Taking a stand

[Sandy]

I sent the following to my LGBT co-workers when we were approached by the HRC to contribute and participate in an HRC function.  The memo has been sanitized to remove specific names and the name of my company.

All:

This is very hard for me to write this.  But I feel that I, personally, cannot have any association with the Human Rights Campaign.

As you may or may not be aware, last year there was a large effort put forward to pass a bill in the House of Representatives called the Employment Non Discrimination Act (ENDA).  This bill, which was authored by representative Barney Frank, was to put in place nondiscrimination policies for employment, housing and other areas for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender community.

In the last weeks before the bill was to be voted on, Representative Frank, removed the transgender portion of the bill saying that it would be impossible to get the votes for the bill with the transgender clause included.  This move was sponsored and endorsed by the HRC, even though virtually every single civil rights, GLBT, and women's rights activists group opposed removing the transgender portion of the bill.  Regardless, the bill went forward with the transgender provision eliminated.

The bill was passed by a fair margin, 235 to 184.  Representative Frank claimed that the time wasn't right for the transgender community to be added to the bill but pledged to work for another bill for the transgendered in 2009 or 2010. 

During the civil rights movement, there was no discussion or statement that the time wasn't right for certain races to be included in the Civil Rights Act of 1964.  The Civil Rights Act was absolutely inclusive of all races.  The Employment Non Discrimination Act should be all inclusive of the entire LGBT community as well.

The Human Rights Campaign has been the spearhead for the LGBT community in the past.  They are also the largest and most vocal Political Action Committee for the LGBT community in Washington.  The HRC Corporate Equality Index has long been at the forefront for providing a public standard for corporations to measure up to.  And the company's HRC rating of 100 is something to be very proud of.

Also Representative Frank, as one of the few openly gay members of the House of Representatives has staunchly supported and advocated LGBT rights and causes.

I am not asking anyone else to take a similar stance, nor am I asking that the company disassociate themselves from the HRC.

However, as a transsexual woman I cannot in good conscience condone what Representative Frank and the HRC have done.  Nor will I participate in any activity associated with them.

-Sandra lastname 

I haven't heard anything back from this memo.  I expect that nothing more will be said.  They will accept my point of view and move on.  It will have no impact whatsoever.  But I have taken a stand.

-Sandy

[NicholeW.]

You never know what the impact of your stand will be, Sandy. It shows courage and a willingness to stand by your convictions. That could very well impress a number of people. Besides, as always, it was very well-written, thoughtful and non-threatening in any way whatsoever. I imagine you're building credibility with that memo.

Hugs,

Nichole

[tekla]

Mixing political stuff and work - unless your work is political - is not a good thing.

[ChefAnnagirl]

Hi there -

All i can tell you is that i think the HRC is very genuinely responding right now to some of the fallout and backlash since last years' difficulties. I have had the chance to work directly with some really good folks at the HRC, in direct relation to the issues here in my home state these last few months, and they have been extremely responsive.

They have now given their full public weight of support to us in the Basic Rights Montgomery issues, and contributed a very large funds matching contribution to directly support this campaign for TG equality here in my home state and county... They have sent a continual stream of crtically needed volunteers, logistics, political, and financial assistance, and real basic solid teamwork to us, since this whole mess began here. When we DO win this challenge soon, it will actually be in part because of the help they have given us.

I would have to only suggest that not everyone can be ruled or judged harshly against and summarily, and that there will always be good people to be found in all of these equal rights/human rights organizations that are truly interested in really doing the right kinds of things for all of us, past politics aside.

There are a lot of people here at places like Equality Maryland, the NCTE, and the Nat'l Gay & Lesbian Task Force that have made considerable inroads in collectively shoring up support with them, even since last year, and i have now personally seen a lot of truly solid cooperation and support from them in all kinds of ways as a result. I think that looking ahead, and continuing to press forward for more progress with all of these groups is one of the single greatest solutions we can all possibly hope for. Just because one door closed, dosent mean there arent open windows to be taken full advantage of.

Just get back in, and get some more real work done with all those people that are still willing to do it with us. Eventually we can, and must, and will prevail, regardless. 

Hope this can help in any way possible.

Thanks,
Sincerely,


Maryanne

[Kate Thomas]

The HRC is a political organization this is at the forefront of all their actions. You can trust them just about as much as you can trust any politician.

could ENDA have been handled better? Yes

Did the HRC learn a lesson?  I believe they did.

Will the HRC remain a leading LGBT political organization?  You bet your sweet ... it will.

like it or not transgender persons  need to work with this organization and try to bend change and educate it.   a process that will take years.

should you trust the HRC? ... well how many national politicians do you really trust in the end? (pun intended)

enda is facing another go around so HRC will have  a chance to walk the talk.

I will Salute them for all they have done in Montgomery . Having that kind of support must be a real moral booster.

[NicholeW.]

How many of the national staff of HRC live in Montgomery County, MD? If there are a number wouldn't that make the issues there "local" as opposed to issues in Couer d'Alene, ID or Riverside, CA or Savannah, GA?

I'm sorry, HRC seems to me to be more interested in getting a "voice" for "respectable" gay males than for actually making a national difference for the other groups under the "umbrella." If the organization shows change in that regard, then I could be more enthusiastic in my support of them.

As it stands now, I'm not a gay male and they don't show me much sense that anything I might be interested in supporting is gonna be supportable by themselves.

Nichole

[tekla]

HRC seems to me to be more interested in getting a "voice" for "respectable" gay males than for actually making a national difference for the other groups under the "umbrella." If the organization shows change in that regard, then I could be more enthusiastic in my support of them.

Well, like any prom you best be dancing with them what brung ya.  So if they were to support L and G and T equally, then one would assume that each of those represents a third of their members and a third of their support.  I doubt that is true.

They represent those 'respectable gay males' because I'm willing to bet that most of their support comes from exactly those people.  And, I would add one more word, one that is critical to this I think - they are OUT respectable gay males.  All too often many members of the TG community come to it for support, and then ditch it for a stealth life as soon as they can.  They are not going to be working for HRC, or giving it money, or holding events, or doing lobbying because they do not want their lives associated with this.  Respectable (read: professional) out gay males don't have that stelth luxury -nor do they want it, they want to be out - hence a need for a real reform in the laws, hence, HRC.

[Sandy]

I'm sorry, Maryanne, but the wound is still too raw, the hurt and betrayal is still too fresh in my mind.

Much like the betrayal from a dear friend or lover, you cannot just "forgive and forget".  I've scoured the internet and the HRC sight and have found statements from Representative Frank, Joe Solmonese, and Speaker Nancy Pelosi amoung many others who all claim that the passage of ENDA through the House was a bittersweet victory since they left out the transgender portion of the bill.  And promise to work to ammend this.  Also there is the upcoming committee hearing to allow transgendered individuals to speak to members of congress to provide information on the discrimination of transgendered people.  This is being pushed forward by Representative Frank and the NCTE.

But, still, to me this is just lip service.  If in 1964 it was felt that the time wasn't right for asians, for example, not to be included in the Civil Rights Act of 1964, there would have been similar backlash.  The Civil Rights Act of 1964 did not push for complete equality on all things, voting rights for example were omitted.  But it did include ALL RACES.  The incremental approach was to incrementally gain additional RIGHTS for ALL RACES.

You cannot say we will incrementally add the transgendered to the rights already added and say it is the same as the Civil Rights act of 1964!  Only if you include the entire comunity can you draw any real corollary to that historic act.

I am gladdened to hear that HRC is becoming very active in the Montgomery issue.  And maybe I can see my way to soothing my pain when I see more actions such as this.  But unitl then I remain betrayed.

Tekla:
It's too bad that we don't have more statistics.  And all I have to go on is gut feelings.  But I think that more and more full time transsexuals are chosing a less stealthy life.  I know for myself, that I cannot cut myself off from my life, and just start anew as a woman.  So to those people that knew me before, they now know that I have transitioned.  They can accept me or not.  Yes, I have become quite the feminist and trans advocate.  And perhaps I am a bit different than others.  But maybe not so much.

I feel that as time goes along it will be less of an issue and more and more trans folk will continue in their lives without going stealth.

That is the gift we can give our children as we move our issues forward.

-Sandy 

[NicholeW.]

Tekla:
It's too bad that we don't have more statistics.  And all I have to go on is gut feelings.  But I think that more and more full time transsexuals are chosing a less stealthy life.  I know for myself, that I cannot cut myself off from my life, and just start anew as a woman.  So to those people that knew me before, they now know that I have transitioned.  They can accept me or not.  Yes, I have become quite the feminist and trans advocate.  And perhaps I am a bit different than others.  But maybe not so much.

I feel that as time goes along it will be less of an issue and more and more trans folk will continue in their lives without going stealth.

That is the gift we can give our children as we move our issues forward.

-Sandy 

(I'm gonna talk about MTFs since that is what I know best. This may or may not apply to FTMs or any other variety of gendered people who will read it.)

I think the entire definition within circles of trans-women, and maybe trans-men as well, IS kinda changing in this regard. Back in the old days the impetus for everyone was to be stealth. The shrinks, medical doctors & the women themselves were warned and encouraged not to "rock the boat" so to speak by being "out."

As a general rule to be "out" like Sylvia Rivera, for instance, was a case of not being regarded as MTF as much as of being labelled a "drag queen."

Thus, imo, the "reason" behind people like Barney Frank having the amazing lack of context in which he is able to say "transsexuals and transgender" people have ONLy been around and out for less than ten years. A lot of our forebearers have been erased, either through mis-labeling or by the insistence of the clinics and such that they not rock any boats and go hide themselves. I think that tack has been a hard one to break and I think that a lot of our foremothers get ridiculed and berated for living that way.

My own tactic is to be "limitedly out." The plan is to use my degree and skills to work with trans-people across the spectrum. That will require some amount of advertisement and thus, make me out. But, that doesn't mean I have to blare out to any and sundry that I was once designated "male." It simply means that there will be parts of my life that remain closed to others while at the same time the evidence will be there to find.

I can write, support causes and still be myself without "disappearing" from the world. To some extent I suppose that could be seen as attention-seeking, but shoot, a girl's gotta eat!!

I think we can hold down jobs, live amongst our neighbors without making a point of being available to all; yet, at the same time be available to some.

I'm hopeful that the entire "National Identity Card" crap will just be quietly allowed to die after January of next year. Honestly, I see no reason for all of that info to be available to any fat-butted, dim-witted cop or dispatcher or court-clerk or J.C. Penney's clerk who gets hold of it.

I'm hopeful that more of my sisters do chose, not to be "professional trannies," (I find many of those hard to take anyways) but do leave themselves some venues and some openness to being 'seen' and heard for all of the reasons that both tekla and Sandy have stated.

There is little expectation of a different way-of-doing-things when those who are 'different' are all cringing in some dark corner or are consistently denying in all regards that they understand what it's like to experience transsexing. One of the reasons I admire people like Northern Jane is that regardless of how well they blend and how long they have lived a woman's life is that they are still willing to come to a place like this and make an attempt to share their experiences and what they've learned over the years.

Well, ... what they recall of it anyways!!  >

Nichole

 

[Mnemosyne]

HRC has done nothing except throw us under the bus. I just wish they would drop the T out (and they can do away with the B too since they do nothing in that arena as well) and leave our community alone. They did not want anything to do with us from their very inception and for many of us we now want absolutely nothing to do with them. I will not donate one penny to their organization nor will I spend any of my activism time in association with their org.

They (and many of their gay members) feel they can represent us. They cannot, period. I even had a couple of rather wealthy HRC supporters go to one of their overpriced dinners and tell me, as they were heading out, that they would be sure to represent me. I asked them not to because they cannot.

I hope that a big scandal unfolds and that HRC goes away in a very public manner and so much that none of their leadership can ever show their faces again.