Lt. Choi, Join The Club

DADT repeal activist and founder of the West Point GLBT group Knights Out Lt. Dan Choi was recently quoted in a Newsweek interview as saying he felt "so betrayed" by HRC.

I have great respect for her (Kathy Griffin) as an advocate. But if [the Human Rights Campaign] thinks that having a rally at Freedom Plaza with a comedienne is the right approach, I have to wonder. Don't Ask, Don't Tell is not a joking matter to me. To be at Freedom Plaza and not at the White House or Congress? Who are they trying to influence? I felt like they were just trying to speak to themselves. If that's the best the lobbying groups and HRC can do, then I don't know how these powerful groups are supposed to represent our community. Kathy Griffin and [HRC president] Joe Solmonese said they would march with me to the White House but didn't. I feel so betrayed by them.

Join the club, Lt. Choi.

I experienced the same disappointment and moment of epiphany about HRC in 1999. It led me to join other transpeople who had the same moment of clarity to found NTAC over a decade ago.

It also led me to the conclusion that African American transpeople need to do more for ourselves in terms of fighting for our rights since white run and led organizations could not be trusted to effectively advocate for us and our issues.

You have not only discovered how your trans brothers and sisters feel about the Human Rights Campaign, you've echoed some of the same concerns, complaints and comments LGBT people of color have articulated about HRC for over two decades.

And by failing to support you at your White House protest, HRC once again has reinforced the perception that people of color are only welcome in the GLBT movement to provide melanin for photo ops, not determine policy or set the agenda for the movement.

One thing we people of color know all too well as Frederick Douglass reminds us, power concedes nothing without a demand. If the people leading your movement are too busy sucking up to the same powers instead of confronting them on behalf of the powerless people you purport to represent, it leads to an ineffective movement.

It also manifests itself in leaders that are resistant to doing anything that may put their own comfortable position at risk or engage in "tough minded" confrontational strategies that anger the defenders of the status quo they so desperately want to be a part of.

Lt. Choi, thank you for speaking your mind. You have now joined the expanding ranks of people across this nation who are seriously questioning the fitness of HRC to lead the GLBT community toward achieving the goals of full societal equality and fairness for our people.


Crossposted from The Bilerico Project

NY State Assembly Passes GENDA For Third Time!

Will the passage of GENDA for the third straight time finally be the charm in the wake of Gov. David Paterson's recent executive order to ban discrimination based on gender identity and expression for state employees?

Or will GENDA die another painful and very public death in the NY state senate with a governor standing by who is willing and patiently waiting to sign it into law?

Wednesday the NY State Assembly passed GENDA on a 100-43 vote. Assembly speaker Sheldon Silver (D-Manhattan) stated in a press release:

"No New Yorker should face the day-to-day harassment experienced by so many transgender people who have lost their jobs or apartments because of their gender expression. "For transgender individuals, GENDA provides equal protection under the law and provides legal recourse for those who have been denied access or harassed for their gender identity. The Assembly has long supported protections for all groups of people and, this critical bill is another indication of that commitment."

Currently 13 states and Washington, D.C., have laws to protect transgender people from employment, financial, public accommodation, and housing discrimination.

In New York state several cities and counties, including Rochester and New York City, have standing GENDA laws.

Okay NY Senate, now it is up to you. Will you step up to the plate, do the right thing and stand up for the rights of your fellow New Yorkers, or will you continue to surrender to cowardice?

And citizens of NY state who value fairness, will you step it up and loudly tell your senators it's time to do the right thing and pass GENDA?

The 2010 Election Cycle Wedge Issue-Transpeople

Every election cycle the GOP comes up with some wedge issue that they will pimp to fire up their sheeple and hope will carry them to electoral victory in November.

Whether it's their old reliable 'Southern Strategy' tactics of hating on Black people, the Three G's (Guns, God and hatin' on Gays) to hating on immigrants, they've had a mixed bag of results in terms of 'scurring' those vanilla flavored 'Real Americans' to the polls to vote for them.

Now for the 2K10, seems as though hatin' on gays is out for this cycle. They have come up with an even scarier threat than 'Islamic 'terriss'' guaranteed to make those GOP leaning voters run to the polls quaking in fear.

What's the scary wedge issue that will cause those Faux News watching peeps to cast those straight ticket GOP ballots?

Transpeople in their bathrooms.

From a transphobic flyer being used against a gay mayoral candidate in Gainesville, FL to conservanegro state Rep. Paul Scott's Michigan secretary of state campaign promising to deny transpeople the right to change gender codes on their licenses, the conservative movement seems hell bent on making transpeople the wedge issue of this election cycle.

”Cross-dressing rights: that’s what we’re talking about at this meeting…. This would put men who wear dresses in county bathrooms without public notice! … This is freaky. This is bizarre. This is fruity!”

Eugene A. Delgaudio (R), Loundon County, VA Supervisor,

'It's a social values issue. If you are born a male, you should be known as a male. Same as with a female, she should be known as a female." ...it was about "preventing people who are males genetically from dressing as a woman and going into female bathrooms."

Paul Scott, (R) Michigan state rep.

'And I know there will be those who will wonder why I am even writing about this considering there may be more important topics to discuss but here's a newsflash for you: The transgender thing doesn't play well with millions of conservative Evangelicals.'

David Brody, writing about Amanda Simpson's federal appointment.

But the GOP and conservatives aren't the only group trafficking in anti-trans fear of the bathroom. Even our so-called 'friends' do it.

Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA), who pioneered its use in the 90's with his infamous 'penis in showers' transphobic argument against our inclusion in ENDA, rolled it out of storage as an excuse for why there hasn't been movement passing ENDA despite massive Democratic majorities in the US House and Senate.

"There continues to be concerns on the part of many members about the transgender issue, particularly about the question of places where people are without their clothes — showers, bathrooms, locker rooms, etc.” “We still have this issue about what happens when people who present themselves as one sex but have the physical characteristics of the other sex, what rules govern what happens in locker rooms, showers, etc."

With 'friends' like that, who needs right-wing enemies?

These false ads used in various trans rights referendums have already been playing. Don't be surprised if you see a variation of this meme in a GOP campaign near you.



Brace for impact trans community. From now until November 2 we'll have a long, ugly political season of transphobia from all sides.

Albania Unanimously Bans TBLG Discrimination

One of the things tat has irritated me about the lack of action on ENDA is watching other countries pass laws banning TBLG discrimination while the so-called leading democracy on the planet can't do the right thing and pass employment discrimination bans.

On February 4 the Albanian parliament passed with a unanimous 71-0 vote banning discrimination and harassment based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

The law's language guarantees every person "equality before the law and equal protection by law; equality of opportunities and possibilities to exercise rights, enjoy freedoms and take part in public life; and effective protection from discrimination and from every form of conduct that encourages discrimination."

The law also covers employment, housing, provision of goods and services, education and access to public places. It also specifically mentions health care, banking, transportation, entertainment and social protection.

So I'm A 'Violent Racist', Eh?

I surfed over to Transadvocate and checked out an interesting post by Marti Abernathey.

She asserts that because Dr. Jillian Todd Weiss dares to speak the truth to power about the inaction on ENDA, the trans sellouts working with Gay, Inc to 'keep the trannies in line' and without civil rights coverage have already or will soon start a whisper campaign to discredit her inside the Beltway.

I rolled over on the floor laughing when I read what was said about moi in this whisper campaign:

Monica Roberts – violent racist

Yeah, right. Seems like I had no problem wandering into whatever congressional office I wanted to visit in 2007 and 2009.

As a matter of fact I got enough intel from the 2007 visits to the Hill that I sounded the alarm along with the people that were smeared about the disturbing news we'd heard that trans people were about to get cut out of the then-trans inclusive ENDA.

We dissenters were called 'crazy' by NCTE leadership and the claim went out that trans inclusion in ENDA was a 'slam dunk'.

Until October 2007 and that slam dunk clanged off the back of the Congressional rim.

To the person or persons who started that inside the beltway smear, this is what a 'violent racist' looks like:



Funny, they look like you and share YOUR ethnic heritage.

Just one point of correction on the whisper campaign as it pertains to moi, I’m also the ‘uppity n*****r’ as well as being labeled ‘racist’.

Better than being a vanilla flavored sellout to the Trans community any day.

By the way smearmongers, racism = prejudice plus power, and that's something you should have retained from Sociology 101.

I got better things to do than waste my valuable time and money trying to work with people who are kissing their oppressor's behinds and are too clueless, fearful, lazy and stupid to do anything about it.

When you're ready to pass some legislation that will help all segments of the GLBT community and not the 'we're just like you' neo-Mattachine crowd, call me.

Then again, maybe I should show up for an NCTE lobby day with an Afro, a black leather outfit and wear a black beret while I hold up a black gloved clenched fist and shout 'all power to the people' over a megaphone.

Gone To Frankfort

I'm in Kentucky's state capital and three hours into an all day summit meeting that commenced at 9 AM EST.



We're discussing legislative strategies for the 2010 Kentucky General Assembly session which has already started, defensive strategies against anti-GLBT laws the right wing yahoos will be trying to pass and other issues of interest to the progressive coalition in the state.


Should be an interesting day before it ends at 5 PM, and yeah, I made sure I got my beauty sleep.

Revealing The Houston 'Gay Agenda'

Was this the mysterious 'gay agenda' the sellout negro ministers were babbling about in the closing weeks of the campaign?

Yeah, I called them negroes. They don't deserve to be called Black or African American until they come to their senses and stop palling around with white fundamentalists who do not have the African American community's best interests at heart.

Anyhoo, I'm going to get off the electronic soapbox and let you enjoy the cartoon from the editorial pages of the Houston Chronicle.

Oh yeah, congratulations Madame Mayor-elect

A Trans Houstonian Reflects On Annise's Win

TransGriot Note: My latest post for the Bilerico Project;

As many of you Projectors already know, Annise Parker handily won her runoff election race against city attorney Gene Locke Saturday night to become only the second woman elected as mayor of my hometown.

It was a watershed moment in GLBT history and GLBT politics as well as Houston became the largest city in the United States and the first in the Lone Star State to elect an openly gay mayor.

And best of all for me as a proud Houstonian and Texan, we beat Dallas to that distinction.

Hey, the rivalry between Houston and Dallas never dies.

Even though I was a thousand miles away at the time and bummed about it, I was still proud to see someone from our GLBT community rise to the highest office in our city.

In addition to her impressive political resume and compelling story, Annise has been a friend to the Houston trans community and had our back on our issues. She's a straight shooter who talks the talk and walks the walk. The Houston trans community enthusiastically supported her and volunteered in her successful city council runs in 1997 and 1999. Many of those vets were back for this nearly year long campaign.

Annise's election emphatically makes the case for something that I continually point out to people who live in blue states and have the misguided impression that relocation to GLBT meccas is the way to advance our cause.

We shouldn't be abandoning 'red states' to right wingers and never should have in the first place simply because they aren't San Francisco, Los Angeles or New York.. In some cases the advances in TBLG rights, LGBT history, BTLG culture, and GLBT politics have come out of red states.

GLBT people live all over this country, including 'red states'. Many of us grew up in locales like Houston and Texas and have mad love for them. It gives us the impetus and the incentive to want to stay, fight and do the work to make them better, more progressive places to live.

And in many cases, because we 'red staters' have organized Christohaters in our midst that hate all of us GLBT peeps equally, we're better organized politically and as a community than you 'blue staters' to work in an intersectional manner.

We red staters have to have all hands on deck efforts in many cases just to keep our passed civil rights from being rolled back in referenda or restricted in the first place.

We don't have time to engage in the internecine warfare that roils some GLBT communities in blue states, and as we painfully found out in Houston in the early 80's, the only people we hurt when we do engage in it is ourselves.

Annise's election also sends the message that just because you are a GLBT red state resident, it doesn't disqualify you from serving in your city council, your county commission, your city's mayor's chair, your school board or your state house as long as you are open and honest about your life.

It's time for qualified GLBT peeps in red and blue states to dream big and aim higher politically.

Ray Hill, the dean of the Houston GLBT activist community, said this in the Houston Chronicle about Annise's win. “For me, it means 43 years of hard work has finally paid off. “For Houston, it means we have finally reached the point where being gay cannot be used as a wedge issue to divide the community and prevent us from reaching our aspirations. Annise Parker is not our mayor — she is the city's mayor.”

Damned right she is. She represents 2.2 million people, not just Montrose.

But I can't help still seeing at times the person I met at the Houston trans community's Unity Dinner and smiling about it.

It is going to be so cool to see Annise on January 1 standing in the Wortham Center once again standing next to Kathy, holding up her right hand, but this time taking the oath as the 61st mayor of Houston.

Go Annise Go!

You TransGriot readers are aware that I'm closely watching a potentially historic mayoral race in my beloved hometown. There will be a December 12 runoff between city controller and former at large councilmember Annise Parker and city attorney Gene Locke.

Annise is bidding to become the second woman elected mayor of Houston, and Gene Locke is trying to become the second African-American elected as mayor of my hometown.

Who am I rooting for? Annise Parker.



Parker led wire to wire during the election on November 3 but didn't get the 50% she needed to win outright and has received the endorsement of the Houston Chronicle.

That's got Dave Wilson, Hotze's Nazis and the rest of the 'white' wing christobigots coming out of the closet with their hatred of Annise and backing Locke.

Locke also has some issues that are dogging his campaign as well in addition to the Christohaters..

If Parker wins, she would also become the first open lesbian to become mayor of a top tier city and the first open GLBT person in Texas to do so.

Today Was A Good Day...Sort Of

Bounced out of the house in tastefully dressed full diva mode to head to the U of L Campus at the behest of my fave Women and Gender Studies professor Dr. Kaila Story.

It was for a panel discussion on transgender rights. In addition to the TransGriot, the other people comprising the panel were U of L's Director of LGBT Services Brian Buford, the Fairness Campaign's Chris Hartman, TECK's Yana Baker, Transformations founder Andrea Tucker and Holly Knight of Sienna

The panel was a 3 PM start in the Chao Auditorium and I arrived there at 2:25 PM. I had plenty of time to chill out, use the restroom, check face and get ready for the discussion that would take place.

After the intros by Dr. Story, we had a lively discussion about what jurisdictions covered trans people, delve into some TDOR history and talk about the shady tactics of the Forces of Intolerance in terms of using bathrooms as a scare tactic. It gave Brian a chance to talk about the gender neutral bathroom they have been rolling out on the U of L campus as well and Chris to talk about upcoming state legislative battles.

I got a chance to talk about the differences in transition for African Americans, in addition to point out a gender transition's zero to femininity nature.

Andrea talked about what it was like to be a U of L student and transition, while Holly brought us up to speed about what Sienna, our local gender group was up to and the new direction she was taking it in.

It was an hour and thirty minutes of positivity, and the good vibes only lasted until I got downtown from the U of L campus and on my bus headed home.

Ironically, during the panel discussion I'd talked about how I handled a transphobe several years ago on a TARC bus.

Well, when I stepped on my connecting bus at 4th and Broadway, three African-American kids, were sitting (where else?) in the back of the bus and started tripping.

Normally, Moni has zero tolerance for ignorance but I decided to channel my inner Gandhi and ignore the ignorant. The fools didn't take the hint and upped the ante of transphobic stupidity.

One of the nekulturny trio runs all the way to the front of the bus, whispers in the female driver's ear, then makes a point of grabbing the crotch of her saggin' pants while making a derogatory RuPaul reference.

It was on like Donkey Kong after that. I told her to quit talking about her daddy, which pissed off the youngling to the point she wanted to fight.

I advised her that would not be a wise move, especially in light of the fact I was already a foot taller than her before you add the other three inches from my black patent leather pumps.

The driver tossed all of the transphobic younglings off the bus. Seems as though these kids had been giving her drama all the way into downtown Louisville from wherever she'd picked them up.

With peace and quiet returned to the bus, I settled in for the ride determined not to let ignorant kids spoil my positive mood. A few minutes later my stop approached and the TARC driver said to me before I got off, "Girl, you look good!"

I returned the compliment and wished her a blessed day as I stepped off the bus, pulled my house keys out of my black Liz Claiborne purse and strutted the three blocks home in the fading twilight.

So yeah, today was a good day after all.

Fort Worth Expands Anti Discrimination Ordinance To Cover Trans People

After a marathon session in front of a packed chamber, the Fort Worth City Council voted 6-3 to expand the city's anti-discrimination ordinance to cover transgender people. The ordinance already prevented discrimination based on race, sex, religion or sexual orientation.

Much of the debate centered on the broader proposals of which some of them the Fort Worth City Council has already tacitly approved.

City staffers will be trained to respectfully interface with the TBLG community, and the Fort Worth Police Department has appointed a liaison to the community.

Other recommendations such as offering domestic-partner benefits and expanding the city health insurance plan to cover gender reassignment procedures are being studied.

"We believe, as you do, that we should respect each other," said Jon Nelson of Fairness Fort Worth. "The foundation of these recommendations isn’t preferential treatment, it’s equal treatment."

"Being a transgender person has nothing to do with a person’s ability to do their job," Victoria Van Fleet said.

I was not shocked by the outcome. Dallas has had TBLG protections on the books for several years now. Fort Worth has a sizable TBLG population despite its fundie rep.

Civic leaders were serious about passing this in the wake of the contentious Rainbow Room raid. I've also chronicled one Fort Worth transperson's struggle with discrimination, but her story isn't unique in Cowtown.

It may be a surprise to you readers, but as I told you peeps, my birth state is progressive in the cities, but regressive in the rural areas. East Texas is another matter that will take a post to explain.

Congratulations Fort Worth! This segues nicely into my next thought that is directed to the politicos in my hometown.

Now Houston, if Dallas, Fort Worth and Austin can do this, what's stopping the largest city in the state from stepping up to the plate and protecting all transpeople residing in Houston not employed by the city from discrimination?

Fort Worth City Council To Vote On Panel Recomendations

In the wake of a highly publicized Fort Worth Police Department and Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission raid on the Rainbow Lounge that took place June 28, a task force was formed to look into the complaints that arose from that contentious raid.

Five people were arrested for public intoxication in that raid and one patron was taken to the hospital with a serious head injury. Complaints poured in about the use of excessive force during the raid as well as accusations that the Fort Worth police and the TABC targeted the bar because of its GLBT clientele.

The commission released its recommendations November 3 for giving Fort Worth's GLBT residents better access and equal treatment at City Hall.

Those recommendations are:

■ Extending the city’s nondiscrimination ordinance to include gender expression. A vote on the recommendation is scheduled for Tuesday.

■ Training for all city employees and elected officials on dealing with the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. Police, fire and front-line customer service representatives will be trained within two years.

■ Extending domestic partner benefits, shared pensions and family leave for gay and lesbian city employees.

■ Including a company’s record on domestic partner benefits when considering city tax breaks.

■ Including sex-change surgery in city health insurance coverage.

■ Posting nondiscrimination language on job notices, including a letter to police recruits.

■ Establishing support groups for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender employees.

■ Holding educational fairs and using public events and media to increase awareness of the city’s anti-discrimination ordinance.

■ Pushing for state and federal anti-discrimination laws.


According to a Fort Worth Star Telegram article, Fort Worth council members appeared to favor most of the proposals. Councilman Joel Burns, who is gay, said, "I think everyone on this council wants to demonstrate that we’re committed to protect the full rights of everyone in our city."

Fort Worth City Manager Dale Fisseler concurred with the recommendations, although he asked for time to research the financial impact of some, such as the pension and healthcare changes.

The Fort Worth City Council will meet at 5 PM CST tomorrow to vote on those recommendations.

Kelli Busey of Planet Transgender is asking all GLBT people in the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area show up for this critical meeting because the haters definitely will.

Fort Worth back in the day was headquarters for several televangelists, and still has a fundamentalist streak running through it despite being the home of Texas Christian University.

The Forces of Intolerance have mobilized in an attempt to shut GLBT people out of City Hall and do a replay of this summer's nekulturny town hall behavior.

Their mission is to browbeat and either intimidate the Fort Worth City Council into voting against the recommendations or tabling it to give them more time to stir crap up and bring out of town reinforcements in.

It's up to you peeps who are drum majors for justice to stop them, stand up to the bullies and give the Fort Worth City Council the opportunity to hopefully hand them another embarrassing defeat.

0 For 31-What Now?

The gay community lost another marriage fight in Maine, and in their pissivity over the loss they're once again a la California, letting the negativity flow.

I was wondering who Dan Savage and the gay community were going to blame for this latest loss since African-Americans make up only 1% of Maine's population.

Lo and behold, they found a Black person to blame for their loss anyway.

President Obama.

Keep it up, people. But while you're bitching about what happened in Maine and pointing fingers, take a moment to look in the mirror and point one at yourself as well.

While you're jumping down President Obama's throat for not speaking up and in your words 'being a good ally', y'all see to have forgotten all the times you dismissed coalition building opportunities with other groups by uttering the words 'it's not a gay issue'.

Politicians are also looking at that 0-31 number as well. If you folks thought they and the general public weren't paying attention to that stat plus the four decades of shady behavior directed at the trans community, they were.

The noted the legions of gay and lesbian people actively working to cut trans people out of legislation we desperately needed while uttering the words 'we'll come back for you', 'they need more education on this issue', 'get over it' or 'you're not part of 'our' movement'.

After watching that, I wouldn't doubt politicians have in the back of their minds, 'If this is how they treat their allies, how loyal are they going to be to me?'

The karmic wheel is a rhymes with itch, too.

It's not fun being cut out of legislation is it? It's a pain watching politicians vote to keep you a second class citizen or not speak about you in public.

Not fun to watch the fundies put together a petition drive designed to put your civil rights on the electoral chopping block, and basically violate all of the Ten Commandments while campaigning to do so.

Now you know what it's like to walk in the trans community's shoes.

It's aggravating to have rights that you already possess taken away, as transpeople's marriage rights are thanks to the conservabacklash from your gay marriage push.

I'm also getting sick of seeing the 'homophobic African-American' meme raise its ugly head across the Gayosphere as you peeps work through your righteous anger over the loss.

Um, did you not forget that some GLBT people not only happen to be chocolate flavored, but bust their asses to support this issue? Probably not.

I guess when y'all say to non-gay America that GLBT Americans are 'just like you', it doesn't include us or any POC in the equation, huh?.

Trans community leaders warned in 2003 that it was a tactical mistake to shift the organizing focus of the GLBT movement from passing GLBT rights at local, state and the federal level to pushing marriage equality.

Some gay people have the misguided belief that all civil rights flow from marriage equality. No, they don't.

I'm in favor of marriage equality. But being an ally doesn't mean that I check my brain at the door either, I can't comment in the spirit of Kingian love when y'all screw up or that I'm not supposed to express my constitutional rights to speak my mind just as you insist on doing when you bash the President.

And lets get real, all civil rights do not flow from marriage, nor will everyone in the GLBT community benefit. All you have to do is look north of the border at Canada to see that truism play out.

African-Americans have been able to get legally married since emancipation. It still took us over 100 years, a lot of shed blood, several court decisions, marches, and several federal Civil Rights Acts just to get to first class citizenship status, and we're still fighting tooth and nail just to avoid any slippage.

If you want marriage, not only are you going to have to rethink the strategies for achieving it, you are going to have to come to grips with the fact it may take 25 to 100 years and a federal constitutional amendment to do so.

After 31 straight losses, it's past time to seriously consider deemphasizing marriage as THE organizing push for the GLBT rights movement.

It's time to stop playing in the Religious Right' backyard and push a full equality strategy that puts Constitutional arguments front and center, not the marriage equality ones that specious religious ones and half-truth, lies and falsehoods dominate.

You might recognize the strategy. It's the one my people successfully used.

Haters Lose In Kalamazoo! GLBT Rights Law Passes!

Haters lose Haters lose!

With all 19 precincts reporting, the Forces of Intolerance were handed another crushing defeat as they sought to use their reprehensible tactics to attempt to overturn Ordinance 1856.

Just as the voters of Gainesville, FL did earlier this year, 62 percent of Kalamazoo voters approved Ordinance 1856 by a vote of 7,671 in favor to 4,731 against. This margin is larger than the number of outstanding absentee ballots that are currently being counted.

The passage of this ordinance adds protections for gay and transgender people to the city's nondiscrimination ordinance.

In addition, the mayor and the six members of the Kalamazoo City Commission who voted to unanimously pass the law back in June were all reelected.

“Our campaign started with a very basic idea, and today voters confirmed that we are One Kalamazoo,” One Kalamazoo campaign manager Jon Hoadley said in a written statement.

But the bottom line is that the rights of minorities should NEVER have to come up for a vote in the first place. Maybe our side needs to push a constitutional amendment to ban the practice.

The fair minded voters of Kalamazoo, MI have spoken and handed the bigots another bitter defeat. The politicians who voted for it all got reelected.

Thanks, Kalamazoo.

Election Night In America Open Thread

It's election night, peeps!

In between taking a look at the reimagined 1983 sci-fi classic 'V' on ABC tonight, I'm going to be channel surfing between CNN, MSNBC, various news shows and the Net trying to find out election results on ballot initiatives, candidates and issues of importance to the GLBT community.

I'm also going to be monitoring the mayoral race back home as well.

So in the meantime, what y'all get to do is express yourselves in the comment section. You know you'll see my 'very definite opinions' on various issues as I feel the need to comment on it.

Crunch Time For One Kalamazoo Team

It's crunch time for the One Kalamazoo team fighting to keep Ordinance 1856 on the books.




For those of you who were unaware of it thanks to the almost nonstop coverage in much of the GL press and Gayosphere of marriage initiatives and votes, the Kalamazoo, MI city commissioners unanimously passed on June 29 Ordinance 1856.

It would make it a city infraction punishable by up to a $500 fine to discriminate against people because of their sexual preferences or gender identification in housing, employment or access to public accommodations.

Just as predictably, the Forces of Intolerance attacked it by setting up a petition drive that gathered enough haters to force a referendum on the vote.



So once again, our civil rights are up for a fracking vote. The GLBT people in the state of Michigan answered the Zoo's call for help. Many have headed to the Western Michigan hamlet and home of Western Michigan University to help their brothers and sisters out.

The anti side has nothing but their usual reprehensible tactics of fear, loathing, obfuscation and outright lying to people in order to defeat this legislation.

It's time once again to give these misguided people another painful electoral beatdown tomorrow. If you're in the area, do what you can to help the peeps in the Zoo defend their law. If you're a progressive voter living in the area, go to the polls and take as many friends with you as possible. If you live on the WMU campus and are eligible to vote, this is your opportunity to show that discounting the youth vote is a fatal error.

I'm hoping and praying that happens and Ordinance 1856 stays on the books.

In The U.S., When Will An Open Trans Person Get Elected To Congress?

TransGriot Note: My latest post for Global Comment

I was celebrating with every trans person around the world in November 1999, when I heard the news that New Zealand’s Georgina Beyer became the first open trans person elected to a national legislative body. She served as a Labour Party MP from November 27, 1999 until February 14, 2007.

In 2003, Aya Kamikawa became the first trans sperson elected to public office in Japan when she won a place on the local assembly for Setagaya, one of Tokyo’s biggest local government areas. She was reelected in 2008

That groundbreaking achievement was followed up by Italy’s Vladimir Luxuria, who, in the Italian General Elections of April 2006, became the first open transgender MP elected to a European parliament. The Communist Refoundation Party member was defeated in an April 2008 reelection bid and has stated that she has no desire to reenter politics at this time.

The success of Beyer, Luxuria and Kamikawa caught the attention of trans people in the United States and elsewhere in the world – people who, like myself, have contemplated running for political office. It gave us evidence that the psychological barriers to voters putting a qualified trans person in office may be coming down. It also gives us hope that some of us can personally run, and win.

For now, Karen Kerin attempted to make history by running for Vermont’s sole US House seat in 2000 as a Republican, but lost to independent Bernie Sanders. Transgender people in the United States have models in not only openly gay US representatives such as Barney Frank (D-MA), Tammy Baldwin, (D-WI) and Jared Polis (D-CO), but have the history of African American Congressional representation to serve as a guide.

Only five years after emancipation from slavery, on January 20, 1870, educator and minister Hiram Rhodes Revels (R-MS) became the first African American to serve in the US Senate when he was appointed by the Mississippi Legislature to fill the unexpired term of former Confederate President Jefferson Davis during the 41st Congress. Also joining Revels in the 41st Congress was the first African-American US representative, Joseph H Rainey (R-SC) who served from 1869-1878.

While trans people such as Michelle Bruce, the first open transgender elected official in Georgia, have been successful in getting elected to small town city councils, success in cities over 250,000 in population and in statewide legislative races has eluded us. That’s important, because getting elected to large city councils and statewide legislative races is generally the springboard to building the name recognition you’ll need to become a viable and successful candidate for a US congressional race.


It’s not like we haven’t tried. Monica Barros-Greene lost a runoff election for an open seat on the Dallas, TX city council. Two years later, Pamela Bennett narrowly missed getting elected to the Aurora, CO city council and is making another run at it this year.

In 2005, Arizona’s Amanda Simpson became the first trans person to be nominated by a major party for a state legislative seat and win a primary election, though that success didn’t carry over to the general election. In 2006, Dr. Dana Beyer ran for an open seat in the Maryland state legislature but was denied as well. Dr. Beyer is making another run for office in 2010.

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Bigot Harry Jackson Gets Smacked Down By DC Council

It's hard out there for conservapimps. Bigot Harry Jackson slithered in from suburban Maryland to lead the anti-marriage equality peeps and got smacked down.

Enjoy.

Dr. Dana Beyer Running For Maryland House Seat

It seems as though the 2010 election cycle is shaping up to be a potentially historic one for the transgender community.

Kim Coco Iwamoto's first term on the Hawaii State Board of Education is coming to a close and she has yet to declare whether she will run again or seek higher office.

Brittany Novotny's a candidate for the Oklahoma legislature, Pam Bennett's making another run for the Aurora, CO city council after nearly winning in 2007, and Dr. Dana Beyer has decided to make another run for the Maryland State Legislature.

Dr. Beyer currently serves as the senior adviser to Montgomery County MD council member Duchy Trachtenberg and sits on the board of Equality Maryland.

“People should vote for me because they want someone looking out for them, not just taking orders from the antiquated leadership,” Dr. Beyer said. “We need a new approach to very serious economic difficulties if we are to reset our economy and move forward, building a better world for all.”

She's running for Maryland House Seat 18, but will have to get through the primary which takes place September 14, 2010. If she successfully does that and wins in the general election, either she or Brittany Novotny would become the first United States based trans people to win election to a state legislative body.

She's already been endorsed by the Gay & Lesbian Victory Fund.

I wish Dr. Dana the best of luck and hope that this run for the Maryland state house ends in a more satisfying conclusion for her than it did in 2006.

Matthew Shepard-James Byrd Hate Crimes Bill Passes Senate!

One of our crowning legislative jewels down, one to go.

The Matthew Shepard-James Byrd Hate Crimes Bill, which would make it a federal crime to assault an individual because of their sexual orientation or gender identity passed the Senate Thursday on a 68-29 vote.

Attorney General Eric Holder stated it was "a milestone in helping protect Americans from the most heinous bias-motivated violence."

"The passage of this legislation will give the Justice Department and our state and local law enforcement partners the tools we need to deter and prosecute these acts of violence."

It was part of a defense appropriations bill, and is now headed to the White House and awaits President Obama's signature.