Human Rights Campaign’s apparent disinterest in trans rights grabbed fresh headlines over the past few weeks. As trans activist Monica Roberts points out, anti-trans politics have a long history in queer movements. The ENDA debate, however, may be the last straw:
HRC also has a pathetic history of refusing to deal with trans people as equals not only in terms of civil rights legislation but even in hiring talented transgender people for their organization. This historical negativity keeps transpeople from working with HRC in any capacity.
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The flare up this time may have not only burned the bridge that people like recently resigned HRC board member Donna Rose and others were trying to build towards a working partnership with HRC, but made any talk of doing that in the transgender community moot for years to come.
Roberts also takes aim at Barney Frank, calling the openly gay Representative a “prominent” example of anti-trans leaders.
Allen
I love my trans friends dearly, okay? However, this person seems to enjoy whining instead of doing something about the problem. Maybe she should get off her lazy ass and go lobby for trans groups instead of letting someone else do it for her?
Heather_L_James
Wow, pretty dumb statement Allen. You really can’t make assumptions about what someone is doing when not taking ten minutes to do a newspaper interview. For all you know she could have spent the other twenty three hours and fifty minutes of that day visiting congresspersons, or educating the public on trans issues.
For anyone that has half a brain and cares to know what the trans activists are doing to change things, follow this link.
http://nctequality.blogspot.com/
Allen
No, Heather … a dumb statement is, “I eat soap.” That’s a dumb statement.
I’m just so fed up with this bullshit of EDNA. I say use BOTH – one with and one without the T. Let’s see what happens.
lyssa
Whoa, Allen. Such hate and ignorance.
Heather is right, you do make dumb statements. Maybe you should have your mouth washed out with soap.
Or maybe we should pop some popcorn and watch you act like a pissed off brat because you’re not getting your way…
Heather_L_James
No, “I eat soap” is an innocuous statement. A dumb statement is assuming that because someone writes a blog or gives an interview that you don’t agree with that they are lazy and want someone to do their work for them. The individual that wrote that piece is a very active lobbyist for trans rights.
Maybe you should follow the link and read the piece. She quotes former high profile LGB activists who have made such enlightened statements as “transsexuals are just misguided gay men that have mutilated their genitals”, and “an transgender inclusive ENDA will be introduced over my dead body”. The latter of which was uttered by a former HRC President.
lyssa
Hey Allen. It’s ENDA, not EDNA
🙂
mozzer13
I would so totally vote for EDNA!
Monica Roberts
FYI Allen,
I helped found NTAC and lobbied for transgender rights in Texas, Kentucky and at the federal level since 1998.
I’ve taught Transgender 101 to college students, corporations, organizations, and government agencies, write a column on GLBT issues for a local GLBT newspaper, sat on the boards of GLBT orgs in Houston and Louisville, moderate a Yahoo discussion list for African-American transpeople and am one of the founders of the Transsistahs-Transbrothas convention for African-American transpeople.
By the way, did I mention that in 2006 I became the third African-American transperson to win the transgender community’s second highest award for service, the IFGE Trinity?