Largo Fires T woman

I have been catching the news on this travesty when I can but have not researched enough to do an article justice. This is such a compelling story considering the non-discrimination policy that the city has yet they still fired the man as soon as he announced he would be transitioning. I am going to refer you to Pam's House Blend for this one. Pam has done a great job of capturing the story as it unfolds...

Largo Fires Stanton

Read it and weep...

Is it true?

12-year-old boy undergoing sex change

VIENNA, Jan. 28 A 12-year-old European boy will become the world's youngest sex-change recipient after convincing doctors he is in the wrong body and wants to be female.

The boy, who has changed his name from Tim to Kim, has begun receiving hormone treatment in preparation for the operation that will eventually lead to a sex change, the Sunday Telegraph reported.


Doctors diagnosed Kim as transsexual two years ago, after psychiatrists determined that feelings of being in the wrong body appeared to be so deeply felt that he required treatment.

I try to avoid posting anyhing that I cannot verify without a shadow of a doubt. SO take this with a grain of salt since I have not been able to find articles or information to validate this one.

This instance raises enormous issues and possibilities for our T's. What would like have been like if human beings were able to live their gender from such an early age?

UPDATE: I still have not verified if this is a fact, rumor or urban legend. The story has sped through the blogosphere and appears to be ligitimate but who knows?

The story of Jenny Boylan

I just love Oprah! If everyone on the planet was as open minded and open hearted as her the world would be a much better place.

This is from the show "The Husband Who Became a Woman"

Jenny Boylan says throughout her 40 years living as a man, she knew that she was really a woman trapped in a man's body. Being transgendered was a burden that grew heavier and heavier until it finally crushed her—her body did not match her spirit. After trying to be a man, a good husband and a father for 40 years, in 2000, Jenny made a life-altering decision to stop living a lie and began her transition into womanhood.

The really interesting portion of this interview is the discussion of the Benjamin Standards of Care.

The major purpose of the Standards of Care (SOC) is to articulate this international organization's professional consensus about the psychiatric, psychologic, medical, and surgical management of gender identity disorders.

Read it - educate yourself! The more conversation we have about the T in our LGB the better off we are as a community!

Trans support

I have met many transgender and have an enormous appreciation for the process of becoming who you are. The years of therapy, lifetime of medication, surgery process and mental and emotional trials that trans people go through is amazing to me. I thought coming out was the hardest thing in the world to do but coming out as trans? Yikes! That is a whole new realm of being that we as a community are just beginning to understand.

I have to admit that I am just beginning to understand what it means to be trans. (I am not trans myself but have met many wonderful kind hearted and courageous T's who are struggling in this community.)

Papillon Spokane is the only regional Transgender Support and Social group that I am aware of. Well worth it to check them out at their website, especially if you are just learning who you really are.

Another site for anonymous support that has some great resources is Laura’s Playground. There is online live chat support not only for trans people but also their spouses, significant others, family members and friends. (I like going to this site just to listen to the voice on the home page!)

I have to admit that I am a little jealous of the rights of the Ts, they actually have the right to legally marry a person of the same biological gender here in good old WA state! A F – M trans can marry a woman and a M – F can marry a man, which means that two people who are biologically the same sex can get married – one of them has to be living hir life as their true gender. (No, I did not typo, hir is a gender neutral pronoun that is not yet widely used.)

We are experiencing a change of attitude towards being more tolerant and supporting of our Ts. We have a long way to go even among our own LGB community to understanding the T in our acronym. It is a fascinating transition that deserves the support of all of the LGB community. For some reason we seem to forget the T portion of that acronym when it comes to rights and legislating equality. I hope to see a day of equality for all when we as a community refuse to give up our T as a sacrificial lamb when the going gets tough.

Sorry I didn't see this earlier!

Transgender Religious Summit set for Jan. 19

For more information contact the Gay Alliance of the Genesee Valley.