Trans News Worldwide

[smalltownguy]

April 17 , 2018

A model has set out her ambitions to be the first transgender woman to walk in the Victoria’s Secret show.



Leyna Bloom made her dreams clear in a recent tweet alongside two snaps of herself wearing a black bikini, writing: “Trying to be the 1st trans model of colour walk a #VictoriaSecret Fashion show. #transisbeautiful #LeynaBloom”.

The 27-year-old’s tweet quickly went viral, garnering more than 106,000 likes and 32,200 retweets.

Trying to be the 1st Trans model of color walk a #VictoriaSecret Fashion show. #transisbeautiful #LeynaBloom 💕 pic.twitter.com/xkLW5W9YqO

— Leyna Bloom (@leynabloom) April 9, 2018
The annual lingerie fashion show has been running for 23 years and has never cast a transgender woman of colour in its exclusive lineup, that last year starred Bella Hadid and Alessandra Ambrosio.

Were Bloom to be included, it would mark a historic moment for the brand that is perennially scrutinised in the media for its homogenised show cast, which primarily consists of whippet-thin and impossibly-toned women.

Fans praised the Chicago-based model for aspiring to diversify the show, urging the US lingerie brand to take note.

“You are sooo beautiful!! @VictoriasSecret, make it happen,” one wrote.

“While I don't care for Victoria's Secret, you absolutely deserve to walk! Any woman deserves to walk and feel good and confident about herself,” another added.

Bloom has been modelling professionally since 2014 and has walked the catwalk for New York-based labels Chromat and the Blonds.

It’s not the first time that the young beauty has taken a swipe at Victoria’s Secret.

In November 2017 Bloom criticised the brand for having “way more white girls” than any other race in its lineup, despite being praised by other outlets as the most diverse show yet.

"It's like every time they added a woman of colour they added another white girl,” she wrote.

“Next year they need to cast trans and curve models all colours not just Caucasians."

Speaking to Yahoo, Bloom said walking in the runway show has always been a dream of hers.

“This is a platform that glorifies femininity,” she said.

“I always felt in my most natural state I am heavenly.

“For my trans sisters, regardless of colour, this will be a moment for us all.”

[smalltownguy]

04/21/18 03:13 PM EDT

Trump admin plans to undo Obama-era health-care protections for transgender people: report



The Trump administration plans to get rid of a rule issued by President Obama that prevented health-care providers and insurers from discriminating against transgender people, The New York Times reported.

The Obama-era rule prohibited discrimination based on race, age, color, national origin, sex or disability for health programs that received federal funds, the Times reported.

Because most practicing physicians accept patients using Medicare or Medicaid, the rule widely applied to health-care providers across the U.S.

LGBTQ advocates say that Trump’s planned move would erase gains made for transgender Americans and get rid of treatments that transgender people have been denied in the past.

The Trump administration argues that they needed to make the changes because a federal judge found parts of the rule unlawful.

The White House is currently reviewing a draft of the rule submitted by the Department of Health and Human Services.

The move is the latest in what critics see as the Trump administration’s effort to scale back transgender rights.

In the past, Trump has worked to ban transgender people from the military and the Education Department got rid of guidelines for how to accommodate transgender students at schools.

[smalltownguy]

10 April, 2018

Trans women will be able to compete as women in this year's Boston Marathon



Transgender runners will be able to compete as their self-identified gender in the Boston Marathon on Monday, 16 April.

This is a welcome step forward for human rights, but not a new one: trans people have been quietly running the race for "several years", the Boston Athletic Association (BAA) told NPR.

The BAA has no specific policy on transgender runners taking part in the word-famous race, but this year there has been a heated debate following a profile in Canadian Running of three transgender women who signed up for the race

Concerns were raised by readers around the perception of 'fairness' and how testosterone could potentially give trans women runners a physical advantage.

The thought of registering for the competition under her identified gender is what inspired transgender activist Amelia Gapin to undergo the surgery, she told Canadian Running.

At least five openly transgender women will take part in the iconic 26.2-mile race through Boston this year - and it means more to them than cisgender people might be able to imagine.

The BAA has said it would rather not throw yet more hurdles in the path of the transgender community, with its chief Tom Grilk telling Washington Post:

We take people at their word. We register people as they specify themselves to be.

Members of the LGBT+ community have had a lot to deal with over the years and we'd rather not add to that burden.

But many races - including Boston, New York and Chicago - require registrants to show a government ID with the same name and genders as their application forms to get a bet a bib number, an obstacle for trans athletes who haven't legally changed their personal information.

Typically, people who were assigned male at birth have had a greater struggle registering to elite athletic events under their self-identified gender, and may require surgery or medication to lower their testosterone levels.

The Olympics allowed athletes to compete without gender confirmation surgery after revisiting its guidelines ahead of the 2016 Rio Games, but required female transgender registrants to prove their testosterone levels did not exceed a certain amount.

Perhaps critics concerned about fair competition when trans women run as women should turn their attention to the dehydration, reduced stamina and dizziness caused by treatments such as testosterone blockers.

[MrFanti]

I've talked to a couple of genetic lesbian women who have concerns about MTF transgender women competing in sports with genetic women....It becomes even more interesting when you thrown in folks like Janae Marie Kroc into the discussion...

[smalltownguy]

Apr 22 2018

‘They pulled me out of the ladies’ room, forced me to go men's instead’

Institute of Business Management recently held discussion featuring transgender people as well as experts from various fields to shed light on awareness about transgender rights

At a conference where one of the speakers was a transgender person, a famous Pakistani journalist told me the time to talk about transgender rights is far [from now], according to Hira Zainab, a student who also runs a non-governmental organisation.

Interestingly, in a country that puts the number of transgender persons at 10,418 — according to the sixth Population and Housing Census held late 2017 — but which transgender people and activists themselves claim could be anywhere between 300,000 to upwards of 500,000, it comes as no surprise that influencers and those in power believe the issue is of little-to-no consequence.

The Institute of Business Management — the college where Zainab studies — recently held a discussion featuring multiple transgender people as well as panellists from various fields, including the corporate world and media. It aimed to shed light on how crucial the goal is to creating awareness about transgender rights and actually working to achieve it.

The challenges Pakistani transgenders face are not just limited to identity cards or voting but extend to day-to-day activities, which hinder them from living in communities other than their Guru-led ones, trying to get accommodation on rent, and pursuing careers.

Hiba

In fact, Hiba, a transgender speaker, spoke of how she was shunned from family events because of “what people and other relatives would think of the family”.

“We come from the womb same as any other … It’s not my parents’ fault either … so why are we thought of as curses to our communities?”

Many landlords resort to gimmicks like offering available spaces on double the usual rent in order to deter transgender people from occupying it and force them away from the supposedly ‘decent' neighbourhoods.

This pushes transgender persons back into closely-knit communes where they reside in seclusion, under the leadership of their Gurus, and every transgender person knows the other. However, the lack of proper employment keeps these transgender communities poor, facilities-less, and illiterate.

In May 2017, Meral Kazmi, a SZABIST student whose entrepreneurship venture turned into an art house, took up a project with her peers wherein three transgender persons modelled as people belonging to their dream careers — chef, lawyer, and doctor — and photographed, the result of which was painted as a mural outside the campus.

Once it was complete and the costumes being wrapped up, however, one of those three broke down into tears, saying how a transgender person getting a proper job could not “be real, ever”.

While this is something that can be worked upon, the root of the problem stands with a lack of initiative and the hesitance to step up. Kazmi herself explained how a businessman once told her that he would willingly hire transgender people but it would be after someone else does for the first time.

Simi Naz

Yet there are transgender people like Lahore-based Simi Naz, who holds herself in high regard and believes in “snatching rights” from those in control.

“I’m not going to whine about it. I was born very beautiful, I have pretty eyes. I dance… yes, I dance every night in front of 250 people and that’s okay because I enjoy it and it gets me three square meals a day.”

But fear of the unknown is a major restraint, which further exacerbates the problem, says Naaz Fancy, a marketing and advertising executive who was present at the event as a panellist.

When people try to distance themselves from transgender people and fail at trying to get to know them, they become anxious in their presence.

Aradhiya Khan

Aradhiya Khan, another transgender person whose brother Salman is a social activist, perfectly captured this conundrum in her story, where she narrated how she was once forcefully pulled out of the ladies’ room at a restaurant where she worked at and ordered to go the men’s room instead.

And every Pakistani citizen knows full well how common it is for transgender people to be chased, harassed, and hooted and catcalled at. Once, when visiting a state hospital for medical attention, Hiba recalled that she and a friend were followed by random boys who kept repeating: “Do these ‘things’ [transgender people] get sick too?”

“Constitution states that every citizen has equal rights,” chimed in Sabin Agha, a seasoned journalist.

“The social structure is such that the common man is not provided proper awareness and maturity” to understand acceptance and inclusivity. “We have outright denied transgender people their rights — social level at the very least.”

Sabin Agha (centre)

The non-existence of gender diversity is a “denial, primarily due to religion and [lack of] education”, Agha said.

As transgender people struggle to get an education — like Nisha Rao, an LLB graduate who hopes to become a judge someday and has begged on the streets to pay tuition — it is now on the common Pakistani to step forward in being accepting and understanding.

While the corporate sector has the money, voice, and power to do more for equal opportunities, it is, according to Fancy, “still stuck on women; transgenders are a far cry”. But there is hope, however small it may be, because of people like Zainab, who says she would help everyone get a job regardless of their race, gender, sexuality or ethnicity.

“We are humans, sitting here to discuss why our fellow humans are not being given their basic rights,” she said.

“It doesn’t get worse than that.”

[smalltownguy]

4 March 2018

More transgender patients are opting to undergo genital surgery



Gender reassignment surgeries are reportedly on the rise in the United States, according to a major study conducted by The John Hopkins University School of Medicine.

The researchers analysed data compiled by the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) from 2000 to 2014, which gave them an indication of the number of patients seeking gender reassignment surgery across the country.

The NIS gathers data from approximately 1,000 hospitals around the US every year, which represents around 95 per cent of the nation’s population.

Using the data accumulated by the NIS, the team assessed a total of 37,827 hospital appointments for gender reassignment surgery.

The ages of the patients ranged from 26 to 49.

The initial analyses of the data were carried out from June to August 2015.

The authors of the study, which was led by Joseph Canner and Omar Harfouch and published in JAMA Surgery, discovered that the number of patients undergoing genital surgeries has risen drastically in recent years.

During a five-year period from 2000 to 2005, 72 per cent of the patients who had gender reassignment procedures in the US decided to undergo genital surgery.

From 2006 to 2011, this percentage increased to 83.9 per cent of patients.

The team also considered what kind of health insurance plans the patients had.

Of the 4,118 people who underwent genital surgery, 56.3 per cent did not have any health insurance cover.

For those who did have health insurance cover in the form of Medicare or Medicaid, 70 chose to have genital surgery in 2014.

This is a notable increase from the 25 patients covered by health insurance who had genital surgery between the years of 2012 to 2013.

The authors of the study noted that it is extremely important that third-party payers, such as health insurance companies, enforce policies that forbid the discrimination of people with gender identity disorder.

In doing so, this will help more transgender patients seek out the help they need should they wish to undergo gender reassignment procedures and improve the accumulation of gender identity data for further study.

In 2016 it was reported that the number of gender reassignment surgeries taking place in the UK had sharply risen, with the number of referrals at a clinic in Charing Cross quadrupling over a decade.

[smalltownguy]

APRIL 22,2018

Trump to Allow Anti-Trans Discrimination in Health Care


The administration will reverse a mandate of the ACA which bars discrimination against trans patients and ensures they receive coverage for vital services.

The Trump administration is using a Texas lawsuit to justify rolling back protections for trans patients that was included in the 2010 Obamacare legislation, The New York Times reports.

The Affordable Care Act (aka Obamacare) banned any hospital, doctor, or insurance company who receives federal funding from discriminating against or denying services based on sex; the Obama administration made it clear in 2016 that provision included transgender and gender-nonconforming patients. Since nearly all insurance plans, doctors, and hospitals accept the government-funded programs Medicare and Medicaid, the protections covered just about every patient in the country. The law greatly expanded coverage for transgender people and also ensured that those who didn't conform to stereotypical gender markers, but weren't trans — possibly LGB or queer-identifying — could not be denied services.

Another benefit of the Obama-era rule on gender identity was that is it allowed trans patients to access numerous services, not just gender-confirmation surgery, but affordable hormones and mental health services opened up to millions.

These benefits and protections are heading for oblivion though, according to the Times. The Trump administration is pointing to a January 2017 ruling from a Texas federal judge who said the 2010 law did not cover gender identity or presentation.

“Congress did not understand ‘sex’ to include ‘gender identity,’” Judge Reed O’Connor ruled. In the Affordable Care Act, he said, Congress “adopted the binary definition of sex.”

Trump's Health and Human Services department has drafted their own rule to rescind the protections, which is now with the White House for review. Trump's latest assault on trans people comes after he clumsily banned them from military service — an order temporarily blocked by courts — and removed guidance on accomodating trans youth in public schools.

[smalltownguy]

23rd April 2018

Equalities watchdog says UK government ‘voter ID’ trials will disenfranchise transgender voters

Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May (DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP/Getty Images)

The equalites watchdog has issued a dire warning over the UK government’s upcoming pilots of ‘voter ID’ schemes.

The UK government is rolling out voter ID pilots across four local areas, Watford, Bromley, Gosport, and Woking, for the local government elections next month. 
Under the plans, voters in the pilot areas will be required to show ID, such as a passport or driver’s licence, before they can vote – ahead of a planned wider rollout in future UK-wide elections.

The plans had already been likened to US state-level ‘voter ID’ laws, which are routinely criticised for disenfranchisement of African-Americans, the poor, and other minority groups unlikely to have such ID.

The Equalities and Human Rights Commission, which enforces equality and non-discrimination laws in England, Scotland and Wales, has issued a bleak warning about the UK trials in a letter of concern sent to Cabinet Office minister David Lidington this month.

The letter, leaked to the Observer, reiterates concerns expressed by LGBT groups over the lack of procedures in place to accommodate transgender voters who often do not have up-to-date identification documents that match their stated gender presentation.

It also warns that the rules could have an impact on older people and people from ethnic minority communities.



In the letter, the EHRC’s legal officer Claire Collier warns: “The Commission is concerned that the requirement to produce identification at the given local elections (Bromley, Gosport, Swindon, Watford and Woking) will have a disproportionate impact on voters with protected characteristics, particularly older people, transgender people, people with disabilities and/or those from ethnic minority communities.

“In essence, there is a concern that some voters will be disenfranchised as a result of restrictive identification requirements.”

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said it was further proof of the UK’s “hostile environment” for ethnic minorities, while Liberal Democrat Ed Davey called on the government to “make clear they that will act” to prevent people being disenfranchised by the tests.

Earlier this year PinkNews asked the Cabinet Office and the four councils involved in the UK voter ID pilot to clarify how they will ensure that transgender voters are not impacted.



PinkNews also asked what procedures have been put in place for transgender people whose current appearance does not match their official forms of ID, and asked what guidance will be provided to polling station volunteers on how to process issues relating to transgender voters.

A Cabinet Office spokesperson told PinkNews: “Local authorities are implementing Equality Impact Assessments and are working with partners to ensure that voter ID does not risk preventing any eligible voter from voting.

“It is in nobody’s interest that any elector is disenfranchised. Everyone eligible to vote will be able to do so.”

Each local authority was apparently required to complete an Equality Impact Assessment to ensure they take into account the needs of the trans community.

However, none of the councils could provide explicit details of any policies or guidance relating to transgender voters to PinkNews, nor any specific policy for resolving cases where voters are deemed by polling station volunteers to not match the appearance or details on their photo ID.



Stonewall executive Ruth Hunt told PinkNews: “We are concerned by the potential unintended consequences of the Government’s voter identification pilots and their use of photo ID.

“Access to photo ID can prove very difficult for some communities, including those who are BAME, disabled, or homeless, and LGBT people will of course make up part of these groups.

“For trans and non-binary people in particular this has the potential to cause significant problems, as some may not have photo identification that accurately reflects their gender identity. It’s not hard to imagine the challenges and confusion that could result from that in a polling station.

“We’re urging the Government to reconsider the proposed pilots and instead take steps to engage communities in future schemes, to ensure that more people from more communities feel empowered to vote.

“For elections, and elected officials, to be truly representative of the communities they are supposed to serve, we need to put effort into encouraging more minority groups to use their votes; not put in place measures that make it more difficult.”

Bromley, Gosport, and Woking councils all specify that voters will need to bring forms of ID, which could dissuade vulnerable trans people from showing up.

The pilots in Bromley and Gosport require voters to bring photo ID such as a passport or driving license to vote, or alternatively a polling card plus a form of non-photo ID such as a birth certificate or utility bill.

Woking only permits forms of photo ID, and requires people without forms of accurate photo ID to apply for a local elector card ahead of the vote. In Watford, voters only need to bring their polling card in order to vote.

In March, the LGBT Foundation and Stonewall signed on to an open letter headed by the Electoral Reform Society criticising the plans, alongside more than 30 other charities and NGOs.

The letter warns about potential impact on minority groups including transgender voters.

It says: “We are writing to express our collective concerns for the Government plans to pilot identification in polling stations at the local government elections in May.

“The Government’s commitment to building a safe and secure democracy is commendable. Electoral fraud is a serious crime and has the potential to undermine public confidence in elections, even if conducted on a small scale.

“However, there is simply not enough evidence of voter fraud in the UK to justify these potentially damaging pilots, which threaten to disenfranchise members of some of the most vulnerable groups of society. In 2016 there were 44 allegations of impersonation – the type of fraud that voter ID is designed to tackle – out of nearly 64 million votes, reflecting just 1 case for every 1.5 million votes cast.

“By comparison, the Electoral Commission has warned that 3.5 million people (7.5% of the electorate) in Great Britain do not have access to any form of photo ID. 11 million electors (24% of the electorate) do not have access to a passport or photographic driving licence.

“As organisations who support and represent a diverse range of communities, we have serious concerns that these proposals present a significant barrier to democratic engagement and risk compromising a basic human right for some of the most marginalised groups in society. Decades of international studies show that restrictive identification requirements are particularly disadvantageous to certain voter groups who are less likely to possess approved ID for a variety of socio-economic and accessibility reasons.

“Voter ID reforms could therefore affect young people, older people, disabled people, transgender and gender non-conforming people, BAME communities and the homeless.

“We are aware that the Local Authorities participating in the pilots will be providing alternative options for people without the photographic identification to vote in the local elections in May. However, we believe the measures do not go far enough to alleviate the potential risk of disenfranchisement and deterrent to voting.

“We are also concerned that the Local Authorities involved have failed to carry out adequate equality impact assessments of the pilots on protected individuals in their areas. We would be grateful to learn what assurances you can give us in this regard.

“We are also very concerned about the low levels of public awareness of the pilots and proposed reforms. We fear that many people will be unaware of changes to the voting process.

“To ensure that voters are not disenfranchised, it is vital that there is wide coverage of the new voting arrangements and that communications are accessible to everyone. Unfortunately there is little evidence to suggest that this has taken place in the various pilot areas even though the elections are now only two months away.

“In December, the Cabinet Office published a five-year democratic engagement plan designed to increase participation in democracy. It is disappointing that these electoral pilots directly undermine this worthy objective.

“We hope you listen to these concerns and urgently reconsider your decision to run the pilots as planned in the May local elections. We would be very happy to meet with you to discuss these issues in more detail and how our concerns may be mitigated.”

[smalltownguy]

April 25, 2018

All service chiefs: No unit cohesion problems with trans military service

U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David L. Goldfein has become the latest service chief to say trans military service has caused no unit cohesion issues. (Photo public domain)

All military service chiefs have now publicly stated allowing transgender people to serve in the U.S. armed services hasn’t resulted in any problems with unit cohesion or morale, undercutting a report from Defense Secretary James Mattis that raised fears about those issues without a transgender military ban.

Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein became the latest and final service chief to affirm transgender military service has caused no such problems during committee testimony Tuesday under questioning from Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.).

In response to Gillibrand’s question on whether he’s seen any issues of morale or discipline over allowing transgender people to serve in the military— a policy first implemented in the Obama years before President Trump sought to reverse it — Goldfein replied, “The way you present the question, I have not.”

“I will tell that you that I’ve talked to commanders in the field, first sergeants, senior NCOs and I’m committed to ensure that they have the right levels of guidance to understand these very personal issues that they’re dealing with,” Goldfein added. “And so, we continue to move forward to ensure that we understand the issues.”

Under further questioning from Gillibrand, Goldfein said he had met with transgender service members and learned two things from those meetings: Their commitment to service and “how individual each particular case is.”

“It’s not a one-size-fits-all approach,” Goldfein added. “It’s very personal to each individual, and that’s why I go back to we have an obligation to ensure that we understand this medically and that we can provide our commanders and supervisors the guidance they need to be able to deal with this, so we don’t have issues.”

Goldfein’s testimony is consistent with those of his fellow chiefs — Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. John Richardson and Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Robert Neller — who have each said the change in the Obama years resulting in transgender military service has resulted in no problems with morale or unit cohesion.

U.S. Coast Commandant Vice Adm. Karl Schultz — who’s head of the Coast Guard, but technically not a service chief — has also said transgender service has not caused problems. Last week, he said during congressional testimony he’s “not aware of any disciplinary or unit cohesion issues resulting from the opening of the Coast Guard to transgender individuals.”

The unanimous denials from the service chiefs of unit cohesion problems with transgender service contradicts the recommendation from Mattis delivered to the White House on February, which cited such issues as a reason to ban transgender people from the military.

Based upon that recommendation, Trump reaffirmed in March his transgender military ban after announcing last year on Twitter he’d seek to ban transgender people from the military “in any capacity.”

Aaron Belkin, director of the San Francisco-based Palm Center, said the unanimity among the service chiefs denying unit cohesion problems with transgender service speaks volumes.

“The chiefs have spoken with one voice in repudiating a central tenet of the Pentagon report just weeks after its publication,” Belkin said. “The report did not offer any evidence to sustain its assertion that transgender troops harm cohesion. Now we know why: Two years’ experience of inclusive service has not provided any.”

As a result of litigation filed against Trump by LGBT legal groups, the Defense Department has been enjoined from enforcing Trump’s ban and must allow transgender people to enlist and remain in service.

That litigation and those rulings came up when Gillibrand turned to Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson, who was also present at the hearing.

Although Wilson acknowledged Under Secretary of the Air Force Matthew Donovan represented the service on the panel of experts Mattis convened to come up with recommendations on transgender service, she declined to answer other questions.

When Gillibrand brought up a letter from the American Medical Association saying the Mattis recommendation defy medical science, Wilson said she had no knowledge about whether Air Force health professionals or outside groups had contributed to his panel, insisting she “wasn’t involved.”

Asked by Gillibrand point blank if she ever recommended a change in policy on transgender service as Air Force secretary, Wilson dodged and made a reference to pending litigation.

“This is a matter that’s in the courts, and I think it’s probably best when things are under litigation that that process play out,” Wilson said. “The guidance that the chief and I have given the service is that all airmen are being treated with dignity and respect and we comply with a court order on accessions as well as retaining airmen who have disclosed that they are transgender.”

Gillibrand retorted the “White House hasn’t taken your advice about leaving it the courts,” pointing out the Mattis recommendation and Trump’s military ban is contrary to rulings from judges in favor of transgender service. Wilson again referenced the litigation.

“That is now in the courts, the new recommended policy change” Wilson said. “While that is being considered by the courts, the court order that we’re under continues. We continue to access transgender members in accordance with the court order.”

Wilson has been praised by the anti-LGBT Family Research Council and has an anti-LGBT record as a member of Congress. As Air Force secretary, Wilson sought to have a penalty lifted on an Air Force commander who refused to recognize the same-sex spouse of a subordinate in retirement materials.

Belkin said the Wilson’s responses to Gillibrand under questioning were an “artful dodge” and raise questions about the secretary’s level of involvement in the trans ban.

“She said she wasn’t part of the panel, but the real question is whether she (and her fellow culture warriors at the Family Research Council) were part of the process, not just the panel,” Belkin said.

[smalltownguy]

April 26, 2018

Stlpublicradio Cut & Paste: Transgender group art show aims for visibility as safety issues linger

This image combines two portraits by different artists in the Metro Trans Umbrella Group's "Transcending the Spectrum" art exhibition.
METRO TRANS UMBRELLA GROUP

Over the past five years, the Metro Trans Umbrella Group art show has more than doubled in size. This year’s event at Koken Art Factory in south St. Louis on Saturday boasts 35 visual artists and 25 stage performers.

The exhibition has expanded as more transgender artists feel safe to show their creations, according to curator Alex Johnmeyer and artist Eric Schoolcraft. But, they noted, growing visibility also highlights the dangers of being seen. To address that, organizers put a safety team in place to escort attendees to and from their cars.

“The murder rate for trans people is staggering, especially for trans women of color,” Schoolcraft said.

Last year, nearly three dozen transgender people died violently in the United States.

In our latest Cut & Paste podcast, Schoolcraft and Johnmeyer talk about the issues transgender people still face, the “Transcending the Spectrum” art exhibition and their personal stories of coming out.