Post-HERO: Transgender activists take a stand at Montrose event

[stephaniec]

Post-HERO: Transgender activists take a stand at Montrose event

http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/Post-HERO-Transgenders-take-a-stand-at-Montrose-6617442.php

Chron/By Dylan Baddour Updated 7:22 pm, Saturday, November 7, 2015

"A small crowd rallied Saturday on a Montrose street corner to try to combat the negative stereotypes of transgender people that have accompanied the city's sweeping defeat of Houston's equal rights ordinance."

[Kellam]

Thank you for sharing this!

It made me think that we should organize bus loads of trans folk (like the freedom riders of old) to go down to Houston to flood the bathrooms. In groups for our own safety. We could either go to appropriate facilities or use the ones for our assigned at birth designations. Kinda like the lunch counter sit ins of the earlier days of the civil rights movement.

Anyone good at organizing?

[Oliviah]

Wow someone beat me to sharing the article I was quoted in.  I am slow.  lol I was a birthday party after until just now. 

It was such a fun event.  I got interviewed by Breightbat too.  oh my not sure what they will say.  As always don't read the comments. 

It was a pretty spontaneous event actually.  We only thought it up a couple days ago. 

[Kellam]

Wow someone beat me to sharing the article I was quoted in.  I am slow.  lol I was a birthday party after until just now. 

It was such a fun event.  I got interviewed by Breightbat too.  oh my not sure what they will say.  As always don't read the comments. 

It was a pretty spontaneous event actually.  We only thought it up a couple days ago.

That is so cool!

[Oliviah]

That is so cool!

Yeah.  We decided that we want to try and stop negativity.  We don't want acrimony or to generate negative feelings.  We are meeting today and invited as many in the community to meet to discus future events with even more people.  We are moving away from things like #occupotty and more towards going to volunteer events.  Showing up at things like that yesterday.  Going to church.  Just spread the message we love our fellow citizens.  We love Houston.  We are not dangerous.  We are humans who have feelings.  That is our goal. 

We encourage others do do that as well.  I think we will have a nice strategy following today's brain storm. 

I personally think the event was a huge success.  Even with the rain people were rolling down their windows and waving and saying positive things.  Honking and being really nice.  We had fun signs like have you hugged a transsexual today.  and just goofy stuff.  There was zero negativity the whole time.  From anyone.  It really lifted my spirits. 

I think in their hearts people are able to understand it is wrong to attack us and blame us. 

[Kellam]

That's beautiful. It warms my heart.

Sorry for my silly suggestion but I was raised in the far left. The first time I was in DC as a kid was to protest. My Mom's idea, we went with my church to protest the Gulf War. My first view of the White House was through a line of riot cops. So I tend to go straight to confrontational action. That's why I make my little suggestions in quiet ways. To give the more cool headed a chance to tell me to calm down.

Keep us posted on what y'all are doing and what we can do to help. You are doing amazing work. Flies with honey right? Love always wins!

[Oliviah]

That's beautiful. It warms my heart.

Sorry for my silly suggestion but I was raised in the far left. The first time I was in DC as a kid was to protest. My Mom's idea, we went with my church to protest the Gulf War. My first view of the White House was through a line of riot cops. So I tend to go straight to confrontational action. That's why I make my little suggestions in quiet ways. To give the more cool headed a chance to tell me to calm down.

Keep us posted on what y'all are doing and what we can do to help. You are doing amazing work. Flies with honey right? Love always wins!

Oh it wasn't a silly suggestion.  We just already tried that.  It is normal to want to lash out and show them as they say, but the spiral of negativity and acrimony in politics and civic live is so horrible.  So we just refuse to participate.  We love Houston.  We love our bothers and sister and parents and friends.  How has is ever come to all this?  Well all I can do is smile and say I love you.

[stephaniec]

you have to be quick on you toes around here. Your dealing with a cutting edge news department.

"Wow someone beat me to sharing the article I was quoted in"

[stephaniec]

Transgender Woman at Texas Trans Rally, 'I Am Obsessed with Breitbart and Matt Drudge!'

http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2015/11/08/transgender-woman-texas-trans-rally-obsessed-breitbart-matt-drudge/

Breibart/Texas/11/08/2015

"HOUSTON, Texas – Transgenders, and those supporting transgenders, rallied in the cold and rain in the heart of the LGBT enclave of Montrose in Houston on Saturday. When Breitbart Texas spoke with transgender Olivia Maynard, she immediately exclaimed – "I am obsessed with Breitbart and Matt Drudge!""

[Kellam]

That was fantastic Olivia, well done! Also, great pic. Y'all filled that piece with love. The hate at the end really showed itself for what it is.

Anyway, we need more like you.

[Oliviah]

OMG OMG OMG Breitbart just called and said they want me to write an op ed about being transgender.  Could be about anything really.  HERO, Houston, Jobs, transition.  I have no Idea.  Going to meet with everyone to talk about it in a bit.

[stephaniec]

good luck, we can use a complete report with video of the meeting.

[Kellam]

Yay!

[Joelene9]

good luck, we can use a complete report with video of the meeting.

Yes! Thanks, Olivia!

Joelene

[Jessie Ann]

Great job Olivia. I have to say that the comments following the article you are quoted in are some of the most vile, disgusting and intolerant comments I have seen directed at our community. 

[stephaniec]

Great job Olivia. I have to say that the comments following the article you are quoted in are some of the most vile, disgusting and intolerant comments I have seen directed at our community.

those comments are sad

[Oliviah]

Great job Olivia. I have to say that the comments following the article you are quoted in are some of the most vile, disgusting and intolerant comments I have seen directed at our community.

Yeah Breitbart commenters  are a special kind.

[cindianna_jones]

Congratulations, Oliviah. It looks like your efforts largely succeeded. They actually put forth a pretty good article on the protest. That's rare coming from a very homophobic content creator.

Cindi

[suzifrommd]

I've done a little bit of editorial writing. If you want me to look over your draft and make suggestions, feel free to PM me.

[Oliviah]

OP-ED: The politics of transgender - scapegoats in the culture war

Olivia Maynard
11/9/15

http://www.breitbart.com/texas/2015/11/09/op-ed-politics-transgender-scapegoats-culture-war/

Both the Left and the Right attack us and blame us for their problems. The Right say we are dangerous and trot us out as lurking predators. The Left say we enforce stereotypes, and caused the failure of the ordinance in Houston, and put equal rights ordinances in danger across the nation. There is even a petition to kick T out of LGBT. We can't win.

From the bottom of my of my broken transgender heart, please, please, stop. We are not predators. To attack us in such a way does damage to innocent people. We have high rates of depression, addiction, and suicide. We are a tiny minority, with a medical condition that most have never heard of, and don't have time to bother to understand. We faced higher rates of violence even before such a public call to fear and hate us. Now we fear we will be the target of even more violence, not only from strangers, but from ourselves. It is so sad to read about people who take their own life. Rejection, alienation, and bullying, extract a heavy toll on our beleaguered minority community. All too often that toll is our blood.

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I am published.