9/19/12

Memphis City Council Approves Non Discrimination Amendment Sans Trans

In a surprise move the amendment that was approved last night by the Memphis city council only protects against sexual orientation omitting gender expression and identity.

According to Jonathan Cole, Vice President of the Tennessee Equality Project it was understood the proposed amendment would include transgender protections but last night when "it came downstairs" it was stripped of trans protections.

Action News 5 - Memphis, Tennessee

Cole in a telephone interview said he was surprised as everyone else at the omission but that the "Tennessee Equality Project would fight for trans protections" to be added during the 30 days allotted for the council to discover if the amendment is contrary to the discrimination ordinance already in place.

Memphis has the distinct reputation as one of the transgender murder capitols of the world.

The proposed amendment face severe opposition from the religious right spearheaded by Bellevue Baptist Church Pastor Steve Gaines who according to the The Commercial Appeal said
"sexual orientation should not be considered a civil rights issue."

"Civil rights status should be reserved for areas that have already
been mentioned, such as race and gender," Gaines said. "No one can
choose their gender. No one can choose the color of their skin. The
fact is everybody has a choice with sexual activity. This is about the
furtherance of an aggressive political agenda."
We have just 30 days in which to get transgender protections reinserted.
Please sign the petition Memphis Protect Trans people

Least we forget the catalyst to this.....



Two weeks before a lawsuit was to be filed Duanna was murdered with a shot to her face at close range.

9/17/12

Loren Cameron at a University: What Scares Fox News and Enrages NeoCons

Yesterday fear mongering right wing pandering Fox News published a story with a rather innocuously worded headline but with a dark warning of a transsexual being paid to promote sexually explicate pictures to young minds at the The University of Minnesota-Duluth.


So who is this menace and what is his deal? To learn more we could
watch the National Geographic special about sexual identity: The Art of Loren Cameron and visit Loren Cameron's Website something neither Fox News or the right wing Campus Reform did.

There is a reason for that. Right wing religious bigoted people are scared to death of the truth.

Yes Cameron you do more than scare them you enrage them.

Worthy of mention is that for some reason Fox deemed it necessary to bring up a totally unrelated racial event the university had hosted earlier.

Shame on you Faux News.






9/16/12

Oct 1st Worldwide Pussy Riot Solidarity Day Кассация по PussyRiot



Thousands of Russians march under Pussy Riot balloons during the September 15th protest.

October 1st more than 30 citys worldwide will host demonstrations in support of Pussy Riots appeal at Russia cassation high court.

What was the result of the absurd 2 year Pussy Riot sentence? Some experts say it is a sure sign Putin wants to return Russia to a Soviet state. This has not gone unnoticed by Russians who rightfully are upset after a brief taste of democratic reforms.

It has not gone unnoticed by myself after struggling years to establish contact then friendships with transgender people within Russia. Now we are facing the prospect of losing contact with our friend there.

We need Russia as a ally. We need Russia without Vladimir Putin. The world need more heroic feminists like Pussy Riot.

In Moscow? Join the demonstration at the Moscow City Court at 11:00am.

9/15/12

Texas ISD principal Terminates Cosmetology Class To Rid School Of "Flamboyant Gays"

Then principal Thomas Amons takes retribution against Instructor Cequada Clark pictured right, and fires her from all of her other teaching positions. Being a Texan this makes me ill.

Source: The Advocate reports a cosmetology program for adults at a Texas technical school is canceled, according to The Examiner of southeast Texas, because it's illegal to bar an applicant for his sexual orientation.

Instructor Cequada Clark of the Taylor Career Center told the newspaper that the school's principal, Thomas Amons, had said he'd rather shut down the program than have "flamboyantly gay guys" included.

The Examiner reports that Kwmane Gray, 22, arrived at class and when the principal realized it, he consulted with lawyers about how to keep him out. The lawyers for the Beaumont Independent School District reportedly advised that it's illegal to ban an individual student just for being gay, so instead the principal shuttered the entire program, which had been running since 2009.

Clark, who told the newspaper she had been subsequently fired from her job, said the program had been used most often by single mothers who were trying to start a career.
A short video of today's protest shared on facebook by Vic Demented.



You can hear the few dozen protesters demanding principal Thomas Amons produce proof that he cancelled the program for lack of participation and you can see Fox News was there but as some on the facebook protest page have noted Fox is refusing to publish about the story having posted this on their Facebook page.



Instructor Cequada Clark responded on that same thread to Fox's contention she was not employed by the BISD:
"I have a BISD email I have a BISD w-2 form and a 1099 my name is in the book at the career center and the high school enrollment tutorial forms as a teacher. Am I on candid camera? I work as a paraprofessional -a high school tutorial- and I also was the teacher of the Adult cosmetology program. I have a copies of my time sheets."
In two days over 800 people who have signed the petition demanding proof as well. Will you?

Instructor Cequada Clark told the Examiner
“I don’t understand this. I really don’t,” Clark said. “(Amons) told me he would rather shut down the program altogether than to have ‘riff-raff’ like that in the program. The next day, he shut down the program.”

Clark, who has headed the adult cosmetology program since 2009 at BISD, said, “Earlier this year, I learned he had a problem with gay guys while we were at the hair show in April.” Clark said at the hair show, Amons told her that he never wanted to see “flamboyantly gay guys” in the BISD program like the men enrolled at other programs competing in the event.
This may not be quickly resolved so in the meantime I hope all my LGBT family patronizes Cequada Clark's wonderful establishment.












Mara Keisling, Anderson Cooper's Spot On, You're Just Wrong!

Mara Keisling of the NCTE broke bad on Anderson Coopers interview with Mandi a trans person who claimed her transsexualism resulted from the side affects of Propecia.

Cooper: "Look I have friends who are transgender(ed) and they all tell me these feelings don't come out of a bottle." to which Mandi replies 'ah yeah".

Cooper delves deeper trying to ascertain when his guest first realized her transsexualism and Mandi replied she knew first when she questioned her sexuality as a youth to which Cooper pointed out "gender and sexuality are two different things.



Mara offered a private 'appology' to Mandi McKee who posted it to Facebook calling for Keisling to make a public appology.

Mandi, I am so sorry that you interpret NCTE's recent activity around Anderson Live as being an attack on you personally. We were very careful not to even use your name or to say anything about you. Our complaint was with Anderson and his producers doing a show that they knew was just using trans people as a sensational ratings chaser. After watching the show, I am convinced all the more that they were willing to use you and transgender people to stir up emotions and ignorance about trans people.

Every trans person has a different story and NCTE is very serious about respecting that and even empowering many different stories. And you are welcome to conduct your search for meaning anyway you want. You are welcome to identify as trans or not. But it is not okay for a public personality like Anderson Cooper with a respected public forum like Anderson Live to risk spreading misinformation that could actually hurt trans people.

And I know how hard it is to decide whether or not to transition. I have felt the crushing and deflating depression and anxiety. You can't even know how much I personally wish you the best as you are going through that. It can be really hard, I know.

But our number one job at NCTE is to end the societal ignorance that really is the underlying cause of that depression and anxiety and marginalization. Framing the show the way they did and using you the way they did, was not good for ending that ignorance and we rightly spoke out.

Be well,
Mara
Ah, yeah the premise of the interview was slightly absurd but....

I think we can all agree hypersensitivity to discussions of gender diversity inhibit media from further exploration which ultimately sets us back into obscurity.

Mara Keisling, Anderson Cooper was spot on debunking that misconception, you are guilty of being a sensationalist media hound.

9/11/12

Transgender Director Lana Wachowski's "Cloud Atlas" Premier Gets Standing Ovation

Video: Cloud Atlas opening at the Toronto Film Festival receiving rave reviews, but whats it all about? Check out the trailer and then the Directors (3) yes three Directors cut....



Why would the fabulously successful director of the Matrix open at the Toronto Film Festival?



Our lives are not our own we are tied to others in the past and future. Every crime and every kindness gives birth to our future.....