"We are One"

Let's talk about discrimination from within the trans population

since as a community we don't seem to be moving in anything close to unison.

I get it that some people in the trans community have made good, done well, and are loathe to give up all what they have worked so hard for. This isn't about castigating you for your success. I also understand that, much like most of us who have/had familiies, you don't want to create any emotional devastation when none need be. This isn't about voluntarily destroying your lives.

What this is about is getting you, the supposed elite of the transgender population, to understand the struggle that many of the rest of us go through to lead equitable lives. This article is one example of the kinds of discrimiation I am sure you are aware of, and terrified to have to face.

http://www.edgeboston.com/news/national/features//138371/ncte%E2%80...

You must know that not everyone get's to keep everything; most people in life in general don't. But when trans people argue that they should have to give up nothing, recognize no sufferring among 'their own' then we have a classist system that is suppressing members of its own.

But of course, there are always pockets of sensibility, such as here in this one small town in Pennsylvania:

http://www.epgn.com/view/full_story/20607565/article-Upper-Merion-u....

But just as not all trans people live in Upper Marion Pennsylvania, the majority of Americans seem intent, for whatever reason, on denying transgender people their rights to exist, rights to vote, rights to succeed, just simple legal rights. And when you, from whatever lofty perch you have attained, diminish the importance of all other transgender people by voting with your stock portfolio only, your power base, or your need to be at the top; you deny your own alleged existence as a transgender person. And it doesn't have to be so.

I have had dealings with many trans folk who cannot see their way around the position they have put themselves in; it is like a gilded prison. There are things that you can do! You can lend your support for grass-roots organizations tending to the less successful/lucky. You could promote humane legislation from a social conscience context. You could assist organizations that deal with homeless trans youth, or adults for that matter. There are so many things you coulddo without jeopardizing the precious but precarious perch you inhabit that I am hoping you will see that you are not socially powerless at the same time that you may be professionally at the top of your game.

Life is funny and things change quickly. No one is actually safe from anything; illness took me from fast track to sidelined in almost a heartbeat. Despite that, it has been more than freeing and my advocacy comes from the heart. Just from the two links I posted here you must know that your help as a person with a social responsibility cannot be ignored. I urge you to reconsider some of your stances and reach out in whatever way you can. If I can direct you to any national, regional or local organizations that would benefit from your generosity I will gladly do so. I have attached just a few links for your consideration. But please don't turn a blind eye to your supposed brothers and sisters as we fight for the equality of us all, not just the ones who can afford it.

http://www.transyouthequality.org/ Dealing with the disenfranchised trans youth from all over North America

http://wingspan.org/ A terrific group whose scope of influence far exceeds Southern Arizona!

http://transequality.org/ I'm on the fence with this one only because it is a political organization but someone has to do it!

http://www.mainetransnet.org/ I was on the board for two years. MTN gets so little help that they can barely afford the office space and have no phone; there is no paid anyone; yet manage to sustain a network of support groups across the state for those who feel as though they are truly alone. Maine TransNet is close to my heart for many reasons and I would love for us to get a better, more accessible space and be able to have the office and library open and available more often.

These and many other organizations exist despite the fact that some members of the trans population ignore the needs of the many. Please consider making a donation to any of these worthy organizations and let's put the T back into LGBT.

6 members like this

Comment by Julia Giannopoulos on October 26, 2012 at 2:02pm: Dal,

Very well written with excellent links provided. Thank you.

We have two factions within the overall community that are not affected by any anti discrimination legislation and law designed to protect the full time transsexual and Intersexed woman.

The first faction is the heterosexual cross dresser. Most but not all treat what they do/are as a hobby or pastime with a smaller population of such dressing as a sexual fetish.

When they are not "enfemme" they are quite male and overall quite entrenched in the "American Dream" of wife, children, mortgage and car payments.

The majority vote in their best interests which does not involve Transsexual rights.

The majority of women living full time are too busy working and surviving to expose themselves to this faction at social conferences or group meetings.

The second faction are the women that live part time as themselves due to a host of reasons.

Some do not pass at all thus creating a roadblock to full time living. Many are terrified at losing everything thus creating an impasse that lasts indefinitely.

These women are having to live the majority of their lives in a male role due to these and other circumstances.

Regardless of their relationships with us and their mostly sympathetic feelings towards the issues facing full time trans women the fact remains that they do not live their lives 24-7 as their true selves. This causes a gulf between the women living full time and themselves.

My life and the lives of other women that have transitioned are dramatically different than the lives of these two groups.

Not better, not more important but different.

My thought processes are different, my day to day activities are different and my relationships are different.

For me personally I can't really remember very well what it was like six years ago to even pretend to be anything but me.

Because of these drastic differences we cannot expect men pretending to be women or women that are not full time to relate politically like someone from our camp.

Any time that someone other than one of us votes for TS/IS rights and protections we should consider that a blessing and a gift but sadly it's not something we should expect in this country as of yet.

Comment by Lauren Elisabeth Tancyus on October 26, 2012 at 10:30pm: I understad your sentiment, and appreciate it. President Obama has done exponentially more for us than any other President and I'll be the first one to sing his praises on that one issue. I'm one of those who do not vote for a single issue. I wish I could, but I can't at this particular point in American history. I see a need for a change in defense policy, economic policy and international policy. If these issues are not corrected, in my own opinion, then we wont even have the right to enjoy the superlative things President Obama has accomplished for us because we will lose our freedom. Let me get it over with, I know this is an extremely unpopular position in our community, but this is what I believe.

Comment by Dal Maxwell on October 26, 2012 at 11:24pm: So basically...........it's every person for themselves unless you need something? Thhis is so remniscent of my 'Little Red Hen' scenario where no one wants to see a damn thing get done but they all want the fruits of someone else's labor. Hmmmmmm..........so you think that you are tapped into what's best for us all, and the U.S.? I think I'll stick with my information stream; it's uncontaminated by the partisan of anything; my politics are a totally different matter. Good luck with that.

Comment by Dal Maxwell on October 27, 2012 at 12:39am: Thanx Julia, and sadly you are mpore right than I want to admit.

Comment by Rachel King on October 27, 2012 at 5:17am: "Land of the Free" huh?

There is nothing like feeling free when you are being discriminated against.

Julia, just to correct you, those that swap identities by day don't vote with best interest but with self-interest, a fine line but a betrayal of others like themselves, nonetheless.

Currently, the Republican Party, led by the nose by the Tea party, will if their puppet, "Half" Mitt" is elected, set about rescinding the large majority of progressive moves made over the past near 4 years and then you watch those who voted for the Republicans squeal like stuck pigs.

I am a great believer in work hard, make money, set yourself up and enjoy life from your earnings.

But over the last 20-something years, there is a culture of people seeking to make their money by investing rather than working for it.

These people weren't happy with making a profit, they wanted more of this easy money, and more, and more, until the goal posts became unrealistic in reaching and a decline began.

Instead of these people conceding that less profit was beneficial to the many, they selfishly demanded that their profit remain high, so who was the sacrificial lamb?

The worker of course, those who busted their guts to make all this easy money for others.

So the Company can no longer sustain this amount of profit demand and it slowly sinks.

And so do many thousands of other businesses.

It snowballs.

And you have what you have today and it takes more than 4 years to fix up a mess like that.

If the culture of greed carries on, it might take longer than 8 years.

Time to shudder.

It is also time to finally realise that this ogre called globalisation has benefited few, certainly not you and me and the average population but only those like Half-Mitt, who built his fortune by bleeding small companies and the workers within.

Obama and his crew may have many faults but his heart and his mind is in the right place and he DOES deserve a second term.

Then Hillary can take over and make the rest of it right.

Seems like a good deal for the rest of us out here, to me.

Julia, I think you are wrong, I think that those who live between two worlds, have to take notice of the discrimination and have to make a change in their attitude, for themselves and their families, if nothing else.

Sherri, I am aware of where your sympathies lay, but let me suggest this, haven't you lot had enough of having your young men and women getting their arse shot off?

Haven't you had enough of sticking your noses in other peoples problems?

And haven't you had enough of having not won a war since World War II which was the last time you made a full commitment to ensuring you won and not some half-arsed attempt to win.

Your strength and good-will should come from diplomatic pressure, not half-baked attempts at coercion.

You as a Nation need to get with the 21st century.

Nobody wants you as the world bully, any more than they wanted the USSR.

Putin has taken Russia back 30 years and Half- Mitt will be the same.

Now there is something to really shudder about.

I've always believed that those who want war, should be the first to join up and fight, but they never are, are they.

Lose your freedom Sherri?

You haven't attained it yet and because of who?

And you want that back?

Oh dear..........