Trans News Worldwide

26 APR 2018

Why Hull's transgender lottery winner Melissa Ede plans to become a celebrity hypnotist
She hopes to be known as 'Mesmerising Melissa' on stage

Transgender lottery millionaire Melissa Ede wants to be a Derren Brown-style celebrity hypnotist.

The 57-year-old, who scooped £4m on a National Lottery scratchcard, hopes to be known as “Mesmerising Melissa” on stage.


The former taxi driver has passed an online Hypnosis for Beginners course with a 100 per cent score.

Attachment 1071658 Melissa Ede

She signed up for it after seeing Derren Brown live in Hull days earlier with her partner, Rachel Nason.

Melissa posted a photo of her certificate on Facebook, with the caption: “The first stage of becoming mesmerising Melissa.”

When asked by a fan if she plans to do live shows, she replied: “Yeah.”

The course, run by hypnotherapy trainer Dan Jones, claims it teaches “the process of doing hypnotic inductions and how to hypnotise anyone without the need for hypnosis scripts”.

Melissa, who has four children, had gender reassignment surgery in 2011 and has become a well-known local figure in Hull.

Attachment 1071659 Melissa Ede won £4 million on a scratch card

She also posts bizarre videos online with items such as a bottle of mayonnaise hanging from her chest.

In her latest video Melissa, formerly known as Les, has also filmed herself dancing around with lollipops and margarita pizzas stuck to her breasts.

Melissa Ede admits she splashes her £4m Lottery win on charity shop bargains

In February it was revealed she had spent over £3,000 on a new look including cheek fillers, Botox, lip fillers, a brow lift and “under-eye plumping”.

Apr 26, 2018

Police: Transgender woman likely knew her attacker

BRIDGEPORT -
Police are investigating what led up to the shooting of a well-known transgender woman.

It happened in an apartment near Park and Stillman streets at around 2 p.m. Wednesday.

Police believe the 49-year-old victim was shot on the first floor of the apartment building.

They say the victim likely knew the suspect, though it's unclear if the suspect was already in the apartment or came to shoot her.

Police say the victim was shot at least once in the face and several times in the arms.

She's unable to speak right now.

News 12 spoke with one of her friends who says she can't believe this happened.

"A lot of people know her here in Bridgeport, she has been living in Bridgeport for a long time, I don't see where she has a problem with anyone," says Alexandra Molina.

Police can only communicate with the victim by notepad right now.

They're hoping once she's able to speak again, they'll be able to determine a motive for the shooting.

connecticut.news12.com

APR 27, 2018

As countries tighten transgender protections, will Switzerland follow?

Attachment 1071810
A proposed Swiss amendment to outlaw discrimination based on gender identity raises many questions about legal recognition and language – for example, on civil documents like passports.

As many countries introduce more legal protections for transgender people, Swiss politicians are examining introducing similar measures. If approved, it will be a victory for transgender rights groups, but implementation may not be easy.

The latest Trans Rights Europe Index 2017 shows much of Western Europe has strengthened transgender rights in some way in the last five years in line with recommendations from the Council of Europe and international human rights standards.

In mid-April, the parliament in Portugal approved a law that made the country only the sixth in Europe to allow a change of gender without medical or state intervention. A month earlier, the Austrian Constitutional Court opened proceedings to repeal state registration of sex and Sweden became the first country in the world to offer compensation to transgender people who were forced to undergo sterilisation to be allowed to change their legal gender. Malta has been at the forefront of transgender rights, recently introducing policies on inclusion in education, healthcare, and prison facilities.

Next year, the Swiss parliament will decide on an amendment (in German) to the Criminal Code that would make hate speech and discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity illegal. This would be in addition to race, ethnicity, and religion, which are protected at present. If passed, it would be a victory for the LGBTIQ community in Switzerland, but there is already heated debate on how such a law would be interpreted in practice and where to draw the line between hate speech and free speech.

The passage in Canada last year of Bill C-16, which bans discrimination and hate speech on the basis of gender identity and expression, also unleashed a fiery debate about how to implement such protections when fixed binary gender identities (man and woman or male and female) are so engrained in everything from pronouns to birth certificates.

An important signal
The Swiss parliamentary initiative (in German) to amend Article 261 has been in the pipeline since 2013, when it was presented by Mathias Reynard of the Social Democratic party. The original text only referred to sexual orientation, but gender identity was later added. (See draft language, in German, here.) Following consultations in 2017, the deadline for a vote in parliament was extended until spring 2019.

While transgender people are afforded some protections under current laws, Alecs Recher, head of legal services at the Transgender Network Switzerland (TGNS) (site in German, French and Italian) says passing Art. 261b would “be an important signal that Switzerland does not tolerate hate speech and discrimination against LGBT. It is also a form of prevention, discouraging people from committing such acts.”

There are also real implications for the health and safety of transgender people, says Recher. “The law would make it possible to bring a criminal case against a person who targets transgender people generally with hate speech. Current laws only protect individuals from attacks on someone’s personality or honour” under different articles of the Swiss Criminal Code and Civil Code.

The initiative also adds sexual orientation and gender identity to the prohibited grounds for discrimination in the case that a person refuses to provide someone with a service intended for the general public. Although Article 8 of the Constitution prohibits discrimination in general terms on various grounds including gender and way of life, the new initiative, if passed, would make such acts a criminal offence with a sentence of up to three years or a fine.

There are already some protections from discrimination at work under the Federal Act on Gender Equality. However, high unemployment rates for transgender people, estimated to be around 20% — five to six times higher than average in Switzerland — indicate that challenges remain. A study co-financed by the Swiss Federal Office for Gender Equality (EBG), found that around 25% of participants lost their jobs after coming out, or experienced a deterioration of their professional situation.

Recher explains that what really worries him is how transgender people are starting to view discrimination as normal. “When providing legal counselling, I find that people face mobbing, bullying, and discrimination so often that they have come to acknowledge it as a part of life. They don’t even see the use in pursuing legal action or telling someone about the indecent behaviour. Creating more legal protections would send the message that this isn’t tolerated and hopefully give people the confidence to speak up.”

Implementation debate
One of the key points of debate of the C-16 law in Canada is whether the law infringes upon freedom of speech. This was triggered in part by criticism from a University of Toronto professor who refused to use a preferred pronoun for his students, saying it violated his right to free speech.

Consultations (in French and German) in 2017 on the Swiss initiative in the House of Representatives revealed similar tensions and sharp divisions. The majority opinion argued that since transgender people are at above-average risk of suicide due to hate crimes, they warrant special protection. It also refuted arguments by the minority opinion that there are problems with interpreting concepts like gender identity. Representing the minority opinion, Yves Nidegger of the Swiss People’s Party (SVP/UDC), in an article published in French-language newspaper Le Temps, argued that the initiative “would penalize the very groups it claims to protect. No more fitness or women-only hotels since refusing men entry is like denying someone a service because of their sex”. There were also questions about the implications for freedom of expression enshrined in Article 16 of the Constitution.

Recher does not believe that refusing to use a preferred pronoun would qualify as hate speech in Switzerland. “But, it would nevertheless be disrespectful,” he says. This aside, there are still important considerations for putting such a law into practice. This includes questions about legal gender recognition and language. While Swiss law permits a change of legal gender, there is currently no legal gender recognised beside male and female. A few courts in Switzerland still require medical procedures to legally change genders despite the European Court of Human Rights finding that this violates human rights.

Complicating things in Switzerland is the multiple languages in the country. Some transgender people argue that the gender neutral “they” for the singular in the third person makes it easier for the English language to adapt, in contrast to Switzerland’s official languages, German, French, and Italian.

Male, Female or X

A number of countries have recently taken steps to introduce alternatives to binary gender selections. In 2017, the highest court in Germany ruled in favour of the introduction of a third gender in civil documents, making it the first in Europe to do so. The Court said that the Constitution protected the personality rights of individuals who do not define themselves as male or female, adding that the current law on civil status interfered with that right.

Malta, Denmark, Australia, and several other countries allow “X” as an option in passports and other government documents. The Australian passport office states: “We can issue a passport to sex and gender diverse applicants, identifying them as M (male), F (female) or X (indeterminate/intersex/unspecified).” It also includes instructions for people who are transitioning to another sex.

In June 2017, Oregon became the first US state and the District of Columbia became the first city to allow residents to identify as other than male or female on state driver’s licenses.

Companies are also adapting. In 2014, Facebook introduced 56 gender identities to choose from including androgynous, bi-gender, intersex, gender fluid or transsexual. Other sites like Flickr allow users to put “other” while some social media sites have removed gender selection fields altogether.

swissinfo.ch

APRIL 28 2018

Joy Reid Uses Her Show to Apologize

Attachment 1071902 But the MSNBC anchor stuck to her belief that homophobic posts on her blog are from hacking.

BY LUCAS GRINDLEY
APRIL 28 2018 1:57 PM EDT

MSNBC anchor Joy Reid still doesn’t believe she wrote the latest homophobic posts to surface from her old blog, but she apologized today for much of what she does remember saying.

“I can only say that the person I am now is not the person I was then,” said Reid during her show, AM Joy, on Saturday morning.

A number of homophobic and transphobic writings first surfaced last year from Reid’s time as a commentator in Florida. Some she takes responsibility for, while others that became public this month she claims are the result of someone hacking her blog.

“Many of you have seen these blog posts circulating online and in social media,” she told viewers. “Many of them are homophobic, discriminatory, and outright weird and hateful.” Reid says a friend first discovered them in December and forwarded links. “I was stunned,” she said. “Frankly, I couldn’t imagine where they could have come from or whose voice that was.”

Reid said she hired cyber security experts to track down evidence her blog must’ve been hacked.

“And the reality is they have not been able to prove it,” she conceded on Saturday. The Daily Beast—which also suspended Reid’s column on the site—reported earlier this week that Reid’s claim to be hacked couldn’t be proven. “But here is what I know. I genuinely don’t believe I wrote those hateful things, because they are completely alien to me. But I can definitely understand, based on things I have tweeted and have written in the past, why some people don’t believe me.”

Reid then spent much of her time explaining her upbringing and acknowledging her past homophobia.

“I have not been exempt from being dumb or cruel or hurtful to the very people want to advocate for,” she said. “I own that. I get it. And for that I am truly, truly sorry.” She apologized specifically to the transgender people for once having made transphobic cracks about Ann Coulter, who she also apologized to.

Reid recounted the story of one gay friend who she had failed in particular.

“I can remember a friend of mine, my freshman year in college, telling me he was gay, and my knee-jerk reaction being that it was so disappointing to the women he could have married,” recalled Reid. “He was so hurt, he didn’t speak to me for months. I am heartbroken that I didn’t do better back then.”

Time will tell whether the apology is enough to repair the damage to Reid, with PFLAG rescinding an award for allyship that it had planned to give. After the apology aired, Reid is already receiving support online from colleagues.

By TOI | Saturday | 28th April, 2018

Raipur walks for equality, hosts first transgender fashion show.

Attachment 1071904

The main focus of this show was on the transgender models a nd their fight towards equality. We, as a country have shunned the transgender community for the longest time even if they have been putting up a decent fight. In an attempt at accepting them into society, we have come up with various ways to help them ease into the society. A lot of people had come to the show to show their support for the models and community as well. The walk was one to remember and has created its own unique history in the hearts and minds of the people who attended it.

We, as a country have shunned the transgender community for the longest time even if they have been putting up a decent fight.

In an attempt at accepting them into society, we have come up with various ways to help them ease into the society.

One such attempt was made by the people of Raipur by hosting the first fashion show for them.This show was held at Muktakari Manch at Ghasidas Grahlay, and was an immediate hit.

A lot of people had come to the show to show their support for the models and community as well.

Keep it up. All this is greatly appreciated

April 29, 2018

Health care new front for rollback of transgender rights under Trump

Attachment 1071948 Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, lawyer for the LGBT civil rights group Lambda Legal, poses outside his Manhattan office, Friday in New York. Military service, bathroom use, job bias and now health care. The Trump administration is under fire for rewriting a rule barring discrimination in health care due to “gender identity.” Groups representing transgender people expect the Obama protections to be gutted and are preparing to take the administration to court. “The proposed rollback does fit into a pattern of transphobia and anti-LGBT sentiment in this administration,” said Gonzalez-Pagan. Bebeto Matthews — The Associated Press

By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, The Associated Press
POSTED: 04/29/18, 9:37 AM EDT

WASHINGTON >> Military service. Bathroom use. Job bias. And now, health care.

The Trump administration is coming under fire for rewriting a federal rule that bars discrimination in health care due to “gender identity.” Critics say it’s another attempt to undercut acceptance for transgender people.

The Health and Human Services Department rule dates to the Obama administration, a time when LGBT people gained political and social recognition. But a federal judge in Texas said the rule went too far by concluding that discrimination on the basis of gender identity is a form of sex discrimination, which is forbidden by civil rights laws.

Instead of appealing the judge’s injunction, the Trump administration has opted to rewrite the rule, which applies to health care providers and insurers receiving federal funds.

Roger Severino, head of the department’s Office for Civil Rights, said the rewrite will address the “reasonableness, necessity and efficacy” of the Obama-era requirement. He refused to discuss specifics, as the revision is under White House review before its official release.

Groups representing transgender people expect the Obama protections to be gutted and are preparing to take the administration to court.

“The proposed rollback does fit into a pattern of transphobia and anti-LGBT sentiment in this administration,” said Omar Gonzalez-Pagan, a lawyer with Lambda Legal, a civil rights organization.

He ran through a checklist: President Donald Trump’s call to bar military service by transgender people; Attorney General Jeff Sessions’ memo concluding that civil rights laws don’t protect transgender people from discrimination on the job; the override of Obama-era guidance that allowed transgender students to use school bathrooms that matched their gender identities.

Social and religious conservatives are one of the administration’s most steadfast constituencies, and the White House has been out front championing their causes, including restrictions on abortion and legal protections for health care providers with moral and religious qualms about particular procedures.

Behind the latest health care dispute is a medically-recognized condition called “gender dysphoria” — discomfort or distress caused by a discrepancy between the gender that a person identifies as and their gender at birth. Consequences can include severe depression. Treatment can range from sex-reassignment surgery and hormones to people changing their outward appearance by adopting a different hairstyle or clothing.

Under the Obama-era rule, a hospital could be required to perform gender-transition procedures such as hysterectomies if the facility provided that kind of treatment for other medical conditions. The rule was meant to carry out the anti-discrimination section of the Affordable Care Act, which bars sex discrimination in health care but does not use the term “gender identity.”

In the Texas case, a Catholic hospital system, several states, and a Christian medical association argued that the rule went beyond the law as written and would coerce providers to act against their medical judgment and religious beliefs.

That rule “would have forced doctors to perform gender transition procedures on children, even if that would be against their best medical judgment and they believed it would be harmful to the child,” said Luke Goodrich, a lawyer with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which is involved in the case.

The American Academy of Pediatrics says that for children who have yet to reach puberty, gender transition does not involve any medical interventions, but instead focuses on social changes such as clothing and calling the child by another name.

The Becket Fund responded that the Obama administration did not limit the application of its nondiscrimination rule to adults.

UCLA legal scholar Jocelyn Samuels oversaw drafting of the anti-discrimination rule while in the Obama administration, and says it reflected established legal precedent that transgender people are protected under federal sex discrimination laws. “The case law on whether sex discrimination includes gender identity has been pretty clear for quite a while,” said Samuels.

The original rule did not override either the medical judgment or religious beliefs of providers, said Samuels, arguing those are protected by other laws.

The timetable for the Trump administration’s proposed changes is uncertain, but the rewrite isn’t likely to settle the debate. The transgender controversy could follow the path of other Trump initiatives to the Supreme Court. ACLU attorney Joshua Block said that five federal appeals courts have ruled that discrimination based on gender identity violates federal laws against sex discrimination.

In Congress, a GOP advocate for transgender rights is urging the administration to re-evaluate. Rep Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Fla., came to the U.S. from Cuba as a child.

“I fled from a communist regime to come to this land of opportunity and freedom, where if you work hard and are a responsible member of society, you have the ability to get ahead,” said Ros-Lehtinen. “That principle should apply to anyone, including transgender Americans. I urge the administration to guide its policies under the premise of freedom, opportunity and equality.”

One of Ros-Lehtinen’s children is a transgender man.

This administration perhaps someone in particular in the administration is focused on this topic and out to get them, I think. Hateful beings.

1 MAY 2018

Caitlyn Jenner 'to marry transgender student 47 YEARS her junior' as it's revealed she 'hasn't met' Khloe and Kim's babies

The former Olympian and reality star is reportedly planning to tie the knot in an intimate ceremony

Caitlyn Jenner has said time and time again that she's "just friends" with blonde bombshell Sophia Hutchins.

But now, it's being reported that they're getting married!

After their close friendship was described as a "mother and daughter" relationship, it's now said they've been dating in recent weeks.

And things are getting serious very quickly - despite their 47-year age gap.

If Caitlyn, 68, married 21-year-old transgender student Sophia, it would be her fourth marriage.

Before transitioning in 2015, she tied the knot three times as Bruce - to Chrystie Crownover in 1972, Linda Thompson in 1981, and to Kris Jenner in 1991.

Caitlyn Jenner's post-surgery sex life revealed - as sources claim she's dating a model 47 years her junior

Attachment 1072348Caitlyn is reportedly getting married (Image: ITV Picture Desk)

Attachment 1072349Caitlyn had denied dating Sophia in the past (Image: Getty Images North America)

Caitlyn has six biological children - two with each wife - and was step-father to Kris' kids, Kourtney, Kim, Khloe and Rob Kardashian.

Now, a source close to the star has told Heat magazine: "Cait really sees herself spending the rest of her life with Sophia.

"She lost her support system when she fell out with her family and these days, it feels like Sophia's the only person she can count on."

Earlier this year, it's said that Caitlyn turned to Sophia when her relationship with the Kardashians began to break down.

Attachment 1072350She was married to Kris Jenner before she transitioned (Image: Instagram)

She's hardly been in touch with the famous family ever since she took a massive swipe at ex Kris in her autobiography, The Secrets Of My Life, released last year.

The source added to the mag: "Cait is a complete outcast at the moment. She has also lost friends in the LGBT community because of her political views [backing Donald Trump].

"She was really hoping to reconnect with the Kardashians, especially with Khloe and Kim having had babies, but sadly she hasn't met them, and she hasn't even got to spend much time with her new granddaughter Stormi [Kylie Jenner's baby]. She just wants some companionship and really felt all alone before she met Sophia."

Caitlyn and Sophia live together and are rarely seen without one another by their sides.

They're reportedly planning an intimate ceremony near Caitlyn's home in Malibu.

However, a source close to Caitlyn told Mirror Online that while they could be dating, marriage isn't on the cards just yet.

Back in January, Caitlyn made a number of revelations during her tell-all interview on Piers Morgan's Life Stories.

And she said at the time she was open to dating men and women.

She said: "It could be either. I don't know. It is kind of fun so see the world from the girl's side. You know."

May 3, 2018

India’s largest transgender festival kicks off

Celebrated every year at the Koothandavar Temple in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, Koovagam - the country’s largest transgender festival - kicked off recently.

The festival attracts transvestites from all parts of India to participate in a re-enactment of a tale of Mahabharata.

It commemorates the myth of Hindu Lord Krishna taking female form in order to marry Lord Aravan – a warrior who fought the Mahabharata War against rivals - for which trangenders dress up in a symbolic act to marry Lord Aravan.

The next day they mourn the death of Aravan - who sacrificed his life on the battlefield – by breaking their bangles.

Attachment 1072631

Koovagam lasts for about 18 days and is considered as the biggest jamboree for the gender.

The unique gathering also entails various beauty pageants, seminars (that discuss basic transgender rights), music and dance competitions and events.

May 2, 2018

This Transgender Teen Is Compared ‘Every Day’ to Victoria Beckham

Attachment 1072632 Victoria Beckham

AS many Spice Girls fans know, no one can replace Victoria Beckham. The 44-year-old is one-of-a-kind, a fashion icon, and has defined what it means to be posh. But like any influential pop culture figure, the singer-turned-designer has her fair share of doppelgängers and her latest might be her most uncanny yet. Ruby Corder, a transgender teen from Arlesey, United Kingdom, looks so much like the mom of four that she hears comparisons to her “every day.”

Attachment 1072633Ruby Corder,

In an interview with Daily Mail, Corder, who is 18 and came out as transgender a year ago, revealed that she began hearing more comparisons to Beckham when she started experimenting with makeup a few years ago. After the teen became better at doing her own makeup, including contouring her decolletage to create the illusion of breasts, the look-alike comparisons escalated.

MAY 03, 2018

Campaign launches battle to defeat repeal of transgender protections

Attachment 1072803JONATHAN WIGGS/GLOBE STAFF

House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo said transgender advocates and their allies will need to “build understanding about transgender people and fight deceptive and hateful claims” in order to defeat a ballot measure this fall.
By Stephanie Ebbert GLOBE STAFF MAY 03, 2018

Evoking memories of California voters repealing gay marriage through Proposition 8 a decade ago, transgender advocates are encouraging their allies not to be complacent this November when transgender rights are tested on the Massachusetts ballot.

“No one thought that California would vote to revoke marriage equality. But they did,” said Kasey Suffredini, co-chair of the Freedom for All Massachusetts campaign.

Coordinators kicked off their campaign on Thursday, announcing that they have enlisted more than 1,000 partners in their coalition defending transgender rights from repeal. They include Harvard Pilgrim, Google and Eastern Bank, as well as sports teams — the Bruins, Red Sox, Celtics, Patriots, and Revolution.

On the opposing side is the Keep MA Safe campaign, led by some of the same forces that fought the legalization of gay marriage in Massachusetts more than a decade ago. The referendum they got onto the ballot in November asks voters to repeal the state’s 2016 law protecting transgender people from discrimination in public accommodations. And that makes Massachusetts ground zero in the latest round of the nation’s culture wars.

“The eyes of the nation are here on Massachusetts,” said Mason Dunn, executive director of the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition and the cochair of the Freedom for All campaign. “We have the unfortunate designation of being the first state to ever put transgender rights on the ballot for a popular vote. What happens here will have far-reaching implications across America.”

House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo said the coalition will need to do what the House did in 2015 and 2016 – “to build understanding about transgender people and fight deceptive and hateful claims.”

“We cannot lose this vote,” added DeLeo. “We can’t go backwards. We have to show the world what Massachusetts stands for.”

Suffredini noted that the coalition might also have to battle some ballot confusion in November, letting their allies know which way to vote on the somewhat counterintuitive question.

A “yes” vote preserves transgender antidiscrimination protections.

A “no” vote is a vote to repeal them.

And that’s not the only confusion around the issue. Even DeLeo, who was lauded for championing the original antidiscrimination bill in the House, bungled his pronouns at the campaign kickoff.

In trying to praise Suffredini, a transgender man who was an LGBTQ advocate on Beacon Hill before transitioning, he initially thanked “her” for “her support and advice.”

Then he quickly edited himself. “Kasey, he has been just an unbelievable friend.”

Stephanie Ebbert can be reached at Stephanie.Ebbert@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @StephanieEbbert

4th May 2018

Caitlyn Jenner to give lecture on transgender issues in the House of Commons

US reality TV star and transgender rights campaigner Caitlyn Jenner is to address the House of Commons about trans rights.

The lecture, part of Channel 4’s diversity lecture series, will address issues around gender and transphobia. 
Jenner, 68, will in the footsteps of the actors Idris Elba and Riz Ahmed who have previously spoken about their experiences of being ethnic minority and working class.

A spokesman for the channel said: “The aim of the Channel 4 diversity lecture is to raise awareness and stimulate public debate about diversity issues.

“Caitlyn Jenner is one of the most high-profile transgender people in the world and her transition brought transgender issues into the mainstream, helping to stimulate debate and increase awareness.”

The lecture comes at the start of the broadcaster’s Genderquake season, two weeks of programmes which they hope will “open up the debate on gender.”

Jenner has proved a controversial choice among some to give the talk.

The registered Republican has been an outspoken supporter of US President Trump since he was elected – despite him pursuing a string of policies curbing trans people’s rights.

Attachment 1072904 Caitlyn Jenner

Jenner ignored warnings from her transgender friends and supported Donald Trump and Mike Pence in 2016, insisting she would not be a “single issue” voter and claiming she could help influence the GOP on LGBT rights. 

Jenner later tweeted: “Trump administration’s latest in a string of attacks on trans people: trans students, trans service members, & now employment protections for trans workers.

“This systematic gutting of non-discrimination protections for trans people is a disgrace!”

Last year she forced to turn down a transgender activism award, following anger and demands that it be rescinded from activists.

The award was from St. John’s Well Child & Family Center, a network of community healthcare centres in Los Angeles.

Jenner had been criticised by many LGBT activists due to her controversial support of anti-LGBT politicians including Ted Cruz and Trump.

May 04, 2018

TN Transgender Wins Miss Koovagam Pageant

Villupuram (Tamil Nadu) [India], May 04 (ANI): Mobina, a transgender from Chennai who won Miss Koovagam pageant, has thanked everyone after bagging the title.

She told ANI, "I see news about me on newspapers and TV. I am really happy. I want to thank my community, family, friends and workplace."

Meanwhile, Preethi from Chennai bagged the second position while Subashree from Erode came third.

The 18-day Koovagam festival saw contestants traveling 30 km for the main event on Tuesday.

At Koothandavar temple, they re-enacted a Mahabharata episode, wherein Lord Krishna took the avatar of Mohini, marries Aravan, the son of Arjuna.

The fest concluded after the priests, after the priests of Koothandavar temple broke the bangles and untied "thalis" worn by transgenders symbolically turning them into widows. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)

MAY 4, 2018

New Hampshire Passed A Bill Protecting Transgender People

New Hampshire is on its way to becoming the 20th state with explicit civil rights protections for transgender and gender non-conforming people. On Wednesday, the state Senate passed House Bill 1319, which would add gender identity to the state's existing anti-discrimination laws.
Republican Gov. Chris Sununu signaled he intends to sign the bipartisan legislation.
HB1319 would prohibit discrimination against people based on their gender identity in public spaces, the workplace, and housing. These protections already exist to shield people against discrimination based on their sex, religion, race, and sexual orientation. If Sununu signs HB1319 into law, the protections would automatically extend to transgender and gender non-conforming folks.
“New Hampshire’s leaders are demonstrating that nondiscrimination protection is not — and should never be — a partisan issue. From Alaska to New Hampshire, Republicans and Democrats are coming together to support all people,” Zeke Stokes, vice president of programs at GLAAD, said in a statement. “Gov. Sununu has said he is inclined to sign the measure, and it’s critical that he do so in order to ensure that everyone in New Hampshire has access to the same freedoms and protections under the law.”
New Hampshire is the last state in New England to put in place explicit anti-discrimination protections for transgender people.
Freedom New Hampshire, a local LGBTQ+ advocacy organization, celebrated the win on Twitter. The group wrote: "We did it! The NH Senate just voted 14-10 to pass #TransBillNH! This is a huge victory for freedom-loving people everywhere — especially the #transgender Granite Staters who have fought so hard for nearly a decade to make this happen."

May 04, 2018

Chhattisgarh Government to Recruit Transgender in Police Force

Attachment 1073208 Police (Representational Image/ Photo Credit: PTI)

Raipur, May 04: In order to promote gender equality, the Chhattisgarh government has decided to recruit transgender in the police force. The state police have started conducting workshops to facilitate applications from transgender. With this step, Chhattisgarh has become the first Indian state to do so.

The applicants are happy with the decision and have been propping up at the police parade ground here. They would be recruited under similar guidelines as other two genders.

"Just like other genders, we too wish to serve for the betterment of our country. We are happy with the decision of the state government and will leave no stone unturned to clear tests," said Divya, who is training with other transgender in the state capital to enter the police force.

Another aspirant, Sakshi, said, "Earlier we were afraid of the transgender community. We were told to stay away from them. However, now when we got to know them closely, we have realised that they are similar to us." In 2014, the Supreme Court declared transgender people as the third gender and ruled that they have equal privilege over the fundamental rights.

May 2, 2018

NATIONAL Gus Kenworthy, Joy Reid, transgender troops

Attachment 1073264Joy Reid
Attachment 1073265Gus Kenworthy

Following his refusal to attend the Winter Olympian visit at the White House, Gus Kenworthy announced he will attend the Democratic National Committee's ( DNC's ) annual LGBTQ gala as a "special guest" June 25 in New York City, the DNC announced. Last year, the resources raised from the gala went to critical investments in races and state parties, which helped elect Ralph Northam in Virginia, Doug Jones in Alabama and helped flip control of the Washington state Senate, enabling the now-Democratic-controlled state government to ban conversion therapy earlier this year. The LGBTQ gala began in 1999 as a small dinner held by Andy Tobias, former DNC Treasurer, and has grown to one of the DNC's biggest and most successful events.
The Daily Beast will suspend future columns from Joy Reid due to the fallout over anti-gay comments she made on an old blog a decade ago, TheWrap reported. Although she apologized for content on her old blog The Reid Report back in December, the MSNBC host has denied the latest revelations reported by Mediaite, saying that her the long defunct website was hacked. Things continued to spiral for Reid—and MSNBC—over the story, which has now moved beyond the revelations reported by Mediaite to whether Reid was being honest about claims of hacking. On April 28, Reid opened her show on MSNBC with a mea culpa about past homophobic remarks and admitted cybersecurity experts haven't been able to prove her former blog was hacked.

Six former U.S. surgeons general have signed a statement disputing Defense Department assertions about the medical fitness of transgender troops, according to a Palm Center press release. Former U.S. Surgeons General M. Joycelyn Elders and David Satcher originally released the statement last month� in response to a Pentagon proposal to reinstate the transgender ban. In part, the letter ( with Elders, Satcher, Richard Carmona, Regina Benjamin, Vevek Murthy and Kenneth P. Moritsugu as signees ) says, "We underscore that transgender troops are as medically fit as their non-transgender peers and that there is no medically valid reason—including a diagnosis of gender dysphoria—to exclude them from military service or to limit their access to medically necessary care."

Washington, D.C., police homicide detectives learned from at least two witnesses that a 35-year-old District man arrested for the March 24 shooting death of gay D.C. resident Sean Anderson, 48, was invited by Anderson to Anderson's apartment on the night of the murder to have sex in exchange for crack cocaine, The Washington Blade reported. Jerome Wilson has been charged with second-degree murder while armed in connection with Anderson's death. A Superior Court judge ordered Wilson held without bond and scheduled a preliminary hearing for the case for May 18.

Funeral services were recently held for Crae Pridgen Jr., 53, who attracted nationwide attention as an outspoken witness in the 1993 Mickey Ratz assault case ( involving a downtown Wilmington, North Carolina, gay bar ), StarNewsOnline.com reported. Pridgen died March 2 at Florida Medical Center in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He had been an outspoken witness against three Camp Lejeune Marines over a Jan. 30, 1993, incident at Mickey Ratz, a private club. In April 1993, District Judge Jacqueline Morris-Goodson acquitted the Marines on assault charges, after six days of testimony.

Joe Watts—a figure who was the king of Houston gay theater from the early 1980s to the 2000s—died March 12 after a battle with cancer at age 76, the Houston Chronicle reported. In 1985, during an extremely anti-gay period in Houston's history when many gays were deep in the closet, he founded one of the city's first gay theater companies, The Group Theater. Later, in the mid-1990s, he went on to found another queer theater ensemble, Theatre New West, in Montrose.

Hawaii lawmakers approved a ban on so-called "gay conversion therapy" treatments conducted on minors, Hawaii News Now reported. LGBT-rights advocates say the practice—largely discredited by healthcare professionals—does more harm than good to those who are subjected to it. Several states, including California, Oregon and New Jersey, have already passed similar laws; Maryland passed legislation banning the practice in April. Hawaii is now the 12th state to ban the practice.

Journalist Thomas Roberts has announced plans to make a $25,000 donation to the Human Rights Campaign ( HRC )—indirectly from President Donald Trump, The Washington Blade reported. While accepting HRC's Leadership & Visibility Award at its Maryland Summit recently, Roberts reminded the audience that he emceed the 2013 Miss Universe competition in Moscow. The former MSNBC anchor explains that he decided to host the event, "because I wanted people to know that members of the LGBTQ community are not a threat to you." His appearance earned him $25,000, but Roberts announced he wants to donate the money to HRC.

An Indiana pizzeria that came under scrutiny several years ago for refusing to cater gay weddings has shut down—possibly for good, Gay Star News reported. According to the South Bend Tribune, a sign posted on Memories Pizza in Walkerton, Indiana, indicated it closed sometime in March. Owners Kevin and Crystal O'Connor stated their restaurant would never cater a same-sex wedding; their position came in support of the state's Freedom Restoration Act. After receiving backlash, the spot temporarily closed its doors; however, after a cash infusion, it reopened. Now, reportedly, the owners want to retire.

Houston doctor Joseph Varon said he has witnessed discrimination in every corner of the medical profession—from doctors and nurses, in clinics and hospitals, and in teaching environments, Outsmart Magazine noted. The ally said this discrimination has been particularly flagrant toward LGBTQ patients—a fact that gnawed at him. Varon proceeded to design a 30-question anonymous survey and send it to 12,000 professionals; he said, "Roughly one in five reported treating homosexuals differently from straight patients, based on their moral or religious beliefs. That's 20 percent." Varon presented the preliminary results of his survey at the fall annual meeting of the American College of Chest Physicians in Toronto.

The Human Rights Campaign ( HRC ), Equality Kansas and the ACLU of Kansas took out a full-page ad—"Keep Kansas Open To All"—in the Topeka Capital-Journal and the Wichita Eagle, an HRC press release noted. The ad highlights the overwhelming opposition from the business community to HB 2481—legislation currently pending before the Kansas House of Representatives that would create a license to discriminate with taxpayer funds against LGBTQ foster or adoptive parents, single parents or other qualified families.

In Texas, Austin man James Miller has avoided going to prison by claiming the man he stabbed to death had come onto him, NewNowNext.com noted. Miller will serve 10 years probation after being convicted of criminally negligent homicide in the killing his neighbor Daniel Spencer in September 2015. The night of the stabbing, Miller testified, Spencer became angry when he spurned his sexual advances.

Transgender Law Center's Positively Trans project has launched #ACApositive—a campaign to shift the conversation about health are and the Affordable Care Act toward a focus on the life-or-death stakes for transgender people living with HIV, a press release noted. Launching just a week after news broke that the Trump administration plans to attack the Affordable Care Act's protections for transgender people, the campaign aims to amplify the experiences and voices of transgender people of color living with HIV in federal health care policy. See https://transgenderlawcenter.org/acapositive.

The U.S. Senate confirmed Kyle Duncan, an anti-LGBT candidate, for a lifetime appointment to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit by a vote of 50-47, a Lambda Legal press release noted. Lambda Legal CEO Rachel B. Tiven said, in part, "Kyle Duncan has made a career for himself targeting LGBT children and families. The idea that Mr. Duncan will cast aside his bigoted beliefs overnight, and miraculously transform into an impartial judge, is ludicrous and reckless. His career has been one long grudge match against women and LGBT Americans—now the Trump/Pence Administration is making him a referee."

Rear Adm. Ronny Jackson, President Trump's pick to lead the Veterans Affairs Department, has been accused of creating a hostile work environment, drinking while on duty and improperly prescribing drugs to staff during his time as White House doctor to two administrations, NPR reported. Montana Sen. Jon Tester detailed the allegations in an interview with NPR's All Things Considered, saying more than 20 military employees disclosed the as-yet-unsubstantiated allegations to senators ahead of a hearing to debate his nomination to lead the VA.

The Hispanic National Bar Association ( HNBA ), the National Asian Pacific American Bar Association ( NAPABA ) and the National Bar Association ( NBA ) released a statement in response to the recent decision made by the Judge John D. Bates of the Federal District Court for the District of Columbia regarding the Trump Administration's attempt to terminate the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals ( DACA ) program, a press release noted. ( Bates stayed his decision for 90 days, granting the Department of Homeland Security ( DHS ) the opportunity to provide a well-founded justification for terminating the DACA program. ) In part, NAPABA President Pankit J. Doshi said, "We cannot continue to leave the lives of these vulnerable members of the immigrant community in limbo. NAPABA continues to stand in support of the DREAMers."

Kanye West turned his attention to prominent activist and Parkland school shooting survivor Emma Gonzalez, who he called his "hero" on Twitter while publishing a photo of her, Vulture.com noted. However, Gonzalez chose to forgo acknowledging West in favor of copying the format of his tweet to celebrate her own hero: James Shaw Jr.—the man who made the news for stopping the Waffle House shooter. That very same minute, West posted a selfie of himself with his head shaved with the caption "inspired by Emma."

For years, Cassandra Bankson became a master at the cover-up—but it wasn't until the model and beauty vlogger finally cleared her skin that she realized she was using her chronic cystic acne to conceal another reality: she's lesbian, Yahoo! Lifestyle reported. "This has been my deepest secret," says Bankson, who candidly chronicled her skin-care journey with her 824K followers on YouTube. "Once I started coming out to friends and family—which I did individually, one by one—my acne started to get better."

On a recent episode of his show, Bill Maher asked out journalist Ronan Farrow if #MeToo has gone too far, bringing up men like former U.S. Sen. Al Franken and Master of None's Aziz Ansari, EW.com noted. "I think that our culture has actually been pretty good on the whole about self-regulating," Farrow said. "That blog about Aziz Ansari came out, it was clearly a single-source narrative about a date gone wrong and there was a debate about how far gone wrong it was, but I don't think anyone saw that and said, 'He's Harvey Weinstein. This is a multiple rapist.' I think people have separated these things clearly."

Former NBC Nightly News anchor Tom Brokaw has been accused of sexual harassment by former NBC anchor Linda Vester, TheWrap reported, citing Variety. Vester said that Brokaw tried to force her to kiss him on two separate occasions, groped her in a NBC conference room and showed up at her hotel room uninvited. Two friends of Vester corroborated to Variety that she told them about the encounters at the time, and she shared her journal entries from the time period with the news outlet. Brokaw ( who has denied Vester's allegations as well as those of another woman ) has never before been publicly accused of sexual harassment in the past.

However, in a related development, more than 100 women have signed a letter defending Brokaw, CNNMoney reported. Among the names defending Brokaw are some high-profile personalities, including MSNBC hosts Rachel Maddow and Mika Brzezinski, White House correspondent Kelly O'Donnell, chief foreign affairs correspondent Andrea Mitchell and NBC special anchor Maria Shriver.

Chicana photographer Laura Aguilar—whose retrospective at the Vincent Price Museum of Art in Monterrey Park, California, now on view at the Frost Art Museum at Florida International University in Miami, made her one of the breakout stars of the Getty Foundation's recent Pacific Standard Time: LA/LA initiative—has died at age 58, ArtNews.com noted. In her series "Latina Lesbians" ( 1986—90 ), she photographed gay Latina women, with her subjects gazing directly into the camera's view; below the images, each of which is mounted on white paper, are captions ( some include spelling errors ) that detail these women's opinions of what it means to be a woman, a lesbian, and/or a Latina.

Phoenix city officials have approved changing a couple crosswalks to celebrate gay pride, the Seattle Times noted. The city council voted to allow two crosswalks in central Phoenix to get a makeover with rainbow designs to celebrate the LGBT community. One crosswalk will be in the city's Melrose District, which is anchored by several gay bars; another will be close to the downtown headquarters of several LGBT organizations. Several cities have rainbow crosswalks, including San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C.

On May 10, the University of Virginia is hosting a healthcare conference on caring for LGBT patients, WVTF.org reported. Ken White—an associate dean of nursing at the university who happens to be openly gay—said he knows many health care professionals who are even more uncomfortable with transgender men and women. "They don't know what to say," he explained. "They don't want to make a mistake, so they don't say anything, and that makes patients feel isolated." See https://www.nursing.virginia.edu/med...QSymposium.pdf.

Home-furnishings brand Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams is conducting a CEO search, a press release noted. CEO/Chairman Mitchell Gold, who co-founded the company with President of Design Bob Williams, said, "Bob and I built this company from the ground up with an incredible team, and now we want someone to take the reins, work with us to transition the company to the next generation of leadership, and allow me to focus on my strengths, including new strategic partnerships for both our products and our ethos."

Regional bartending champions from 14 U.S. and Canadian cities will vie for mixology mastery June 6-10 in the final rounds of the Stoli Key West Cocktail Classic, a press release stated. The top two bartenders are to receive a combined total of $20,000 for charity, with a portion given to a Key West organization of their choice and the rest to a favorite hometown charity. See Out.com/keywestcocktailclassic.

Controversial alt-right media figurehead Milo Yiannopoulos was shouted out of NYC bar Churchill Tavern, Eater New York noted. Members of the Democratic Socialists of America chanted, "Nazi scum, get out" at Yiannopoulos until he did just that. He then took to Instagram to say the group "shoved and screamed at" him—although a video of the incident showed a relatively peaceful scene.

May 2, 2018

Trans residents sue Wisconsin over surgeries

In Wisconsin, two transgender residents—Cody Flack and Sara Ann Makenzie—are suing the state's health department, alleging discrimination because the state's Medicaid program does not cover their desired gender-reassignment surgery, The Hill reported.
Flack, a transgender man, and Makenzie, a transgender woman, are battling a 1997 Wisconsin regulation that bans the state's Medicaid program from covering what it refers to as "transsexual surgery."

The plaintiffs say the regulation "flies in the face" of what medical authorities say about gender dysphoria—the "clinically significant distress associated with having a gender identity ... that conflicts with the sex one was assigned at birth."

The Hill article is at thehill.com/policy/healthcare/385542-transgender-patients-sue-wisconsin-for-denying-coverage-of-gender .

May 2, 2018

Iran trans assaults, legal action in Japan, Harry and Meghan

Attachment 1073266Meghan

A shocking video showing the harassment and sexual assault of a group of trans women has shown how police at the scene stood by and did nothing to protect them in Iran, Gay Star News reported. In the short video, one of the trans women is screaming hysterically as a mob of men surround them on a public street. Witnesses at the scene the police officer allegedly blamed the trans women for the assault. U.S.-based Iranian activist Masih Alinejad posted the video on her Twitter account.
A gay Japanese man has taken legal action after he was barred from his partner's cremation and not receiving inheritance, Gay Star News reported. The move is a historic one in Japan which only recognizes same-sex partnerships in some districts in the country. The 69-year-old, from Osaka Prefecture, filed a suit against his partner's sister for inheritance he feel he is owed; he is also suing her for barring him from attending his partner's cremation. His partner died in March 2016, and he's suing his sister-in-law for 7 million yen ( $64,000 U.S. ) in damages.

Social-media videos are encouraging people to vote for change in Lebanon, Gay Star News noted. Of all the countries in the Middle East, many regard Lebanon as more progressive in regards to LGBTI rights. Same-sex sexual activity is illegal under Penal Code 534; however, some electoral candidates in the country's May 6 elections are openly calling for the code's repeal.

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are to put gay rights at the forefront of their agenda, the couple told young activists from the Commonwealth, according to The Times. They were at a youth reception in London as part of the Commonwealth heads of government meeting, and Markle said that LGBT issues were about "basic human rights." Although her fiance and the Duke of Cambridge have spoken out about gay rights before, this was the prince's firmest commitment to date.

BBC.com published an article on sexual harassment in Bollywood. The BBC's Rajini Vaidyanathan and Pratiksha Ghilidial spoke to several actresses who say they have been sexually harassed by directors and casting agents. One actress said she went to the police on one occasion but her complaint was dismissed by officers who said "filmy people" can do what they want. Also, Ranveer Singh, one of Bollywood's biggest male actors, said in a 2015 interview that he had experienced the casting couch "first hand." Actor/director/singer Farhan Aktar founded MARD, the Men Against Rape and Discrimination campaign, which raises awareness around sexual violence across the country.

Bangalore, a state in southern India, has seen its number of transgender voters double, Gay Star News noted. Efforts to improve the lives of trans people and raise awareness about their human rights has been credited for the jump in voter numbers. The chief electoral officer ( CEO ) confirmed 4,552 trans people are registered to vote in Bangalore—double than in the most recent elections.

The U.S. Senate confirmed Richard Grenell as U.S. ambassador to Germany, making him the most high-profile openly gay appointee in the Trump administration, The Washington Blade reported. Despite Democratic opposition for months over mean tweets he made about the appearance of women and other comments downplaying the significance of Russia's influence in the 2016 election, Grenell was confirmed ( mostly along party lines ) by a vote of 56-42. The first openly gay U.S. ambassador was James Hormel, who served as U.S. ambassador to Luxembourg during the Clinton administration.

Advocacy groups have warned that HIV-positive Papua New Guineans could die if the country's dwindling antiretroviral drugs supply is not replenished soon, PinkNews reported. The Oceanic nation is eating into its "buffer" supply of the HIV medicine after the government slashed the budget for the treatment, reported ABC News. The country, which accounts for 95 percent of all HIV cases in the Pacific, has seen its budget for the HIV drug plummet in the past year.

Pro-Beijing lawmakers spoke out against the appointment of two leading foreign judges to Hong Kong's top court over their support of same-sex rights but stopped short of pledging to block their appointments, The South China Morning Post reported. Baroness Brenda Hale and Beverley McLachlin—Britain's current top judge and Canada's former top judge—cleared their first hurdle to join the Court of Final Appeal with a five to one approval from a Legislative Council subcommittee. The House Committee and Legco will now have to vote them in before they are formally appointed by Hong Kong's top official, Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor; tThey would be the first female non-permanent judges in the city's judiciary.

Canadian politician Scott Brison—the Nova Scotia MP for Kings-Hants and president of the Treasury Board—said that, in his teen years, he was borderline suicidal as he tried to be anything but gay, CBC.ca noted. Even after accepting his sexual orientation and pursuing his career in politics, Brison delayed coming out publicly for a few years, thinking it wasn't necessary because his friends and family knew; however, he decided he needed to officially come out as gay to inspire others. Now Brison is Canada's first openly gay cabinet minister.

A delegation representing Pride Montreal traveled to Nairobi, Kenya, to meet the leaders of a dozen organizations working—mostly in the shadows—with sexual and gender-diverse clients ( SGD ), according to a Pride Montreal press release. Present at this meeting was Her Excellency Sara Hradecky, high commissioner to Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda, who explained how Canada would be able to support the actions of the Executive Committee and to invite leaders of LGBTQ+ organizations from Kenya to the Canadian Embassy on May 17, as part of the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia.

Speaking of Kenya, the African country's authorities have banned Wanuri Kahiu's Rafiki ( "Friend" ), an LGBT love story that will have its world premiere in Cannes' Un Certain Regard in May, Variety reported. Kahiu announced the decision recently, saying she was "incredibly disappointed" during an appearance on the "Morning Express" wake-up show on Kenyan network KTN. The film ( adapted from the short story "Jambula Tree," by Uganda's Monica Arac de Nyeko ) is the story of two teenage girls who develop a romance that's opposed by their families and community.

Actor Jackie Chan's daughter Etta Ng and her girlfriend have appealed for help, saying that they're homeless, PinkNews noted. In a YouTube video, the couple told viewers that every attempt they had made to find shelter through official channels had led to the authorities trying to split them up. Ng, 18, came out last year, posting a photo on Instagram of her in front of a rainbow coloured background, with the caption: "In case no one got the memo, I'm gay." Sitting alongside her girlfriend Andi Autumn, 30, Ng said, "We've been homeless for a month, due to homophobic parents."

Vancouver bar/nightclub Odyssey will close June 30 after almost 30 years of business, Gay Star News noted. No further explanation for the closure was offered besides a farewell message on the venue's Facebook page. Odyssey originally opened in the city's Gay Village area, but had to relocate in 2010.

May 1, 2018

New campaign brings trans people living with HIV into health care conversation
From a Transgender Law Center press release

( Oakland, CA ) — Transgender Law Center's Positively Trans project today launched #ACApositive, a campaign to shift the conversation about health care and the Affordable Care Act towards a focus on the life-or-death stakes for transgender people living with HIV. Launching just a week after news broke that the Trump administration plans to attack the Affordable Care Act's protections for transgender people, the campaign seeks to amplify the experiences and voices of transgender people of color living with HIV in federal health care policy.
"By undermining the Affordable Care Act, the Trump administration is undermining the survival of transgender people of color living with HIV," said Cecilia Chung, senior director of strategic projects at Transgender Law Center and founder of Positively Trans. "Yet so few advocates, policymakers, or media outlets covering these attacks on health care are talking about the stakes for my community. By saying we are #ACApositive, transgender people living with HIV are demanding that our voices and experiences be heard and respected."

The digital campaign will feature the stories and perspectives of dozens of transgender people living with HIV, including through a Twitter town hall on Monday, May 7th, at 11am PT/2pm ET.

"We are now living in a medically advanced world where, with proper treatment, HIV has become manageable, chronic condition and not a death sentence — unless you are poor, unless you are a person of color, and especially unless you're a poor transgender person of color," says Arianna Lint, a member of the Positively Trans National Advisory Board. "For us, it is 1980. The Affordable Care Act has been a critical step towards finally addressing this crisis and giving us a chance to thrive. To turn back on it now would be cruel and, for many, fatal."

In a national research study, Positively Trans found that 44% of trans people living with HIV surveyed had faced discrimination in health care because of their gender identity, and 41% had gone six months or more without medical care since their HIV diagnosis. Positively Trans, the first network led by and for transgender people living with HIV ( TPLHIV ), launched in 2015 to address inequities, stigma, and discrimination faced by TPLHIV through community-driven research, leadership development, storytelling, and organizing.

Evonne Kaho, another member of Positively Trans, added, "We are launching the #ACApositive campaign because everyone should be able to get medical care when they need it. Everyone deserves for their life to be saved, and that's what the Affordable Care Act means for transgender people living with HIV. It's a matter of life or death for us."

Learn more about #ACApositive and find campaign materials at https://transgenderlawcenter.org/acapositive.



Transgender Law Center ( TLC ) is the largest national trans-led organization advocating self-determination for all people. Grounded in legal expertise and committed to racial justice, TLC employs a variety of community-driven strategies to keep transgender and gender nonconforming people alive, thriving, and fighting for liberation. transgenderlawcenter.org

April 25,2018

Trans show part of Fashion Week

A transgender-themed show will be part of Chicago Fashion Week, which is taking place through April 30.
Among the events is "Trans, Media and Fashion," which will take place Sunday, April 29, 4-8 p.m., at EvolveHer, 358 W. Ontario St. The show will feature designs by Angela Wang.

Some of the other events include "Student Showcasing Fashion Installation" ( April 25 ), which Tony Long will host; and the "Ready to Wear Show," ( April 28 ), which will be held at Baderbrau, 2515 S. Wabash Ave.

See http://www.fashionbarchicago.com/pag...-registration/ for more information. Tickets can be purchased at Eventbrite.

April 25,2018

Trans author/activist Reyna Ortiz talks work, new publishing company

Attachment 1073267Reyna Ortiz

Ever since the release of trans activist Reyna Ortiz's book, T: Stands for Truth: In search of the Queen, last fall, her life has been a whirlwind of new experiences. Ortiz—who was born in Chicago's Little Village neighborhood and raised in Cicero, Illinois—has been advocating for the trans community since she was a teenager.
"There have been so many great things that have happened since the release of my book," said Ortiz. "The one thing that stands out the most is the acknowledgement of my experiences. The majority of people have no idea the life lived by a trans person, especially a trans woman of color. So it is really great when I see people coming to an understanding of not only the complications but the beauty as well."

One of the things Ortiz has done in recent months is start her own publishing company, Trans Fusions Publishing.

"I learned so much about the process of publishing when my book was being put together," said Ortiz. "Having my own company has given me the ability to publish other stories of trans identified people. I am working with other trans people who are willing to share their stories, artwork, poetry or anything else they find important about their experiences. If they are willing to do the work, so am I."

Ortiz explained that it is time to document trans history through personal stories from wide variety of people in the trans community. She said there are only a small number of positive influences that that trans community has to hold onto because most of the community's history "has been swept under the rug, dismissed or straight up stolen."

Not only has Ortiz published a book, but she is also Chicago House's Trans Life Center's TransSafe coordinator and the Task Force Prevention and Community Services' trans resource navigator and drop-in manager.

Ortiz explained that her position running Chicago House's Trans Life Center "with staff who are equally dedicated is community-building at its finest. Finding trans-identified people all throughout the city and being able to connect them to a space that you know is going to handle business is refreshing. Connecting a participant to housing, legal, medical and employment in a simplistic way can be life-changing. Trust is important within our community. Participants need to trust you in order to be able to do this work successfully."

When Ortiz is not working at Chicago House she can be found at Task Force Prevention and Community Services or what the youth call "The Vogue School" helping young people at the drop-in space which is "one of my favorite places to be and so much fun."

"The energy of the youth and their love for Vogue is glorious," said Ortiz. "These young people know that they can come to me with an issue and I will try my absolute best to help them work through it. I connect youth to medical appointments, housing resources, employment services and the newly created free legal clinic. Working with trans/gender nonconforming youth is the most fulfilling part of my work. We learn so much from each other and they give me such a different perspective on life. I am so proud of their courage, strength, resourcefulness and resilience."

In terms of Ortiz's journey since high school, she noted that this year will mark 20 years since graduation. Since that time, Ortiz explained that she has learned "lots of life lessons including learning from my mistakes." She noted that everyone's life should be in transition "spiritually, emotionally, physically and intellectually to keep evolving, learning and for self-growth" and that is how she has navigated her entire adult life.

Over the past two plus decades, Ortiz was also named her high school's prom queen, featured on NPR's StoryCorps and co-founded Trans Women in Real Life.

Ortiz will also be reading from her book at Chicago House's annual Spring Brunch & Fashion Show ( which has the theme "Revive! Rally on the Runway" )at her favorite library, the Harold Washington Library. She said guests should expect "great energy and a festive time."

"I am so excited for the future of my community," said Ortiz. "The trans community is reclaiming itself and taking responsibility for ourselves. We have lots of work to be done and we also understand that it is time to move forward. My story, our story is about perseverance."

To purchase tickets for the Sunday, May 6 Chicago House event ( 12:00-3:30 p.m. ), visit www.chicagohouse.org/buy-tickets/. To read more about Ortiz, visit http://www.windycitymediagroup.com/l...een/60911.html .

May 6, 2018

Transgender Texas mayor loses election bid for full term

NEW HOPE, Texas (AP) — The mayor of a small Texas town who came out as transgender after being appointed to the job has lost her election bid for a full two-year term.

The Dallas Morning News reports that New Hope Mayor Jess Herbst was running to become the first openly transgender elected official in Texas. Election results show she finished third Saturday in the four-person race, with 53 votes. The winner received 95.

Herbst became mayor in May 2016 when her predecessor died. At the time, she was an alderman and went by the name Jeff. She publicly came out as transgender during a council meeting last year.

Herbst says she was proud of the election turnout in New Hope, which has fewer than 500 registered voters.

Information from: The Dallas Morning News, http://www.dallasnews.com

May 7, 2018

Chelsea Manning: Insurgent bid for US Senate is genuine

Attachment 1073408

NORTH BETHESDA, Md. (AP) - Chelsea Manning is no longer living as a transgender woman in a male military prison, serving the lengthiest sentence ever for revealing U.S. government secrets. She's free to grow out her hair, travel the world, and spend time with whomever she likes.

But a year since former President Barack Obama commuted Manning's 35-year sentence, America's most famous convicted leaker isn't taking an extended vacation. Far from it: The Oklahoma native has decided to make an unlikely bid for the U.S. Senate in her adopted state of Maryland.

Manning, 30, filed to run in January and has been registered to vote in Maryland since August. She lives in North Bethesda, not far from where she stayed with an aunt while awaiting trial. Her aim is to unseat Sen. Ben Cardin, a 74-year-old Maryland Democrat who is seeking his third Senate term and previously served 10 terms in the U.S. House.

Manning, who also has become an internationally recognized transgender activist, said she's motivated by a desire to fight what she sees as a shadowy surveillance state and a rising tide of nightmarish repression.

"The rise of authoritarianism is encroaching in every aspect of life, whether it's government or corporate or technological," Manning told The Associated Press during an interview at her home in an upscale apartment tower. On the walls of her barely furnished living room hang Obama's commutation order, and photos of U.S. anarchist Emma Goldman and British playwright Oscar Wilde.

Manning's longshot campaign for the June 26 primary would appear to be one of the more unorthodox U.S. Senate bids in recent memory, and the candidate is operating well outside the party's playbook. She says she doesn't, in fact, even consider herself a Democrat, but is motivated by a desire to shake up establishment Democrats who are "caving in" to President Donald Trump's administration. She vows she won't run as an independent if her primary bid fails.

She's certainly got an eye-catching platform: Close prisons and free inmates; eliminate national borders; restructure the criminal justice system; provide universal health care and basic income. The top of her agenda? Abolish the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, a federal agency created in 2003 that Manning asserts is preparing for an "ethnic cleansing."

Manning ticks off life experiences she believes would make her an effective senator: a stint being homeless in Chicago, her wartime experiences as a U.S. Army intelligence analyst in Iraq - even her seven years in prison. She asserts she's got a "bigger vision" than establishment politicians.

But political analysts suspect the convicted felon is not running to win.

"Manning is running as a protest candidate, which has a long lineage in American history, to shine light on American empire," said Daniel Schlozman, a political science professor at Johns Hopkins University. "That's a very different goal, with a very different campaign, than if she wanted to beat Ben Cardin."

Manning's insurgent candidacy thus far has been a decidedly stripped-down affair, with few appearances and a campaign website that just went up. In recent days, she approached an anti-fracking rally in Baltimore almost furtively, keeping to herself for much of the demonstration. But when it was her turn to address the small group, her celebrity status was evident. People who never met her called her by her first name and eagerly took photos.

Manning has acknowledged leaking more than 700,000 military and State Department documents to anti-secrecy site WikiLeaks in 2010. She said her motivation was a desire to spark debate about U.S. foreign policy, and she has been portrayed as both a hero and a traitor.

Known as Bradley Manning at the time of her arrest, she came out as transgender after her 2013 court-martial. She was barred from growing her hair long in prison, and was approved for hormone therapy only after litigation. She spent long stints in solitary confinement, and twice tried to kill herself.

The Pentagon, which has repeatedly declined to discuss Manning's treatment in military prison, is also staying mum about her political ambitions. Democratic Party officials say they have no comment, citing a policy not to weigh in on primaries. Republican operatives are quiet.

In Maryland, a blue state that's home to tens of thousands of federal employees and defense contractors, it appears Manning's main supporters are independents or anti-politics, making them unlikely to coalesce politically. She recently reported contributions of $72,000 on this year's first quarterly finance statement, compared with Cardin's $336,000.

The candidate has barely made an effort at tapping sources of grassroots enthusiasm outside of activism circles. And it's easy to find progressive Democrats who feel her candidacy is just a vehicle to boost her profile.

"It feels to me almost like it's part of a book tour - that this is her moment after being released from prison," said Dana Beyer, a transgender woman who leads the Gender Rights Maryland nonprofit and is a Democratic candidate for state senate. "I don't think this is a serious effort."

Manning is indeed working on a book about her dramatic life. For now, she says she supports herself with income from speaking engagements. She's spoken at various U.S. colleges and is due to take the stage at a Montreal conference later this month.

Last week, she appeared at a tech conference in Germany's capital of Berlin, arriving to cheers from the audience of several thousand people. She told attendees she's still struggling to adjust to life after prison and hasn't gotten used to her celebrity status yet.

"There's been a kind of cult of personality that is really intimidating and that is overwhelming for me," she said in Berlin.

At her Maryland apartment, Manning told the AP she occasionally wakes up panicked that she's back in the cage in Kuwait where she was first jailed, or incarcerated at the Marine base at Quantico, Virginia, where a U.N. official concluded she'd been subjected to "cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment." She works hard to overcome anxiety, centering herself with yoga, breathing exercises, and reading.

"I've been out for almost a year now and it's becoming increasingly clear to me just how deep the wounds are," she said in her Spartan living room.

Asked how she would define success, Manning responded with passionate intensity: "Success for me is survival."

May 7, 2018

“We want to bring good stories to people”: TV writer Joan Rater on trans inclusivity in the media

Attachment 1073460

For many viewers, movies and television shows are a reflection of the lives they live. One aspect of entertainment, however, is noticeably homogenous: the gender identity of characters. Unlike real-life cities and towns, the fictional worlds of movies seem to be populated almost solely by cisgender characters.

Joan Rater is one of the many people who have noticed this lack of diversity. For Rater — who has worked as a television writer on “Grey’s Anatomy” and created the show “Doubt” with her husband, Tony Phelan — the absence of transgender characters in media has personal significance. Rater’s son, Tom, is a transgender boy, and supporting him through his coming out experience and transitioning process has made her aware of the challenges the transgender community faces.

Last Thursday at 7:00 P.M. at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Newark (UUFN), Rater delivered a talk on her reflections and acceptance of her son’s transitioning process and the need for trans visibility in the media. This talk was one of many that Rater has delivered, as she visits various churches, community centers and venues across the country, with the goal of increasing trans acceptance.

“We do a lot of social justice outreach within the community, so I was happy when this opportunity came up,” Karen Barker, a member of the UUFN who invited Rater to speak, says. “I feel like this program may be able to help parents as well as young people.”

Rater began her talk with an introduction of her son and his transitioning process. She discussed how it positively impacted him, explaining how after he got his top surgery — a surgery that removes breasts — he felt much happier and more confident. Rater also discussed Tom’s involvement in acting, including his role on the show “The Fosters”.

Her recollections of her son’s transitioning process resonated with Angel Partie, an audience member who transitioned six years ago and a professor of communications and writing at Wilmington University.

“I liked when she talked about how her son didn’t really have an explanation for why he thought something was wrong with him,” Partie says. “I’d felt that way when I was a teenager. I was like, ‘I don’t know where I stand in terms of everything!’”

After sharing her personal memories, Rater discussed the impact of prejudice toward transgender individuals and their invisibility in the media. With her latest show, “Doubt” — a law drama on air for one season that starred transgender actress Laverne Cox in the role of an attorney named Cameron — Rater intended to amend that. She explained that she and her husband hoped audience members would fall in love with Cox’s character, helping increase transgender acceptance.

Many of the older audience members, who transitioned during the early or late 2000s, say that at that time, characters like Cameron were completely absent from their televisions.

“Trans didn’t really have a presence for me,” Partie says. “I turned to Youtube where there were young trans guys who were telling their stories and being open. It was a lot of self research.”

However, during “Doubt”’s test screenings, prejudices toward the transgender community were exposed. Test audiences were given dials that they were instructed to turn whenever they disliked a part of the show. According to Rater, test audiences responded negatively toward Cameron, even before Cameron had a chance to speak. When questioned as to why they didn’t like the character, many audience members could not provide a legitimate reason.

According to the American National Election Studies (ANES) 2016 Pilot Study, this reception is reflective of America’s feelings toward the transgender community. The study asked participants to rank their feelings toward transgender people, with 0 being negative and 100 being positive.

According to Free Roath, a recent graduate of the University of Colorado Boulder, the study found that many of the responses ranked feelings being clustered around the 50 mark, indicating lukewarm feelings. These findings and Rater’s experience illustrate how inclusion of the trans community has not been fully achieved.

Still, Rater believes in the power of film to eliminate prejudice and told audiences she will continue to push for more roles for transgender actors.

“There’s a lot of power coming into someone’s home on a television,” Rater says. “People get to feel very close with the characters of the TV shows they like and they identify with them. There’s huge power in bringing relevant, truthful stories to people’s homes.”

8 May, 2018

Kanye West is a race traitor, declares Atlantic columnist Ta-Nehisi Coates

Attachment 1073538

Kanye West is abandoning his black roots by embracing President Donald Trump and “white freedom,” says author and activist Ta-Nehisi Coates, the latest celebrity piling onto the rapper over his political views.
In a 5,000-word essay in The Atlantic magazine, the author of ‘We Were Eight Years in Power’ argues that many African-Americans, including himself, had considered West a “god” akin to Michael Jackson.

“The rule of Donald Trump is predicated on the infliction of maximum misery on West’s most ardent parishioners, the portions of America, the muck, that made the god Kanye possible,” Coates wrote. “But for black artists who rise to the heights of Jackson and West, the weight is more, because they come from communities in desperate need of champions.”

Two weeks ago, West set Twitter on fire by posting a photo of an autographed Make America Great Again hat and calling Trump a “brother” who shared his “dragon energy.” He refused to walk back his comments in the face of a backlash from many black celebrities, saying instead that he was a free thinker who refused to live in the “prison” prescribed by others.

“[Kanye] is, indeed, championing a kind of freedom — a white freedom, freedom without consequence, freedom without criticism, freedom to be proud and ignorant... the freedom of rape buttons, pussy grabbers... the freedom of suburbs drawn with red lines, the white freedom of Calabasas,” Coates wrote, referring to the California hometown of West’s wife, Kim Kardashian.

Incidentally, Kardashian’s stepfather became one of the most recognizable transgender people in the world, Caitlyn Jenner – and just so happens to share West’s newfound conservative brand of politics.

This did not prevent Coates from accusing West of betraying the “young people among the despised classes of America... the children parted from their parents at the border, the women warring to control the reproductive organs of their own bodies, the transgender soldier fighting for his job.”

This brand of identity politics was at the heart of Coates’ widely publicized online spat with popular intellectual Cornel West in 2017, a row which would ultimately see Coates withdraw from Twitter and delete his account altogether, despite having over 1.25 million followers.

Kanye West has over 28 million followers on Twitter. It appeared that he lost about 10 million of them on the day he came out as a Trump supporter, but Twitter dismissed those reports as a glitch. A Detroit radio station did ban his songs from being played, however, while a number of black celebrities have sought to distance themselves from West for siding with the “oppressor.”

Attachment 1073539

While Coates’ essay was praised in liberal circles, with many fawning over the piece in carbon-copy tweets, the conservative movement’s most vocal advocates on Twitter did not share that point of view.

Some argued that the praise was for Coates’ prose, not his point, arguing that it was merely a racially-charged case of style over substance.

9 May 2018

Make all public toilets gender-neutral, says Germaine Greer on C4

Author of The Female Eunuch was speaking during debate about gender and trans rights

Attachment 1073632 Feminist academic Germaine Greer raised issues about gender self-identification. Photograph: Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock

Germaine Greer has called for all public toilets to be made gender-neutral, saying the current division into gents and ladies is outdated.

“Just dump the whole thing,” said the feminist academic. “You can actually sort out toilets in a more sensible way so that people have access to the bits they need and they don’t have to be bothered by the bits they don’t need. In our houses where we live our toilets are not gendered. I think that should just be now universal.”

Greer made the comments during the Channel 4 programme Genderquake: The Debate, which aired on Tuesday night. The programme, a spin-off from a week-long series of programmes about gender and trans rights, featured the academic debate with a panel including former Olympic athlete Caitlyn Jenner.

Gender-neutral toilets has become a regular topic of discussion in relation to transgender rights but Greer, who has become a target for some activists after she said transgender women are “not real women”, used the live debate to say she had little time for that argument.

“I don’t get it,” she said. “I don’t understand why in England in particular defecation is thought of as a sexual activity. I don’t get it.”

Greer went on to raise concerns about the decision to allow runner Caster Semenya to run in women’s races and raised issues about gender self-identification: “Being without a penis doesn’t make you a woman any more than being without a womb makes you a man.”

The programme had faced criticism from some trans activists before broadcast, who raised concerns it could question the existence of transgender individuals.

Jenner, the former US Olympic gold medalist and trans activist, said she was concerned about the suicide rate among transgender people and called for the public to be less hateful in online discussions surrounding gender: “What we say, our words, make a difference.”

She also told the audience that she was disappointed with Donald Trump’s record on trans rights: “I don’t know if the evangelical Christian right has got to him. He has done a terrible job when it comes to trans issues in the US. He’s set our community back by 20 years.”

After the show panel member Ash Sarkar praised the diversity of the programme but raised concerns about the audience, who repeatedly heckled members of the panel during the debate.

“There was very poor vetting, there should have been ground rules laid out for the audience about what was acceptable,” Sarkar said.

“The floor manager came up to me in the break and said to me that if they heckled again they would be removed then that didn’t happen.

“Channel 4 worked incredibly hard to have diversity on the panel and that’s phenomenal and to be celebrated.

“There was a lack of preparation for just how hostile [radical feminists] are.”

Sarkar also raised concerns about the treatment of former Labour party adviser Munroe Bergdorf.

“If someone had called me a Paki they would have removed them, why not for someone yelling at Munroe that they’ve got a dick?”

May 8, 2018

NA passes bill aimed at ensuring rights of transgender persons

Attachment 1073633

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly on Tuesday passed the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2018 aimed at ensuring rights of transgender persons with majority vote.

Syed Naveed Qamar of Pakistan People Party Parliamentarian (PPPP) piloted the bill to provide for protection, relief and rehabilitation of rights of the transgender persons and their welfare and for matters connected therewith and incidental thereto [the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2018 in the House.

Under the proposed law, the Transgender persons will be able to register to obtain a driver’s licence and passport. They will have the option to get their gender changed in National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) records.

Harassment of transgenders will also be prohibited in and outside their homes. They will not be discriminated against by educational institutions, employers, in trade and health services, and when using public transport and buying or selling or renting property.

The government will establish a safe house for transgenders and provide them medical and educational facilities and psychological counselling. Separate rooms will be established at jails where transgenders could be detained.

In addition to all basic rights, they will be entitled to inherit property.

The government will take steps to ensure employment opportunities for transgenders and they will have the right to vote in all national, provincial and local government elections and they will not be discriminated against in their pursuit of a public office.

Anyone found guilty of forcing a transgender person to beg will be sentenced to six months in prison and served a fine of Rs50,000.

The Senate has already passed the bill.

10 MAY 2018

This Canadian Province Will Allow Nonbinary People to Apply For Gender Neutral Birth Certificates

Ontario is the latest municipality to allow transgender and gender nonconforming people to apply for gender-neutral birth certificates.

As the Canadian province announced Monday, trans individuals will have two options: to apply for a nonbinary “X” (instead of the traditional “M” and “F”) or to have a gender designation removed entirely. The change is intended to “recognize and respect all transgender and nonbinary people in Ontario and give all Ontarians access to identification that matches their gender identity,” officials say.

The policy was announced after genderqueer filmmaker Joshua M. Ferguson—who uses “they” pronouns—requested a gender-neutral birth certificate in May 2017.

When their application stalled, Ferguson filed a complaint through the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario claiming their civil rights were being violated. The parties reached resolution last month, and the 35-year-old finally received corrected documents in the mail last week.

Ferguson claimed the milestone doesn’t just recognize their year-long struggle to have their identity affirmed. For trans people subject to frequent discrimination due to misgendering, the policy could also “save lives.”

“A birth certificate is the most vital form of ID for personhood,” they said in a statement. “Being officially counted and recognized is empowering.”

Ferguson is the second Canadian to be issued a nonbinary certificate following Gemma Hickey of St. Johns. The province of Newfoundland and Labrador announced in December 2017 that Hickey, who runs a local nonprofit for survivors of sexual abuse in religious institutions, would be permitted to list “X” on their birth documents.

Hickey claimed at the time that their home province had proven itself “a leader in terms of human rights.”

Although the Canadian government has yet to rollout a nonbinary marker on birth certificates, authorities have claimed federal agencies are working toward a third option on passports. Ontario, meanwhile, allows a gender-neutral designation on driver’s licenses and health ID cards as of last year.

To date, just three states in the U.S.—along with the District of Columbia—allow nonbinary options for residents on identity documents: California, Oregon, and Washington.

Research shows these updates can have profound impacts on the lives and wellbeing of trans individuals. When interviewed about a landmark trans birth certificate bill in Colorado earlier this year, National Center for Trans Equality spokesperson Jay Wu said that trans people who show documents which don’t match their gender identity are often “verbally harassed, denied benefits or service, asked to leave, or assaulted.”

Ferguson called Ontario’s decision to join the growing list of states and municipalities fighting to ensure trans identities are respected a “victory for our community.”

“This moment not only reaffirms who we are, and our protection under the law in Ontario and in Canada, but it's a relief because we are counted,” they told the CBC earlier this week. “That's quite an incredible feeling, because it makes it clear that we exist.”

Ferguson hoped the news encourages other provinces in Canada to follow suit.

May 11, 2018

Kerala witnesses first transgender marriage

Ishan is a Muslim and Surya is an upper caste Hindu. Both took the vow as per the Special Marriage Act, in the presence of their family members and well-wishers from the transgender community.

Attachment 1074035 Surya is a TV actor and member of the State Board for Transgender Justice. Ishan is a member of Oasis, a self-help group for transgenders.

IT WAS a historic moment for the transgender community in Kerala as a transman and transwoman tied the knot in Thiruvananthapuram Thursday. Ishan (33), who underwent female to male surgery, married Surya (31), who has undergone male to female surgery. This is the first time a transwoman and transman enter into married life in Kerala.

Ishan is a Muslim and Surya is an upper caste Hindu. Both took the vow as per the Special Marriage Act, in the presence of their family members and well-wishers from the transgender community. Surya is a TV actor and member of the State Board for Transgender Justice. Ishan is a member of Oasis, a self-help group for transgenders.

“It is a dream come true for us. We are happy that we can also lead a married life. Our marriage would be an inspiration for others who want to become part of the mainstream society. We are not worried about criticism from certain quarters against our marriage. We will prove the critics wrong by leading a normal married life,” Ishan said.

May 11, 2018

Pakistani Law Passes Landmark Transgender Rights Bill, Gives Them Fundamental Rights

The Pakistani parliament has passed a historic decision regarding the transgender community in the country. A bill has been passed which promises basic fundamental rights to the people of the third gender. Majority of the Islamabad's National Assembly voted in favour of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act on May 9.

The newly passed law now gives the transgenders here their long-due rights. The act criminalises discrimination against and harassment of transgenders at work, home or in public places. Transgenders can identify themselves in any gender- male, female or the third sex on all the official documents including their passports or driver's licenses. Although the act has been passed it has to be approved by the Pakistani president Mamnoon Hussain. Maavia Malik Scripts History! Becomes First Transgender News Anchor in Pakistan

There have been a lot of instances of discrimination of the transgenders, some of them going till the extent of murder and forced sex. Now with the new law the people of the community will also ensure safe houses, medical care and also counselling. "I thought that this would never be achieved in my lifetime, but I am fortunate to have seen my own parliament pass this bill," veteran transgender activist Bindiya Rana told Al Jazeera. “Transgender people constitute one of the most marginalized communities in the country and they face problems ranging from social exclusion to discrimination, lack of education facilities, unemployment, lack of medical facilities and so on," the bill reads.

Not exact figures but there is an estimate that there are at least 500,000 in the country. There has been extreme discrimination against them and they are left to do begging and dancing as a source of money. The new law also criminalises all discrimination in public transports to even doctor's clinic. The passing of the bill makes Pakistan one of the few countries in the world to recognize the self-perceived gender identity of transgenders. It is sure a historic one and gives new hope to the people who had been discriminated against for so long.

May 10, 2018

Miss Bumbum’s first transgender contestants spark backlash

Brazil’s infamous Miss Bumbum pageant is drumming up even more buzz than usual this year, as the entry of the competition’s first-ever transgender contestants is sparking rage among some participants.

Though the derriere pageant supports the two contestants in question, some of the other 25 hopefuls are eager to have them removed from the lineup ahead of the August event.

On May 10, transgender contestants Paula Oliveira and Giovanna Spinella told The Sun they’re totally confident in their abilities, despite the harassment they are receiving.

Attachment 1074089 Paula Oliveira (L) and Giovanna Spinella (R) are looking forward to the August event. (Splash News )

“They are feeling threatened because they are seeing a trans who is more beautiful than them,” Oliveira said. “I’m not offended by what they said, because it’s clear they want me out because I’ve got a much sexier a--.”

LEGOLAND RESPONDS TO CRITICISM OVER ‘LEGO’ MEGHAN MARKLE’S SKIN COLOR

Attachment 1074091 While officials are backing the entry of the pageant’s first transgender finalists, others aren’t so happy. (Reuters)

Spinella chimed in that she is “honored to be able to take part” in the eighth annual pageant and go head-to-head with beauties representing Brazil’s 27 states. The lone winner of the event crowned with the “best bum” scores overnight fame and the opportunity to get rich quick with modeling contracts.

Finalist Ellen Santana is among the ones protesting Oliveira and Spinella’s participation.

“The competition is supposed to be 100 percent feminine and yet we’re going to have bottoms which are men’s bottoms. It doesn’t matter if they’ve had surgery, changed their names or sex on a piece of paper,” the 31-year-old biology student told The Sun.

Attachment 1074096 Miss BumBum Brazil 2017 pageant contestants parade at Paulista Avenue in Sao Paulo's financial center. (Reuters)

“I’m not intolerant, I know there are a lot of trans people who are more beautiful than lots of women. I just think that they should compete in a pageant for trans, and not be allowed to compete in Miss Bumbum, which is all about the beauty of the Brazilian woman.”

“I just think that the competition is for women, not for men,” 29-year-old Debora Porto echoed in agreement. “It’s them who should leave because they are men with a man’s body and a man’s bottom. I think the whole diversity thing has gone too far.”

NORDSTROM RACK APOLOGIZES AFTER THREE BLACK TEENS ARE WRONGLY ACCUSED OF SHOPLIFTING

Unfortunately for Santana and Porto, this year’s theme for the competition is “diversity,” with organizers encouraging participants to “break the mold.” Furthermore, Miss Bumbum’s officials have threatened to disqualify the angry entrants if they continue to “prejudice” their transgender peers.

“As long as these women have undergone sex reassignment surgery, and have become fully women, there is nothing that prevents them from taking part. The truth is that, by the law, they are 100 percent women,” Miss Bumbum founder Cacau Oliver said.

According to the Daily Mail, Brazil began providing free gender reassignment operations in 2007 through its public health system, and transgender individuals can legally register their gender change. Nevertheless, the South American nation “has one of the world's highest rates of fatal violence against transgender people,” making Oliveira and Spinella’s debut all the more noteworthy.

May 11, 2018

Trump Admin Attacks Trans People Again by Rolling Back Prison Protections

Attachment 1074457 The Trump administration rewrote the Prison Rape Elimination Act's guidelines to allow for housing of trans people based on "biological sex."

In its latest assault on transgender people, the Trump administration on Friday rolled back President Barack Obama-era protections for trans inmates that were intended to mitigate their exposure to sexual assault and abuse. Donald Trump’s Bureau of Prisons rewrote the guidelines to allow wardens to “use biological sex as the initial determination for designation” when placing trans people for housing, screening, and programs and services, Buzzfeed News reports.

The latest in a string of attacks the administration has unleashed on trans people since Trump took office—including rescinding protections for trans students and implementing a ban on trans people in the military — the move defies the 2012 Prison Rape Elimination Act, which “mandates prison officials must screen all individuals at admission and upon transfer to assess their risk of experiencing abuse,” according to a release from the National Center for Transgender Equality.

“Transgender people already know the Trump-Pence administration is dedicated to stripping away our rights. Their cruelty is only made more evident as they continually go after the most vulnerable among us,” NCTE executive director Mara Keisling said in a statement.

“The extreme rates of physical and sexual violence faced by transgender people in our nation’s prisons is a stain on the entire criminal justice system. Instead of leaving the existing policy alone, the administration is clearly prepared to encourage federal prisons to violate federal law and advance its own inhumane agenda,” Keisling added.

Rescinding protections for trans people in prison was spurred by a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in which four Texas-based evangelical female prisoners alleged that being housed with trans women “creates a situation that incessantly violates the privacy of female inmates; endangers the physical and mental health of the female Plaintiffs and others, including prison staff; [and] increases the potential for rape,” according to Buzzfeed News.

The lawsuit challenged the Prison Rape Elimination Act and a guidance memo Obama issued shortly before exiting office that noted trans people in prison face “increased risk of suicide, mental health issues, and victimization.”

Those guidelines called for “serious consideration” of a person’s gender identity in terms of where they would be placed, pronoun use, health services, and more.

“Consider on a case-by-case basis whether a placement would ensure the inmate’s health and safety, and whether the placement would present management or security problems,” the Obama-era guidelines instructed prison staff.

A spokeswoman for the Bureau of Prisons argued that the new Trump administration guidelines were put in place to essentially protect all inmates, but she failed to acknowledge the increased risks of violence and abuse trans people face.

“The manual now addresses and articulates the balance of safety needs of transgender inmates as well as other inmates, including those with histories of trauma, privacy concerns, etc., on a case-by-case basis," spokeswoman Nancy Ayers told Buzzfeed.

May 14, 2018

Transgender groups meet in Dallas for education, activism

Attachment 1074679 In this April 28, 2018 photo, an “all gender” sign is taped to the women’s restroom during the Black Trans Advocacy Coalition’s Family Picnic at Circle R Ranch in Flower Mound, Texas. (Rose Baca/The Dallas Morning News via AP)

DALLAS (AP) - Carter Brown stands before his family and begins to cry.

Dressed all in white, the group seated in front of him seems to glow in the conference room’s dim light.

The Dallas Morning News reports their figures swim before his teary eyes. Brown breathes in the sweet odor of the burning incense, letting the low beat of the drums calm him.

“Excuse me,” he says, chuckling. “I have something in my eyes.”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Brown takes a breath, smiles and convenes the 2018 Black Trans Advocacy Conference in Dallas with a hope and a prayer. He speaks freely, knowing he’s safe being vulnerable here, among his people.

Seven years ago, Brown founded BTAC, which would become the only nationwide organization run by and for transgender African-Americans. What started as a small private Facebook group run out of the Arlington native’s home has grown into a nonprofit with global reach.

What’s more, it’s a family.

“I’ve been homeless. I’ve been hungry. I’ve been abused. I’ve been rejected,” Carter tells the group, his voice steadying. “We all have our struggles.

“But at the end of the day, I want you all to know you’re going to be all right.”

This is how Dallas became home for the black transgender community - and why its leaders think it needs to stay put, deep in the heart of red Texas.

Upstairs at the Wyndham Dallas Suites off North Central Expressway, volunteers sign people in at the registration table.

They pass out name tags and blue lanyards to those who are OK with having their picture taken. Green lanyards are for those who are not openly trans or who don’t want to be pictured in promotional material. On a nearby table sit dozens of orange tote bags.

Welcome to BTAC 2018.

For the past seven years, Dallas has been the site for this annual gathering for transgender and gender non-conforming Americans, meaning they do not identify with the sex assigned at birth or their gender expression might different from the traditional concepts of masculinity and femininity.

Hundreds of attendees from the Bay Area to the Bronx turned out for the recent weeklong event, which includes dozens of panels on everything from discrimination in housing and health care to dating, love and anti-trans violence. There’s a barber and free HIV testing on site, an open-mike night and an awards gala.

At a pageant, they crown a new Mr. and Miss Black Trans International - the group’s lead advocates for the next year - and over the weekend they gather for “family day” at a ranch in Flower Mound to sing, dance and play games.

Many of the attendees are already activists. Many others are just starting their transition. The youngest haven’t hit their teens; the oldest is 71. Here they find covenant partners. They recognize excellence. They discover fellowship.

BTAC traces its roots to 2011, when Brown started a private Facebook group for black transgender men like him. At first, a handful of local Dallas guys would meet for drinks or a pickup game of basketball. But within a few months, 400 men from coast to coast had signed up.

“This was something we couldn’t find anywhere else,” Brown, 43, said. “It just became a real staple for the community, albeit virtual. I mean, guys were in there all day every day just communicating, building relationships, friendships.”

Today, Black Trans Men Inc. boasts more than 4,000 Facebook members. Along with sister organization Black Trans Women Inc., the two form BTAC, which has its headquarters in northwest Dallas.

Jonathan Thunderword, a minister and elder known as “Pop,” and his wife, Triptta, said Brown has “carved out a place” for their community. At BTAC, attendees whose biological families have shunned them can discover new brothers, sisters, aunts, uncles and even mothers and fathers.

Rainbow family, one person called it. Chosen family.

Atlanta native Tiffany Starr, the outgoing Miss Black Trans International, never had children of her own. But she now has seven trans sons and daughters whose parents rejected them, some of whom have taken her last name. Maddox Jackson of Austin met his brothers TreShaun and Trenton here. Jackson’s wife, Rebecca, coordinates “Anchors,” the partners and spouses of trans men and women.

They look up to Thunderword as a grandfather.

“The saying goes, ‘If you build it they will come,’ and that’s what happened over the years,” Thunderword said after his keynote address. “It was easy for us to follow.”

The Thunderwords have been together for 20 years, living everywhere from the California coast to the Texas Panhandle. But soon, they plan to move to the Dallas area to be closer to their BTAC family. A few people others have also made the move after attending the conference.

“There’s something about the Dallas community,” Triptta said. “Everyone has been so warm and friendly.”

Dallas was the first city in Texas to pass an ordinance banning discrimination based on gender identity - a measure that was expanded it in 2015. There are city and county LGBT task forces, and Dallas is the home of Genecis at Children’s Health, one of the only pediatric clinics for transgender kids and teens in the country.

Louis Mitchell, a minister and the executive director of Transfaith, has been coming to the conference since its inception in 2012. He said it’s the mix of the professional and personal that makes Dallas uniquely suited to host them.

“Urban expertise and Southern hospitality,” Mitchell said. “That’s the combination that makes it work.”

In the hotel’s cavernous atrium, other conferences are getting underway as BTAC begins to wrap up. A group from Tanzania gathers near the business center. A bunch of vitamin salesmen in cowboy hats and boots hoot and holler near the entrance. A couple of guys in suits are posted at the bar, watching replays from the NFL draft the night before.

Malaysia Walker is sitting near the elevators.

Walker, 39, who performs under the stage name Malaysia Black, was just crowned Miss Black Trans International 2018. During the talent portion of the competition, she unveiled portraits of Chyna Gibson, Mesha Caldwell and Kenne McFadden, three black trans women killed in the South and Texas since 2016.

Walker said BTAC having its headquarters and holding its conference in a conservative state like Texas means something. Being out and proud in Dallas, being visible in red Texas - where Republican lawmakers last year unsuccessfully pushed the bathroom bill - makes more of an impact than it would in New York or California. But they can still feel safe here, which Walker doesn’t think she could guarantee for her trans family in her native Jackson, Mississippi.

“Northerners don’t experience the hardship Southerners do,” said Walker, 39, who leads the Transgender Education and Advocacy Program for the ACLU in Mississippi. “But Mississippi is not ready.”

Walker, a conference newcomer, almost didn’t make it this year. One of her “rainbow kids” was just killed, the victim of a random shooting, and she didn’t think she was strong enough to make the trip. That’s when Esperanza “Espy” Brown, Carter’s wife, called her.

The conference has helped her and her husband heal, Walker said, something she didn’t think was possible a month ago: “We needed to be here.”

Carter and Espy Brown hope the attendees - their family - carry with them this sense of healing until next year, when the community comes home to Dallas for BTAC 2019.

“The core of what we’re building, the core of our organization, is love,” Espy Brown said. “Whenever you come here, we’ll be here.”

May 13, 2018

Bureau of Prisons rewrites rules for transgender inmates

The U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons changed the wording in its Transgender Offenders Manual to dial down certain protections for transgender inmates, reports NPR.

The details: The new guidelines say inmates' housing facilities will be recommended based on biological sex, with gender identity being considered "in rare cases." The previous version of the manual, from January 2017, says "the TEC [Transgender Executive Council] will recommend housing by gender identity when appropriate."

Other changes, per NPR:

The manual's purpose has shifted from the language: "To ensure the Bureau of Prisons properly identifies, tracks, and provides services to the transgender population," to, "To ensure the Bureau of Prisons properly identifies, tracks, and provides services to the transgender population, consistent with maintaining security and good order in Federal prisons."
For inmates in a gender transition process, the manual now says, "Hormone and other necessary treatment may be provided after an individualized assessment of the requested inmate by institution medical staff."
The word "necessary" was added as part of the changes and allows the agency to "make determinations about what sort of hormone therapies and other gender transition services are required," per Buzzfeed News.

May 16, 2018

Small town Southerner finds love with transgender prostitute in ‘Anything’


John Carroll and Maura Tierney in “Anything,” a 2017 film written and directed by Timothy McNeil.

Can a middle-aged straight man from small-town Mississippi find happiness with a transgender junkie prostitute in seedy Hollywood?

That’s the premise of “Anything,” writer-director Timothy McNeil’s sometimes awkward but at times unexpectedly tender film, based on his play, that gives longtime character actor John Carroll Lynch a starring role.

Lynch is Early Landry, a 55-year-old man living in Crane, Miss., who is grieving his wife’s death in a car accident. After an attempt at suicide, his sister Laurette (Maura Tierney) brings him to Los Angeles to live with her dysfunctional family, which includes disabled husband Ted (Christopher Thornton) and teenage son Jack (Tanner Buchanan, the president’s son in “Designated Survivor”).

Early and Laurette love each other, but can only take each other’s presence in limited doses. So after Early’s insurance settlement from the accident comes through, he moves into a small apartment in Hollywood, which Early tells Laurette is “just far enough from you — and I mean that in the most loving way possible.”

The apartment is in a rundown building filled with the kind of people you can’t find in Mississippi. Bald, squarely dressed and with a southern accent, Early is “like Andy Griffith’s sad brother” to one resident.

Early meets cute with his next door neighbor, who calls herself Freda Von Rhenburg (Matt Bomer). Freda is a mess; she abuses drugs and hangs out with fellow prostitutes on the street. And yet her feminine presence is exactly what Early needs, and Early’s moral steadiness is what Freda needs.

The situation is preposterous, and yet Lynch and Bomer make it work; they actually have real chemistry together.

“I came here with a pulse and a desire to die, and that’s about it,” Early tells Freda. “But I didn’t. So you’ve already done something.”

But “Anything” often strains credulity. Early takes it upon himself to help Freda kick her addiction to drugs, and boy, was that easy. When Early invites his sister’s family over to meet Freda, Laurette, the L.A. resident, loudly reveals herself to be way more intolerant than small-town Southerner Early in a ridiculous, over-the-top scene (Tierney’s role is thankless).

And as to the Early-Freda relationship itself, no spoilers revealed here. Suffice to say that McNeil plays it way too safe. Trying to have it both ways, he satisfies no one.

May 19, 2018

Teen Wins Best Actor In Cannes Section For Transgender Role

Un Certain Regard generally showcases more edgy, up-and-coming directors than Cannes' main competition. The prizes are awarded a day before the awards ceremony in the main competition.

Attachment 1075414 Belgian actor Victor Polster poses during a photocall for the film Girl (Image courtesy: AFP Relaxnews)

A 16-year-old Belgian actor won best actor in the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes film festival Friday for playing an aspiring transgender ballerina who brutalises her body to further her dreams. Victor Polster, a trained dancer, won the award for his cinematic debut in Lukas Dhont's Girl, about a teen trapped in a boy's body desperate to speed up the gender reassignment process while trying to perfect her dance technique.

A jury led by Benicio Del Toro awarded the section's top prize to the Swedish film Border by Ali Abbasi, about a female customs officer with a facial disfigurement but a extraordinary sense of smell that helps her detect fraudsters.

The best director's prize went to Ukrainian director Sergei Loznitsa for Donbass, a 13-episode odyssey set in the eastern Ukraine region of the same name, where government forces have been fighting pro-Russian separatists since 2014.

The award for best screenplay went to French-Moroccan director Meryem Benm'barek for Sofia, about a middle-class, Moroccan 20-year-old scrambling to avoid bringing shame on her family after falling pregnant out of wedlock.

Un Certain Regard generally showcases more edgy, up-and-coming directors than Cannes' main competition. The prizes are awarded a day before the awards ceremony in the main competition. Traffic star Del Toro won the best male actor prize at Cannes in 2008 for his portrayal of Che Guevara in Steven Soderbergh's two-part film Che.

MAY 21, 2018

Pakistan's transgender rights law - a 'battle half won'

LAHORE (Thomson Reuters Foundation) - Bindya Rana wipes away tears of joy as she recalls her long battle to have the rights of Pakistan’s transgender community formally recognized in law.

“I feel as if an orphan has finally now found shelter,” Rana, a 50-year-old transgender woman, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation after Pakistan’s parliament approved the landmark bill earlier this month.

On Friday the bill, which seeks to end discrimination against Pakistan’s transgender community, formally became law when acting president Muhammad Sadiq Sanjrani gave his assent.

Campaigners for transgender rights welcomed the move, but some cautioned that enforcement was likely to be slow.

“The passage of the bill into law ... is a battle that is still only half won,” said Ashee Butt, founder of the Be Ghar Foundation, which runs a shelter for transgender people.

“We now face the challenge of fighting for the law to be enforced in its true spirit and that may take another a decade or two,” she said.

The law is the latest step towards equality for the community in the deeply conservative Muslim-majority country, where homosexuality remains a crime.

Pakistan’s Supreme Court ruled in 2009 that transgender people - sometimes known as “hijras” in South Asia - could get national identity cards as a “third sex”.

Last year the government issued its first passport with a transgender category.

In practice however transgender people in Pakistan are often marginalized and face discrimination in education and jobs.

Many live in secluded communities and have no choice but to beg on the streets or sing and dance at private parties to earn a living. Some also turn to prostitution to make ends meet.

Just days before Pakistan’s parliament passed the new bill, a transgender woman was murdered in the northern city of Peshawar, the fourth such killing this year according to local rights activists.

The law requires the government to set up dedicated safe spaces with medical and educational facilities where they would be free from harassment.

One clause specifically protects the community from harassment, which Butt said was still widespread, both in public and in private.

“It provides a sense of being protected,” she said, describing how she and the rest of the community faced taunts and even physical attacks.

It will also allow transgender people to apply for driving licenses and passports and inherit property using their chosen identities, and to change their gender in official records.

For Rana, the most significant aspect of the changes is the ability for transgender men and women to register under their own identity, rather than one imposed by society.

“The biggest source of happiness for us is that the new law provides transgender people the right to register their chosen gender identity on their government issued national identity cards and documents,” she said.

“Now we can fight confidently at all levels, including in the courts, for these rights,” she added, calling the law “long overdue”.

5/22/18

TRANSGENDER PEOPLE’S BRAINS ARE WIRED LIKE THOSE OF GENDER THEY IDENTIFY WITH, NEW STUDY SHOWS

The brains of transgender people are wired in a way that matches the gender they identify with rather than their biological sex, according to a new study.

Researchers found that whether a person identifies as transgender could be tied to how their brains develop in the womb. A person might identify as transgender when the gender they are assigned at birth according to their sex does not match how they feel inside. For instance, a person with a penis who is told they are a boy at birth could later grow up to identify as a woman.

To arrive at their findings, researchers at the VU University Medical Center in the Netherlands analyzed the brain activity of young transgender people using MRI scans. Around 160 young people were involved in the small study, including adolescent boys and girls with gender dysphoria.

The team assessed how their brains changed in response to a pheromone that prompts gender-specific activity in the organ. They found that the transgender adolescents had parallels with the brain activity of cisgender participants of the same gender. Cisgender is the term used to describe a person who identifies with the gender they were assigned at birth.

Professor Julie Bakker, an expert in neuroendocrinology at the University of Liege and lead author of the study, told Newsweek: “The earlier it [being transgender] is detected, the better the outcome of the treatment.

“For instance in the Netherlands, youngsters are being treated with puberty inhibitors at 12 years of age to prevent the development of secondary sex characteristics which are difficult or even impossible to reverse (like the lowering of the voice in boys) and then at 16 years of age, they can start with cross-sex hormones. It has been shown that these youngsters are doing relatively well and are well accepted by their peers.”

Acknowledging that the study had a small cohort, she explained that the number of studies on this topic have been growing in recent years and researchers have been their sharing data.

Bakker added: "It is important to study the origin of sex differences in the brain, not only for making clinical decisions for people suffering from disorders of sex development or from gender dysphoria, but also because there are important sex differences in the incidence of a wide variety of neurological diseases such as autism, depression, schizophrenia and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease.

"We need to know more about how sex hormones influence brain function and structure." She explained that while most studies have been performed on male subjects, both humans and animals, these do not always relate to females.

"It has been shown that women are more sensitive to morphine or sleep medication, and there could be many other differences that have not been discovered yet because one has been focusing on males only," she said.

Dr. James Barrett, lead clinician at the Gender Identity Clinic and president of the British Association of Gender Identity Specialists, was among those to peer review the study. He told Newsweek it was the latest piece of evidence to provide a link between the brain structures of transgender people and the gender with which they identify.

“It used to be held long ago that all of this was psychological, and over the years the pendulum of 'Is it nature or nurture?' has swung rather more toward the nature side of it, with increasing peculiar pieces of biological evidence suggesting there may be something innate in the pre-uterine environment,” he said.

Asked to address those who claim that being transgender is a “lifestyle choice,” he said: “It is not the experience with the people I deal with on a day to day basis. I imagine they are the same people who say that gay people have a choice.

“Do people choose to be left-handed? You can make them write right-handed, and they can get quite good at it, but they’d be fundamentally left-handed. Why people are left-handed is a complicated business—but in the end, left-handed they are,” he concluded.

May 24, 2018

Victoria Is The Latest State To Scrap ‘Forced Transgender Divorce’ Laws

Attachment 1076359

Transgender Victorians will now be able to stay married to their partners when they change the gender on their birth certificate under legislation passed by the Victorian government on Tuesday night.

In several states and territories, transgender people must be unmarried if they want to update the sex marker on their birth certificate, essentially requiring trans people to make a cruel choice between divorcing the person they love or having identification that doesn’t reflect who they are. The law is a leftover from when same-sex marriages were illegal.

Victorian trans woman Sarah Adcock married her wife in 2008, and she transitioned to female in 2012. She changed her name but has previously been unable to change her gender on her birth certificate while married to her partner.

She said Australians “overwhelmingly voted for an inclusive and fair society” last year and all states need to make sure this extends to transgender and other gender diverse people.

“My wife and I love each other very much. We’ve enjoyed nine happy year together as a married couple and look forward to many more as we bring up our child,” she said.

“Our marriage certificate doesn’t define our marriage as our relationship grows, but it is symbolic. We weren’t willing to give it up.”

Another Victorian affected by the law is Greens Senator Janet Rice’s partner Penny (both pictured), and Rice said the law change means “Penny will be able to affirm her gender on her birth certificate and we can stay married for many years to come.”

Transgender Victoria spokesperson Sally Goldner said the reforms were important for the trans and gender diverse people and their partners, and urged remaining states to move quickly to change their respective laws.

“These reforms simply extend concepts like love and equality, but we would like to acknowledge the couples who were sadly forced apart before this reform and the sacrifices they made,” she said.

A similar bill to scrap the divorce requirement in New South Wales was introduced to that state’s parliament this week.

NSW Gay and Lesbian Rights Lobby co-convenor Lauren Foy welcomed the move and said the legal changes around the unmarried requirement will improve the lives of transgender people.

“We congratulate the Berejiklian government on their strong commitment to equality for all people in NSW and will continue to welcome legislative advances that promote the autonomy, dignity and respect that all LGBTI deserve,” she said.

The Queensland Government has also introduced similar changes in a bill currently before parliament, and is also holding a public inquiry into broader changes to birth certificate laws.

Queensland Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath said the divorce requirement in Section 22 of the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act had “caused significant anguish for many gender-diverse Queenslanders and must change.”

South Australia and the ACT had already updated their laws before the passage of the same-sex marriage bill in 2017.

Human Rights Law Centre Legal Advocacy Director Anna Brown said it’s “unacceptable that some trans and gender diverse people are still waiting for full marriage equality.”

“The community has shown their support for marriage equality, it’s time our laws did as well,” Ms Brown said.

“All governments must follow Victoria’s lead and reform outdated birth certificate laws so trans and gender diverse people can live with dignity.”

Trans Health Australia spokesperson Jaime Paige said Australia still has some way to go before all discrimination against transgender people is removed.

“This is a step in the right direction but trans people are still required to undergo invasive surgery before they can change their legal sex,” Paige said.

“Much more reform is needed to bring birth certificate laws in Victoria, New South Wales and many other states into line with best practice worldwide.”