The following ten minute video has been posted on the Trans Group Blog. It's produced by Massachusetts Equality, GLAD and MA Transgender Political Action. The video primarily addresses the issue of transgender employment rights and our fear of violence. You can view it here.
I will never understand why this has to be such a volatile issue for so many people, why a person seeking their life's fulfillment is so abhorrent to coworkers and family. Very few of us have not dealt with this to some degree. This is why the glimmer of hope in passing a trans inclusive ENDA during this calendar year is so vitally important. Non discrimination laws at the state and local level are another imperative. The transgender woman who was fired by The City of Charlotte is a perfect example. One day you may be a valued employee and friend. The next day you may not be suitable to sit with at the same table.
This Tuesday, March 24 is the Equality North Carolina Day of Action. Many of us, including allies, will be traveling to Raleigh to meet with our legislators. It's a day I'm looking forward to. The issues of school bullying and violence are another imperative that needs to be addressed.
I'm still meeting people who recognize me from the interview on Fox News and Time Warner News last month. The girls in my favorite dress shop thought it was totally cool I was wearing the wardrobe I bought from them. If you all read this, thanks!
In the realm of less important news to everyone but me, I have a new hairstyle. It's a lot shorter than I've been wearing my hair, but I have the best hair stylist on the planet. I really do love it, especially with warm weather coming. It will be infinitely more comfortable during Pride Charlotte, which is July 25th.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Friday, March 20, 2009
March 20, 2009
I was selected for jury duty this week. I assumed it would be just a day watching TV and not be called. Late Tuesday I was seated on a civil case. When the attorney asked questions as to personal viewpoints on a number of subjects, I needed to be totally candid, lest my judgment be clouded by the causes for which I fight. It turned out to be a case that had no relation to my activism.
Without a lot of detail, we finished up at 11 AM Thursday. It was a relatively simple case, but also interesting. When you do things like this, you soon form a bond with the people you see every morning and all day. I'm actually going to miss a few people on the jury. Perhaps we can run into each other in some other venue.
This was the first time I'd been on a jury since my transition became complete, so it was one of those 'firsts' we all have. Last time I was called was the morning of 9/11, so obviously everything was canceled that day. We had a shock when a false alarm was turned in late Wednesday. The loud speakers blared that there was an emergency in the building and for us to evacuate the courthouse. We had to follow the deputy down six flights of stairs, which meant I picked a bad day to wear heels. It turned out a child pulled the lever. That meant we had to go back upstairs to have our parking tickets validated. Someone said they hoped the kid was doing hard time over this. Of course, I would never say anything like that.
It was announced last month by The Southern Poverty Law Center that the number of hate groups has jumped 54% since 2000. California has the largest number, but there are 45 known hate groups within the state of South Carolina where we do most of our outreach in Sean's Last Wish. Those are the groups we know of. It also means SC has the largest number of hate groups on a per capita basis. You can read the article here. There are some good people working hard in SC, including The South Carolina Progressive Network. We know it's an uphill battle.
Our Sean's Last Wish board of directors and volunteer meeting was two weeks ago. We heard the voice mail Sean's killer left while Sean was dying. I won't repeat what he said but it sent chills down my spine. It was best we heard it. People need to know what we are working against.
My six month physical was last week. This one was intensive and all is well. As I get older, I become increasingly thankful for my health. It's something I don't take for granted. Of course there is a procedure you need to have after hormones have taken effect. This will be my third one and it's as uncomfortable as they say it is.
One final word on the HRC dinner of Feb 21st. A gentleman who once served with HRC wrote an insightful article in Q-Notes. I thought his thoughts were very much on target. Read it here.
I should have written a couple weeks ago that the 32nd anniversay of the ABBA tour of Australia was March 3rd. I wonder if anyone else keeps up with the things I do.
Without a lot of detail, we finished up at 11 AM Thursday. It was a relatively simple case, but also interesting. When you do things like this, you soon form a bond with the people you see every morning and all day. I'm actually going to miss a few people on the jury. Perhaps we can run into each other in some other venue.
This was the first time I'd been on a jury since my transition became complete, so it was one of those 'firsts' we all have. Last time I was called was the morning of 9/11, so obviously everything was canceled that day. We had a shock when a false alarm was turned in late Wednesday. The loud speakers blared that there was an emergency in the building and for us to evacuate the courthouse. We had to follow the deputy down six flights of stairs, which meant I picked a bad day to wear heels. It turned out a child pulled the lever. That meant we had to go back upstairs to have our parking tickets validated. Someone said they hoped the kid was doing hard time over this. Of course, I would never say anything like that.
It was announced last month by The Southern Poverty Law Center that the number of hate groups has jumped 54% since 2000. California has the largest number, but there are 45 known hate groups within the state of South Carolina where we do most of our outreach in Sean's Last Wish. Those are the groups we know of. It also means SC has the largest number of hate groups on a per capita basis. You can read the article here. There are some good people working hard in SC, including The South Carolina Progressive Network. We know it's an uphill battle.
Our Sean's Last Wish board of directors and volunteer meeting was two weeks ago. We heard the voice mail Sean's killer left while Sean was dying. I won't repeat what he said but it sent chills down my spine. It was best we heard it. People need to know what we are working against.
My six month physical was last week. This one was intensive and all is well. As I get older, I become increasingly thankful for my health. It's something I don't take for granted. Of course there is a procedure you need to have after hormones have taken effect. This will be my third one and it's as uncomfortable as they say it is.
One final word on the HRC dinner of Feb 21st. A gentleman who once served with HRC wrote an insightful article in Q-Notes. I thought his thoughts were very much on target. Read it here.
I should have written a couple weeks ago that the 32nd anniversay of the ABBA tour of Australia was March 3rd. I wonder if anyone else keeps up with the things I do.
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