Vitale Letter #244, November 25, 2002 Anne Vitale PhD, Editor
- Archives of back issues
- Notes on Gender Transition
Transgender Day of Remembrance in Tel Aviv
LEGISLATIVE ACTION [21] USA: Pennsylvania --Hate Crimes Legislation Could Trigger Lawsuits, Family Groups Warn [22] UK: Lord Chancellor's Department Press Notice [23] USA: Chicago--Cook County Board OKs gender indentity ammendment [24]UK: Blunkett Unveils Radical Sex Crime Law Reforms
[25]USA: Pennsylvania--Judge won't change sex listed trucker's birth certificate despite sex-change
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LEAD STORY Transgender Day of Remembrance Date: Fri, 22 Nov 2002 LGBT holds candlelight vigil at Univ. of Wisconsin Top Source: The Badger Herald (student newspaper, Univ. of Wisc.) Author: Adam Frank, campus writer http://www.badgerherald.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2002/11/21/3ddc3bf59c659 The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Campus Center held a candlelight vigil on Library Mall Wednesday night. Dozens congregated with candles, as members of the student organization pleaded for government legislation to raise awareness of hate crimes against those who identify as transgender and other alternative lifestyles, as well as remember those who have died due to violence against people who identify as transgender. "The Transgender Day of Remembrance serves several purposes," claimed the organization in a recent press release. "It raises public awareness of hate crimes against transgendered people, an action that current media does not perform." According to group members, this vigil comes on the heels of the most violent year on record against transgender individuals. "This year is the most deadly in transgender violence," said Chris Johnson, director of the LGBT Campus Center. "Twenty-five this year alone have died." Speakers for the group explained transgender violence is not always directed toward people who identify as transgender. Rae Knittel, LGBT member and speaker at the vigil described a situation where a man carrying his wife's purse and holding a blind man's hand was attacked and murdered. Knittel went on to explain that a reason new legislation is needed is in part due to general public ignorance to hate crimes against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people. "It is just as wrong to act out against someone because they are transgender as it would be if they were African-American," she said. "The media has paid little attention when violence is caused to gays, lesbians and transgendered people." The crowd of students and Madison residents seemed supportive and receptive of the organization's message. "[My husband and I] are very active in Madison PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays)," Madison resident Nancy Jones said. "So we are 100 percent supportive [of the LGBT Campus Center]." "I am in support of transgender people's rights," said Ryiah Lilith, crowd member and Madison resident. "And I am in strong opposition of 'transphobia.'" "It is time to put hate crime legislation into effect and say 'enough is enough' to hate crime," exclaimed Knittel. "Stop the hate." Top
Remember the Transgendered says Harvard student group Top From: "tgnews_moderator" <tgnews_moderator@yahoo.com> Source: Harvard Crimson (student newspaper) Author: Marcel A. Q. LaFlamme URL: http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=255385 Date: Nov. 20, 2002 Let's start at the beginning. When we talk about transgendered people, we mean those individuals who do not identify and perform as "man" or "woman" in accordance with a binary system that prescribes gender expression solely on the basis of one's genitalia. This includes, but is not limited to, transsexuals (pre, post, and non-operative), transvestites, persons with ambiguous genitalia, and persons who have chosen to perform ambiguous social genders. Today marks the fourth annual observance of the National Transgender Day of Awareness, a day set aside to remember those who have lost their lives because of anti-transgender fear and hatred. The Day of Remembrance began as a way to publicly grieve for Rita Hester, a transgendered woman murdered on November 28, 1998. An online monument and scattered candlelight vigils soon gathered momentum, and the scale of this year's observance˜rallies in Boston and New York, a candlelight vigil in Indianapolis, memorial services in Minneapolis- St. Paul˜will hopefully draw America's attention to her transgendered citizens and to the fear and hatred they encounter every day. It's a solemn day, in a somber month, and these are scary times. Perhaps it's easier not to remember Rita Hester today, it's easier not to dwell on the twenty-five known victims of anti-transgender violence since the last Day of Remembrance. But notwithstanding the November gloom and the warplanes winging their way eastward, today we must remember. We remember today because it affirms our commitment to exposing and condemning anti-transgender violence as long as it persists. The mainstream success of Kimberly Peirce's 1999 film Boys Don't Cry briefly brought anti-transgender violence into the media spotlight. But the spotlight is fickle, and a month later some other name supplanted Boys Don't Cry on the cinema marquee. The Day of Remembrance is our commitment to not just moving on. We owe it to the victims whom we remember today to remind the media about the persistence of anti-transgender violence. Brandon from Boys Don't Cry isn't the only one we've lost, and anti-transgender violence didn't disappear once Hilary Swank won her Academy Award. We remember today because in remembering the victims' deaths, we affirm the value of their lives. "Too often," writes Day of Remembrance founder Gwendolyn Ann Smith, "people want to make our dead into forgotten people." Police investigations are often lax, and murders are carelessly catalogued as accidents or suicides. But the Day of Remembrance calls murder murder, and highlights the brutality of anti-transgender killers who attempt (in the words of one Day of Remembrance organizers) "to obliterate their victims, perhaps in an attempt to erase them completely, by any means necessary." The Day of Remembrance denies murderers the prerogative to erase their victims, and also resists more subtle forms of erasure. Insensitive news media frequently trivialize victims' gender identification by using victims' "birth pronouns" and by describing transgendered people as almost delusional, convinced they are something which they manifestly are not. The Day of Remembrance allows us to publicly testify to the gender identities of these victims˜not in ironic, pathologizing "air quotes", but in a respectful manner consistent with the rich lives they led. Finally, we remember today because it reminds us not to be complacent. Yes, the cities of Cambridge and Boston have transgender nondiscrimination policies written into the law books. Ostensibly, Harvard students live in a metropolitan area that is aware of transgender issues and supportive of transgender communities. Yet, our own university does not include gender identity in the list of categories against which it is committed not to discriminate. And the most recent act of anti-transgender violence picked up by national media took place on October 3 in Newark, Calif., just a half-hour drive from San Francisco, the birthplace of the Day of Remembrance. We remember so that we might celebrate the life of Rita Hester and so many others. We remember so that we might shine a light on the inhumanity of their killers. We remember in the hope that next November, there will be no new reasons to mourn. Marcel A.Q. LaFlamme '04 is a folklore and mythology concentrator in Mather House. He is public relations chair of the Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Transgender and Supporters Alliance. Copyright © 2002, The Harvard Crimson Inc Top
Transgender Day of Remembrance in Tel Aviv Top Date: Fri, 22 Nov 2002 From: "Nora Grinberg" <noragr@bezeqint.net> We observed Transgender Day of Remembrance in Tel Aviv with a deep sense of solidarity, togetherness and emotion. At TG group meetings on November 19th and 20th, transgenders stood silent, for the first time in their lives, for brothers and sisters killed for just being who they were. If it be true that a group of people doesn't become a community until they have their own dead to remember, then it can be said that for the incipient TG community of Israel, November 20 marked a rite of passage. Next Saturday evening a demonstration against violence towards women is scheduled in downtown Tel Aviv, sponsored by the Municipality. Representatives of human and women's rights organizations will step forward to light a candle each to honor a victim of violence. As representative of the TG community at the national board of the LGBT association of Israel, I have been invited to light a candle for all victims of transphobic hatred. Nora
Salt Lake City, Utah Gathering Honors Transgenders Top http://www.sltrib.com/11212002/utah/3883.htm Thursday, November 21, 2002 BY TIM SULLIVAN THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE The holidays are a lonely time for transgendered people. When others are spending time with their families, many people who question the gender they were born with are left out by ashamed relatives. But Wednesday night, a roomful of about 50 transgendered people and their supporters in Salt Lake City joined thousands of others around the world in a Day of Remembrance. The day, organized three years ago in San Francisco by Gwendolyn Smith in response to the stabbing of transgendered woman Rita Hester, pays respect to all people murdered because of their gender orientation. Organizers covered the walls of Salt Lake City's First Unitarian Church with pictures and eulogies of the 27 people killed worldwide in transgender-related crimes in the past year. Speakers at the candlelight vigil included the Rev. Sean Parker Dennison of the South Valley Unitarian Church, the first transsexual minister hired in the United States. "I know how lucky I am that my congregation knows I am a transgendered man and doesn't look beyond it," Dennison said. "We're here tonight to remember those not as privileged." According to the "Remembering the Dead" Web project, the last 22 years have seen 257 transgender-related murders worldwide. Dominique Storni, organizer of the event, said transgendered people are "an enigma," sometimes celebrated as drag queens but mostly "hated, despised and persecuted." Storni and others remarked that transgendered people are often not embraced even within the gay community. But, she said, "It is time for all of you to stand up and be counted." There have been no transgender-related deaths in Utah since 2000, when a transgendered woman committed suicide. However, Storni said there are constant incidents of reported and unreported violence and verbal abuse. © Copyright 2002, The Salt Lake Tribune Top
ANNOUNCEMENTS [1]USA: San Francisco --New Transgender Services Top The Transgender Life Care Project (TLC) offers psychotherapy, topic-focused support groups and medical care to transgender individuals who are without medical insurance or ability to pay for services. TLC is a collaboration between the San Francisco Department of Public Health, Castro Mission Health center and UCSF/Center for AIDS Prevention Studies for People of Color. Services are available to individuals of any ethnicity FTM and MTF, anywhere along the gender spectrum from Ts, TV, TG, post-op, gender questioning or "gender queer," who are medically indigent and not already receiving transgender -sensitive mental health needs are especially encouraged to participate. You may choose to participate in individual psychotherapy, support group or both. Services are free of charge and are offered at two sites in downtown San Francisco Contact Information Luanna L. Rodgers, M.A. MFT Therapist and Case Manager Transgender Life Care Project (4150 487-7527 Ms. Rodgers, who also maintains a private practice, has worked for many years with the transgender community and will be providing assessments and psychotherapy for the Transgender Care Project. Funding for TLC services comes from a research grant. Participants receiving services will be asked to fill out a pre- and post-services questionnaire. Top
[2]USA:Monday, November 25th, the John Walsh Show will deal with hate crimes against transgendered teens. Top Here is the link to his site & the overview of the program: http://www.johnwalsh.tv/html/topics/today.html Top
[3]USA: Park City Utah--Diversity Shabbat to welcome gay, lesbian, transsexual and bisexual worshippers Top http://www.sltrib.com/11232002/saturday/4537.htm Received Saturday, November 23, 2002 EVENTS A Diversity Shabbat to welcome gay, lesbian, transsexual and bisexual worshippers, friends and family is Friday [Nov 29] at 7 p.m. at Temple Har Shalom, 1922 Prospector Ave., Park City. Call 435-649-2276 or visit http://www.templeharshalom.com © Copyright 2002, The Salt Lake Tribune Top
[4] USA: Urge more accurate, respectful coverage of Gwen Araujo Top -- GLAAD Alert Nov. 19, 2002 Since the body of Latina transgender teen Gwen Araujo was discovered in mid-October, the amount of media reporting on her life, the murder investigation and subsequent arrests has reached a level unseen in hate crime coverage since the murder of Matthew Shepard in 1998. Yet media outlets' ongoing misidentification of Gwen as a boy named "Eddie" -- despite the fact that she lived full-time as a woman -- has sparked intense concern by GLAAD and other LGBT community members. When leading Bay Area outlets like the "San Francisco Chronicle," the "San Jose Mercury News" and the San Francisco bureau of the Associated Press (AP) initially wrote about Gwen's murder, it was understandable that they might mistakenly refer to her as "Eddie" and erroneously use male pronouns. However, after a month of repeated outreach by GLAAD and members of the local community, these outlets' continued insistence on using an incorrect name and incorrect pronouns needs to be addressed as a matter of inaccurate reporting that disrespects the subject. It is especially disturbing that the Associated Press' local bureau continues to violate AP style guidelines in reporting on Gwen's death. AP style states that when referring to transgender subjects who are not able to indicate their name and/or gender, reporters are to "use the pronoun consistent with the way the individuals live publicly" (see http://www.glaad.org/media/archive_detail.php?id=86& for more details). Yet in a Nov. 18 conversation with the AP's San Francisco bureau, GLAAD was told that because Gwen had not had hormone therapy or a sex change, they would continue to refer to her as a "cross-dresser" and as "Eddie" -- despite the fact that Gwen lived as a woman full-time and therefore should not be characterized as a cross-dresser (see GLAAD's Media Reference Guide at http://www.glaad.org/media/guide/transfocus.php for more information). This decision violates the spirit and guiding principle behind the AP's revised style guidelines, which were designed to help journalists report on transgender individuals and their gender identity with respect. The AP bureau's claim that they have a right to call Gwen by a name and pronoun she did not use is disrespectful to Gwen's memory and, notably, contradicts the name her family has placed on her grave. Coverage of Gwen's life and death reveals the complexities involved in representing transgender lives and identity in the media -- especially when the subject of the coverage is no longer living. While the "San Francisco Chronicle" and the "San Jose Mercury News" have recently published staff opinion columns examining and criticizing their own coverage of Gwen's murder, their news reporting continues to misrepresent her gender identity. (Ironically, a recent article in the "Chronicle" referred to Gwen as "Eddie 'Gwen' Araujo," but later in the article accurately mentioned Brandon Teena, the female-to-male transgender person who was the subject of the movie "Boys Don't Cry.") In our experience, media often do not have the knowledge base of and familiarity with transgender lives to accurately represent them or understand the critical role that names and pronouns play in conveying respect to transgender people. However, media outlets - especially those that influence how other media cover local issues - that continue to misidentify a transgender subject after repeated clarifications and outreach need to hear the concerns of our community. TAKE ACTION NOW! Please write to the "San Francisco Chronicle," the "San Jose Mercury News" and the Associated Press' San Francisco Bureau. Respectfully express your concern with the way their coverage is misrepresenting Gwen Araujo's life as a transgender teen. And ask that future coverage of Gwen's murder refers to her correctly: with feminine pronouns and as a transgender woman named Gwen. Please also consider sharing your personal story with these outlets. As we approach the Transgender Day of Remembrance (Nov. 20), let these reporters and editors know what it is like to live in a culture where transgender identity is so routinely marginalized and disrespected. Ask that they consider reporting on the reality of transgender lives - not just deaths - in ways that increase public understanding of our community. Please copy your correspondence to GLAAD Western Regional Media Manager Monica Taher at taher@glaad.org. Top
[5] The Monterey Transgender Support Group, Jamison Green to speak Top Stephen L. Braveman, writes: Dear Trans Community Members, Many of you have asked about this so here it is. YES! Jamison Green confirmed. Plan now to attend! The Monterey Transgender Support Group, for both FtM's and MtF's/Pre-op and Post-op, will be having Jamison Green as a special guest speaker at our Saturday, February 8th, 2003 meeting. Jamison is one of the world's most famous FtM's as he is also one of the most vocal advocates and educators about trans and trans rights. He has spoke to groups all over the world on this topic and appears in "You Don't Know Dick", a film on the topic, and maintains a well supplied website on TS issues. This will be a "must attend" group session. For those who do not know, this is a closed (see note regarding guest below), confidential therapy support group run by gender specialists Stephen L. Braveman, M.A., L.M.F.T., C.S.T. (Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist, Certified Sex Therapist) and Maren Martin, M.A., L.C.S.W. (Licensed Clinical Social Worker). The group meets at Stephen's office in Monterey. There is a $25.00 fee per group and a free, one hour intake is required to be a regular part of this group. There are currently a couple openings for new members available. GUESTS IN THE TRANS COMMUNITY, WHO ARE NOT PART OF THIS GROUP, ARE WELCOME ON SPECIAL OCCASIONS SUCH AS THIS ONE. HOWEVER, THIS IS BY RESERVATION ONLY. SORRY, NO DROP-INS ARE ALLOWED. Call or write Stephen at the number/e-mail address below if you are interested in joining the group, being a guest at this special meeting and/or both. All my best, Stephen L. Braveman, M.A., L.M.F.T., C.S.T. Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist Top
GENERAL INFORMATION [6] USA: Secret Harvard court was convened to weed out gays Top from Brenda Lana Smith R.af D. Secret Harvard court was convened to weed out... http://www.milforddailynews.com/news/local_regional/ap_harvardgays11242002.h tm Associated Press Sunday, November 24, 2002 CAMBRIDGE - What began as an inquiry into a student's suicide in 1920 ended in Harvard University convening a secret tribunal that labeled 14 men "guilty" of being homosexual, and forcing the students among them to leave not only the school, but the city of Cambridge. The hidden history of the body known only as "The Court," first reported by the Harvard Crimson student newspaper, describes Harvard's desperate efforts, which were kept secret for more than eight decades, to hide from public view a secret gay subculture on campus. "These reports of events long ago are extremely disturbing. They are part of past that we have rightly left behind," Harvard President Lawrence Summers wrote in a statement to the Crimson. "I want to express our deep regret for the way this situation was handled, as well as the anguish the students and their families must have experienced eight decades ago." The strange legacy began when a Harvard student, Cyril B. Wilcox, 21, committed suicide in his Fall River home in May of 1920 by inhaling gas. He was having academic problems, as well as health problems chalked up to nerves, and had been asked to withdraw from the college a short time before. The death might have passed as simply a tragic end to the life of a dropout had he not told his brother, George, about a homosexual relationship he had with an older Boston man. Shortly after the death, two letters arrived for Cyril Wilcox, the first leaving no doubt that Wilcox was part of a group of gay men at Harvard, and the second a cryptic letter full of codes and jargon. Cyril's brother tracked down one of the men and beat him until he offered up the names of three other gay men. George Wilcox called on acting Dean of the College, Chester N. Greenough, to inform him of Cyril's suicide, and passed on the names, and mentioned the two letters. The next day, after consulting with President A. Lawrence Lowell, Greenough convened a group of administrators, including Regent Matthew Luce and Assistant Dean Kenneth B. Murdock, to gather evidence on the case. They called this five-person body "The Court." The Court was so secretive that even the college's Administrative Board, which oversees student disciplinary matters, wasn't aware of its existence for more than a week after it was formed. When the board was informed, it "had no desire to touch the case and agreed that the matter should not go through the regular channels (Board and Faculty) but straight from the Court to the President," according to The Court's written summary of the case. The court demanded that men associated with the secret group of carousers - including the son of a Congressman - who gathered in dorm rooms to hold parties late into the night, sometimes in women's clothing, to come and testify before The Court and tell them what they knew of the gay parties on campus. One anonymous student who wrote to the court about the gay subculture said that "the most disgusting and disgraceful and revolting acts of degeneracy and depravity took place openly in plain veiw ?sic3/8 of all present." The Court files noted that one man questioned by the court "admits he is probably a little tainted. Mind poisoned." When the "trial" ended, The Court handed down verdict of guilty for 14 men: seven college students; a dental school student; a teacher; a recent graduate; and four men not connected with Harvard. The college students were not just asked to leave campus, they were told to get out of Cambridge - immediately. "Your son, Ernest, is still in Cambridge, in spite of our instruction," a court member wrote former U.S. Rep. Ernest William Roberts on June 12. "Strongly urge that you send for him or come for him yourself at once. He has been ordered to leave Cambridge today. Consequences of disobedience of this order would be most serious." Eugene R. Cummings never even found out about his verdict, because the 23-year-old man committed suicide at Harvard's infirmary in June. The news of the two suicides appeared in the Boston American on June 19 with the headline "2 HARVARD MEN DIE SUDDENLY," referring to Cummings and Wilcox. "Every effort has been made to prevent any knowledge of this affair from becoming public," a court member wrote to the father of one of the other boys. In letters to parents of some of the students, Greenough made clear that their sons were asked to withdraw solely because of their association with gays. Summers called the episode "abhorrent and an affront to the values of our university." "We are a better and more just community today because those attitudes have changed as much as they have," he said. END © Copyright by the Milford Daily News and Herald Interactive Advertising Systems, Inc. Top
[7]USA: --Harvard University--BGLTSA Petitions For Housing Policy Change Top Source: Harvard Crimson (student newspaper) Author: Elizabeth W. Green, contibuting writer http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=255390 (Photo by) CRIMSON/ BRIAN M. HAAS (caption) Transgender activist STACEY MONTGOMERY lectures yesterday in the Leverett JCR . The event kicked off today's National Transgender Day of Remembrance. With its co-sponsoring of today's National Transgender Day of Remembrance, the Harvard BGLTSA hopes to jump-start a campaign to re- draft what the BGLTSA calls Harvard's "heterocentric" housing policy, which allows students of opposite genders to room together only with special permission. "That policy is very heteropresumptive," said Stephanie M. Skier '05, the group's co-chair and a Crimson editor. "The University classifies people by their gender and makes people check only one box, `M' or `F,' and there is a significant part of the student body that is ignored in that." Although Skier could not estimate the number of transgendered students at Harvard, she said the issue was important regardless of how many were affected. "Even if there's only one student who does not feel welcome by this University because of their gender, that is unconscionable," she said. "I wouldn't want the fact that it's not happening to a majority of students to be an excuse to ignore it." BGLTSA political chair Oussama Zahr '03 wrote a set of e-mails to assistant house masters in recent weeks as the beginning step in feeling out administrative opinion on changes of policy. Zahr could not be reached for comment, but Skier said that responses were varied. She would not comment on their exact nature. Harvard College administrators were not immediately available for comment on the proposal last night. Marcel A.Q. LaFlamme '04, the public relations chair of BGLTSA, said that the current housing policies were objectionable because they were based on an overly simplistic notion of gender. "The very heterocentric presumption that the reason men and women don't room with each other is sexual attraction" motivates current policy, said LaFlamme. "There is a larger ideological critique of the way that single-gender rooming is established as a given." The proposed change to housing policy is only one aspect of the group's larger campaign to make Harvard policies more tolerant of the interests of transgendered students. "We've had the `T' in the BGLTSA before, but we wanted to make that more obvious," Skier said. In that spirit, the group is aiming to add a clause protecting "gender identity and expression" to Harvard's non- discrimination policy. Such a move to revise non-discrimination policy was attempted in 1997 by transgendered student Alex S. Myers '00, but was unsuccessful. Myers was able to include the phrase in the Undergraduate Council's policy statements. The BGLTSA sees these successes as motivation. "We want to take up where Alex left off," Skier said. Today, the group plans to attend a vigil in Boston in honor of the day of remembrance. The day commemorates the death of Rita Hester, a transsexual woman who was killed four years ago today in Boston, as well as the deaths of other "victims of transphobia," according to Skier. Copyright © 2002, The Harvard Crimson Inc. Top
[8]HUNGARY--Budapest--Black adoption set to proceed Top Source: The Budapest Sun http://www.budapestsun.com/full_story.asp?ArticleId={06E6B5C9F01B45F6874DDC390B18D52B}&From= Date: November 21, 2002 Transsexual entertainer Károly Rácz (better known as Terry Black) can now legally adopt the two-year-old child he has been raising, after the natural father withdrew his objections. Black took charge of the child, Dani, last October, with the mother's agreement. However, a court stepped in to prevent adoption procedures going ahead, stating that the artist was "incapable" of parenting. The case was further complicated by the objections to the adoption of the biological father, who last week changed his mind. According to Black's lawyer Csaba Mester, there are now no obstacles to block the adoption, and that, as his client has been raising the child for more than a year, under the law this proves him a capable parent. Mester expects the adoption procedures to be completed in two weeks' time. Top
[9]HONDURAS -- LLEGO voices concern over arrests of sexual minorities Top Date: Thu, 21 Nov 2002 From: "tgnews_moderator" <tgnews_moderator@yahoo.com> Source: National Latina/o Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Organization Author: Ronald Hube Via: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/LLEGO Title: Latina/o Group Encourages Support of Transgender Day of Remembrance Media Contact: Ronald Hube, (202) 408-5380, ext. 108 Latina/o Group Concerned Over Arrests of Sexual Minorities in Honduras LLEGO Executive Director Writes to Honduran President, San Pedro Sula Mayor Washington, D.C., Nov. 18, 2002 LLEGO "the National Latina/o Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Organization" has expressed concern to Honduran officials about reported human-rights abuses in the Honduras city of San Pedro Sula. According to Honduran news reports, police have been arresting transgenders as well as sex workers along Morazà Boulevardâ "where the municipal government wants to create a tourist area" and moving them to another part of the city known as el Tamarindo. The roundups are apparently similar to efforts in the United States to sweep homeless people out of popular tourist districts. "It goes without saying . . . that this news causes great alarm to the members of the LGBT community, as well as human rights organizations around the world," wrote LLEGO Executive Director Martin Ornelas-Quintero in letters this month to Honduras President Ricardo Maduro and San Pedro Sula Mayor Oscar Eduardo Kilgore Lopez. Ornelas-Quintero urged that Honduras' rule of law be followed and that all people be treated fairly. LLEGO is the nation's only nonprofit organization devoted to organizing Latina/o LGBT communities on a local, regional, national and international level. LLEGO is home to various programs providing infrastructure development to Latino LGBT communities in the United States, Puerto Rico, Honduras, and Guatemala. LLEGO addresses social, health, and political disparities based on sexual orientation, gender identity, and ethnicity affecting the Latino LGBT community. Top
[10]THAILAND: Bangkok --Most still reluctant to see transvestites become ministers Top Most still reluctant to see transvestites bec... http://www.asiantribune.com/show_news.php?id=1239 Friday, November 22, 2002 Bangkok, Nov 21 (TNA) &endash; Most city residents remain reluctant to see transvestites become ministers and national politicians, but accept their role in the show business, according to a poll by Ramkamhaeng Unviersity. Dr Arastham Prommana, chairman of the Research and Development Institute of the university, said the survey was conducted with a random sample of 1,490 people on "Right and Role of Transvestite and Social Acceptance." Of this, 41.3% are male and 55% female with 2.8% being transvestites. The poll showed 77.3% viewed transvestites should be legally protected when they are raped. Currently, the raped transvestites are not entitled to take legal action because they are considered male under the law. The survey found 50.5% viewed transvestites should have the right to get marriage registration while 49.5% disagreed. On the role people disagreed most to let transvestites assume, 61.9% said they should not take up the ministerial post and become national politicians. The poll also found 71.1% viewed transvestites should not be allowed to use Ms or Mrs before their name, 64.2% said they should not use female toilets, 53.3% they should not be exempted from military service, and 53% they should not wear female student uniform. On the role people agreed most to let them assume, 93.7% said they accept their role in showbiz. They also agree to see them become lecturers, doctors, executives, and nurses respectively. Top
[11] USA: Ohio--Youths at North High hear about different lifestyles, experiences Top Author: Jim Carney http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/news/local/4553433.htm Date: Nov. 19, 2002 [photo] [caption: Transsexual Susan Davis, who was born a man and later had a sex-change operation, talks about her life with North High School students on Monday.] Matt Mellor cried in school on Monday, overcome with emotion after hearing the stories of three Holocaust survivors. "It brought tears to my eyes," the 18-year-old senior at North High School in Akron said. Mellor's real-life lesson was learned in a half-day program called Once Around the World, which was aimed at exposing North High students to a diversity of lifestyles and experiences. More than 30 people from all walks of life told their stories to the students. Science teacher Katrina Halasa -- who works with CRAYOLA, a school diversity club -- helped North High School Principal Larry Weigel plan the program. One of North's own students, Rochelle Wallace, who is a little person, talked about life as a person with dwarfism. "It is something I have to deal with and overcome," she said. During her presentation, she showed a documentary about dwarfism and talked about the subject with classmates. "It is hard, but it has gotten easier," she said of life as a dwarf. Other speakers discussed blindness, homelessness, cults and diseases. Walter Macior, a 76-year-old distinguished professor emeritus of biology at the University of Akron, described living with arthritis and Parkinson's disease. The Parkinson's is generally painless, he said, but the arthritis is not. "Sometimes I hurt all day," Macior said. "If you don't have arthritis or Parkinson's disease, you can always be an angel for someone who does." He advised students to reach out to other people to hear what they have to say. "People have stories to tell that are very impressive," he said. "There are people who need your help." Transsexual Susan Davis was born a man and later had a sex-change operation. "The majority of my life I denied who I was," the 71-year-old former Army Ranger told the students. "I thought I was sick, but I wasn't. I was normal." Davis said God created "wonderful diversity" when the world was made. "We are all lovely people," she said. At a session on Islam, Yaser Dhaher, who is of Palestinian descent, told students what the word "jihad" means. "Anything that betters your life is jihad," he said. Dhaher also told how after Sept. 11 he and his wife were "stalked" by someone at an Akron area grocery store because of his Middle Eastern heritage. "That was kind of scary," he said. North High junior Sherry Horonetz said she learned about forgiveness by attending a session taught by Akron funeral director David Anthony, whose parents, Paul and Patricia Anthony, were murdered in 1974. David Anthony told students that "forgiveness is not about you forgiving the other person. It is about taking care of yourself.... " "The opposite of forgiveness is hate. And when you hate someone, whatever the original injury was is something you remember day after day. When you forgive someone, you are taking away that power to hurt you continually by not even doing anything. It frees you up." Glenn Treadwell, a 53-year-old former teacher who lives in Macedonia, talked about being a member of the Zulu Motorcycle Club. "It is a freedom, a way of living, that is unique," said Treadwell, who urged students to not pigeonhole people. Weigel said he hoped students came away from the program with a better understanding of people. "When you get down to it," Weigel said, "we are all just human beings." Halasa, the teacher, wanted students to better understand what it would be like to walk in someone else's shoes. "I just hope kids have mercy in their hearts," she said. Top
[12a]USA--California --Death penalty for four men in Araujo case not a possibility yet, deputy district attorney says Top Oakland Tribune Online http://www.oaklandtribune.com/Stories/0,1413,82%7E1865%7E1002492,00.html Wednesday, November 20, 2002 - 2:58:32 AM MST Transgender killing suspects face life terms By Robert Airoldi STAFF WRITER FREMONT -- If the four men charged with killing Newark transgender teen Eddie "Gwen" Araujo are convicted, then they face the possibility of spending the rest of their lives in prison, though they could become eligible for parole. As of now, they don't face the death penalty, said Ted Landswick, senior deputy district attorney, but that may change depending on the evidence. "California's special circumstances just don't apply here," Landswick said Tuesday. Special circumstances -- which carry with them the possibility of the death penalty -- include multiple murders, murder committed during the commission of another crime and lying in wait. None of the circumstances apply in this case, Landswick said. Of the four men charged, Jaron Chase Nabors, 19, of Newark has pleaded innocent. Jose Antonio Merel, 22, of Newark and Michael William Magidson, 22, and Jason Cazares, 22, both of Fremont, have delayed entering pleas. Araujo -- also known as "Lida"-- was killed during a party at Merel's Saint Matthew Drive home the night of Oct. 3, after the four men discovered Araujo was biologically male, police said. Araujo was punched, dragged into the garage and strangled, according to court records. If the case goes to trial, then the jury would decide among four possible verdicts, Landswick explained: - First-degree murder, which carries a sentence of 25 years to life. - Second-degree murder, which carries a sentence of 15 years to life. - Voluntary manslaughter, which carries a maximum sentence of 11 years. - Not guilty. "The degree of murder depends on the facts and the law," Landswick said. Araujo's mother, Sylvia Guerrero, and family attorney Gloria Allred were unavailable to comment Tuesday, but Allred said Monday that Guerrero "cannot rest until everyone who may be criminally responsible for her child's murder is held accountable." Nabors, Merel and Magidson were arrested Oct. 16 after Araujo's body was found in a shallow grave in the Sierra foothills. Police initially determined Cazares was not a suspect, but they later developed information that led to his arrest Saturday. He was arraigned Monday. ©1999-2002 by MediaNews Group, Inc. and ANG Newspapers Top
[12b]USA--California--Fourth suspect in killing of Newark teen is charged Top Mercury News | 11/19/2002 | Fourth suspect in... http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/news/local/4553634.htm Posted on Tue, Nov. 19, 2002 NO HATE-CRIME LINK FOR 22-YEAR-OLD ARRESTED IN SLAYING By Matthai Chakko Kuruvila Mercury News In a case that continues to slowly unravel, a fourth suspect in the killing of Eddie ``Gwen'' Araujo was charged Monday with murder, nearly a month and a half after the transgender teenager was beaten and strangled to death at a party in Newark. Unlike the other three defendants, Jason Cazares was not charged with a hate crime. But police and prosecutors revealed few details linking the 22-year-old to the crime. Police said Cazares admitted to being at the Oct. 3 party where Araujo, -- who Cazares knew as a girl named Lida -- was killed. But he revealed little else about what happened other than to say ``crazy'' things happened that night, police reports say. Police conducted a search of Cazares' home, retrieving a shovel, a spade and a pickax, among other things. When Cazares was arrested, he was carrying a receipt for $59 worth of liquor purchases the night of the party as well as a pair of brass knuckles. Araujo, who identified as a girl, was killed after partygoers discovered that Arajuo was anatomically male, according to police reports. Two of the partygoers might have had a sexual relationship with Araujo before learning of the victim's male anatomy, one suspect told police. Jaron Nabors, Jose Merel and Michael Magidson have all been charged with murder as well as a hate-crime enhancement. All four suspects are being held at the Santa Rita Jail in Dublin without bail. Cazares appeared in court Monday in Fremont but delayed entering a plea until Friday. Cazares' friends wept when they saw him in court. Deputy District Attorney Connie Campbell did not return calls seeking an explanation of the evidence against Cazares and why he wasn't charged with a hate crime. Newark police declined to elaborate on Cazares' alleged involvement. Nabors, Merel and Magidson drove Araujo's body to South Lake Tahoe and buried the body near the Silver Forks Campground in El Dorado County, Nabors told police. Cazares told police that on Oct. 5, he drove to Lake Tahoe with Magidson and Jose Merel. Police have been stymied by the unwillingness of witnesses to come forward. Police say they solved the case by tracing a rumor back to its source: Nabors. Lt. Tom Milner of the Newark Police Department called for people to come forward. Anyone with information about the case can contact detective Bob Douglas at (510) 790-7247, or an anonymous information line at (510) 790-7222, extension 500. -- Contact Matthai Chakko Kuruvila at mkuruvila@sjmercury.com or (510) 790-7316. Top
[13]THAILAND--Bangkok--Transvestites celebrate gay festival in Bangkok Top Channel NewsAsia From Brenda Lana Smith R.af D. http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/southeastasia/view/24988/1/.html 19 November 2002 2031 hrs (SST) 1231 hrs (GMT) Hundreds of gay men and transvestites marched down a Bangkok shopping street in an annual parade at the end of a 10-day gay festival. Despite being a conservative Buddhist society, Thailand is one of the most tolerant countries in Asia in its attitude towards gays and transvestites. Sunday's gay parade marked the fourth year that Thailands gay and lesbian community has taken to the streets to promote a positive image of gay and lesbian men and women in Thailand, as well as raise money for much-needed community services. Some participants flaunted costumes inspired by the Bruce Willis science fiction movie "The Fifth Element" with flowing tassels, tiny blouses, tight skirts and knee length boots. Others wore ball gowns, ostrich feathers and brightly coloured wigs. A few donned traditional Thai costumes depicting mythological characters while some wore Japanese kimonos. Security was tight following the recent bombings in Bali. By identifying itself as a "Pride" organisation, Bangkok joins hundreds of cities in every corner of the world that host a public celebration to recognise gay and lesbian members of society. Last week, Thanyaporn Thanyasiri returned to Bangkok as the newly crowned "The World's most beautiful Transsexual" at the Queen of the Universe 2002 pageant held in the United States. Thanyaporn, a graduate student at an Australian university, eclipsed 37 candidates from around the world with her elegant looks and ready wit. When asked about her plans for the next 15 years, she said: "I want to be the world's first transsexual Prime Minister, so I can legislate laws to promote homosexual people's equality." © 2002 MediaCorp News Pte Ltd. All Rights Reserved. Top
[14]JAPAN: Transsexuals held over visa violation Top The Japan Times Online http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20021120b6.htm From Brenda Lana Smith R.af D. Wednesday, November 20, 2002 KUSHIRO, Hokkaido (Kyodo) Five Filipino transsexuals and transvestites have been arrested and deported for allegedly engaging in activities not within their dancer-singer visa categories, and four Japanese are being held on suspicion of involvement in illegal employment, police said Tuesday. Hokkaido Prefectural Police arrested and deported Ludwig Mark Reyes, 29; Joey Gabuco, 29; Francis Duran, 29; Bienvenido Jr. Valerio, 36; and John Magudaluyo, 31; for suspected violation of the immigration law. The five entered Japan with visas to work as dancers and singers. The four Japanese are Koichi Shirato, 44, and Hideaki Okino, 43, both operators of an adult-entertainment shop; Hitoshi Kaneko, 43, manager of the shop; and Ryuichi Makita, 43, operator of a Sapporo-based entertainment agency. The Japanese are suspected of employing the Filipinos between early September and mid-October to work as hostesses in a club in Obihiro, Hokkaido, that features services by Filipino men who dress as females or are transsexual. The Filipinos were hired by Makita, police said. The Japan Times: Nov. 20, 2002 (C) All rights reserved Top
[15]USA: Transgender woman detained, questioned at Six Flags in Dallas Top From: "tgnews_moderator" <tgnews_moderator@yahoo.com> Source: The Dallas Voice (GLBT weekly, Texas) Author: David Webb, Staff Reporter http://www.dallasvoice.com/news/article_detail.cfm?article_id=2492&type=city Date: November 15, 2002 Woman said she was surprised by incident; spokeswoman says park has no hard-and-fast rule on matter but handles each case individually Six Flags Over Texas security officers briefly detained a Dallas transgender resident last month after another park visitor complained about the presence of a "man dressed as a woman," according to the detained woman. The security guards treated her respectfully and allowed her to return to the park after she presented identification that showed her sex as female, said the transgender woman, who asked not to be identified. She claimed that security officers told her the entertainment complex regularly enforces a policy prohibiting cross-dressing. "I really don't have any recriminations about Six Flags in terms of how they treated me, but the policy just surprises me," she said. "It's a changing world. It sounds to me like Six Flags is a little behind the times." The woman holds a season pass to Six Flags and visited the park four times earlier this year without incident, she said. Six Flags spokeswoman Sandra Daniels said that the park's dress code does not mention cross-dressing. "We don't have a policy that says no cross-dressing," Daniels said. "What our policy does say is that a judgment call as to the appropriateness of attire or accessories are at management's discretion. We do reserve the right to deny admittance to any individual or group that doesn't meet those standards. "We are a family park, and we try to maintain that family atmosphere. I guess there was something that made this [complainant] feel a little uncomfortable or a little unsure." Daniels noted that the security officer "apologized profusely" before the transgender woman left area where she was detained. "Obviously, he saw nothing about her dress or appearance that warranted removal from the park," Daniels said. Dallas Transgender Alliance president Tylana Coop said that she talked to the security officer about the incident and that he told her that he "didn't enjoy the enforcement of the cross-dressing policy but that it was his job when another patron makes a complaint," according to a story she wrote about the incident on her Web site. The transgender woman said that she views the actions of the security officers as having broader implications. What if they detained a woman who just happens to have masculine features, she said. "To be pulled in there if you were actually a genetic female and have someone tell you, `We don't allow men to wear women's clothing in a park' would be an insult, she said. Security officers took the transgender woman to an office for the questioning to protect her privacy, Daniels noted. The transgender woman said that she is concerned about others who do not have identification showing their sex as compatible with their dress. Transgenders sometimes have difficulty obtaining sex changes on birth certificates and other legal documents, she said. Daniels said that a guest would not be automatically removed if they could not produce identification proving their sex matched their dress. It would be handled on a "case by case basis," she said. The security officer told her that he could not remember having ever before questioned a park visitor about their gender, Daniels said. The transgender woman said that she has dressed in female attire for 14 months without incident. She wore jeans, a knit top and a wig on the day of the incident. She had no doubts about the reason for the security guards detaining her, the transgender woman said. "I was calm about it for the most part," she said. "I figured it had to be this." The transgender woman, who is 6-foot-2, spent $25,000 on plastic surgery and electrolysis to make herself appear more feminine. She began the process of transitioning three years ago at age 51, but she has not had sexual reassignment surgery. She works as an e-mail administrator for a large public entity, where she said she transitioned on the job without problems. She asked to remain anonymous partially due to her fears of harassment from people who would not accept her. "There are still those who would just as soon see us in a grave as be alive," she said. "I try to live a normal life as much as I can, and Six Flags is part of that." The transgender woman said her self-confidence has slipped as a result of the incident. "I had pretty much convinced myself that I was getting by in public and that the stares were just because I am so tall," she said. "It's sort of a setback in that regard." Top
MEDIA WATCH [16] USA--California--Transgender transit: Not easy being 'tween Top Date: Thu, 21 Nov 2002 From: "tgnews_moderator" <tgnews_moderator@yahoo.com> Source: San Francisco Chronicle Author: Annie Nakao http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi? file=/chronicle/archive/2002/11/19/DD78867.DTL Date: November 19, 2002 AN EDITOR FRIEND e-mailed me a few days after I wrote about the media's struggles in covering the sad story of Eddie/Gwen Araujo, the slain Newark transgender teen. "Your column raised an interesting point," she said. "But to tell you the truth, why is there so much of an uproar about the use of pronouns and not about his death itself? Maybe it's just an afterthought." Perhaps it seemed so. But a 17-year-old's brutal killing was never far from the minds of those who sent a blitz of e-mails my way. They may not have known her, but they clearly claimed Gwen as one of their own. "Gwen would have blossomed . . . ," wrote Sara-Jane. "Sadly, this will not happen, as she was brutally murdered. RIP Gwen." Araujo's slaying is expected to take center stage at Wednesday's fourth annual Transgender Day of Remembrance, which will memorialize transgender victims of violence. But the e-mails were also a testament to the importance of the way the world sees transgender people. And what we call them has everything to do with that emerging visibility. "Thanks for struggling with the pronouns -- you're asking the right questions, and the struggle is part of learning the answers," said Jim. Karen, the Lafayette mother of an adult transsexual child, had this to offer: "I made the pronoun shift some time ago as did my friends, which is a wonderful affirmation of compassion and respect," she wrote. "As my daughter says, in all the world's turmoil the one absolute we have is that we look in our pants and tell who we are. Transsexuals challenge this and it scares people." Some readers rejected my conclusion that "Gwen . . . died because she didn't fit into that all-powerful gender binary of male-female that we hold onto so deeply." "Well, no," wrote Sherry Boschert, a San Francisco journalist and past chapter president of the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association. "She didn't die because of something she did or didn't do, nor because of something she was or wasn't. Rather, she died because of the sick and hateful actions of some murderers who somehow felt they had the right to hurt and kill." I was trying to make the same point. But I can see Sherry's point about falling into that subtle "trap" of victim blaming. One interesting e-mail came from "M," a 33-year-old male-to-female transsexual from San Francisco who's been living as a woman for several months. "Still, I have friends and family who will refer to me as a male. It's accidental, but it happens. I even do it sometimes. I think we (transgendered individuals) should be aware that as we go through transition, so do all the people around us." "M" had more to say. ". . . it may be unrealistic for society-at-large to expect the transgender community to fit within the traditional binary male/female model, but it is also unrealistic for the transgender community to presume that there is a binary model for pronoun use that is correct/incorrect. I think our community has been too hard on the press. While we are transitioning, so are you!" I like that, not because she gives the press a break -- Lord knows, journalists should be struggling to accurately reflect the real world; it's their biggest obligation -- but because she acknowledges the complexity. "Just as I have to be patient with my parents, who struggle daily with the changes I am going through, so too should I (and all of us) be patient with the press. Of course . . . I am likely to have my trannie-girl secret decoder rings repossessed for saying all this. C'est la vie." Her bottom line: It's confusing and no one should be expected to instantly "get" it. But it's on the radar screen now, and that's going to help. E-mail Annie Nakao at anakao@sfchronicle.com. ©2002 San Francisco Chronicle. Page D - 8 Top
[17]UK: Love and Red Tape ; My Dad, Ermina Top Date: Wed, 20 Nov 2002 From: "Mrs. Petra Henderson" <petrahenderson@yahoo.com> Two related items Source: BBC Radio Via: Claire Ashton in TNUK Digest http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/hometruths/0234paula.shtml Having heard Ermina Waters story, Wayne and Paula rang us. Paula used to be a man. Now the couple would like to marry... Wayne had left school aged 16 without a qualifications. Divorced and out of work, he decided it was high time to get some, and started doing a few evening courses. On one of them, 'Introduction to Counselling', he met and fell in love with Paula who is transsexual. Wayne was attracted to Paula straight away. He'd never met a transsexual before. But Wayne was 17 years older, and Paula, who was divorced and with sons had a boyfriend at the time. She had her operation about five years ago, and had been living as a woman for eight years prior to that. She recalls the early days after her operation as a bit like going through teenage. She experimented with make-up, clothes and boyfriends - an exciting but dicey time. Meeting Wayne put the brakes on that. Wayne found Paula's honesty was remarkable. He had no idea of her private life and didn't even know the difference between a transsexual and a transvestite. Over six months their friendship developed. Paula has two sons, one of whom had a child. Her relationship with her sons is now fine, but she's lost contact with her grandchild which she's very sad about. Wayne's children have been very supportive, and are glad that he's found Paula. Now the couple want to get married. They did try to once, but without telling the registrar about Paula's past. Inevitably the registrar caught up with them - and said that not only could the wedding not go ahead, but that failing to disclose Paula's former marriage was committing perjury. Paula thought that getting arrested might be good publicity, but the Police said they couldn't arrest her. Unlike Ermina's experience, Wayne and Paula have encountered a tremendous amount of prejudice, and Paula is hurt by the fact that technically she could be arrested for something as simple as using a ladies toilet. She does not accept her 'non-status'. So now they are awaiting a letter from the Registrar General. They believe that the British Government may be contravening a European Court of Human Rights Act. If you'd like to hear Ermina's story again: Ermina's Story http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/hometruths/0233ermina.shtml Top
[18] UK--Transsexualism ˆ mind over matter Top EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been around since February 2002. Hopefully they have learned the error of their ways by now I include this here in case anyone would like to contact the Christian Institute and update them on their "facts." Date: Wed, 20 Nov 2002 Thanks to "Claire Ashton" <claire@c-ashton.fsnet.co.uk> Subject: Christian Institute Briefing - Transsexualism - mind over matter http://www.christian.org.uk/transsexualism.doc Christian Institute Briefing What is a transsexual? Transsexuals are men or women who are biologically normal, but who believe themselves to be members of the opposite sex. This feeling of being trapped in the wrong body‚ may lead to a transsexual demanding what is often called a sex change‚ (also known as gender reassignment‚). This involves the use of hormones and surgery to change their appearance and sexual characteristics. These medical and surgical possibilities now make people believe they can change sex‚ and created the idea of transsexuals‚ or people claiming to be trapped in the wrong body‚. The word transsexual‚ only arose in the 1940s. Seeking the wrong answer The problem, however, is psychological: the evidence supports this view overwhelmingly. The transsexual‚s body is healthy. Traditionally invasive surgery has only been used to preserve the integrity of a body endangered by disease or injury , not to mutilate a healthy body. A painful operation cannot solve the mental disfunction. The key issue Gender reassignment only changes the outside, not the inside. In fact it is not possible to change sex. It is helpful to distinguish between sex‚ and gender‚. There are two distinct sexes: male and female. Gender, however, can be thought of differently: there is a range stretching from masculinity to femininity. Such a variation in characteristics from person to person is quite obvious. People are born either male or female. It does not make sense to say I have the right to change sex‚. It cannot be done. It would be like Parliament passing an Act to decree that all pregnancies in future will be by men not women. The Bible The reason that there are two, and only two, sexes is that God created mankind such that to be human means to be either human male or human female (Genesis 1:27). The human body is therefore a good gift of God and essential to the human person. But the transsexual sees their body as an accident, as denying their true self‚ which resides in their mind and emotions. This is opposed to the Bible, which teaches a positive view of the body: the supreme expression of this being that Jesus became flesh (John 1:14). It is an old heresy (Manichaeanism‚) which detaches the person from the body. 1 Corinthians 6:18-20 warns against sinning sexually against your own body‚ . Christians must honour God with their body. The Old Testament uses the same word to condemn homosexual practice and intentional cross-dressing. Deuteronomy 22:5 states: „A woman must not wear man's clothing, nor a man wear woman's clothing, for the LORD your God detests anyone who does this.‰ (compare Leviticus 18:22). What about the law? It is now argued that a transsexual has the human right to change sex. But until now British law has been in harmony with Christian belief. In the court case Corbett v Corbett, Mr. Corbett argued that his marriage was void because his wife‚ was a man. Mr. Justice Ormrod agreed. He upheld the principle that biology determines the sex. A male-female transsexual who had undergone gender reassignment‚ remained as he was ever since birth: male. Ormrod upheld that three facts determined the sex of a person: 1. The chromosomes (XY ˆ male; XX ˆ female) 2. The gonads (testes/ovaries) 3. The genitals (penis/clitoris, including internal sex organs) Ormrod also held that the man was psychologically a transsexual. Gay marriage In Corbett v Corbett the marriage of a transsexual male-female to a male was declared void because both parties were biological males. However, there are strong calls to allow transsexuals to marry. They could do this by a law change allowing them to swap the sex recorded on their birth certificate. (The Government is currently consulting on this proposal.) But this is fundamentally dishonest. You cannot alter a fact of history. If the Government decide to go ahead, it will open the door to gay marriage. Transsexual marriage is gay marriage since legally two men, or two women, of the same sex would be married. The arguments There are claims that a person‚s sex is the product of a gradual process determined by society. This is clearly opposed to Scripture. The objective fact is that the XY or XX chromosomal/genetic pattern is set at conception. Nor is it reasonable to assume that other biological factors, e.g. brain structure, cause transsexualism. There is little evidence for this and the plea I was made this way‚ was abandoned by biologists long ago. Even if psychology were a factor in determining sex, why should it overrule all other factors? What transsexualism is not: 1. Transvestism. A transvestite is someone who cross-dresses for erotic stimulation, usually a man who dresses as a woman. This is not the reason why a transsexual would dress as the opposite sex. 2. Homosexuality. A homosexual wants to fulfil same-sex desires with their body as given. They do not see their body as a problem. 3. A biological intersex‚ condition, also called hermaphroditism‚. There are very rare cases of babies whose sex at birth is ambiguous. True hermaphrodites are born with both testicular and ovarian tissue. One world-wide review found only 364 cases of true hermaphrodites since 1899. Another intersex condition, involving ambiguous genitalia, is thought to occur in 1 in 130,000 births. Such illnesses have nothing to do with transsexualism. A transsexual has a healthy body. Problems for transsexuals There is evidence that some transsexuals attempt suicide, become involved in prostitution and that some transsexuals regret having their operation: even returning‚ to their biological sex. It has also been claimed that hormonal treatment can result in breast cancer. The Christian response to a transsexual, as with any other person, should be prayer, care and counsel as for any with psychological difficulties and where necessary repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. (Acts 20:21) Transsexualism ˆ mind over matter © The Christian Institute, February 2002 Top
[19] USA: California--Historical record reveals rich past of transgender people Top Date: Tue, 19 Nov 2002 From: tgnews_moderator <tgnews_moderator@yahoo.com> Source: San Mateo County Times Author: Monique Beeler http://www.sanmateocountytimes.com/Stories/0,1413,87%7E2494%7E999083,00.html Date: November 18, 2002 There's nothing novel about men dressing as women and women passing as men. As far back as ancient Greece and Babylonia, transgender people fulfilled central roles in certain temple ceremonies. Hippocrates tells of Scythian nomads, ferocious warriors who rode horseback across the steppes but otherwise lived as transvestites. Wearing women's clothing, he writes, they "do women's work, live like women and converse accordingly." "Many societies accepted people in the cross-gender role," says history and sexology professor Vern Bullough, author of "Cross Dressing, Sex and Culture." "It's hard to say how many there were. There were probably hundreds of them." Through the ages, some cultures proved more accepting than others of people who preferred living as the opposite sex. Historically, roles available to transgender individuals have proved as diverse as the human personality, ranging from artisan weavers to powerful shamans. Several societies around the world cultivated groups of emasculated men who performed specific tasks, whether the eunuchs in China who guarded the emperor's wives and concubines or the castrati of Italian opera who gave up their genitalia to maintain boyishly high voices for life. Less coerced were transgender American Indians, who were generally free to follow their own inner promptings, says Diane Pearson, professor of American Indian Studies professor at University of California, Berkeley. "They could be medicine people, they could be healers, transgender men could be hunters," Pearson says. "It was how people wanted to develop." Some limits applied to women living as men, who likely would have been banned from joining a war party. In most tribes, a woman - with her ability to menstruate, give and renew life - would have been considered too powerful. "Warrior societies having women ride out with them probably was not the ideal thing to do, because (menstruating women) override men's power," she says. Practices and attitudes varied among the approximately 600 North American cultures. Some groups, including the Zuni, used a term called "two-spirit," a concept reflected in the black and white photos of a well-known transgender individual named We'Wha, Pearson says. Famed Western photographer Edward S. Curtis snapped the images in 1886. Born a man in 1849, We'Wha lived daily life as a woman. In photos, her face, with its broad cheekbones and chin and heavy brow, clearly appears masculine. Her off-the shoulder dresses, upswept hair styles and accessories such as gold hoops indicate a feminine leaning. "The anthropologist who worked with him thought he was a woman for years," Pearson says. "Part of his role was as a protector of children." When she died in 1896, We'Wha's people buried her in a woman's dress with a pair of men's trousers underneath, signaling her role as a bridge between the roles of men and women, Pearson says. Other known transgender American Indians include: - Finds Them and Kills Them, or Osh-Tisch, of the Crow nations (1854-1929). Born male and earned warrior status by joining an attack against a Lakota group for one day only. Thereafter, she dressed and lived as a woman, becoming an accomplished artisan. - Woman Chief, a Crow warrior (early 1800s-1854). Tall and strong, he became adept at the skills of warriors, hunting, wrestling and horsemanship, despite being born a woman. Earned a position as a warrior after shooting and killing several attacking enemies. The Crows sang songs of his prowess and war powers. Woman Chief counts as a rare figure in history. Accounts of female-to-male transgender individuals are less common than those of male-to-female. Experts say fewer accounts of transgender women exist because typically it has been easier for women to pass as the opposite sex. Historians report, however, many instances of women dressing as men to escape the confines of their prescribed sexual roles. In 18th century Holland, for example, many women dressed as men to immigrate as colonists to Indonesia. "Most of them did so to get some of the advantages of the male role," says Bullough, founding director of the Center for Sex Research at California State University, Northridge. "We have records of hundreds and hundreds of them." Additionally, women were known to have dressed as men to fight in the Revolutionary War, in the Civil War and with troops on the Western frontier. Some also dressed as men and worked as cowboys. "As late as the first World War, a number of women fought as men in the Russian front," Bullough says. Church harder to infiltrate Some institutions proved more difficult for transgender people to infiltrate or influence, particularly the church. "There were stories of women dressing as men to enter monasteries," says Bernard Schlager, program director for the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies at the Pacific School of Religion at Berkeley's Graduate Theological Union. "The most famous example, of course, is Joan of Arc, dressing as a man and leading the troops" on a religious crusade. Most Christian denominations have dealt with the transgender issue by not talking about it, an approach that slowly has begun to shift in the past 10 to 20 years, Schlager says. Despite relatively greater openness, it took one recent transgender graduate of the school of religion two years to find a position as an ordained minister. Broader acknowledgement of the existence of transgender people among church members and the population as a whole - and their right to full enfranchisement - is still several years away, Schlager says. But Bullough says he has seen great progress since the 1950s when transgender people kept to themselves, meeting only in small, closed groups and avoided public scrutiny. Bolstered by the drive for human rights led by the feminist movement and the gay and lesbian rights movement, the transgender community may be the next to claim a more prominent civic voice. "They're almost where homosexual people were in 1969," Bullough says. "It's changing. It will be interesting watching how much more public transgender people become." Top
[20] SOMALIA--The 'gabdho girls' of Somalia Top Q-online - News: A Somali sex change tells he... http://www.q.co.za/2001/2002/11/18-somalia.html A whole village of gay men dressed as women became a bit too much for Hamdi Suldan, a male-to-female sex change. Afdhere Jama November 19, 2002 "Oh, it is beautiful being a gabadh [girl,]" says Hamdi Suldan, a Somali transsexual who lives in Seattle. "Somali men treat you better. I really enjoy my days as a woman better than when I was a guy." Suldan, who now is in now taking hormones in preparation for a sexy change, was born a male child. The proud parents named the boy Siciid Ali Suldan. Later, she named herself "Hamdi"(an Arabic word that means "to be thankful") when she moved to a new community that was more accepting. "The name goes with how I felt. I was thankful to be who I was. It just came to me one night and in the morning, I told everyone I wanted to be called that name." As a young man, Suldan thought he was gay but also knew there was something different about the way he felt about guys. "I wasn't just another guy," says Suldan. "I was a girl inside a guy's body. This was very confusing to a teen who did not even know there was such thing as a transsexual." She even once told a guy, after she fell in love with him, that she felt she was a woman inside. "He freaked out. I remember he was shaking and was trying not to touch me. He was gay and I just told him I was a woman, how would anyone feel? It was a shock." Suldan, who originated from the northern Somali state of Waqooyi, ran away after that incident to southern city of Mogadishu. "I packed my bags and boarded on a bus the next morning," she recalls. "Next stop, Hamar [Mogadishu.] That was one of the wildest things I have ever done. I was scared. Fear makes you do all sorts of strange things." There she found communities in which, she was told, she could live as gay or as anything else she wanted to be and would be accepted. "That was like a dream come true for me," says the now 29-year-old nurse, who moved to the U.S. six years ago. "I immediately moved to Hamar-Jajab [a district in Mogadishu] It wasn't easy having to find a place to live and work, but it was the best thing that I have ever done for myself." Suldan says she found the community there exactly what she was looking for; gay men wearing women's clothing. "I thought 'this is it.'" A whole village of gay men dressed as women became a bit too much later, however, recalls the well dressed tall woman. "Suddenly, the reality hit," says Suldan, brushing her nails with something cosmetic as she sighs. "I was confronted with an entire district that was like me. Even though it was very nice to be accepted, I realized I was one of the lucky ones there." Suldan says she soon found out that gay men who did not want to dress as women were not welcome. In fact, she says, they were chased away from the village whenever they came around there to pick up drag queens. "It was horrible. I was not attracted to drag queens, I was attracted to men who dressed like other men," she recounts. "But I was not allowed to be with them. No, you had to punish them and chase them away. It was very strange." One of these men was Ali Abdulle, a then teen whose main gay sex life revolved around the kindness of these drag queens. "I was young, I did not know how to pick up guys," he relates, now in a long-term relationship with another Somali. "It was my only place to meet someone with a dick who I could have sex with. It was very risky though, now that I think about it. I remember I was beaten couple of times by the 'mothers.'" The mothers are a group of elders who protect and guide other drag queens, says Suldan. When Abdulle finally met another young boy, from outside influences, the couple were confronted with the same problems. "We moved to another city called Shalaamboot," says Ismail Sakariye, Abdulle's partner. "We were told it was a tolerant city towards gays. But like Shingani and Hamar-Jajab, we were asked to wear women's clothing." Though Sakariye did not like the idea, he agreed to do it. Abdulle, on the other hand, was very much against it. "I wanted us to go back to Mogadishu," he says, showing a clear sign that the memory bothers him. "It was very insulting to me, personally. Then I realized it didn't matter what I wore on the outside. And that as long as we were allowed to be together, we could survive anything." What about these drag queen mothers? Meet Halima Aw-Saalah, a woman who, though she has not been through sex change, feels she is 100% woman. "I'm a Queen, dear," she says, smiling with the brightest teeth I have ever seen, "I'm a ruler over all men. I was born to be a Queen. I was meant to be a Queen," she says, pausing. "Then somebody made a physical mistake up there," adds, pointing toward the sky. Aw-Saalah, who believes sex change is wrong because it goes against "God's mistakes," says she finds being a woman her true self. She ran away from her nomadic family at the age of fifteen when they tried to marry the boy off to a 13-year-old girl. "They thought I was a man," she recalls, laughing. "That was the funniest thing I have ever heard. Darling, it was absurd. I may have had a little something down there like boys, but I was the woman of all women inside." When Aw-Saalah told her family how she felt, she was told she would be killed if she didn't marry the girl, since she would "destroy" the family's honor. Scared and confused, the fifteen-year-old ran away from home to the only family she knew outside of nomad quarters, her aunt in Galkaio. Her aunt, a lesbian for Aw-Saalah's luck, sent the girl straight to Mogadishu, where there was a friend of the aunt, a mother no less. "I was trained by a goddess, hon.," she says, showing a picture of a woman named Diirshoon. "She showed me the way unto women's haven, her own heart. The survival kit she installed in my brain are still fresh and need no upgrade. She was a brilliant artist." Diirshoon, who took the scared little boy-but-inside-woman being, was running something similar to brothel at that time. Unlike a whore house, though, Diirshoon never allowed her "daughters" to be sexually used. On the other hand, they were there for personal pleasure; to be viewed as the goddesses' finest work. "She put us in rooms with glass doors that were double locked," recalls Aw-Saalah, smiling at the picture of the woman she admires so much. "Some men would come to just see the finely crafted glass doors that were imported from India. It was fun and it paid the bills, darling." Ok, enough with the admiration of the woman; what did Diirshoon teach Aw-Saalah? "Well, she first changed my clothes. She gave me some fine women clothing," says Aw-Saalah. "Then she trained me how to walk the walk and talk the talk. In weeks, I was a complete woman." That is not all Diirshoon taught Aw-Saalah, however. She says Diirshoon soon exposed to her a world where gay men were not welcome. So, how can one tell? If you did not lie and say you were straight and married or hope-to-be married, you were a qaniis [gay] and got kicked out. "It was easy to lie in the beginning," recalls Abdulle. "But it got extremely hard as time went by. You couldn't hide the glow, the happiness, the joy you felt when you were around people who were just like you." Aw-Saalah protests that these men are just "like" gays. "No! We are nothing like them. We are women," she protests, showing a sign that she is insulted. "We are simply women. How dare they say we are like them? We are not!" Alright. For a guy who mainly grew up in America, this is all too confusing for me. I thank God that I'm not the only Somali. "This is crazy," says Diiriye Maalo, a Somali who lived in America since he was ten. "These are the thoughts of savages, not a civilized society. I think we should send all Somalis abroad for a few decades and have them return." Some Somalis, however, are embracing these thoughts. "This is great," says Mahad Tukade, a gay Somali who lives in Toronto. "I'm glad some Somalis are showing the world that Somalia is not all corrupted by Arabic invasion on our faiths and culture." As Tukade, Jeylaani Ma'ow, a Minneapolis, MN, resident, says he is proud to hear that Somalis have not lost all of their primitive roots. "For once, I'm glad to hear about Somalis who are not terrorist sympathizers or terrorists themselves." He says, handing me a book on Somali primitive beliefs. "It is time we taught our children of these tolerant beliefs our people always had." Ma'ow, who is not gay but accepts Queer folk as "normal people," says he returned to "worshipping Waaq [a powerful goddess of pre-Islam Somalia, to whom some sacrificial sites, like Caabud-Waaq and Ceel-Waaq, were dedicated to.]" "I didn't even know all these communities existed," says Nuur Sheikh-Adan, a gay doctor who lives in the Netherlands. "When I go back, I will definitely find them and maybe teach them a thing or two about science." Sheikh-Adan, who has lived in the Netherlands for nine years, is going back to Somalia at the end of this year. He hopes to bring LGBT issues to the attention of mainstream Somalis. "I realize it is a risky business," he notes, knowing the beliefs of mainstream Somalis, "but I also realize someone has to do it. It is our turn to teach and be patient." He says he does not think things will change overnight. Rather, he says, he is going for the long road. "We want to pave some roads with whatever it takes. Our wealth. Our time. Our lives even." The "we" is he and a group of gay Somalis he recruited for this project. In the mean time, these fabulous girls have no desire to go back. "I actually want to bring out all of the women," says Aw-Saalah. "Somalia is unholy to us until it gets its act together." Suldan fears for her safety and does not wish to go back. "I think I became too American," she says, fondling her red hair. "It would be foolishness to think I can just go back and everything will be like old times. Everything has changed. The Somali community has changed and so have I." -- Afdhere Jama is Editor-In-Chief of Huriyah Magazine <http://www.huriyahmag.com/> Top
LEGISLATIVE ACTION [21] USA: Pennsylvania --Hate Crimes Legislation Could Trigger Lawsuits, Family Groups Warn Top From Brenda Lana Smith R.af D. Crosswalk.com http://www.crosswalk.com/news/1173005.html Friday, November 22, 2002 Lawrence Morahan Senior Staff Writer (CNSNews.com) - If passed, hate crimes legislation currently before the Pennsylvania House of Representatives could subject to lawsuits church ministers who express traditional views from the pulpit on sexual morality, a coalition of pro-family groups said. "If pastors from pulpits speak either of the supremacy of biblical traditional marriage or speak of sexually alternative lifestyles in an unfavorable way, under this amendment they could be open to litigation," said William Devlin, president of the Urban Family Council, an inter-racial child and family advocacy group. House Bill 1493, which likely will come up for a vote early next week, proposes to amend the state's Ethnic Intimidation Act to include "sexual orientation, gender or gender identity." "Basically it's saying if you're sitting and you're hearing and you feel intimidated, you can sue," Devlin added. The bill would empower people who consider themselves to be in a sexual minority, such as "gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, transsexual, transvestite, pansexual and cross-dressers" to sue spiritual leaders who publicly espouse traditional views on sexuality, he said. The amendment, which has been sitting in the Legislature since June 2001, was voted out of committee Nov. 12 by a 15-5 margin. The Pennsylvania Senate passed the bill last year by a 32-15 vote. If the bill passes the House and Gov. Mark Schweiker signs it - as he has pledged to do - Pennsylvania will join 26 other states and the District of Columbia in extending hate crimes legislation to homosexuals. It will be the fifth state to include "gender identity" in those protections. The bill has broad bipartisan support. Its proponents include Republican House Majority Leader John Perzel and Stewart Greenleaf, chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Steve Miskin, a spokesman for Perzel, said the majority leader intended to vote for the measure, which could come up for a vote as early as Monday. "He intends to support it," Miskin said. "I'm inclined to think it will pass, but there will be some people trying to amend it to death," he said. Stacey Soebel, executive director of the Center for Lesbian and Gay Civil Rights in Philadelphia, said concerns that the amendment could be used to silence people of faith were unfounded. "We support the First Amendment and of course we support people of faith being able to practice their religions," Soebel said. "However, what we're talking about is when people engage in criminal activities and do that based upon bias against people, such as gays or lesbians ... or their gender identity, then that's a hate crime." Hate crimes are committed purposely to send a message to an entire community and need to be fought with diligence, she said. Proponents of the amendment are not seeking special rights for certain groups, but are trying to extend it to include others who are threatened. "All we're trying to do is make sure that the people who are most vulnerable to attack are included in the law that we already have on the books," Soebel said. Homosexual advocacy groups have been conducting an intense lobbying campaign in recent days to get the measure passed. "If we can get it to the floor, I believe we have the votes to get it passed," Soebel said. © Copyright 2002, Crosswalk.com. All rights reserved. Top
[22] UK: Lord Chancellor's Department Press Notice Top Date: Wed, 20 Nov 2002 From: "Claire Ashton" <claire@c-ashton.fsnet.co.uk> http://213.38.88.195/coi/coipress.nsf/3125f7fc7de1d0fb80256bf4003374ad/3d6f7 0b6afe253b380256c670032cb4e?OpenDocument Lord Chancellor's Department Press Notice 382/02 1 November 2002 HUMAN RIGHTS BALANCE HAS BEEN ACHIEVED BETWEEN PARLIAMENT, THE COURTS AND THE EXECUTIVE "Critics of the Human Rights Act argued that it would politicise our higher judiciary. It has not," the Lord Chancellor, Lord Irvine, said this afternoon. "The balance between intense judicial scrutiny and reasonable deference to elected decision-makers is a delicate one to strike. But the judiciary have struck it well; and I welcome that." The Lord Chancellor said it was time to start celebrating the Human Rights Act. "It has moved public decision-making in this country up a gear, by harnessing it to a set of fundamental standards." The Lord Chancellor was delivering the inaugural Irvine Human Rights Lecture, The Human Rights Act Two Years On: An Analysis, at Durham University's Centre of Human Rights. The lecture examines the impact the Act has had on the constitution, as well as the law, and the subsequent relationship between Parliament, the Courts and the Executive. Role of Parliament "The Act expressly protects Parliamentary sovereignty. If a statute is declared incompatible, it continues to be enforceable: it is for Parliament to decide whether it should pass remedial legislation, and it is under no legal obligation to do so. Parliament can therefore legislate incompatibly if it chooses." "Section 19 of the Act is important. It requires the Minister introducing a Bill to Parliament to make a statement, either that, in his view, the Bill is compatible with the Convention; or that, although he is unable to give that assurance, the Government nevertheless wishes the House to proceed with the Bill. Parliament will therefore not legislate incompatibly with the Convention, without being absolutely clear that it is doing so. Role of the Courts Speaking about the Courts, the Lord Chancellor said that the prophets of doom had been proved wrong. "So much of the comment has been negative: predictions of chaos; a politicised judiciary; and the inauguration of the rule of lawyers. None of that has happened." "In the two years since the Act came into force, the judicial system has matched up well to the demands placed on it by the Act. That is the result of a carefully drafted Act and two years of intense preparation by the Government and the Courts. "Recent research shows that, one year after implementation, the Act had still not had the effect that many had anticipated, in terms either of the number or complexity of challenges on Human Rights grounds. The overall impression that has emerged is that Human Rights arguments are mostly used to add to, bolster or put a fresh slant on pre-existing lines of challenge. The great majority of cases in which a Human Rights point has been raised would have gone forward in any event, most typically in Judicial Review." "Our judges have always had to decide cases in areas of political controversy. The Human Rights Act has ushered in only a difference of degree, not of kind. "Based on the erroneous belief that the Act would politicise the Judiciary, and detract from judicial impartiality, some called for an injection of Parliamentary scrutiny into the judicial appointments process. That, however, would open the way for Judges to be appointed on political grounds. And I am convinced that the country does not want that, and that it would be wrong." The Lord Chancellor said that those who predicted the Human Rights Act would add nothing to our system of law had also been proved wrong. "The Human Rights Act constitutes a promise to citizens that public bodies will, subject to Parliamentary sovereignty, act compatibly with their rights. And the guarantee backing that promise is that citizens can take the Government to Court if they believe Government has failed." The Lord Chancellor said the Courts were striking the right balance between the rights of the individual and the wider public interest. "The leading cases show, contrary to views expressed in sections of the press, that the Courts have not sacrificed the wider public interest in favour of the rights of individuals. Rather, they have applied a principled approach and have sought to strike a fair balance between the two." "Many cases have revealed that, as with the statute book, much of our common law is already consistent with the Convention. Others have seen the common law evolving to reflect the Convention. The best examples are the cases involving the privacy of public figures, and the balance that must be struck between their right to respect for private life in Article 8, and the Press's right to freedom of expression in Article 10. The case law is still developing, but already we have been reminded of the inherent capacity of the common law to develop and we have seen the Human Rights Act providing both the impetus and the direction." The Lord Chancellor also spoke of the influence that British judges were having on the jurisprudence of the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. "Now we do not expect cases to be taken from the UK to Strasbourg unless the Convention issues have been tested in our own Courts first. So our Judges can now influence and contribute to the development of Strasbourg jurisprudence. "There are signs that the legal reasoning applied here carries weight in Strasbourg - as we hoped it would when drafting the Bill. So Strasbourg now gains the full benefit of British Convention analysis - and our jurisprudence is back at the heart of the international human rights legal order." The Role of the Executive The Lord Chancellor said that the Executive's role under the Human Rights Act involves engaging positively with Parliament and the Courts. "The Executive must continue to build Convention standards into decision-making at all levels, so that decisions are proportionate, rational and respectful of fundamental rights. And it means it must be robust in the face of human rights challenges, so that it can vigorously demonstrate and defend the merits of its decisions. "What about when the Courts disagree? In a democracy under the rule of law it is not mature to cheer the judges when a win is secured and boo them when a loss is suffered. "The Government can accept adverse Court decisions, not as defeats, but as steps on the road to better governance. The working out of the Act is not an obstacle to good administration, but an essential element in the path to achieving it. So where domestic decisions go against the Government, it will appeal where sensible. And where not, it will ask Parliament to change the law, or it will get on and implement the decision. "Losing is not necessarily bad for Government, or for the citizen. There have been Strasbourg cases over the years that have prompted reforms which we now take for granted. The same dynamic can be expected in domestic human rights litigation - with the added benefit that decisions by our own Courts are bound to be more sensitive to the British context. "The Government does not see successful challenges in Court as affronts to our constitutional arrangements." Notes for Editors 1. The Lecture The full text of the Lord Chancellor's lecture will be available on the LCD website (http://www.lcd.gov.uk - see What's New?) 2. The Centre of Human Rights The Durham Centre of Human Rights was established in 2000. The Centre is co-directed by Professors Ian Leigh and Helen Fenwick (0191-374 2031). It has recently been awarded a three-year grant by the Arts and Humanities Research Board to investigate judicial reasoning in the implementation of the Human Rights Act 1998. Further information is available on the University's website: http://www.dur.ac.uk/Law - see Research Centres Lord Chancellor's Department Selborne House, 54 Victoria Street, London SW1E 6QW www.lcd.gov.uk Top
[23] USA: Chicago--COOK COUNTY BOARD OKs GENDER IDENTITY AMENDMENT Top MEDIA ADVISORY - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Miranda Stevens-Miller Illinois Gender Advocates 312-409-5489 ItsTimeIL@itstimeil.org 47 W. Division St, #391 Chicago, IL 60610 ********************************************** Chicago, IL --- November 19, 2002 --- Today Cook County amended the County's Human Rights Ordinance to include the classification of Gender Identity. The vote came less than two weeks after the Chicago City Council passed a similar amendment by a 40 to 9 vote majority. With a population of 5.4 million people, Cook County is the largest county in Illinois and one of the largest counties in the United States. The new law affects the nearly 2.5 million people who live within Cook County outside of the City of Chicago. The law provides protection to the transgender and gender variant population by making it illegal to discriminate against a person on the basis of gender identity. Sponsored by Board President John Stroger, and Commissioners Mike Quigley and John Daley, the ordinance was introduced at the Cook County Board meeting on November 7. The amendment was passed unanimously by the Cook County Human Relations Committee on November 18, and today was passed by the Cook County Board with a vote of 14 to 1 (and 1 voting present). Miranda Stevens-Miller, Legislative Director of Illinois Gender Advocates, had been working for about two years with the office of Commissioner Quigley on the language and strategy of the ordinance. She said, "What a pleasure it has been to have worked with Mike Quigley on this issue. I cannot imagine a more decent and compassionate public servant." Commissioner Quigley, Legislative Aide Laura Nelson, and Chief of Staff Jennifer Koehler worked tirelessly in the days following the passage of the Chicago amendment to line up the support behind the Cook County amendment. Commissioner Quigley had been hoping to pass the Cook County amendment simultaneously with the Chicago amendment, but certainly before the newly elected Board took over in December. The vote came at the end of a grueling four-hour County Board meeting, as the next to last item of business of the outgoing Board. The new law amends Cook County's Human Rights Ordinance with the addition of Gender Identity, which is defined as "the actual or perceived appearance, expression, identity, or behavior, of a person as being male or female, whether or not that appearance, expression, identity or behavior is different from that traditionally associated with the person's designated sex at birth." The law provides protection from discrimination in employment, in public accommodations, in housing and in credit transactions. Beth Plotner, Chair of Illinois Gender Advocates, said, "I am thrilled that Cook County so quickly joined with Chicago to provide the same rights and protections to our community. And as a suburban Cook County resident, I am overjoyed that I can finally stand up and say 'I have rights'." Top
[24]UK: Blunkett Unveils Radical Sex Crime Law Reforms Top NEWS.scotsman.com - Latest News - Blunkett Un... http://news.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=5439221 From Brenda Lana Smith R.af D. Tue 19 Nov 2002 6:11pm (UK) By David Barrett Home Affairs Correspondent PA News Home Secretary David Blunkett today announced "an historic change" of the gay sex laws in the most radical overhaul of sex crime legislation for more than 100 years. Offences such as buggery, gross indecency and soliciting by men will be swept away, while protections against rapists, paedophiles and other perverts will be tightened. Defendants accused of rape will have to be able to show they took "reasonable action" to ensure the other person consented to sex. A new offence of "grooming" children for sex abuse &endash; previously thought to be planned only for adults who lure youngsters on the Internet &endash; will be applied to every aspect of life, not just online, with a maximum five-year penalty. Ministers will close a loophole in the law which allows men to claim sex with under-13s was consensual. Offenders who abuse youngsters of that age will always be charged with rape, rather than a lesser offence. This reform comes after a 32-year-old man was jailed for just 18 months for unlawful sexual intercourse last September after admitting having sex with a 12-year-old girl. Mr Blunkett said: "The judge pronounced he was not a paedophile. I beg to disagree." In addition, laws on child abuse will be updated, the sex offenders' register will be tightened and there will be new offences to combat sexual exploitation of children and adults. Mr Blunkett said: "The law on sex offences is widely recognised as archaic, incoherent and discriminatory. "Much of it belongs in an age before the light bulb or motor car yet we now live in a world of global communications, with children two clicks away from Internet porn sites generated by a multi-million pound sex industry. "We must have laws that are fit for the 21st century, that reflect today's society and attitudes and provide effective protection against today's crimes." The Home Office paper said the so-called gay "cottaging" offences, which date from 1956, will be repealed because they "criminalise consensual sexual activity in private between men, which would not be illegal between heterosexuals or between women". They will be replaced by a new offence sexual behaviour in a public place &endash; which will apply to both sexes and carry a maximum six-month penalty. The paper stressed this did not amount to legalising cottaging when gay men meet in public places, such as public toilets, for sex. Nor would it criminalise people who have sex in an isolated place outdoors where they would not expect to be interrupted, or those who kiss or cuddle in private. It added: "Sexual activity in public that offends, irrespective of whether the people engaging in the activity are heterosexual or homosexual, will remain criminal." Mr Blunkett said: "What people do in private is their own business, but what they do in public clearly affects others. "Our intention is to send a clear signal about what is unacceptable behaviour and ensure the police and prosecuting authorities have the tools to tackle it." Home Office minister Hilary Benn said of the gay sex reforms: "It is an historic change." The government also proposed significant changes to the law on rape. Convictions for rape have fallen from 25% in 1985 to just 7% in 2000 and ministers said a reason for this may be that prosecutors cannot prove a victim did not give consent. Defendants will not be able to claim a victim consented if he or she was threatened, abducted, unconscious through drink or drugs, or unable to communicate. It will be rape if a defendant cannot show he did not take reasonable action to ensure his partner gave consent, with "reasonable" being judged by what an "objective third party would think in the circumstances". Mr Benn said: "It is not about having a pen and paper by the bed, it's about asking the jury to think about this question." A recommendation of a paper published in summer 2000 that a new offence of persistent child abuse for repeat offenders has been dropped. Instead the maximum sentence for abuse of children over 13 will be raised to 14 years. Ministers have also decided not to create a specific offence of "date rape" after consulting rape support groups, with the paper commenting: "Our view is that rape is rape, and cannot be divided into more and less serious offences." They have also decided not to grant anonymity to rape defendants. Current indecent assault laws will be rewritten to cover incidents where a victim is sexually penetrated by objects such as bottles or knives, said Mr Benn. Other points of the paper included: A new offence to deal with people who buy sex with young people, including a seven-year penalty for buying sex with 16&endash; and 17-year-olds who, even though they are above the age of consent, may for example be working as prostitutes under duress A new offence of adult sexual activity with a child to deal with behaviour such as persuading children to undress Definition of rape will be widened to include penetration of the vagina, anus or mouth by the penis Rape will also apply to victims who are transsexuals Women will not be guilty of rape if they force a man to penetrate them without his consent, but women would face a new offence and possible life penalty for "causing another person to perform an indecent act without consent" The penalty for drug-assisted indecent assaults will rise from two to 10 years Incest will cover not just blood relatives but also foster and adoptive parents and live-in partners Making voyeurism, bestiality and necrophilia specific offences for the first time, each with a maximum sentence of two years' imprisonmnt Indecent exposure laws will be changed to cover men and women where they act to cause alarm or distress. The Sex Offenders' Register already has 97% compliance, said ministers, but new measures will go ahead to strengthen it even further. Offenders convicted overseas will have to register for the first time, all those listed will have to confirm their details in person annually, provide their National Insurance details and notify police of a change of name or address within three days rather than 14. A Bill is due to be published by the Home Office early in the New Year. END ©2002 scotsman.com Top
LEGAL ACTION [25]USA: Pennsylvania--Judge won't change sex listed trucker's birth certificate despite sex-change Top Boston.com / Latest News / Nation / Judge won... http://www.boston.com/dailynews/326/nation/Judge_won_t_change_sex_listed_:.s html By Associated Press 11/22/2002 BEDFORD, Pa. (AP) A judge said he was not authorized to change the sex listed on the birth certificate of a man who had a sex-change operation last year. Truck driver Daniel Gryphon MacNeal, formerly Ellen Bernadine Thompson, underwent a sex change last year and wanted to change his birth certificate and consequently his driver's license to reflect that he is no longer a woman. ''Every time I get stopped for safety checks or whatever, if it's a super cop, they pick up on the fact that my license says I'm a female and I look like a male,'' said MacNeal, 35, who has a beard and mustache because of the hormone therapy he began 12 years ago. Bedford County Judge Thomas Ling ruled Thursday he does not have the authority to change MacNeal's birth certificate. ''Gender is based on the number of matched genes and chromosomes. Sex organs are secondary,'' Ling said. ''I would have to be presented with a blood test showing the gender.'' MacNeal and his attorney, Frederick Gieg, vowed to go to the Legislature to seek a law that would allow judges to make such a change. MacNeal said he hopes to get married someday, but cannot if his birth certificate says he is a woman. He said he was married for 10 years, but has been divorced since 2000 and has no children. The Center for Lesbian and Gay Civil Rights in Philadelphia said MacNeal was seeking the change in the wrong venue. ''The court doesn't have the power to change the gender, but it can be done through the Pennsylvania Department of Vital Statistics,'' said Tiffany Palmer, legal director at the center. ''Right now, it's addressed administratively rather than by law.'' The center said it wants to keep such decisions out of the courtroom. ''There's not a lot of grounds about what legally determines what is male and what is female,'' Palmer said. ''And our argument is it should be up to the individual, not the courts.'' Gieg said he brought the case to court because he knew of no other venue. © Copyright 2002 The New York Times Company Top
BOOKS etc...... [26] USA: Trading Fiction's Comfort for a Chance to Look Life in the Eye Top From: "tgnews_moderator" <tgnews_moderator@yahoo.com> Source: New York Times Author: Amy Bloom http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/18/books/18BLOO.html Date: November 18, 2002 Writers lie. As a fiction writer, this doesn't bother me. It comforts me. When I write fiction, I only have to be true to myself and my imagination, to the characters I create and the events that I, and they, cause. In fiction, I'm God, without quarreling apostles, without competing deities, without any foot-dragging villagers. Characters may be slow to emerge, but they don't slam the door in my face because they didn't like the question I asked. I might have to research village life in 18th-century Wales, but I don't have to worry that my presence in the National Library of Wales might change the very story I'm trying to understand. The changes Wales brings about in me as a fiction writer are my problem; the rifts that arise between my characters and their actions are mine to resolve. I can change the character (hard), or change the action (easy), or scuttle both and make sure that the character in question is viciously dispatched, and by my own hand (my favorite). But with my first book of nonfiction, "Normal," I discovered that changes within me, especially changes of opinion, concerned my subjects as much as, or more than, they did me. I couldn't always create reasonable, meaningful bridges between character and action, because the actual people were blowing up those bridges with every anecdote they told me. Disturbing glimpses of unexpected traits, puzzling and even bizarre behaviors happen all the time in real life, and I could not just change the character or the action. In nonfiction, one detects, one intuits, one asks ˜ I ask, I ask endlessly, and have found that people give persuasive, elegant answers, or truthful answers, and very occasionally answers that are both ˜ but in nonfiction, one has to juggle the idea of truth and the pursuit of it with the fact of never knowing, even when it seems that I do, even when it's reasonable to imagine that I do. It's the not knowing that drew me to my first nonfiction book, about transsexuals, cross-dressers and the intersexed. I knew my own liberal prejudices (people who are different are not bad, but surely they are really different); I knew my own common sense (only crazy people and movie stars have multiple surgeries to remove healthy tissue); and I knew my own blind spots (surely it was ridiculous, and cruel, to suggest that intersexed babies should not have early and transforming surgeries). I didn't know that exploring the truth of some people's lives, and the stories they had to tell, would overturn my prejudices and my common sense and poke a sharp stick into the blind spots. I didn't know that these real people's complexities and poignancies and humor would move me to write a small book about them, putting aside my own stories for a while to write theirs. I met every kind of transsexual man: apolitical accountants and feminist truck drivers, devoted husbands and wayward ones. I met heterosexual transsexual Jews and bisexual transsexual Buddhists. They all seemed to have the usual human assortment of baggage and defenses, plus the burden of childhoods spent in rather deeper alienation than even those of us who became writers. I met dozens of heterosexual cross-dressers and their wives, many of whom struggled with unhappy or disappointing marriages, making them a lot like most other couples. I met a few couples in which the thing that made them most different from other people was not the husband's cross-dressing but their deep, shining happiness with each other. We had such a good time over Rob Roys, that I almost forgot my notebook. Knowing almost nothing about the intersexed, I got both a medical and a moral education. I met people who were never ashamed or discomfitted by being intersexed and people whose lives were almost destroyed by shame. I met people who talked about their medical trials with humor and confidence and people who asked to meet with me and couldn't say a word. And in all those conversations, all those interviews and observations, truth trickled through, barely visible at one corner, sparkling at the next, like a creek at the end of summer. I chose: whom to talk to, whom to quote, whom to describe, whom to pass over. And they chose: where we met, what they said, who they introduced me to, which photographs and scars and articles they showed me. I wanted to tell the truth, and so did they, and it was impossible for us to do so without choosing which truths to tell, and knowing that when you leave something out, you may come pretty damned close to lying. When I write fiction, I close my eyes and type. I pretend I have no parents, no spouse and no children. I tell myself that no one will ever read what I've written, that everyone will understand the conventions of fiction and know that the schizophrenic sister, the indifferent mother, the adulterous lovers are not me and not mine. With this book, I never had that luxury. I had to look into the eyes of people I liked, as they said things that I thought were untrue, and when people said things that were so brave and true and terrible that I wondered how they had found the strength not only to live but thrive, I had to keep my own tears from cutting off theirs. There were interviews that turned into parties, interviews that turned into confessionals and interviews that turned into visits to the mall. And almost all of the stories surprised me, with the twists of fate, staggeringly long arms of coincidence, repetition of patterns of the kind that make great case studies and great opera, heroism in people who had been, for most of their lives, contented doormats, uncharacteristic acts that changed everything that followed, all things of which fiction allows us only a little. Fiction would have failed these people, so I chose the other. Copyright The New York Times Company Top
[27]USA--Life as a Teen with a Transsexual Father Dress Codes: Of Three Girlhoods &emdash; My Mother's, My Father's, and Mine. Top ABCNEWS.com : "Read This" Book Club's "Dress ... http://abcnews.go.com/sections/GMA/GoodMorningAmerica/GMA021121_ReadThis_Dre ss.html Thursday, November 21, 2002 Dress Codes Nov. 21 &emdash; The "Wine, Women, and Jeffrey," book club read The Secret Life of Bees for last month's installment of Good Morning America's "Read This!" book club series. Today, they're passing on the book club baton to the "Jazzy Page Turners" of Knoxville, Tenn. They've been assigned, by "Wine, Women and Jeffrey," to read the Dress Codes: Of Three Girlhoods &emdash; My Mother's, My Father's, and Mine. The poignant and tender memoir, by Noelle Howey, explores the author's coming of age as a young woman, at the same time her father was "coming of age" as a transsexual, and her mother was finding her independence. Read chapter one of Howey's Dress Codes: Of Three Girlhoods &emdash; My Mother's, My Father's, and Mine, below. Coming Out, 1986 My mother's hatchback was parked in Section B, Aisle 12, between a small pile of beer cans and a battered Plymouth that looked as though it belonged on cement blocks. We were quiet. I don't remember whether we left the house in the late morning or the early afternoon; I don't know if it was a Saturday or a Sunday. I can't say what we discussed in the car on the way to the mall, or whether we simply drove in silence. I didn't ask why we were going shopping all of a sudden, though I assumed we were trying to get out of my father's way. He looked pretty tired. I watched the raindrops meander, forging crooked, loosely braided paths up the windshield. I had always been mesmerized and perplexed by the way rain crawls up car windows. "Honey, are you listening? Do you understand what I'm saying?" my mother asked. It was cold, even for late autumn, even for Cleveland. "Yes, of course," I scoffed, buttoning my jacket. My mother twisted in her bucket seat to face me as head-on as possible. That couldn't have been comfortable. "I think you're not quite taking this in," she said. Today, out of nowhere, right after our usual bowls of cornflakes, my mother decided that I needed socks, underwear, scrunchies-- immediately. She hustled me into the car. "We're going to Penney's over at Randall," she said. "I'm not spending ten dollars so you can tell Debbie that you have socks from the Gap." Randall Park was a strip mall behemoth with mud-streaked red carpeting, dry fountains, and third-tier retail establishments: Spencer Gifts instead of Papyrus, Frederick's of Hollywood instead of Victoria's Secret. I usually went elsewhere; thanks to purported gang activity, kids under sixteen weren't supposed to loiter in Randall without a chaperone. Anyway, I preferred the mall in Beachwood, or Bitchwood, as everyone called it, which had gleaming tile floors, perfectly squeegied skylights, a food court teeming with exotic boys from neighboring high schools. We bought a whole armload of socks, and a plastic tube stuffed with panties in various pastel shades--a distant second choice after my mother rejected the thongs. She seemed anxious, fiddling with her keys, clucking her tongue. While the clerk wrapped my panties in tissue paper, she asked my mother, "Honey, how's the weather out there? You know I hate not being able to see the outside from this place. It could be snowing for all I'd know!" My mother normally would've chuckled, "Oh boy, I just love windows, too. Well, it's raining right now..." And three minutes later, she and the cashier--named Wanda, apparently, originally from Kentucky--would be laughing and patting each other's hands like long-lost childhood friends. My mother, the former speech therapist, would have instinctively started mimicking Wanda's phrases, her pauses, the places where her sentences would drift off. But today the clerk got no response. My mom simply smiled, weakly, and handed over her credit card. Before we left the store, I ran over to the Misses section to ogle a pair of size zero side-zipper Guess jeans. My mother lingered in the aisle watching me, warily. "Well, we bought cheap so-ocks," I pleaded, elongating my syllables preciously. This poor-me-buy-me-expensive-clothes bit never worked, but I always gave it a shot. My mother didn't even blink. "Okay, okay," she sighed. "Get whatever you want." Mom walked slowly back to the car in the rain. I practically skipped ahead, clutching my bag of jeans to my heart like found treasure. Debbie will die, I thought gleefully. "Come on," I yelled. "You're getting wet." She tossed the remaining bags in the hatchback between the lawn fertilizer and her golf clubs. We got back in the car, and I flipped on the radio. "...easy lover, she'll take your heart but you won't feel it." "Um, can I change it?" I asked tentatively, realizing that having been gifted with designer loot, I should probably tread lightly with my requests. "Actually, can you turn it off?" Mom said. She stared straight out the windshield, tapping her fingers against the steering wheel. Uh. It's work. She's been fired. Suddenly my heart lifted. It's Dad. Maybe he's dying! No, that's terrible. I take it back. I'm sorry, God. Or whoever. I take it back. Make him just sick. Maybe they're getting divorced. Or he's moving. Far, far away. "It's Dad. There's something I need to tell you." My mother said one of the following things: a) "Your dad likes to wear women's clothes." b) "Noelle, your dad is different from other dads in that he likes to wear girls' clothes, and he wants to do it all the time." c) "You know how you like fuzzy sweaters? Your dad likes them, too. Girl sweaters, I mean." My mom doesn't know what she said either. In truth, it doesn't matter. I remember exactly what I thought: You have got to be kidding me. There's no news like hearing irrefutable proof that you're not the sole cause of your parents' woes, your father's drinking, your unshakable feeling that you're not put together quite right and finding out the problem all along was your father's unrequited yearning for angora . My mother was looking at me very intently and quizzically. "You understand, Dad has been doing this for many, many years. And he doesn't want to have to hide it from you anymore." "It's a big secret that he likes to wear girls' sweaters?" I retorted, trying to keep my voice steady and fierce. "Well"&emdash; my mother sighed &emdash; "yes. And we wanted you to know." I supposed I was scripted to weep, to riddle my mother with questions. Tough . I was not going to be upset about this. I had decided not to care about my father years ago. With that resolution firmly in mind, I immediately burst into tears. "So, it's not my fault? That he's so...like the way he is? He doesn't hate me?" I sobbed. "It's not my fault?" My mother says I repeated that same sentence twenty times. Despite my resolve not to crack, not to betray the fact that I actually, maybe, loved my father, once I started crying I couldn't stop. Nor could I stop feeling an overpowering sense of relief engulf my entire body, causing an almost anesthetizing effect. I blew my nose and wiped my face with my mother's sleeve. "We're trusting you with this really important information, okay? You need to not tell anyone about this. You can talk about it with me, or your dad, or the therapist we've been seeing, if you want. She's really nice. But don't tell anyone about your dad. That means Debbie, too, okay? Dad could lose his job, we could lose the house, you could get teased at school. We need you to be an adult here, and keep this a secret." My mother forced a grim smile. Her eyes were shot, her freckled face sunken and pallid, almost the color of jellyfish. For the first time, I realized my father wasn't coming out to me himself. My mother--kisser of paper cuts, attendee of parent-teacher functions, purchaser of produce--was on cleanup duty again. Of all the tasks not to push off on your wife, one might imagine coming out would be right up there. "Sweetie," my mother said, registering surprise, "I told you your dad loved you. I always told you that." "I know," I said, still exhaling. " You told me." Had my mother or father told me the truth when I was sixteen, or twenty-five, I might have been beyond tears, and even beyond caring whether I was to blame for his obvious unhappiness. My father came out just in time. Excerpted with permission from Picador publishing, © 2002. -- FEATURED BOOK Dress Codes: Of Three Girlhoods &emdash; My Mother's, My Father's, and Mine by Noelle Howey Buy the Book! <http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0312269218/abcnewscom/103-5337219-22 90248> © 2002 ABCNEWS Internet Ventures. Top
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT [28] NEW ZEALAND --Georgie Girl, Annie Dodson's and Peter Wells' documentary about the life of transsexual Wairarapa MP Georgina Beyer,.... Top From Brenda Lana Smith R.af D. New Zealand News - Entertainment - What the c... http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=3005940&thesection=entert ainment&thesubsection=arts Entertainment News What the critics say 25.11.2002 (SNIP) Hey there: Georgie Girl, Annie Dodson's and Peter Wells' documentary about the life of transsexual Wairarapa MP Georgina Beyer, last week picked up its fifth award, best documentary, at the International Festival of Gay and Lesbian Cinema in Madrid. At the same time, it also took the best film award at the New Zealand Media Peace Awards. Beyer was in Madrid for the awards, while Goldson was promoting the film in New York. Georgie Girl has also won the audience award for best documentary at this year's Sydney International Film Festival; the excellence in documentary award in San Francisco's Frameline International Film Festival; and the audience award at the Queerdoc Film Festival. Wells points out that as well as the New York and Madrid screenings, the film is also playing in Hawaii, Capetown and Korea: "Is this some kind of a hat-trick?" he says, with pride. (SNIP) - Linda Herrick (SNIP) ©Copyright 2002, New Zealand Herald Top
[29] CHINA -- Shanghai--Crossing over Top http://chinadaily.chinadaily.com.cn/star/2002/1121/pr21-1.html Date: Nov. 21, 2002 IN Xing has never regretted her decision two years ago to move to Shanghai. "Time turned in my favour," she said. Her dancing career took a giant step forward. She became an active figure in local social and art circles. And the 33-year transsexual woman became a mother of two children. Her latest work, "Cross Border", is a multi-media dance drama collaboration with British pianist Joanna MacGregor. "It is completely made in Shanghai," she said. With visual images taken from scenes of Shanghai daily life, filled with characters and episodes from Chinese and Western classics, in which ancient and contemporary times are juxtaposed, the ambitious work has attempted to catch the rhythm of ever-changing social existence. Only a few months ago, Jin played a female dog that almost destroyed the family of Lu Liang in the American play "Sylvia". The slight touch of cynical humour in the character obviously originated with Jin Xing. "He loves me," said the doted-upon pet Sylvia. "Even my shit, he believes, is Haagen-Dazs." Unique identity "Don't you think that Shanghai's social circle needs a woman like me?" said Jin, the dancer-actor-social activist, sitting relaxed in Maxim's Restaurant on the ground floor of the Grand Theatre. Jin Xing used to dislike people paying more attention to her transsexual operation than her dancing art. Her attitude has changed with the passage of time. "There is only one Jin Xing. There is only one transsexual dancer. It is me." She was glad to take advantage of her special identity, probing into the gender issue and talking about sexual topics. This spring, German choreographer Dieter Baumman created a dance called "Person To Person" on the theme of sexual identities. "A Western man and an Asian woman dance on the stage, striking the most stylized poses of men and women, those which typify men and women. Then we do it in reverse." It is a communication between the two sexes, reminding people that large parts of sexual identity are regulated by society and can be broken. "There is no 'what it must be"' she said. Modern dancer Jin spoke fast, in a low husky voice. She makes frequent gestures, such as knocking on the table when she reaches exciting points. "I don't think I am a 'tiger balm', a cure-all that can do everything," she said. "But all arts are interrelated. They have enlightened, inspired my creation." She used to say, and she still believes, that 70 per cent of modern art is trash without any value. "There is no rule in modern art. Anybody can do it. Artists that complain about not being understood are just making excuses," Jin said. "Only artists with enough culture and artistic attainment can produce really good work. No matter what purposes bring the audience to the theatre, I am sure to impress them with my dance, my art." She said only three women dancers can represent the Chinese dancing art: Yang Liping, who represents folk traditions, and Shen Peiyi, a classical beauty. Jin Xing herself stands for modern dance in China. Jin joined the Qianjin Song & Dance Troupe as a boy of nine - he won the acceptance of his parents only after two days abstaining from food. His talent for dance was revealed when he studied in the Art Academy of People's Liberation Army. A choreographer made him stand on his toes for one of the performances, which made him the first man to dance this way in the world. He won a top prize in the first important dance competition nationwide one year after graduation. Three years later, he gained a special scholarship and went to study modern dance in New York. "Although I came out as winner of a competition, I am against dance competitions," Jin said. She believed arts festivals are more valuable than competitions. "We Chinese tend to prefer to gamble. The mentality is very strong. But a competition can only judge the skill, but not the art." Career challenge Even as a teenager, Jin believed he was a woman, only one born with a male body. He thought about changing it, making it right. He kept thinking about it, from 19 till he was 28. The operation was carried out in Beijing's Xiangshan Hospital in 1995. A little medical accident happened during the 16-hour operation, which nearly destroyed her career. Jin woke up and found she could not move her left leg and foot. She was terrified that she might not be able to dance or even walk again. She started rehabilitation treatment with great willpower. Three months later she returned to the stage, dancing as a woman, for the first open performance of modern dance on the Chinese mainland. Jin set up the first Chinese modern dance company in Beijing the following year. Three years later, she decided to move to the south. The Jinxing Modern Dance Company also moved to Shanghai. "Fortunately, our box office has always been good," Jin said about the operation of the company. "We don't give free tickets. Whoever wants to watch my performance has to pay for it." But the company still has to rely heavily on commercial performances and activities. "As an artist, I have to spend 50 per cent of my time on marketing," she said with indignation. "If I were in another country, there would have been several syndicates sponsoring me." She strongly advocates the setting up of an art funding organization in China. "It is not that we lack money. So many large-scale entertainment shows are held every year, with tens of millions invested. It is like a big piece of cheese, left for mice to gnaw freely. How can there not be corruption?" Top
COMMENTARY
Social Security Policy Changes Hurt Transsexuals and Intersexed From: The National Transgender Advocacy Coalition (NTAC) Top For Immediate Release: November 18,2002 From: The National Transgender Advocacy Coalition (NTAC) Contacts: Media Director, Robyn Walters, Seattle, Washington NTAC Chair, Vanessa Edwards Foster; Houston, Texas Contact Email: ntacmedia@aol.Com media@ntac.Org Contact Phone: 832-483-9901 360-437-4091 Website: Http://www.ntac.org
SOCIAL SECURITY POLICY CHANGES HURT TRANSSEXUALS AND INTERSEXED
What does one do if the boss walks in and says, "Hey, I thought you were a woman when I hired you. Why did you lie to me?"
Farfetched? Hardly, and the Social Security Administration just made it more likely to occur.
In a mid-October 2002 policy change that took place without announcement or explanation, the Social Security Administration instituted a tougher requirement for changing one's gender marker in the SSA records. The new policy (RM 00203.210 paragraph C) requires a person -- the Number Holder (NH) in SSA parlance &endash; to provide "Clinic or medical records or other combination of documents showing the sex change surgery has been completed. All documents must clearly identify the NH." Previous policy required documents that show sex change surgery has either been completed or started.
The new policy might seem reasonable at first blush; after all, it is the same requirement that must be met to change gender on one's U.S. passport, usually satisfied by a notarized letter from the surgeon saying that he had performed female-to-male or male-to-female sex reassignment surgery on the individual.
However, transgender activists and many transsexuals and intersexed people realize that the Social Security situations and the passport situations are not the same. Many people can do without a passport while in transition from one sex to another or in the process of correcting birth defects, but everyone must provide one's Social Security number to an employer.
Problems arise when the SSA runs a periodic audit of company records and the gender markers don't match. SSA advises the company that there is an error in the company's records and directs the company to correct its records. This sends the boss or someone from payroll to the person's worksite asking, "Why doesn't your gender match what Social Security says it is?" And another transsexual is ousted and legally subject to termination in most locations.
The State Department will issue a one-year temporary passport in the new gender for pre-op transsexuals or intersexed people whose surgeons certify that a surgery date has been scheduled. The new SSA policy does not address this issue of people who are in transition or who cannot undergo sex reassignment surgery for health or financial reasons but who live and work in their chosen gender. Because the Benjamin Standards of Care for transsexuals require a minimum one-year 'Real Life Experience' of living and working in the new gender full time before obtaining authorization for sex reassignment surgery, the new SSA policy will adversely impact almost every transsexual in transition.
"This step backwards in the Social Security Administration's understanding and handling of transsexual and intersexed needs will lead to further discrimination against a whole class of people who already have enough obstacles in their way," said Robyn Walters, board member of the National Transgender Advocacy Coalition. "Government should be about making people's lives better, not about making life more difficult."
Walters noted that such actions by a federal agency that impacts the life of every citizen reinforce the need for an Employment Nondiscrimination Act that includes protection for the transgender community. "A transgender-inclusive ENDA would remove the worry of being fired for not appearing as Social Security records indicate," said Walters, "but it would not avoid the embarrassment or exposure to bigotry that would come by being outed as a transsexual."
Gay rights first then transgender rights? Paula Martinac Top Q-online - Column: Lesbian Notions - we canno... http://www.q.co.za/2001/2002/11/25-lesbiannotions.html RETRIEVED: Monday, November 25, 2002 Lesbian Notions November 21, 2002 The Human Rights Campaign (HRC) recently unveiled a landmark national (USA) research study on public perception of transgender issues, and many in our community will be surprised that the findings are positive. For years our so-called "pragmatist" gay leaders have argued that transgender issues are too "fringe" for most Americans to support and therefore should be put on a back burner until lesbian and gay rights - presumably easier to attain - are achieved first. But now, by helping to deflate that argument, the new study may usher in the start of real trans-inclusion in our movement. The findings of HRC's study are especially enlightening when juxtaposed with statistics about lesbian and gay acceptance. Among the most heartening findings, for example, is that 61 percent of those polled said there should be laws protecting transgender Americans from discrimination. Compare that with the most recent national data we have on public support for lesbian and gay nondiscrimination laws - the 2000 National Election Study (NES). Assessing that study, the Policy Institute of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force found that 63.9 percent of Americans support antidiscrimination laws based on sexual orientation. Furthermore, 53 percent of the people HRC polled on trans issues said that it was "all right" to be transgender. I'm tempted to think popular culture played a role in this majority of acceptance, with recent movies like Boys Don't Cry and Ma Vie en Rose providing sympathetic images of transgender people and issues, instead of only negative stereotypes. The 53-percent figure suggests that gays and lesbians who think they're considered more acceptable than trans-people should think again. Although most Americans say gays deserve basic rights, gay men and lesbians are still "the least liked social group," according to NGLTF's analysis of the 2000 NES findings. Indeed, both transgender and gay people come under reproach by straight Americans on "moral" grounds. The HRC study concluded that there needs to be more public education on trans issues. Similarly, NGLTF's 2000 report ended with a statement about "how far the movement for gay and lesbian equality still has to go in order to obtain ... social acceptance." Given the parallels between the public perception of transgender and gay issues, it's not surprising that HRC is gingerly moving toward relinquishing its long-held belief that trans-inclusion would hold up passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act. After years of resisting any change to the language of ENDA, HRC is now hinting that it will strengthen its commitment to protecting transgender rights at the federal level in 2003. Maybe the organization is finally getting the picture that the eight-year-old ENDA has been "held up" all on its own; or maybe it's assessing if trans-inclusion would actually help the beleaguered ENDA. Although we should welcome the shift in HRC's policy, it's still sad that it took an opinion poll to point one of our premier gay organizations in this direction - as if transgender people were a new product to be tested on a consumer focus group. But then, our movement in general - and not just HRC - has been slow to come to grips with trans issues. Some of our organizations and events still only give lip service to trans-inclusion, despite the fact that issues of gender expression and gender roles affect gay people, too. Gay conservatives, in particular, have been adamant that transgender issues and gay issues don't intersect - even while they're bemoaning the public prominence of the butch dykes and sissy boys among us. And there's the rub - I suspect that some of our lingering doubts about incorporating trans issues into the gay agenda stem from our own discomfort and embarrassment. Transgender people remind us of society's longstanding misperception of what it means to be gay. How many times, for example, have we had to hear that lesbians are women who want to be men and that gay men aren't "real" men at all? Therefore, allying ourselves with transgender people, who seem to embody our own stereotypes, is something many of us continue to resist. Recently, though, some gay groups have made bold statements for trans-inclusion. Last month, for example, organizers of Connecticut's Gay Pride celebration actually decided to reject a proclamation from Gov. John Rowland (R) because his administration refused to include the word "transgender" in its language. The activists announced their intention to keep working for "full recognition" of the community. Also, for years, New York's Empire State Pride Agenda (ESPA) has tried in vain to get the Sexual Orientation Non-Discrimination ACT (SONDA) passed in the Republican-dominated state legislature; and for years, the group took the pragmatic approach, maintaining that trans-inclusive language would doom the bill. Now ESPA has announced that it may scrap SONDA and form a coalition with trans activists to try to amend the state's human rights law instead. As ESPA seems to have concluded, if "pragmatism" has taken us to a dead end, maybe we should let vision be our path instead. -- Paula Martinac <PMcolumn@aol.com> is a Lambda Literary Award-winning author of seven books. Top
City [Eugene] Council's transgender vote lets confusion turn to prejudice Emerald editorial board Top --- In Terisa's transgendernews Group, tgnews_moderator <tgnews_moderator@y...> wrote: Source: Orgegon Emerald http://www.dailyemerald.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2002/11/19/3dda61523b700 Date: November 19, 2002 We'll admit it. The issue of transgender people using public restrooms is confusing. While that shouldn't be an excuse for continued discrimination, the issue is perplexing. In some regards, one might ask, how did this come up? There must have been instances of discrimination. But if someone has the genitalia and/or reproductive organs of a male, but considers him/herself a woman and dresses and behaves like a woman, then is anyone really going to stop him/her from entering a women's restroom? How would anyone know the person wasn't a woman? What about a person who has ambiguous genitalia and/or reproductive organs and masculine physical features, but still dresses and behaves like a woman? As we said in our original editorial on this topic, which is more disconcerting, having a masculine-looking but feminine-dressed person use a men's restroom or a women's restroom? And what if the masculine-looking but feminine-dressing person really is a woman? Will people make that woman use the men's restroom because they suspect she may be a biological male? Will there need to be "gender and sex" police stationed outside all bathrooms? Yes, the issue is confusing (and we haven't even broached the subject of using public showers, an even more frightening idea for many transgender people), but it isn't acceptable that Mayor Jim Torrey and the Eugene City Council used "confusing" to justify continued discrimination. Eugene, apparently, is tolerant of difference just as long as it's not too different. From reading local press and hearing elected officials' comments, it seems that transgender issues are just too much for people to wrap their brains around. It's really not that difficult. Some people are born with genitalia and reproductive organs that are clearly either male or female, and some of those people also identify with the masculine or feminine gender, respectively. But some people identify with a gender that doesn't match their sex. In some cases, the genitalia does not match the reproductive organs. Yes, Virginia, some people are born with a penis and ovaries. Big deal. These people deserve the same respect and dignity -- and right to use public facilities -- as people whose gender matches their sex. We do have an easy, obvious solution to the problem, not that anyone will adopt it: Make restrooms unisex, as is common in other countries. Then, the whole issue of who is entering which restroom would evaporate. (And male predators currently rape women in restrooms, so that specter brought up by councilors is fallacious.) With unisex facilities, parents worried about their opposite-sex children could use the bathroom with them. And think of the money businesses would save -- they could consolidate expensive toilets and sinks. It's sad that City Council will have to revisit this issue when its more comfortable with the idea. In the meantime, transgender people are less comfortable in public, and that's wrong. Top
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR RE: Social Security recording change by Sheila Mink Top While I was saddened by the policy change by the Social Security Administration in October concerning the increased requirements for changing the sex designation on Social Security records, I am at the same time perplexed. I have found what I call "gender delusion" to be a common affliction of many transsexual persons. This is separate and distinct from gender dysphoria, which is the confusion about ones gender and the internal strife that results from it. Gender delusion is what I have seen occurring when a transsexual thinks that they will be able to melt into society and not be detected. Some call it stealth. For example, let's look at the situation that occurs when a transsexual applies for a job. The simple fact is that many of us, me included, didn't get to begin living full time in our true gender as a teen. Rather, having waited well into our adult years, we have a number of physical aspects that give clues to the potential employer. Then there is the oft-found section on the form asking for previous names used. Any employer that really needs to know about our past will find out. To lie here will only cause potential problems later! So, is the Social Security change really a problem of immense magnitude? I think not. After all, if we were the employer wouldn‚t we want potential hires to be honest? Instead, I see this change as an opportunity to open a dialogue with the potential employer. If they do not currently have a policy that demonstrates their desire to respect transgendered, why not? I think that this Social Security change will once again force us to be open about who we are! And, as a result, we will see more of society come to understand us and our needs! Sure, just as is the case in all changes, there will be pain, but it will be worth it later! HUGS, Sheila Mink Top
Is "Gender Identity Or Expression" Enough? By Rebecca Kastl rkastl@earthlink.net Top When I was at Lavender Law this year, I went to a panel discussion on which Liz Seaton of HRC participated. I will be the first to state that I am, by default, skeptical of anything coming out of HRC regarding trans issues; and Liz's comments were no different. One thing that did strike me as I listened to her speak (and after having discussed the issue of sex discrimination extensively with other attorneys) is that HRC appears to be in an evolving thought process. I think that HRC is beginning to understand the point that Phyllis Frye and others have been trying to make for so long. Specifically, that by leaving out transgender--or more specifically, by focusing on sexual orientation vs. gender identity--they are leaving behind not just those who identify as classic transgendered people, but also entire spectrums of the gay and lesbian community as well. What started this line of thinking was listening to Liz Seaton talk about the evolution of efforts to protect "sexual orientation" into efforts to protect "gender identity." When it comes down to it, the concept of "gender identity" does not evolve out of "sexual orientation"--not in a sociological aspect, nor in a literal semantic aspect. On the other hand, "sexual orientation" does evolve out of "gender identity." How? The classic legal line that has been drawn, and the windmill which the entire LGBT community has been jousting against, relates to the inclusion of the LGBT community under the definition of "sex". The earliest efforts to find protection under existing laws was sought under Title VII protections against sex discrimination. This seemed logical at the time. But the courts saw things differently, and effectively excised an entire facet of the U.S. citizenry in the process. Making progress back from those defeats has been long and difficult, but the tide has indeed been changing over the last several years in our favor. Only not in the way that HRC would have us believe. In order to correct the deficiencies in the law, we make more progress by attempting to correct the deficiencies in the law, not to rewrite it (or write new law). The way that has actually been most effective--especially in the most recent years--has been to attack the laws in the courts, not writing new legislation as many would think. Most recently, three federal cases have effectively changed the entire landscape of the interpretation of Federal law in one fell swoop. Schwenk v. Hartford, Rosa v. Park West Bank, and Rene v. MGM Grand effectively overturned three decades worth of discriminatory court rulings, and made great strides to reinstating many protections under Federal law which have long been denied. These three cases can do more than ENDA (trans inclusive or not), hate crimes, or any other legislation could do. The only real deficiency is that they do not send the message to the U.S. that a Congressional approval would. Without the latter, employers, landlords, banks, and more would still be encouraged to roll the dice and hope they could find a judge bigoted enough in his or her beliefs to find in their favor. But the biggest gains recently have not necessarily been in getting "transgender" included under the definition of the term "sex," but instead have been premised upon the idea of transgender people failing to conform to sex stereotypes; "I wasn't discriminated against because I am transsexual, but because either I am a female who fails to conform to female sex stereotypes, or a male who fails to conform to male sex stereotypes." This strategy has worked repeatedly and is becoming more and more successful. Given the success of this argument, gays and lesbians have begun to have success using the same strategy. But I digress... The deficiencies noted in the law have been based upon the construal of the definition of the term "sex" in relation to various anti-discrimination statutes. Is it easier to amend or adjust the definition to include "gender identity" or is it easier to shoehorn in "sexual orientation"? If we amend the definition of the term "sex" to include "gender identity" this could very easily include the entire scope of the LGBT community. Sexual orientation becomes an aspect of the expression of one's gender (if not their sex). However if the term "sex" were amended to include "sexual orientation" only, we would wind up leaving out vast segments of the LGBT community--effectively, protecting only those who, while identifying as LGBT, *appear* straight or "normal," and leaving out anyone who may identify as LGBT but not conform to gender stereotypes. For now, I'll stop short of saying that sexual orientation is a derivative of gender expression. The term "sex," in its narrowest form, encompasses only a particular conglomeration of genitals, chromosomes, hormones, psychological identity, and neurological structures. Affectational orientation is an expression of that identity; relevant only to the defined "sex" of that person. Women aren't labeled "gay" for being attracted to men, and men are not labeled "lesbian" for being attracted to women. So the label only appears, relative to the sexual (gender) presentation--or "expression"--of the individual expressing the attraction. The term "gender identity" bridges the chasm between "sex" and "sexual orientation" while including the transgendered. Two birds. One stone. R.I.P. As someone pointed out, the "paradigm shift" within HRC seems to be a way shape a new concept of LGBT that is truly all-inclusive. By focusing on addressing the larger concept of "gender identity or expression" they include the "T" in LGBT, and they still serve their constituency. I still remain skeptical of HRC and their intentions. Many of the other people I met at LavLaw were similarly skeptical. But they also realize that we won't make progress by digging our heels in and refusing to work with them.
Re: TransParentcy's workshop. by Paula Funatake Top Dear Anne, Thank you for adding the announcement about TransParentcy's workshop. I noticed that the original poster did not provide any link information. The PDF file can be accessed at TransParentcy's web site, there are links on the Resources main page and in the What's New page. Sincerely, Paula Paula Funatake TransParentcy (http://www.TransParentcy.org/) (mailto:Paula@TransParentcy.org) Supporting the loving and caring relationship between Transgender Parents and their children. Top
-----------------------------------------*****---------------------------------------------- - Disclaimer: The accuracy of any information presented herein cannot be guaranteed. The opinions expressed may not reflect those of the Editor, Anne Vitale PhD.
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- copyright November 25, 2002