NYC Transwoman Arrested For Presenting Court Name and Gender Marker Change To HRA

Jolie Estrella, a transgender woman  is still depending on friends for food because the city's Human Resource Administration (HRA) has refused to accept her court order correcting her name and gender marker.

When Ms Estrella tried to present her name and gender marker court paperwork on November 2011 she told the Queens Chronicle: 

" They were bewildered,” Estrella said of her visit. “One of the girls was confused and didn’t know what to do. She went to a supervisor, or a coworker, someone who she respected. He accused me of having fraudulent documents.”

She left that day and returned dressed in a sweatsuit, I presume in a atempt to appear androgynous, prepared to be abused for food the Queens Legal Service reports:

"The Center’s Case Manager refused to process her request to change her name, refused to correct her gender marker from male to female, and refused to use the correct pronouns and her legal name despite repeated requests. Furthermore, the Case Manager made stunningly inappropriate, discriminatory and demeaning remarks about Ms. Estrella’s sex, gender, orientation and physical disability (including telling her that she had low self-esteem and could not “make it as a man”)

When she asked to speak to a supervisor, the individual allegedly refused to use her legal name and instead sent her to another location where she was met by HRA security guards who ordered her to leave the building.

When she refused, a guard allegedly dragged her into an office where she was issued a summons and citation, again in her former name.

HRA failed to process Ms. Estrella’s application for benefits in her correct name. Because of this treatment, Ms. Estrella was denied equal access to benefits. In April 2012, an Administrative Law Judge ordered HRA to process Ms. Estrella’s Public Assistance application in her legal name and to provide her with retroactive benefits. Stunningly, HRA continues to address Ms. Estrella by her former name in all correspondence.

These actions by HRA staff constitute violations of the New York City and State Human Rights Laws, which prohibit such discrimination in public accommodations. The actions further violate HRA’s own Procedure No. P-09-22, “Serving Transgender, Transsexual, and Gender Nonconforming Individuals,” which was issued in December 2009 after years of advocacy by the Audre Lorde Project, the Sylvia Rivera Law Project, and Housing Works. The Procedure instructs HRA staff to ask clients what their preferred name, title, and gender pronoun are and informs staff that refusing to abide by their answer is a form of harassment.


“Ms. Estrella has a right to be treated with respect and to have her documents reflect who she is, as does any applicant for benefits,” said Richard Saenz, Staff Attorney at Queens Legal Services. “Transgender individuals are constantly forced to accept harassment or give up their benefits. That’s not a choice that anyone should be forced to make, particularly at agencies that serve as a last defense against poverty, homelessness, and poor health. As a City agency, HRA must abide by the laws and regulations of both the State and New York City.”

The new suit follows a similar suit filed against HRA in June by Manhattan Legal Services and South Brooklyn Legal Services on behalf of another transgender woman whose request to change her name and gender marker were denied, despite the fact that she had in her possession both a name change order and a letter from her physician. LSNYC’s clients seek damages, an order that the defendants and their employees will refrain from such discrimination against the clients or any other person, trainings for HRA staff on the rights of transgender people, and a clear procedure for changing gender markers on identity documents.

For more information contact Richard Saenz at 347-592-2207 or Jennifer Ching at 347-592-2242

European Parliament Takes Russian LGBT Discrimination To Task

The European Parliament adopted it's 2010 2011 review of human rights in member states. In doing so it made it clear to the Russian and Ukrainian governments, among other violators, you want to be known as civilized society? Then act like you do and stop persecuting LGBT people. Member states who cooperated with CIA rendition were also taken to task.

39. Calls on the Member States to properly fulfil their obligations under international law, which they have so far failed to do, to investigate serious human rights violations carried out in the context of cooperation with the CIA counter-terrorism programme, to step up the fight against trafficking in human beings and organised crime and to afford full redress to victims;

Transgender Europe Reports:

93. Calls on Member States to ensure the protection of participants in LGBT public events, including pride marches, and to ensure that these events can take place lawfully.

This addresses the illegal  Russian "Gay Propaganda" laws which effectively isolates and outlaws LGBT gathering and media.

94. Deplores that transgender people are still considered mentally ill in a number of Member States; calls on Member States to introduce or review legal gender recognition procedures, on the model of Argentina, and review conditions (including forced sterilisation) set for legal gender recognition; calls on the Commission and the World Health Organisation to withdraw gender identity disorders from the list of mental and behavioural disorders and to ensure a non-pathologising reclassification in the negotiations on the 11th version of the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11).

Source: Gay Star News"Michael Cashman MEP, co-president of the LGBT Intergroup, reacted: ‘Both Russia and Ukraine signed up to the European Convention on Human Rights and the International Covenent on Civil and Political Rights. No-one forced them to, and they must now respect their international obligations.

‘The European Union will remain strong in its demands, and will continue supporting the activists who bravely defy these unfair laws.’

Son of Anna Politkovskaya criticises murder trial deal for policeman

Ilya Politkovsky says deal for officer accused in killing of Russian journalist won't help find person who ordered the murder
Politkovskaya, a sharp critic of the Kremlin...and its policies in Chechnya, was shot dead in the lift of her Moscow block of flats on 7 October 2006. Investigators have failed to determine who ordered the hit.

Chicago TransMan Levi Pine's Complaint Against King Spa is Wrong

A Chicago man has filed a discrimination complaint against the  King Spa and Sauna for denying him the use of the men's shower, pictured right. According to the Windy City Times Levi Pine felt degraded after the manager approached him while he was naked asking to speak with him.

The manager, who identified himself as John but declined to provide a last name to Windy City Times, questioned Pine about his gender. Pine told John that he was transgender, and John said he could provide Pine with a private shower.

Pine said he did not want a private shower and that he could use the same facilities used by other customers. But, John said, other customers had complained.

So I was curious, are youth allowed in the King Spa and Sauna so I called the Chicago facility.

The service representative told me children under 12 are allowed as long as they are accompanied by an adult of the same sex. Children over 12 after being admitted with an adult are allowed unrestricted access to the faculty.

"I shouldn't have to be sequestered into a private area," Pine later told Windy City Times. "Just because some people who go there are uncomfortable with my body, shouldn't change what I have to do and shouldn't change my rights as a customer."

The nity gritty. Transgender men have become used to identifying there Sexual Reassignment Surgery as a breast reduction and reconstruction and in addition to affects of hormone replacement therapy most trans men 'pass' easily. Until you drop you're drawers then passing becomes problematic.

The lone commenter on the Windy City Times, Amber, made a argument for his rights to use public accommodations as did John Knight, LGBT project attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois and my good friend Attorney Joanie Rae Wimmer.

Amber makes a case for blind justice for transgender rights but in this case I think the blinders should come off.

Pine probably has a valid case under law but..
My 2cents.....

Mr. Pine is ether ignorant about the Spa's policy on admitting children, caught up in the cause or he's just uncaring.
I feel we have a moral responsibility as do the vast majority of those previously polled regarding nudity in public accommodations with to respect children.

It's not optional, it's not a case of discrimination regardless of consequences, its our duty as citizens if a person has not had bottom surgery, full nudity must be considered a condition reserved for consenting adults. If children are present or the possibility exists a child could enter the room under those conditions, it's not just wrong, it's immoral.

Trans bloggers and Other People of Good Will: You are Being Hijacked

Who would stoop to that level to intentionally misdirect and misinform with hateful lies?

Radscum. Filthy dirty filthy low life nasty hateful radscum.

I was playing with the idea of buying a domain for this blog and found that it was unavailable because it was already registered. The scum have registered planetransgender.com pointing everyone who searches for this blog using that domain to their wordpress hell hole! Those are some dirt bags for sure. Googling "planetransgender.com" you end on rad scum central. Just a heads up to other trans folk and other people of good will.

You might want to check this out. The scum might be hijacking you too.

ESPN Radio 980 Suspends Steve Czaban and Andy Pollin

ESPN 980 (Washington, D.C.) radio hosts Steve Czaban and Andy Pollin suspended for their transphobic tirades berating transgender basketball player Gabrielle Ludwig.

The radio station belatedly took action following the outrage expressed by you and I.


The following message was posted on the ESPN 980 Facebook wall:

Many including myself felt the appropriate response would have been to fire these two after there second rant thinly discussed as an apology.

However the independently owned and operated sports radio station felt a suspension was fitting.  Awful Announcing brought up the point firing could and probably would have, in all fairness, inhibited future discussions about transgender people (transgender people's rights?).

This begs the question, what if that bigoted rant were focused at a black person? People of color are defined as a minority just as Gabrielle Ludwig is, would the station have felt a suspension an appropriate remedy then?



So what do you think?

Lady Gaga Born This Way Санкт-Петербург Россия

Lady Gaga говоря бросил переводчик сказал, что она "хочет уважения прав геев". Lady Gaga хочет сказать, что она ожидает уважения от других - она не здесь, чтобы оскорбить религию никому или веры, она здесь, чтобы объединить нас ".



Lady Gaga said at the concert that she "wanted to respect the rights of gays." Lady Gaga wants to say that she expects respect from others - she is not here to offend anyone religion or faith, she is here to join us. "

"Artists in Russia have begun warning of a new "iron curtain" falling over the country, as ever more western stars become targets of the country's crackdown on culture. Last week, prosecutors in St Petersburg opened an investigation into the Hermitage museum after complaints that an exhibit by British artists Jake and Dinos Chapman showed signs of extremism. Responding to the investigation, the Chapman brothers said in a statement: "Note to selves: remember, forget Russia."

"The campaign against western artists has grown since the jailing of the punk band Pussy Riot, a case that highlighted the crackdown on freedom of expression in Vladimir Putin's Russia."

Source: Guardian