1/12/14

Pico Rivera trans student Staceyy Holidayy suspended for act of gender rebellion

El Rancho high school student Staceyy Holidayy was suspended Wednesday after school officials determined that her top violated the schools dress code . The code which does not specify gender, states that "Tank tops, spaghetti straps, halter tops and low cut tops may not be worn. Bare midriffs may not be exposed."

Ms. Holidayy wore this top in hopes of exposing the schools non compliance with AB 1266 which remains in effect until such a time that the petition effort shows they have not duplicated a certain percentage of signatures. Until then the school is obliged to abide by the law which they contend they have.

Staceyy Holidayy says they are not, having left her no option but to use the teachers bathroom and the Nurses office to change for PE.

El Rancho Unified School District Superintendent Martin Galindo said although she was given a choice school officials decided it would be 'safer' for her to change for P.E. class in the nurse’s office and use the office’s restroom.

Galindo said she agreed to the arrangement, while Holidayy says she had no choice but to do so. “It made me feel bad and different using the nurse’s office,” she told The Whittier Daily News





Ballot Pedia update on the referendum effort: On January 8, it was announced by election officials that a random sample of the signatures indicated that if all the signatures were reviewed, 482,550 of them would be valid. That would be 95.6% of the required 504,760 and it would indicate an overall validity rate of 77.92%. This would be insufficient for the measure to qualify for the ballot. However, it is close enough to the required threshold that a process of individually checking each signature has been triggered. This process must be finished by election officials no later than February 24, 2014.


1/11/14

Demonstrators who interrupted "Road To Sochi" in Boston could be branded terrorists in Russia

The State Department has issued a travel warning for LGBT people who plan on attending the 2014 Russian winter games in Sochi.
In June 2013, Russia’s State Duma passed a law banning the “propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations” to minors. The U.S. government understands that this law applies to both Russian citizens and foreigners in Russia. Russian citizens found guilty of violating the law could face a fine of up to 100,000 rubles ($3,100). Foreign citizens face similar fines, up to 14 days in jail, and deportation. The law makes it a crime to promote LGBT equality in public, but lacks concrete legal definitions for key terms, and provides no clarity as to which actions will be interpreted by authorities as “LGBT propaganda.”

The United States places great importance on the protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms of all people, including lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons, as well as anyone attending or participating in the Olympic and Paralympic Games. The U.S. calls on Russia to uphold its international commitments regarding freedom of assembly and association and freedom of expression, now and in the future.

Russia has in place what it calls a "Steel curtain" with thousands of troops enforcing their laws around Sochi. That includes the horrifically disempowering "gay propaganda" laws.



It would be fair to assume had this protest occurred near Sochi the participants would have been whisked away and not seen for days, if ever.