Richard Thomas.Oakland Teen charged as a adult for setting Transgender student's skirt on fire

OAKLAND, California (Reuters) - A 16-year-old California boy accused of setting fire to a transgender teen's skirt as the victim slept on a public bus in the city of Oakland earlier this week was charged as an adult on Thursday with committing a hate crime.

Richard Thomas was charged with aggravated mayhem, felony assault and a hate-crime "enhancement" after telling a police officer he committed Monday's attack "because he was homophobic," according to the criminal complaint.

The 18-year-old victim, Luke Fleischman, who was born male but identifies himself as gender neutral and goes by the name of Sasha, remained hospitalized in San Francisco with severe burns on Thursday and was listed in stable condition, a hospital spokeswoman said.

The teen will require several surgeries to recover, according to a website posted by family members to raise money for the victim's medical treatment.

"The intentional and callous nature of the crime is shocking and will not be tolerated in our community," Alameda County District Attorney Nancy O'Malley said in a statement.



Relatives defended Thomas saying he was just joking and not a hateful person.

Meanwhile, police would like to interview passengers on the bus who left before police arrived, particularly two men who helped extinguish the burning clothing. Lead investigator Anwawn Jones can be contacted at 510-238-3326.

"We are asking the good Samaritans to contact the Oakland Police Department, and we also want to recognize their heroic efforts," said Oakland Police spokeswoman Officer Johnna Watson.

Transgender model Ines Rau rocks with the hot Tyson Beckford

Hot and smart Persian expat Ines Rau is turning the world of cisnormality on its ear!

So Colorlines just has to know, who is this Ines Rau? Hip Hollywood wanted to know so bad they capitalized their query like a explanation point asking who is this "TRANSGENDER MODEL" who would dare pose with a cisgender hunk like Tyson Beckford.

Rau having traveled our road less taken offers this advice to our sisters and brothers considering gender alignment surgeries:

Having a sex change is not the answer to insecurities or other issues, a lot of transgender do not understand that it has to be done with reflection: because of a real deep desire to be a woman from a younger age. It’s fabulous the level of happiness- it’s just absolutely impossible to describe. I’m the happiest girl in the world, just being what I wanted to be. You have to love yourself enough to go for it without the fear of being judged or rejected. That’s my advice for them.

Seems the pictures are so steamy that Istagram and Facebook banned them!

Damn My babies FB and instagram keep Censured this Story lol with Tyson so im not posting anything about it... http://t.co/d6PTHFlhpJ
— Inès-Loan Rau (@Ines_Rau) October 31, 2013

Models.com has a great interview with Ines Rau and yes some more pictures of this gorgeous woman.

JONTE' / "MIXxXED" MUSTACHE MONDAYS+JONTE=CATEGORY CLOSED: http://t.co/vEjUYCoPPV via @youtube Start My HIP/HOP and Voguing Class with Jonte
— Inès-Loan Rau (@Ines_Rau) October 31, 2013

Her photo shoot can be seem in full at oobmag

Eighth Grade Kansas student Skyler Davis suspended for carrying a Vera Bradley bag

"It expresses myself and I think everyone else can wear it, so I wear it as well," Skyler told KCTV'5s Dave Jordan.

He was summoned to Assistant Principal Don Hillard's office after he wouldn't take it off.

"I went to the office and I refused to take it off, and they suspended me," the teen explained.

School personnel then called his mother, Leslie Willis, to come get her son.

"I was a little furious, and I called the school [and spoke to Hillard] to reverify the story, and yeah, he refused to take off his Vera Bradley bag, nothing more to it," Willis said.

Vera Bradley.com

She said she reviewed the student handbook but did not see a mention to bags or purses. She questions the suspension and the timing.

"Skyler has been going to school since August with that same Vera Bradley bag on, hasn't taken it off. What is the problem?" she asked.

Click here to watch opens in new window

In response to Blome's comments Thursday, Willis told KCTV5 that the bag rule should be a formal part of the student handbook so that there is no confusion.

She said she supports her son and his choices. She said if he wants to carry a Vera Bradley purse or any other type of bag that he should be able to do so without being punished.

In an email, she said that her son went back to school at 1:30 p.m. Thursday with the bag in tow.

"He was pulled into an office, behind closed doors to tell him that he was never suspended for refusing to take off his purse, he got suspended for foul language," she wrote. "That's not the story that Mr. Hillard told me yesterday. Skyler is only 13 years old. He's just a child. And if this isn't bullying, I don't know what is."

Senate passes SB 815 Transgender Inclusive ENDA 64 to 32

Click here to watch ENDA pass the Senate

Huge Kudos to the Republican Senators who voted to pass SB 815. Senators Kirk, McCain, Flake, Toomey, Portman, Hatch, Ayotte, Murkowski, Heller and Collins all voted to pass the bill.

But even with broad religious exemptions ENDA is doomed in the Republican controlled house as Speaker Boehner has promised to kill it..


Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) on Monday said he is opposed to ENDA because it could open businesses up to lawsuits.

“The Speaker believes this legislation will increase frivolous litigation and cost American jobs, especially small business jobs,” said Boehner spokesman Michael Steel.

Conservative Republicans have ostracized nearly every portion of our republic who's not white or male. As if on cue to illustrate this chasm in Americana it is recognized that a black transgender man, Kaylar Broadus's appearance before the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee last summer, the first transgender person to testify before the Senate, was tipping point.

Speaker Boehner opposes ENDA for fear of frivolous lawsuits? He led a frivolous lawsuit defending DOMA that cost taxpayers over $2 million!
— Senator Harry Reid (@SenatorReid) November 5, 2013

Meet the 32 Republican Senators  who voted to continue discrimination against LGBT people in the workplace.

Transgender woman Armani Nicole Davenport surrendered to police: pumper party victim still in critical condition

Drag diva Armani Nicole Davenport turned herself in to police on a warrant for negligent injuring after allegedly injecting a transgender woman with silicon.

The So called "Pumper Parties" are low cost high risk shortcuts to a curvy body. They are illegal, the substance injected toxic and the results are sometimes deadly.

The person who Davenport allegedly injected remains in critical condition according to Huffington Post.

Nebraska Athletic Association not voting on transgender inclusive policy

Ian Rivers Ph.D.

June this of this year we welcomed the announcement by Nebraska Rhonda Blanford-Green, NSAA's executive director that a transgender inclusive statewide policy had been voted on and approved unanimously by board members.

The goal, she said, was to make sure that Nebraska schools had plans in place that would ensure that any student could participate in activities. She said it makes sense for schools to accommodate and protect transgender students just as they would students with disabilities or those who are minorities.

“All we're talking about is a checklist to make sure no kid — I don't care if you're a special needs kid, a gay kid, a black kid, a girl — you're not discriminated against,” Blanford-Green said.

But apparently the vote was not included in the minutes meetings for some reason and that gave transgender opponents all they needed to derail progress





The battle for transgender acceptance in the Cornhusker state is intensifying as the states hate groups have coalesced into one entity, "Nebraska Family Alliance" to more effectively fight progress.

Transgender people pose no threat in public accommodations. To this day there has has never been a substituted report of a transgender athlete infringing on a cisgender persons privacy.