to help a journalistic brother or sister out and avoid the wrath of Moni, my chocolate transpeeps and our allies from coming down upon you for some fracked up reporting  that could have been easily avoided.

I'd like to also see as soon as possible an entry in the NABJ Styleguide about transgender people since it seems to have become necessary to request it expeditiously happen.

And yeah, here's the difference between a transgender man and a transgender woman since y'all media peeps have picked up that annoying conservatactic of conflating the two to be snarkily insulting.

A transgender man  (or trans man) is one who was born with female genitalia but has transitioned to and lives life as a male.  

A transgender woman (or trans woman) is one who was born with male genitalia, but has transitioned to and lives life as a female.

And one other thing Black media.  Focus on what's between our ears, not what genitalia may or may not be between our legs.

Also sick of the 'deception meme' being pushed in Black media stories about trans people.  We're living our authentic lives.   You need to deal with and approach us transpeeps as you would any other person you are writing or reporting on.

It's important because ignorance in African-American ranks about trans people is being pushed by sellout Black right wing pastors from their pulpits.

The bottom line Black media is that Black trans people are not only part of the diverse mosaic of human life, we have been and still are part of the kente cloth fabric of Black America.  We aren't going away, and as Laverne Cox, Janet Mock, Tona Brown, Tiq Milan and a host of Black transpeople prove on a regular basis, and still we rise.

We have abundant talents to contribute to our Black community.  Black journalists need to get with the program and take the lead in pointing out Black trans people are Black people and our issues are Black community issues.

Black journalists and bloggers also need to realize that coverage of trans people is not click bait for your blogs, a way for you to add salacious details to your radio broadcasts, newspaper or television stories, or 'scurr' or mislead people about the purpose of non-discrimination laws that cover you and whatever other category they happen to cover.

You also have a journalistic legacy to uphold of being fierce advocates for our community.  Black transpeople once again are part of your constituency.

It's also infuriating and mind blowing to contemplate that Black journalists in the pre-AP Stylebook days writing for JET,. EBONY, HUE and Sepia magazines did a better and more respectful job of writing about transpeople than their 21st century counterparts.

Unchecked anti-trans hate speech kills.   In the wake of the murders of  17 trans women since June with the vast majority of them being African-American trans feminine women under 40, it's past time for Black media and Black journalists to ponder if their media misgendering of African-American trans women is a contributing factor to the anti-trans hatred that leads to anti-trans violence and the far too frequent murders of Black trans women.

Have Much Love For My Trans Latina Sisters

One of the things I got to do during the just concluded 27th edition of Creating Change in Denver that I really didn't get a chance to do much of during #CC14 in Houston because of host committee duties was hanging out with my trans sisters at the convention hotel.

The cool part about this conference was not only getting to once again share the same space with the legendary Bamby Salcedo, Isa Noyola and my amazing sis Arianna Lint, but getting to meet other trans Latinas like Johanna Saavedra and Jennicet Gutierrez.  It was also nice getting to know fellow blogger Johanna Cifredo a little better after meeting her in Washington back in July at the Innovation Summit.

Diego and Yosenio, you know I have mad love for both of you handsome brothers, but this post is about the trans Latina sisters

And yes Ruby Corado-Walker, you were missed in Denver.   Somehow I know that the next time I go to DC, you will find a way to ensure that some portion of my trip inside I-495 is spent in your presence..   Alexis Martinez I'll get to see the next time I'm blessed to be in Chicago.

We owe much of our trans rights movement to a trans Latina by the name of Sylvia Rivera who jumped off the Stonewall Riots in 1969 and I had the pleasure of meeting in 2000.  She also fought tooth and nail to her deathbed to ensure we were heard and we had a seat at the table so our policy concerns could be dealt with.



Trans Latinas continue that proud trans movement leadership legacy thanks to the TransLatina Coalition ,the fearless leadership of the members of it ,and other trans Latinas toiling locally across the USA and the world

Ruby Corado-Walker in just three years has built Casa Ruby into the go to service organization in the Washington DC metro area.  Mariah Lopez, who was Sylvia's mentee and daughter, is increasingly stepping out to fight for trans issues in the New York area

While some of the trans issues that I and my trans Latina sisters face are different such as the immigration one, there are others we have in common.  

Trans Latinas and African-American trans women both suffer unacceptable levels of anti-trans hate and violence aimed at us, faith-based demonizing of our lives, unemployment number double the rate of Latin@ and African-American cis people, lack of representation in the community leadership ranks, silicone pumping, HIV/AIDS and lack of visibility in our respective cultures and the TBLGQ community..

While that last one is starting to change thanks to the Spanish language media efforts of Arianna Lint, my fellow alum of the 2012 GLAAD POC Media training and the Transvisible documentary featuring Bamby., we still have a long way to go in terms of the visibility of trans Latinas.

And the voices of trans Latinas need to be heard at the policy tables inside and outside our TBLGQ community and in their legacy orgs such as LULAC.

One of my missions in 2015 in addition to raising the voices of trans Latinas and be a better ally to them on the issues that matter to the trans Latina community, is also raising the voices of trans women of color period including my Asian-Pacific Islander and my Native American sisters.  

As for my trans Latina sisters, I would like to see better coordination and cooperation on the issues we share between the trans Latina community and other trans women of color.   I'm looking forward to meeting other trans Latinas like my San Antonio homegirl Nicole Ramos.   I'd love to someday meet chef Monica Barros-Greene and talk to her about her Dallas city council run back in 2005 among other subjects and Harmony Santana about her Gun Hill Road role.

I'm also looking forward to meeting and conversing with every trans Latina on my Facebook page about the trans issues of the day and other subjects.

And in my 713 backyard, I want to do a better job of connecting to and working with Houston trans Latinas on all of our issue concerns. .

I have much love for you, trans Latinas, and it only grows with time.  We also have the common goal of ensuring that trans people are treated with dignity and respect, and our human rights are also ensconced into our nation's laws.

Let's get busy doing the work in 2015 and beyond we are called and need to do, build sisterhood and make some lifelong friendships while doing so.

Diamond Stylz - You Want To Be Me

In Diamond's first video of the year, she breaks down the insult that some cis women hurl at trans women whenever we get into arguments with each other.

Happy Valentine's Day 2015!

Happy Valentine's Day to all you TransGriot readers who are booed up, in long term relationships, engaged or married.

On this day dedicated to love and all lovers, I was happy along with everyone else in Trans World to hear that our fave power couple in Myles Brady and Precious Davis have gotten engaged.

And I couldn't be happier for them.

Going to be fun to watch as they not only set their wedding date, but see them put together their wedding.

As for when that will happen for me?  Don't know.  It's one of the areas in my life that hasn't been as successful for me as I would like, and I haven't really focused on it.

If it's meant for me to be in a relationship, cool.  If it's not, I'll deal with it.  As I said in last year's VDay post,. as long as I have chocolate, Hershey's chocolate syrup and Blue Bell Homemade Vanilla ice cream, I'm good. 

Happy Valentine's Day y'all.

ELIXHER Post On Trans Women Of Color In Love

Valentine's Day is tomorrow, and I'll be scarfing up discounted candy all by myself when that day arrives.  

As I have joked in numerous VDay posts, I have been wandering the dating Sinai so long that the Israelites headed to the dating Promised Land passed me and shook their heads.

But I ain't mad at you peeps who have found significant others.  

And while I know and I'm aware of in my long interactions with the trans community of trans women being in long term relationships that also include marriage, I'm loving this ELIXHER post that focuses on ten trans women of color in love.

Some of the people featured in it are the recently engaged Janet Mock to her longtime beau Aaron Tredwell,  our fave recently engaged trans power couple in Precious Davis and Myles Brady, and our recently married couple Ruby Corado-Walker and David Walker.

But there are other couples featured in this article who tell their stories, and thanks to founding editor Kimberley McLeod for having the vision to write this piece and let them as a longtime trans ally to do so.

Shut Up Fool Awards-February 2015 Friday The 13th Edition

It's not just a Friday, it's Friday the 13th.   

It's a day made notable by superstition and the string of horror movies by the same name.

But Friday for you TransGriot readers also means that I get to do my usual business of chronicling the mind blowing stupidity that runs amok in our world.

And let's get to our latest spine chilling episode of the TransGriot Shut Up Fool Awards.

Honorable mention number one is a group award for the Dallas Police and Fire Pension Board for their cowardly punting instead of leading on the issue of providing benefits to same-gender loving couples.

Honorable mention number two is Montana state Rep David Moore (R-Missoula), who continued the GOP War On Women by filing a bill to outlaw any nipple exposure by men or women, along with any clothing that “gives the appearance or simulates” the buttocks, genitals, pelvic area, or female nipple.

So ladies, don't wear your yoga pants in Montana, you could be arrested and jailed for it.

Honorable mention number three is the now fired Sony exec Amy Pascal, for her problematic remarks about paying female Hollywood stars equally in this Tina Brown interview.

Honorable mention number four goes to Tennessee state legislator Jerry Sexton.  This teapublican wants to make the Bible the official state book.   Never mind the fact that the Tennessee constitution states "no preference shall ever be given, by law, to any religious establishment or mode of worship."

Honorable mention number five is Teapublican legislator Frank Artiles, who doubled down on pimping his unjust HB 583 that criminalizes transpeeps going to relive themselves in the restroom by ignorantly stating in a BuzzFeed interview that using the restroom is a choice for trans people.

Naw you vanillacentric privileged conservasshole, it's a biological necessity.

You can also start the process of being agents of your own liberation and letting my people pee by signing this Change.org petition protesting Artiles' dehumanizing and jacked up bill.

Honorable mention number six is SC senator Thomas Corbin (R), who referred to women while opposing a bill that makes it harder for people who commit domestic violence to acquire a handgun as 'lesser cuts of meat' along with other sexist remarks.

This waste of DNA is also a lesser cut of meat:  A male chauvinist pig

Honorable mention number seven is Supreme Court Justice Injustice Antonin Scalia, who whined about being seen as anti-gay.

Too late for that, dude.  You're not only seen as anti-gay, you're also by your SCOTUS rulings, spoken words and dissents and opinions also seen as anti-woman, anti-Latino, anti-Black.....

This week's Shut Up Fool winner is Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice  Injustice Roy Moore.  He's proudly letting his homobigot flag fly by initiating Massive Resistance 2.0 against a federal judge's ruling striking down the Alabama constitutional amendment banning SGL marriage.

In addition to ordering Massive Resistance 2.0 in defiance of the federal court ruling while citing that bogus 'states rights' bullshit they lost on the War To Perpetuate Slavery battlefields 150 years ago, he bristled at a comparison of him and another Alabama civil rights oppressor in George Wallace,and claimed he had many friends who are homosexual.

Oh really Roy?  They must be Log Cabin sellouts or GOProud.

Yes, you are just like George Wallace was in 1963, a human rights oppressor.   Deal with it   Something else that I have noted in my five decades on this space rock about haters and oppressors is that all of them claim to have friends in the marginalized group they gleefully oppress.

And oh yeah, Roy Moore, shut up fool!

FBI Director Comey's Speech On Race And The Po-Po's

FBI Director James Comey basically said the same thing Attorney General Eric Holder said a few years ago, but peeps are going to go gaga over this narrowly tailored speech on race and law enforcement because a white male said it.

Director Comey traveled to Georgetown University on February 12 and spoke to the assembled crowd about the need for law enforcement officers and the citizens they serve to discuss the historic and problematic disconnect between the police and communities of color.

Will be interesting to see the freak out the conservafools have about this speech.

Christine Jorgensen Hour Magazine Interview

This was the date in 1953 when Christine Jorgensen stepped her stylishly dressed self off an SAS plane from Denmark and ushered in the modern era of trans visibility.

Christine not only was a pioneer, she took time out of her life to educate the public about our trans lives up until her death in 1989.

To honor the day she arrived at Idlywild (now JFK Airport) 62 years ago, here's the video of her interview with Gary Collins on Hour Magazine.

The UH Trans 101 Panel

Had been back in Houston from Creating Change less than 24 hours, but crawled out of bed Monday morning to honor a commitment I'd made to head to the campus of my alma mater to appear in a Trans 101 panel.

The panel discussion was sponsored by the University of Houston Friends of Women's Studies, and took place in the MD Anderson Library Rockwell Pavilion as part of the Barbara Karkabi Living Archives Series.

It was also videotaped for posterity as part of that Living Archive series, which features public interviews with Houston women on diverse topics.  The videotaped interviews are then placed in the Corey C.Stewart Women's Archive in the UH Library's special collections.

It's also one that some of the misguided peeps in last spring's successful Tittsworth Act fight should have have had a seat in so they could learn something about the trans community.

So yeah, it's a wonderful feeling anytime this Cougar gets a chance to step back on this continually expanding and still under construction campus she once walked back in the day.   It's even more awesome to know that the video of this panel I played a role in will be viewed by future UH students and all who peruse them in the Stuart Archives.

So I joined the fabulous Nikki Araguz Loyd, UH LGBT Resource Center Director Lorraine Schroeder, UH student Skye and moderator Dr. Guillermo De Los Reyes at 11:30 AM for a well attended and fascinating discussion in which we covered a wide range of topics from being trans on a college campus to how cispeeps can be better trans allies.

The 1 PM end of the panel came way too soon, and after hanging out to talk to some of the panel attendees, it was time to head off with Nikki and Meagan to a lunch that turned into a road trip.

But I'm really looking forward to the next time I get to step onto the UH campus for an event.

Another Day, Another Groundbreaking Moment For Laverne Cox

Was delighted to hear that my sis Laverne Cox will be gracing our network TV screen this fall and making more history in the process.

Our fave Emmy nominated actress has been cast in an upcoming CBS legal drama that will air this fall called Doubt

In it she will play an Ivy League educated openly  transgender attorney who is described as competitive as she is compassionate.

And because she's trans and has experienced discrimination and injustice, she fights even harder for her clients.  

Interestingly enough, this role was always envisioned at the outset by the show creators as a trans feminine character, and loving the fact she'll be playing that trans attorney.

And yep, know a couple of kick butt trans attorneys if you need to do some research in preparation to play this as of yet unnamed character.

Congratulations for getting this groundbreaking role in a dramatic series, and break a leg.

NBJC 100 Leaders To Watch

Y'all know I have much love for National Black Justice Coalition to the point that I have collaborated with them on panel discussions, was invited to one of their retreats, Have been a panelist and participant in both of their NBJC The Black Institutes at Creating Change Houston and Denver, and like to keep up with and post news about upcoming NBJC events. 

One of the news items I missed while I was in the process of moving and trying to get my internet access back on track was the December 10, 2014 unveiling of NBJC's Black LGBTQ/SGL Leaders to Watch.

December 10 happened to be NBJC's 11th birthday, and it was that date they chose to launch this new initiative.

Two of those leaders to watch on this inaugural list, Brandon Mack and Michael C Webb, Jr come from H-town.   There are also young trans leaders on this list like L'lerret, Toni-Michelle and Cherno.

Gabriel Acevero	Malcolm "MJ" Harris	Adrian Ogle
L'lerrét Jazelle Ailith	Jonathan Paul Higgins	Casey Payton
Kye Allums	Justin L. Hill	Angela Peoples
Brandon Anderson	Keith Howard-Streicher	Jeff Perkins
Guy Anthony	Patrick Ingram	Jessica Pierce
Dr. Van Bailey	Sheila E. Isong	Ace Portis
Annanda Barclay	Romeo Jackson	Anna DeShawn Rainey
Katie Barnes	Jai...with the funny name	Faith A. Rogers
Devin Barrington-Ward	Latishia AV James	Gwen Rogers
Ms. Cherno Biko	Bakari Jones	Matthew Rose
Michael J. Brewer	Venton C. Jones Jr.	Blake A. Rowley
Kelsi Brooks King	Victoria Diane Kirby	Gabrielle Royal
Sixto Cancel	Rev. Joseph Lynn Kitchen Jr.	Brittney R. Sims
Charlene A. Carruthers	Terrance Laney	Funmilayo Solar
Bryce J. Celotto	Cedric Lawson	Lawrence A. Stallworth II
Imara Rhiannon Chester	Marcus Lee	Danielle Stevens
Kevin Claybren	Riann Lippe	Desiree Elise Stevens
Theara I. Coleman	Jonathan Lykes	Karess Taylor-Hughes
Jasmine Cornell	Brandon Mack	Marvell Terry, II
Natasha Amanda Cox	Gabriel Maldonado	Joshua Maximillian Turner
Ashlee J. Davis	Samantha Master	DaShawn Usher
Gregory K. Davis, JD	Calandra "CeCe" McGee	Shaan Michael Wade
Wazi Maret Davis	Kimberley McLeod	Jason L. Walker
Rev. E. Taylor Doctor	Trinice McNally	Sean A. Watkins
Monique Dorsainvil	Preston D. Mitchum	Michael C. Webb, Jr.
Daniel D. Driffin	Jonathan Jacob Moore	Francisco Luis White
Timothy DuWhite	Leo Moore, MD	Meico Whitlock
Branden D. Elmore	Monica Motley	Je-Shawna Wholley
Nathaniel Faulk	P.J. Moton	Toni-Michelle Williams
Michael Blair Franklin, Jr.	Rev. Whittney Murphy	Isaiah Wilson
Pamgrace Gachenge	Joshua T. Nelson	Tabias Wilson
Noël Gordon	David A. Nelson, Jr.	Lakesha K. Winley
Samantha A. Grant	Vanessa Newman	Corey Yarbrough
Dr. Kai M. Green	Rodney K. Nickens, Jr.

And  as y'all probably guessed I know and have worked with more than a few peeps on the list at different times on different projects and events.

Speaking of events, if you are in the Washington DC area or have some time to get there for it, Emerging Leaders Day at the White House is happening on February 23.

Start saving the date for OUT on the Hill.  The Black LGBTQ Leadership summit is one of my favorite events and the 2015 edition of it will take place September 16-19.

Congratulations to everyone who was named to the NBJC 100 Leaders To Watch List, and it will be interesting to see who makes the 2015 list.

Road Trip With The Gallery Girls

After my Monday Trans 101 panel discussion that included Nikki Araguz Loyd, UH student Skye, Lorraine Schroeder and myself, got an invite from Nikki and Meagan Gillett to join them on a road trip to Prairie View A&M University northwest of H-town to spread their special brand of sunshine to cheer up a young trans woman in her final semester of school on that HBCU campus.

While we have several colleges and universities in the state of Texas that cover transpeople in their non-discrimination policies, sadly Texas Southern University and Prairie View A&M aren't among that list.

TSU's Thurgood Marshall Law School is, but they need to do the same for the rest of the TSU campus

It can be lonely and tough at times for a transitioning trans woman in any space.   But those feelings of isolation can be magnified on a college campus.

And you haven't lived until you've taken a road trip with Nikki and Meagan.

After killing time at an outlet mall and scooping up some bargains, we rolled up to Prairie View and the apartment our trans sister shares with two other students around 8 PM CST to scoop her up and take her to a nearby Mexican restaurant.

She'd been a little bummed out about some personal issues, but she's handling her classroom business, is looking forward in this last semester at PV to graduating in May and getting started with her life that's so bright she'll need fashion forward shades to navigate it.

And yeah, hitting Bucee's on the way back to Houston with the Gallery Girls was the bomb.

Enjoyed meeting my trans sister, rolling up 290 and back with Nikki and Meagan, and looking forward to the next time I can spend some quality time with them.

Can't Talk About The State Of Black Houston Without Discussing Black LGBT Houstonians

Because I was committed to another event that was scheduled at the same time, I missed this The State Of Black Houston forum that took place last night.

And it was well attended and well organized

Since our legacy orgs in the NAACP, 100 Black Men and the Urban League were listed as sponsors along with the Houston Justice Coalition, I presumed going into last night's #SOBH15 event that it would once again be a heterocentric/ cisnormative one in which they ignored the fact that Black TBLGQ/SGL issues are Black community issues.

And yeah, I'm still pissed off about the kneegrow ministers doing their 21st century cooning for Dave Welch and pimping anti-trans hate in the fight to pass HERO.  That anti-trans rhetoric led to a trans woman getting attacked last November

In case you haven't gotten the memo, the Houston Black community also includes SGL, trans, lesbian, bisexual and gay members of it, and we're tired of being erased from the overall Houston African-American community narrative.  

Also tired of the cricket chirping silence coming from our legacy orgs about the slaughter of African-American trans women , the 26% unemployment rate, 20% of us being HIV+, and discrimination being aimed at us.

If you believe #BlackLivesMatter, then that also includes the lives of Black LGBTQ/SGL people. Any forum that purports to have that discussion about Black Houston needs to recognize that fact, especially when you're discussing education and media images just to name two issues discussed last night..

#WeExist, and that conversation needs to happen ASAP.  Would have been nice if it could have started last night.

You can't talk about the state of Black Houston without discussing Black LGBTIQ/SGL Houstonians.

RIP Penny Proud

New Orleans is another place I call home because I lived in Marrero for two years as a toddler and my god sister still lives there.

I am saddened to report the murder of another trans woman of color courtesy of ELIXHER,

Meet 21 year old Penny Proud of New Orleans. 

She was found dead in the 1100 block of North Claiborne Avenue in the Treme neighborhood at 1:30 AM yesterday (February 10) shot multiple times

And yes, Times-Picayune, read your AP Stylebook.  Every time you misgender a trans feminine murder victim, you send a message that Black Trans Lives Don't Matter to you and the people who wish to kill us..

She makes the fifth transperson killed across this this country in what is starting to take shape as a bloody year for trans murders.   For those of you in the New Orleans area, if you have information that will lead to the capture of the waste of DNA who killed Penny, you can call the New Orleans PD

They are asking anyone with information on this crime to contact Homicide Detective Robert Barrere at 504-658-5300 or Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111.

You could receive a cash reward of up to $2,500 for information leading to the arrest and indictment of the responsible person(s). You do not have to give your name nor testify to receive the reward. Citizens can also submit an anonymous tip online to Crimestoppers at www.crimestoppersgno.orgThere will also be a candlelight vigil tonight at the Treme corner where Penny was murdered.  Hope there is a large crowd for it.

Rest in Power Penny.   Know that your NOLA area trans sisters and the rest of us around the country will not rest until justice is served in your case.

Anyone with information about Proud’s murder is asked to contact Homicide Detective Robert Barrere at 504-658-5300, or contact Crimestoppers at 504-822-1111 or www.crimestoppersgno.org. - See more at: http://elixher.com/state-of-emergency-black-trans-woman-murdered-in-new-orleans/#sthash.UkqSaDxH.dpuf

Read Your AP Stylebook, Robert Littal

Nothing gets me more pissed off than seeing media stenographers misgender a murdered transwoman

It's even more infuriating when one of my own people does it.

The latest stenographer to try it is Ms. Robert Littal of Black Sports Online.

In this waste of bandwith article discussing the arrest of Underwood's boyfriend Carlton Ray Champion for her murder, Miss Littal misgendered Ty, disrespectfully used the dead name, and referred to our fallen sister as a 'transgendered male'

News flash for you Miss Littal.   Ty Underwood is a transgender female.  If you can't tell the difference then you need to have several seats in a human sexuality class and take copious notes when they cover Transgender 101..

Meanwhile let me hip you to the pertinent section of the AP Stylebook that covers how to report on transgender people since you have demonstrated you don't have a clue about that subject.

Now pay very, very close attention.   These are the AP Stylebook guidelines that have been in place since 2001 for reporting on transgender people. .

transgender-Use the pronoun preferred by the individuals who have acquired the physical characteristics of the opposite sex or present themselves in a way that does not correspond with their sex at birth.

If that preference is not expressed, use the pronoun consistent with the individuals live publicly.

If I as a mere award winning blogger can easily grasp that concept, surely you as a grad of The Ohio State University can as well.

Robert, a male to female transperson is a transgender woman or a transwoman, NOT a 'transgendered male'.  

You also use FEMININE pronouns when referring to that trans feminine person.

But you would have known that Robert had you referred to the AP Stylebook, The National Gay And Lesbian Journalism Assn (NGLJA) guide or GLAAD's guides

But since you went for the salacious headline and misgendering story, and tried to weakly justify it by claiming you were going to follow the police report, as we say in Texas, that dog won't hunt, and I'm calling your ass out on it.

Far from being an 'unusual story', it's an all too common one when it comes to the murders of African-American trans women and some media person posthumously misgendering or disrespecting them..

I am sick and tired of Black stenographers (you don't deserve the title of journalist or reporter) murdering my fallen sisters in the media by misgendering them because of ignorance or transphobic hatred. 

There's no excuse for it when you have this marvelous invention called Google to help you out if you have questions about how to respectfully cover us.

And by not using the correct pronouns in this story, you are not only disrespecting and dismissing Ty Underwood's FEMININE life, you are feeding the anti-trans animus that has led to what is now 17 trans women that have been killed since June 2014

Houston Intersectional Justice Rally Tonight

Another day, another event for Moni.

To drive home the points that #WeExist, #LGBTLivesMatter,  #BlackLivesMatter , #BlackTransLivesMatter, and #LatinaTransLivesMatter, in Houston later tonight we'll be having an Intersectional Justice Rally at Hermann Park tonight.

I will have the honor of representing the trans community, and Pastor Lura N. Groen will kick this off with an interfaith prayer and a moment of silence for those community members who are non believers.

This rally is designed to honor women and the LGBT community, because we are continually left out of tit and give us a chance to speak on our own behalf! We will meet at the new Lake Picnic area which is located between Miller Outdoor Theater and Lake Plaza.

The speakers slated to  talk about how their lives intersect in different communities:

L - Fran Watson
G - Ashton P. Woods
B - Heather Strange
T - Monica Roberts
& Yung Mozart one of our great allies

Following the speeches we will read from a list of names of those lost in our communities (like TDOR). Finally, we will allow those who wish to speak to come up and share a few words.

It starts at 7 PM, and hope to see a nice crowd gathered there.

Arianna On The Maria Elvira Show

Made a commitment while I was at Creating Change Denver to highlight and raise the profiles of my trans Latina sisters and talk about their issues they face on the blog.

To get that started, going to post the video of my sis Arianna Lint,.  I met her when we were both going through GLAAD POC Media training in 2012, and we've been close ever since.

This is a Spanish language video from Arianna's recent appearance on the Maria Elvira Salazar show that discussed a Cuban transwoman, the Catholic Church position on trans people, and the Bruce Jenner situation

UH Trans 101 Panel

Yes, I just got off the plane for Denver and haven't been been back inside the Houston city limits for  24 hours, but I'm still heading to the University of Houston campus for a Trans 101 panel that starts at 11:30 AM CST.

Hey, gives me an opportunity to put what I learned at #CC15 into action.

For you Cougars who wish to see Moni and her fellow panelists Nikki Araguz Loyd, Lorraine Schroeder, Skye and moderator Dr. Guillermo de los Reyes, it will take place in the Rockwell Pavilion of the on campus MD Anderson Library.   The pavilion is on the second floor of it.

Looking forward to seeing y'all there.

CC15-Passing The Torch To Chicago

The last day of a Creating Change is always a bittersweet one for all involved.   The host committee is sad after spending nine months putting the event together. that it's come and about to be entered into the history books,.

After the last sessions concluded at 11:00 AM, the final plenary session of #CC15 started thirty minutes later.    Congrats to CeCe McDonald for winning the Paul A Anderson Youth Award!

Watch live streaming video from thetaskforce at livestream.com

Once the plenary ended, Creating Change Denver was officially over and the torch was passed to Chicago.

And yeah, Chicago, you get the same challenge I issued to Denver.   Ensure that there is trans representation on your local host committee and y'all rep the 'T'.

Goodbye Denver, Hello H-town

After a wonderful several days handling my Creating Change business, time for me to leave the Sheraton Denver Downtown hotel room that has been my home for the last few days and make the trip to DIA and back home.

I enjoyed getting to see some old friends, finally meet people I've admired for years like Kim Coco Iwamoto, and meet many new people.

And I'm bummed I didn't get to see Eden Lane while I was in the 303, or missed connections with some peeps that were also in the #CC15 house.

Oh well, maybe the next time.

Thanks Denver for a wonderful #CC15 experience.   Thanks to the National Black Justice Coalition for extending me the invitation to participate in the second annual NBJC The  Black Institute.

And megathanks to all you TransGriot readers for the hugs and kind words about the blog and its founding editor.

As to whether I'll make it three straight Creating Changes when it convenes in Chicago next year, we'll see.  

Gotta go board my flight. My barbecue awaits at Hobby.