Is the Kick Starter #AssignedSex NYC Trans Youth Film being Ignored Becuse So Many Are Black?

Looking at this project I see immense possibilities in every one of the young trans people featured. So why is it not receiving the support it deserves? It's not for a lack of commitment by those involved in the project. They have made four youtube promotional videos. That's three more than the norm. The project only has a few days left to be fully funded if it is to receive any of the pledges. My opinion? It's not getting money because the most of the participants are people of color. They are the easiest to ignore. That's right. Even within the transgender and LGB community there is a perceived stratification of privilege. In black and white, we are racists.

I always written reviews about transgender kick starter projects positivity, until now that is. We are failing and need to step up.

These young folks represent our vital link to our future. We all (privileged white trans peeps) have all attend a TDOR and silently shook our heads in dismay at every name read. We all know who is being victimized. People of color. I challenge our community, rich, poor, black, red, yellow, white, everyone, to walk the walk. Please support #AssignedSex on Kick Starter



Published on Jan 7, 2013

Kyrie, Angel, Lala, Jay'lin and L get ready to share their stories with the world. They have moved beyond the traditional gender labels assigned to them at birth and they aren't looking back.

#AssignedSex is a documentary that provides an up-close and personal look into the multidimensional lives of transgender individuals in the NYC metro area. The web series serves as a platform for transgender mentors and provides behind the scenes footage revealing the challenging emotional and physical barriers that transgender individuals are currently facing.

MUSIC BY: Fayola & O.N.E.

The Making of Assigned Sex - The Web Series' is the creation of
MESHAE.com
Twitter MESHAESTUDIOS
Facebook MESHAESTUDIOS

Lebanese mayor defends forcing a transsexual woman to strip naked

Source albawaba.com: The Lebanese mayor of Dekwaneh defended his actions in an interview Tuesday after he ordered Lebanese security forces to raid and shut down a gay-friendly nightclub in the Beiruti suburb town.

Several club-goers were arrested and forced to undress in the municipal headquarters, where they were then photographed naked.
“I saw 25 men outside, or what looked like boys and men. I went inside... I saw people kissing, touching each other, and a man wearing a skirt. These homosexual acts that are happening... are scandalous sexual acts,” Antoine Shakhtoura said.

Those arrested included “people from the Syrian community and a Lebanese transsexual woman, who was harassed and forced to undress in the municipal headquarters,” said Maydaa.

“Of course we made them take off their clothes,” Shakhtoura said referring to the people they transferred to the municipality’s headquarters who were also photographed there.

“We saw a scandalous situation and we had to know what these people were. Is it a woman or a man? Turned out to be a half woman and half man. I do not accept this in Dekwaneh,” he insisted

read more at albawaba.com

Israeli Transgender High School Teacher Fired For Explaining Her Gender Status To Curious Students

Marina told Channel 2 Israel: ‘I tried to explain that I am a human being just like they are and that it has no bearing on me being professional, and they need to accept people as they are’.


She tried to explain ongoing work with pupils includes small talk, and she refuses to hide her identity, ‘coming out should encourage teachers to come out to students to teachers so that neither teachers nor students feel ashamed of themselves’.

Attorney Moshe Shochetman, of the Aguda, Israel’s LGBT advocacy group, told Chanel 2 News: ‘Its very hard for this woman to find work, this is her bread and butter and she’s very good at it – she is outstanding and has received an award for her work.

‘To cut her off with this pretense is to destroy her livelihood’ ~ Gay Star News

On FacebookLGBT Israel

Radfem 2013 Conference Denied Use Of The London Irish Center For Hate Speech

Source: The Sunday Times preview: 'THE London Irish Centre, run by a charity funded by the Irish government, has withdrawn permission for a group of feminists to hire out its conference venue in Camden, north London. The move follows complaints that some speakers advocate violence against men and are “transphobic”.'

'The RadFem conference was to have been held in June at the 57-year-old centre, the oldest and largest Irish organisation outside Ireland. Last year RadFem’s plans for a conference at Conway Hall, a convention centre in central London, had been vetoed after it was discovered that the group intended to deny entry to transgender women by restricting tickets to “women born as women and living as women”.'

'The London Irish Centre provides welfare services for Irish emigrants in the British capital and hosts Irish exhibitions and performances..'

You can view the article in it's entirety here. While it's great to see a mainstream media article published about this it's slightly misleading as to the actual reason for the venue cancellation.

TERF (Trans-Exclusive Radical Feminist) AKA incorrectly as Radfems posted this INTERIM LEGAL STATEMENT BY RADFEM2013 ORGANISERS in response to the venue's cancellation.

TERF Cathy Brennan an attorny for Hudson Cook from Baltimore MD posted this comment in response to the host services, "Off to Work" Facebook statement explaining why they felt it best to cancel the conference

It should be noted by venues across the UK should they allow the TERF's to reserve their property for future gatherings they might very well become victims of vindictive legal entanglements initiated by the TERF's should they reconsider and not allow them to use their spaces.

THE London Irish Centre denied TERF the use of there property because they "..did some research into RadFem and discovered certain language was used and some statements were made about transgender people that would go against our equalities and diversity policy.”

It's very possible the Centre was referring to TERF Julie Burchill's post on the Guardian which has since been redacted and subsequently categorized as hate speech by the police.

The London Irish Centre didn't deny the property because of MRA actions as the radfems would have people believe. Uncommon Sense and Another Angry Woman have the lowdown on what really happened.

TERF Groundhog Day. Kicked Out Of London. Again. They were denied Conway hall last year for the same reason. Let's see, that makes two years in a row. But who's counting?

TERF's really ought to cease the hate then they wouldn't have so much difficulty finding a place to hold their yearly convent in London. This makes two years in a row your hate speech has gotten you barred from a London venue.

There's another point that needs top be clarified. The vast majority of cisgender Feminist do not hate or exclude trans people as pointed out in a comment made on this post by Lesbians and Feminists Against Transphobia:

"Although I want to acknowledge that not all radfems are TERFs, I'm very happy to see TERFs being marginalised for their hate, they definitely do not speak for feminism, their views are deeply anti-feminist and thoroughly disturbed. Feminism is intersectional or it isn't really feminism at all."

I deeply appreciate that clarification especially since its coming from cisgender feminists and have since edited this post to properly identify TERF's.

Bugsbrenan et al. In case you don't know what it is that keeps getting doors slammed in your mug here it is "...hate speech is any speech, gesture or conduct, writing, or display which is forbidden because it may incite violence or prejudicial action against or by a protected individual or group, or because it disparages or intimidates a protected individual or group."

Have a nice day.

Is it a Trans Inclusive ENDA to Be Introduced Thursday?

We won't know until Thursday but I'm apprehensive about the optimism being expressed by Rep. Jared Polis. LGB people would have a lot easier time without us passing ENDA and that would warrant a lot of optimism. Will this time around threaten the very fabric of LGBT unity again? I'm skeptical, prove me wrong. Please.

The nitty gritty. The Senate may move it onto the floor for a vote but it is more than likely doomed in the House.

Tammy Baldwin told Metro Weekly "I have to say, given the current leadership composition of the House, I don't think it goes anywhere," Baldwin recently told Metro Weekly. While the House did pass an LGBT-inclusive Violence Against Women Act in February, Baldwin says she fears that may be an exception to the rule, "which is if they don't have a majority of the majority caucus supporting something they're not going to let it to the floor. And I don't see that changing in the near future."

There's only two things for certain. We can only speculate about the wording and there will be a lot of speculation.




White House Press Secretary Jay Carney can't identify action President Obama to build support of ENDA in the past year under questioning from the Washington Blade's Chris Johnson

'ShuShu Funtanna' Reacts to School Demand that She Delete Her Drag Youtube Channel

Via Reddit r/lgbt "School told me it would be in my best interest to shut down my drag queen YouTube channel 'ShuShu Funtanna', I refused and posted this image on instagram."

Good for you ShuShu.

"And Now Sofia..." the story of a transgender cattle rancher living in rural Colorado.

Video: Bindiya Rana A Politican for Khwaja Sarras and all Pakistan

Empowered like a waterfall of hope Bindiya Rana's qualities gather in a pool of strength flowing from her community. Bindiya Rana President of the Sindh chapter of the Gender Interactive Alliance (Gia) is one of the best politicians the global trans family has to offer.

Pakistan's transgender people are just coming of age, having recently acquired some equality but they have a difficult row to hoe in this conservative patriarchal country.

Bindiya Rana told Heba Islam at Dawn.com why she's running. “I looked at what all the other parties said about transgenders (TGs) in their manifestos. They referred to women and children’s rights, but there was no mention of TGs at all,” explains Rana. This is the platform that the activist is running on – the idea that someone needs to give a voice to her community.

“They say they want a ‘naya’ (new) Pakistan’ – I don’t understand, where did the old Pakistan go? That’s the one we need to fix,” she adds, grinning.

It was in 2012 that transgenders were given the right to list themselves as a third gender on their CNICs. They were also promised much more.



Rana, while praising the chief justice, points out that much else is left to be done. “We were promised a community centre, we were promised medical benefits. These are still to come”.

Riffee Khan, an AIDS health worker by profession, who is also the treasurer of Gia and holds two MA degrees, chimes in and says that people often ask why members of the Khawaja Sarra community resort to begging on the streets. “There’s only so much we can do,” she explains. “We are nothing in front of the government. If the government provides a vocational training centre for members of our community, then our people wouldn’t have to beg or indulge in other questionable activities.” Read more at Transgenders: The nes voter group in town.

Dunya News-20-01-2012-Election Commission & "Khawaja Sarra" .

First (known) Transgénero Man Gives Birth In Chile!

The father "Mathew" wished to withhold his true identity for safety during the interview because Chile a conservative country prohibits abortion and gay marriage.

Nacido mujer pero inscripto como hombre, representa el primer caso de estas características que se conoce. En el país, está prohibido el aborto y el matrimonio homosexual

In the interview, Matthew discussed life before and after the pregnancy.

"We know that our case is a milestone, a precedent," said Matthew. "Along the way we discovered loop holes and such, but the entire thing has been so normal."
He added: "Our life hasn’t changed in absolutely any respect." ~ Gay Star News

Source: infobae.com[Google translate]

A male transsexual who was born a woman but legally then enrolled as a man, but kept his female reproductive tract , recently gave birth to a child in Chile, which is the first known case of its kind in the country.

"This is one challenge to the political class and the laws , to understand that there are different ways of living sexuality, sexual orientations, gender identities and family formations ", said Friday at EFE Rolando Jimenez , president of the Movement for Homosexual Integration and Liberation (Movilh ).

"This is the first time a case is publicly known , but I have no doubt that there must be others, "he said. 's story was released on Thursday night by the television channel Mega , who spoke briefly with both parents of the child, although they declined to appear before the cameras and the media kept in reserve your identity, age and other personal data.

" In courts and there is a record of my case, all I'm living now , "said the journalist the protagonist of this case, which is given the fictitious name of "Matthew", shortly before giving birth. As he himself said, the pregnancy was not planned .

Moreover, in Chile abortion is prohibited in all circumstances. "We know that a milestone, a precedent. loopholes discovered there and the whole thing, but has been so normal . did not bother us life has changed quite at all ", said meanwhile his partner, a middle-aged man. According to the story of journalist, a judge in Arica Matias forced not to have surgery as a condition as a man is legally recorded. Movilh president says that "the law has changed "since" courts historically accessed the identity change provided there was sexual reassignment surgery and, once made ​​this operation, they agreed to change ".

"But we have presented, in the recent years, several lawsuits in civil courts to request the change of name of people who were not operated , and in some cases have been accessed, "he adds.

Indeed, the more conservative party in the coalition government, the Independent Democratic Union (UDI) , proposed Thursday a constitutional amendment to clarify in the Constitution that a child can only have for parents "a man and a woman." "The children are conceived by a man and a woman , so we have the belief that all children have the right to know who their father is and who his mother, and not leave it open to interpretation ", defended the deputy Monica Zalaquett .

This initiative came after a lesbian couple submitted an application for protection for both mothers were recognized as the biological child of one of them. The appeal was dismissed by a court in Santiago. In this field, the Chilean Congress this month agreed to hear the bill called Life Partner Agreement (AVP) , sponsored by two prominent members of the ruling party, which seeks to give legal cover civil unions for both heterosexual and homosexual.

Según él mismo indicó, el embarazo no fue planificado. Por otra parte, en Chile el aborto está prohibido en todos los supuestos.

"Sabemos que marca un hito, un precedente. Descubrimos que hay vacíos legales y todo el asunto, pero ha sido tan normal. A nosotros no nos ha cambiado la vida absolutamente en nada", indicó por su parte su pareja, un hombre de mediana edad.

Según el relato del periodista, un juez de Arica no obligó a Matías a practicarse una cirugía como condición para que se inscriba legalmente como hombre.

El presidente del Movilh asegura que "la jurisprudencia ha ido cambiando", ya que "históricamente los tribunales accedían al cambio de identidad siempre y cuando hubiera una operación de reasignación sexual y, una vez hecha esa operación, accedían al cambio".

"Pero nosotros hemos presentado, en los últimos años, varias demandas en tribunales civiles para solicitar el cambio de nombre de personas que no estaban operadas, y en algunos casos se ha accedido", añade.

Precisamente, el partido más conservador de la coalición gubernamental, la Unión Demócrata Independiente (UDI), propuso el jueves una reforma constitucional para precisar en la Carta Magna que un menor solo puede tener por padres "a un hombre y a una mujer".

"Las niñas y niños son concebidos por un hombre y una mujer; por lo tanto, tenemos la convicción de que todos los niños tienen el derecho a saber quién es su padre y quién es su madre, y no dejar esto a interpretaciones", defendió la diputada Mónica Zalaquett.

Esta iniciativa surgió después de que una pareja de mujeres lesbianas presentara un recurso de protección para que ambas fueran reconocidas como madres del hijo biológico de una de ellas. El recurso fue desestimado por un tribunal de Santiago.

En este ámbito, este mes el Congreso chileno aceptó a trámite el proyecto de ley del llamado Acuerdo de Vida en Pareja (AVP), patrocinado por dos destacados miembros del oficialismo, que busca dar cobertura legal a las uniones civiles tanto de heterosexuales como de homosexuales.

Transgender Student's Homecoming King Bid Canceled By Red Lion High School Principal

One bright morning Red Lion Area Senior High School student Transman Issak Oliver Wolfe happily made his way to the ballot box the on first day of voting for homecoming King looking forward to casting his vote.

Issak Oliver Wolfe was elated he was running for homecoming king and had reason to believe he could win. He is well liked, far down the road on transition and active in school programs. But Issak arrived at the ballot box only to find his name had been removed.

Issak recalled the morning in a email: "I made flyers to hand out and when I went to vote I did see my name had been removed." When Issak asked why he was told by a vice Principal he couldn't run for Prom King because "it was based on sex not gender and he would not allow me to."

Blindsided, Issak recalls "No one warned me. I didn't speak with the new Principal, Mr Shue at first out of fear. I was told by someone with inside knowledge that it wouldn't help me at all so I didn't to save my self the intense stress. They closed voting the next day for court so I didn't get the chance to appeal."

Principal Shue is interviewed in this video by student Ben Otte upon taking the reins at Red Lion High School. Mr. Shue should follow his own advice.



Frustrated Issak appealed to social media "My family and girlfriend started a facebook support page Issak Oliver Wolfe for Red Lion Prom King because we didn't know what else we could do. I feel so cheated."

Issak talks about how this might affect his remaining school year. "I have not been treated differently so far at my school but as soon as local media has gotten statements from me I think they might. I don't think any teacher here would treat me differently. All the teachers I interact with are great people."

You can imagine how dehumanizing and devastating this would be for a young man. Heartbroken Issak asked principal Mr. Mark Shue later why the name and categories were changed. Issak was told by Mr. Shue his reasoning for not allowing him to run for prom king with his authentic name and gender was because he 'felt uncomfortable with it.'

Please support this young man by signing the petition "Mr. Mark Shue: Issak Oliver Wolfe for Prom King and his name read at graduation"

Louisiana Lawmaker Seeks To Strip Transgender People Of Federal Title VII Protections

Rep. Alan Seabaugh (R) seeks to invalidate Title VII, the ground breaking and ONLY federal protections transgender people have against workplace discrimination. It's been a long hard battle to get this far. We are putting Seabaugh on notice. We aren't going down without a fight.

Source: Think Progress:Louisiana state Rep. Alan Seabaugh (R) doesn’t care if LGBT citizens are ever discriminated against by employers, if his newly proposed bill is any indication. If passed, HB 402 would prevent LGBT people from ever seeking judicial protection if they’re refused hire, denied promotion, or fired because of their sexual orientation or gender identity:

Provides that suits filed for employment discrimination for any reason other than age, disability, race, color, religion, sex, national origin, pregnancy, childbirth and related medical conditions, sickle cell trait, and genetic discrimination shall be dismissed and considered frivolous.

As Equality Louisiana points out, not only would their complaints not be heard, but then disenfranchised workers would also be liable for damages to their discriminating employers and court costs. In other words, if an LGBT individual is a victim of employment discrimination, the state would actually punish them with a financial burden for even trying to object.

NetFlix Sinks to New Lows With Arrested Development's "Tranny" Advert

Fuck you NetFlix. "Tranny" hurts and you know it. You lost my business.

*Update: Just moments after this posting went up Arrested Development removed their "Tranny" advert from their facebook page!.

Arrested development is using this defamation on it's facebook page in a cheap promotional stunt aimed to outrage the transgender community by pandering to transphobic people hoping to pick the show up off the cutting room floor.

"Since its debut in 2003, the series has received widespread critical acclaim, including six Emmy Awards and one Golden Globe, and it has attracted a cult following, including several fan-based websites.[1] In 2007, Time listed it among the magazine's "100 Best TV Shows of All-TIME." In 2008, the show was ranked 16th on Entertainment Weekly's "New TV Classics" list.In 2011, IGN named Arrested Development the funniest show of all time."

"Despite acclaim from critics, Arrested Development received low ratings and viewership on Fox, which canceled the series in 2006. Rumors of a fourth season and a feature film persisted until 2011, when Netflix agreed to license new episodes and distribute them exclusively on its streaming video service.[5] Fifteen brand new episodes will be released simultaneously on May 26, 2013.[6] The script of an Arrested Development film has also been in development, with the main cast purported to reprise their original roles." wiki/Arrested_Development

Its a lowlife cheap ploy to get attention and its, not humorous or even acceptable.

Don't like being a joke? CLICK HERE to leave a comment about this picture on Arrested Developments Facebook Page.

Read more about this at Zinnia Jones

Apparently this wasn't the first time "Arrested Development" used a blatant transphobic meme to get a cheap laugh. From the "Sad Sack" episode. Maeby gives her mother a 'shemale' Tee shirt and convinces her to proudly wear it.

The 'joke' was on her mother because everyone then thought she was transgender. The 'joke' in reality is transexuality. This is so deeply rooted in misogynistic transphobia and wrong on so many levels.

Thai Trans Couple Yollada "Nok" Suanyot and Ronnakrit Hamichart On Life Love and Legal

The delightful trans couple Yollada "Nok" Suanyot and Ronnakrit Hamichart talk about their life together in Thailand candidly, humorously and with a sense of irony.

Watch the video at Bangkok Post.

Suanyot founded the popular Facebook advocacy groupTrans Female Association of Thailand and on the web.

Trans Woman Nguyễn Hương Giang Vietnam Idol 2012 Top Ten Wears 2,000 Condom Dress

Transgender star Hương Giang made this bold statement by wearing a 2,000 condom dress in a effort to destigmatize condom purchase, possession and use in Vietnam.

Giang told Tuoitre News Vietnam she is happy for her name to be associated with condom-use and wants to send the public, particularly young people, a message about safe sex.

Trans Woman is Homeless After Her House Was Set On Fire Twice. Police Say Arson

63 year old transgender woman Jordana Wenzel of Olivia Mn has lost her home and her dog after her trailer was set ablaze twice, once Monday evening and again Tuesday morning.


The fire department responded both times and the state fire Marshall declared the blazes arson.

Wezel says she had been threaten a number of times recently and believes the fire were a hate crime.

"Because of my transexualism...that's where the hate crime part comes in," Wenzel told KEYC TV.

Fortunately nether Wenzel or her roommate were home when the fires were set but her home was uninsured.

KEYC - Mankato News, Weather, Sports -

Information on the latest fire should be forwarded to the Olivia Police Department at 320-523-2700; the state arson hotline at 1-800-723-2020; or Renville Crime Stoppers at 1-800-720-3790.

Donations to assist the fire victims can be sent to Citizens State Bank Olivia, 111 South 10th Street, Olivia, MN 56277.

Turkey's First Transgender TV Reporter, Michelle Demishevich. An Amazing Woman.

Demishevich's life is one many transgender woman can identify with in some way. She acknowledges knowing and willingly giving up cisgender male privilege to live her life authentically. One filled with anguish but incredible rewards.

Michelle's first interview did not begin ostentatiously when her request for information was rewarded with: "Are you kidding me? Can a transvestite be a journalist?"

"Bianet" a Turkish English language news source interviews Ms. Demishevich and asks her "It's been a month so far. How is it going?"

"It was challenging actually. Because you are the other and they always make you feel like that. But you have to be strong. For example, we have common space for eating and smoking. The very first days people were poking each other and pointing me out. Women would go past me and laugh, I had no clue. In my opinion, women should have understood me better. Every time I was going through security, guards were causing issues even though they knew where I was working. The very first 15-20 days, I used to cry every time I got back home. But I made up my mind, I wouldn't give up. Security guards can call my boss every single morning. I love my work environment. I am just like everyone now. My gender identity is out of the question now. I love my job. At first, people were so surprised to see me write scripts and make announcements. I can say that people were astonished to see me as journalist. This is so important for me. I don't want to lose my job due to little mistakes. I get up at 6:30am every morning to go to work."



What kind of feedback do you receive from people?

I first reported from Sirkeci Police Headquarters. Officers were informing other journalists but ignoring me. I asked one of them why he was not responding my questions. I said I was a journalist, too. "Are you kidding me? Can a transvestite be a journalist?" he said. "You could be a cop, I can be journalist too," I said. They were handing out bulletins. They passed one to me as well, probably thinking that I was a lunatic or something. Other journalists ignore me, too. I greet them but they never greet back. There are a handful of journalists who don't hold a distance. I guess the rest will get used to it.

If I face discrimination at work, I cry all night and get back to work the next morning. I don't care, I suffered enough for my identity already. I came to this point by struggling. Nothing can bring me down. I learned how to stop fearing.

Please read the whole interview on Bianet Turkey's First Trans TV Reporter Reveals Her Story. So often Turkish news sources revictimize our family after they are murdered in Turkey. Perhaps this will be a new beginning.

The Life and Tragic Death of Transman Robert Eads

By the time Robert Eads found a doctor who would treat him it was too late His ovarian cancer has advanced too far.

Robert Eads ~ “I wish I could understand why they did what they did, why they had to feel that way… And I know in a way they’ve contributed to my dying here. But I can’t hate them. I don’t hate them. I feel sorry for them… What makes me most sad is they probably felt like they did the right thing,”

Southern Comfort is a 2001 documentary film about the final year in the life of Robert Eads, a female-to-male transsexual. Eads, diagnosed with ovarian cancer, was turned down for treatment by two dozen doctors out of fear that treating such a patient would hurt their reputations. By the time Eads received treatment, the cancer was too advanced to save his life. Wiki Southern Comfort



Uploaded on Dec 28, 2008

Trailer/intro do documentário "Southern Comfort", sobre e com Robert Eads, um homem transsexual norte-americano que morreu de cancro depois de vários médicos lhe terem negado assistência médica... por causa da sua transsexualidade.

Read more about Robert Eads at the Journal of Global Health.

Get Equal Texas @getequal_tx Says Expect Arrests: #SB237NOW #LetUsWork

The Dallas Voice headline "GetEQUAL TX expects up to 20 arrests at action in support of state ENDA" got my attention.

Some one's actually contemplating civil disobedience in the Lone Star? Dangerous stuff. As a Soulforce member I will tell you from experience Texas police have been known to up the anty for civil disobedience here making normally nominal charges very expensive.

So whats it all about? What's the ruckus? The bill that would help us live our lives without the discrimination we face on a daily basis, SB237 is being held up in committee.



Michael GetEqual Diviesti, Texas state Lead for GetEqual explained why this is so important to him on facebook he would be willing to be arrested just to bring attention to it. It's a story nearly every LGBT Texan can relate to.

I was fired for being gay.

It's not a story that generally comes up in conversation and, I happen to have the sort of personality where, when I talk about something, I relive it. So I tend not to talk about it often but, I feel it is important to talk about because of what is going on right now in the legislature.

Many of you know that I served in the United States Army and made my way to Texas by way of Ft. Hood. Upon my discharge, I decided to move to Austin. My first job out of the military was working for the Austin State School working with residents that had many different mental disabilities. At the time, the campus was a state funded institution. After working there for the first year, I made the decision to try to go to college. The only issue was that I needed a steady schedule in order to do so, thus, I moved to a different department at the same campus. As usual, I received compliments for picking up the new job quickly and for going above and beyond to ensure that I was carrying out my duties.

Shortly after the switch, however, my relationship with my new boss drastically changed. The events that made that happen were disturbing. My roommate at the time, Jeff, had just received a promotion over my boss. The very next time she saw Jeff, she rushed towards him, slapped him in the face and said, "I can't stand you you little faggot". I was floored. Right in front of me and a few other witnesses, one of which was her boss, and not a single reprimand. She wasn't even sent home for the day to cool down.

For the next several days, I laid low, afraid that she might find out that I was gay and not knowing what she might do... A week went by and I no longer had to wonder. In conversation with friends of hers on campus, she found out that Jeff and I were roommates and inferred from that that I must be gay. She began jabbing me about it and even preaching to me. So a few days later, when she called me into her office, I felt like something was up so, I hit the memo button on my cell phone and recorded the conversation which was very short. "Get your stuff and leave. I can't have a fucking faggot working for me. You're fired".

I took this audio to my ombudsman who assured me that, while it was clear that I was fired for being gay, I had no legal recourse. This is the reason I've been fighting for an Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) and it's why it's so important that we pass anti-discrimination laws. It's not going to save everyone from living this tragic ordeal but, it can give us some legal leverage when we have the ability to prove that we were fired simply because of sexual orientation, gender identity, or gender expression.

It is why I think it is important that Texas pass Senate Bill 237 which would simply give the Texas Workforce Commission, the ability to flag and investigate workplace discrimination claims. It is why I need for my friends to help me make sure that this doesn't happen to others.

You can help in 1 of 3 ways (or you can do all three).

- You can sign the petition at the bottom of this page, urging senators to vote on, pass, and co-author the bill

- You can call each of those senators, once a day, or once a week, and ask them to support the bill (the numbers are provided in the page)

- you can use the "donate" button at the top right of the page to help us to continue to push for this important bill.

Lisa Vogel Michigan Womyn's Music Festival: Dogs Welcome But Not Trans People

Lisa Vogel's letter to her community never once mentioned the greater trans community's concerns about being excluded from a woman's only space, i.e. public accommodations. Vogel was pissed off about the boycott petition and the subsequent decision by Andrea Gibson to cancel her appearance and the future boycotts announced by Sick of Sarah on facebook and the Indigo Girls in their letter to our community.

*Visiting michfest.com you will find information on accommodating your dogs.
*It has been pointed out this post's title may only be half right since Trans Men are welcome. Lisa Vogel's 2006 press release "set it straight' validates that observation.

"From its inception the Festival has been home to womyn who could be considered gender outlaws, either because of their sexual orientation (lesbian, bisexual, polyamorous, etc.) or their gender presentation(butch, bearded, androgynous, femme - and everything in between).

April 11, 2013

Letter to the Community

On March 28, an activist named Red Durkin posted a petition on Change.org asking artists and attendees to boycott the Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival until organizers fully and openly welcome all self-identified women. This petition has intensified a long-running debate about and within the Festival, a debate that has often included intense misrepresentations about the political heart of this gathering. There is no doubt that complex political debate is healthy and necessary within our communities; however, a boycott, within this context, fails to advance resolution and only seeks to exact damage. As the Festival’s producer for her full 38 years, I write today to clarify the festival's herstory, intention and my desire for understanding within our communities, as well as to clarify where I stand on these issues.

I have listened, I have talked, I have struggled, and I will continue to do so. I do not fear our differences. But I do fear the harm being done to the space held so dear by so many – the space known around the world as “Michigan” – by the way this conflict is playing out. And thus I hope you will consider what I have to say with an open heart and open mind, as I pledge to continue to listen to the diversity of voices in this struggle.

Why We Gather
The Michigan Womyn’s Music Festival is a soulful gathering of womyn from all over the world, created 38 years ago during the height of feminist organizing. Built from the ground up by womyn’s innovation and womyn’s labor, filled with art, performance, play and discourse – we live together for a week in the woods and create community as we know it in no other form. There’s freedom on that land that womyn living under patriarchy rarely touch; freedom to walk in the woods at night alone without fear; to be clothed or not clothed depending solely on comfort and personal style and without judgment; to move and work and play and love without the socio-cultural constraints that uniquely push down on all womyn, all the time. For these reasons, Michigan remains vital and vibrant even though countless other institutions from that burst of consciousness are gone. For these reasons, there’s no real debate about the value of the Festival – it is precisely why passions run so strong on all sides of this issue.

When we started Festival 38 years ago, we did so to make a home and a space where we could grow our own definition of female identity. At the time, the mere idea of a female identity autonomous of male identity was revolutionary. Over the course of nearly four decades, we have continued to discover, (re)define and live out what it means to be womon-identified and to recognize and honor diverse gender expression among womyn. Every August we do the work of growing into a community inclusive and meaningful for womyn from diverse class and cultural experiences, different abilities and ages - a community alive with a value system grown from the core of radical feminism. Over time, some clear collective values have emerged: communal cooperation; a willingness to show up and listen; an ethos of love, compassion, and active care for others; an undercurrent of strength and fierce resiliency; and a commitment to remain teachable. These values are the foundation of the Michigan community. These values reflect the intention of the space.

About the Intention
The Festival, for a single precious week, is intended for womyn who at birth were deemed female, who were raised as girls, and who identify as womyn. I believe that womyn-born womyn (WBW) is a lived experience that constitutes its own distinct gender identity.

As we struggle around the question of inclusion of trans womyn at the festival, we use the word intention very deliberately. Michigan holds this particular lived experience of womanhood as honorable, meaningful, unique and rich. Our intention has always been coupled with the radical commitment to never question any womon’s gender. We ask the greater community to respect this intention, and to value the complexity and validity of every gender identity, including that of WBW. The onus is on each individual to choose whether or how to respect that intention.

Rejecting Transphobia
I reject the assertion that creating a time and place for WBW to gather is inherently transphobic. This is a false dichotomy and one that prevents progress and understanding. I believe in the integrity of autonomous space used to gather and celebrate for any group, whether that autonomous space is defined by age, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, ability, gender, class or any other identity. Whatever spaces we carve out in our community to encourage healing and rejuvenation should be accepted, and we should support each other in this endeavor. Nobody should be asked to erase the need for autonomous spaces to demonstrate that they are sisters in struggle.

Clearly, our community struggles with the wide-ranging opinions that have formed around this question. Womyn who love the Festival deeply have intense feelings on all sides of this issue. There have been a great many good, loving and smart discussions between womyn who profoundly disagree, and there have been disrespectful and dehumanizing behaviors on both sides of the debate that demean all of our feminist political ideals. We all must stand up against hate speech, harassment and threats in any form, against any individual and against all of our communities.

I passionately believe the healing in our community will occur when we unconditionally accept trans womyn as womyn while not dismissing or disavowing the lived experience and realities of the WBW gender identity. Sadly, the extreme voices on this issue have driven much of the discussion, and the aggressive rhetoric leaves little room for building the alliances that are critical to everyone’s survival, growth and integrity.

We must find ways to be allies in this discussion. I know that for some, WBW space seems flatly incompatible with honoring and supporting trans womyn within the larger womyn’s communities. Regardless, we must listen to those who believe in the power of every womon’s voice, and commit to stay in a process with open hearts, open minds, and abiding respect even when that conversation gets incredibly hard. Space for WBW and a true solidarity with the trans community can and does co-exist.

Our Commitment to Each Other, My Commitment to You

The extreme positions being repeated, stoked, and disseminated on the internet do not represent the complex wholeness of the Festival voice, and they overshadow the more measured communication that will heal this divide. I call to each one of us to approach this issue in the purest example of sisterhood, to wrestle with the extremely difficult questions of our relationships with one another, and to do so always with compassion and abiding respect.

I commit to promote, foster and participate in continuing discussion on and off the land in hopes that we can all move towards greater understanding of each other’s perspectives. I will, however, turn my focus away from the destructive voices that do not seek progress, but only stoke division. As Festival works to survive and thrive into her fifth decade, I will do everything in my power to ensure that she continues as something beautiful, more complex than ever and yet true to the principles that spurred me to start this celebration in the first place.

I invite you to join me on this ongoing journey.

Lisa Vogel
MWMF founder