Time 4 Trans Justice

No one really thinks about, when they think about Transgender or Transsexual people, what bathroom they go into when in public places. Unless they are faced with it themselves. But this is a real problem for people who have the genitals of one sex and identify as the other. They are not comfortable with going to the bathroom that fits their genitals, and yet, they may not be able to pass as the gender they identify as and are unable to use the bathroom they desire. And so many, in order to avoid this problem, will not use the restroom all day until they can get home. This is extremely unhealthy, and will result in kidney failure if left unchecked.  An excellent resource for learning more about this come from the Sylvia Rivera Law Project. While there, you can download portions, or all, of the “Toilet Training” ebook, designed to educate people on why gender neutral bathrooms are so important today.

So, what do I do? Unfortunately, I do not pass as male yet, so going into a men’s restroom is not really an option for me. The one time I did, looking mostly like a guy, but then not at all, I had very weird looks as I was coming out from the other guys and it scared me. I don’t want to get beat up or something like that…so, I figure it this way–since I look female, I will go to the restroom that says what I look like–for now. That doesn’t mean I like it, but I will not endanger myself just because of comfort. I choose safety and health over comfort…but that is only me. So many people are unable to get to this point, and are forced to choose not going at all.

Let me leave you with this question: How hard would it be to create gender neutral bathrooms?

So, I haven’t been too consistent with my posting lately, and I wanted acknowledge that to my readers. You can count on me from here on out to post consistently on topics that matter to you and to me.

Here is my question for today–what is the difference between a birth defect and a mis-matching gender identity? Both happen at birth…both have stigma attached to it…and yet, there is a clear difference between how most people view a birth defect as something to deal with and it is understandable, and yet a mis-matching gender identity is not understandable, and it is something that people will judge and discriminate against. Why?

Deafness is something understandable. Gender identity that doesn’t match the body I was born in is not understandable, and therefore, thought of as a “sexual perversion”. This is what kills my spirit–gender identity has NOTHING to do with sex or sexuality! Come on people…this is not any more a sexual perversion as deafness is. So stop treating us as something to be abhored and feared, and start treating us as human beings!!!

That is all I have time for today, but you will be able to expect more on this topic in the coming posts. Thanks for reading my rantings, and I will see you tomorrow morning!

As a parent, I don’t always have the time to do the things I want to do, or say the things I want to say. Yes–I am a parent, and darned proud to be one! After pretending for so long to be who I wasn’t, I ended up having 3 kids. And then I got wise to what the heck was going on. So, right now, I am about to rush off to the school with treats for my daughter’s birthday, which was yesterday. (She was sick yesterday…) Hence–the no time to do anything for me sometimes thing. I wanted to leave you with a little humor for today.

Good morning on this frigidly cold Monday morning! Today is Monday, so that means it’s time for another installment of: Notable Transmen in History!

Today is all about Dr. Michael Laurence Dillon, a physician who was born in 1915 as Laura Maud Dillon. He transitioned fully in 1949, three years before the famous case of Christine Jorgenson. Before transitioning, he used a belt to bind his breasts, and wore masculine clothing, and acted as himself–a man. He did everything he wanted to do, which just happened to be masculine in nature/stereotypical. While in college, he began taking testosterone, and then had chest surgery in 1942. In 1944, he officially changed his birth certificate to read male, and changed his name as well. During this year, he also had bottom surgery–a phalloplasty.

While this is all fascinating, I’m sure, there is a point. Someone was doing some snooping into his genealogy, and noticed a discrepancy by who was actually born, and who was listed later in another place. Of course, they couldn’t keep it a secret, and published it in many newspapers. This made him leave the country and go to India, where he became a monk and famous author under his ordained name. Is it any wonder he went to hide? During this time, anything remotely “smelling” like homosexuality was an abomination and could only be made right by violence. Oh–wait–that’s like that now!

We’ve got trans-men and women being brutally beaten, and sometimes killed…we’ve got judgments against us for being who we are…we have discrimination without federal protections…misunderstandings…abandonment…and families disowning their own flesh and blood. Is it any wonder the suicide rate for our Trans community is higher than for any other segment of our community?? This is way too depressing and hard for some people to handle it, and if their “support” network isn’t supportive, it can make people feel alone and rejected.  In the past 50-60 years, have we learned nothing about letting people be who they are called to be, regardless of what that may be?

I’ve said it before and I will say it again: Live and let live. If the way a person is conducting themselves, and they are true to who they are without infringing on other people’s basic human rights to safety and survival, why is it such a big deal? Why do we have to fight for our right to not be discriminated against?

But I digress–I have went off topic, which is talking about historical Transmen. We (in the transmen sense) have always been here and ready to contribute to society, once we have the freedoms and ability to live how we are called to live as. So instead of judging, how about giving us a hand to transform the world?

Okay, we all knew this would happen soon after ENDA passed, without the trans inclusive language. A sex discrimination case against the Library of Congress. Diane had applied for a job in 2005, then was offered the job. Diane wanted to start out the working relationship with her future employers on an honest note, so she told them that she was a MtF transsexual, and then, later she received a phone call telling her she wasn’t a “good fit” for the job after all. Here is some more about this story, found at the Logo News website.

“Diane Schroer filed the suit in 2005 …the government fought the suit alleging that Title VII, which protects against sex discrimination, does not protect transgender workers.”

“The court did not specifically address the question of whether Title VII’s ban against sex discrimination also bans discrimination based on gender identity. It did, however, reject the government’s contention that laws barring sex discrimination are limited to a person’s chromosomal configuration.”

The courts declared that this is a sex discrimination case, and has nothing to do with gender identity. Sex discrimination does not depend on a person’s chromosomal configuration, but rather on many different factors. And this is encouraging that the courts are beginning to recognize that a person’s sex doesn’t just depend on chromosomes or what’s between their legs. This is an important first step in gaining fair and just treatment in the future.