Susan's Place Transgender Resources

HRC president apologizes for 'misspeaking' at transgender conference

http://www.sovo.com/thelatest/thelatest.cfm?blog_id=18138
5/6/2008

"Human Rights Campaign President Joe Solmonese met with a handful of transgender activists in Atlanta last week and apologized for "misspeaking" at last year's Southern Comfort conference, where he promised HRC would only support an Employment Non-Discrimination Act that included gender identity, according to people attending the meeting."

BFD.

Why would anyone trust him? He is two faced. I wish that HRC would just dump him and anyone who goes along with him. How can you misspeak at a major conference? You plan these speaches ahead of time.
Sheila

Quote from: Sheila on May 06, 2008, 08:22:30 PM
How can you misspeak at a major conference? You plan these speaches ahead of time.
Sheila

It is pure Nixonian spin-speak.  He didn't lie, he misspoke.  "That statement is no longer operative"

To have either one near me is a bonanza of fertilizer.  He and barney will do anything do advance gay (not necessarily lesbian) issues.  And all the bull-malarkey about coming back in 2011 and getting the trans community is just that, more fertilizer.  How the hell are they going to get the votes they didn't have this time, in 2011?  Maybe they'll send up a trial balloon and see if the climate has changed.  If not, well sorry, we got ours, screw you.

Needless to say, I did not renew my HRC membership.

-Sandy (just a bit emotional about that)

It is beyond hurtful.

Kristi

Did he apologize for "misspeaking", namely for the promise of an all-inclusive ENDA? Or did he apologize for supporting and then backing a trans exclusive version betraying the promise? Somehow his apology sounds like a political jesture with hopes for future support from the trans-community than something he truly believed was wrong, like making a promise he knew he wouldn't fulfill. Me thinks I wouldn't trust as far as I can see him walking away in a crocked hallway.

Sadly, though, it may be the trans-community's only offer. The LGB community knows they don't need an all-inclusive bill and they have Barney Franks who'll jettison the trans coverage for passage. The trans-community will have to decide if all the effort and support will be worth it even if it isn't an all-inclusive bill (again). It's an election year and every member in the House will have to face the voters. Will they want to hand their opposition a spoon-fed issue about gay rights?

If Joe is setting the stage for 2009, it's worth's supporting with some kind of assurances in writing from the HRC which they can hold in his face. Otherwise his promises come with a 50/50 guarantee, the first fifty feet or fifty second he walks away from you. He wants the trans-community in his pocket, and he'll expect our support without much beyond his promise, which we already know how good that is?

But then I could be wrong.

Quote from: SusanK on May 07, 2008, 08:05:06 AM
Did he apologize for "misspeaking", namely for the promise of an all-inclusive ENDA? Or did he apologize for supporting and then backing a trans exclusive version betraying the promise?

He appoligised for saying he was supportive.  This should be concidered an acknowldgement on his part that he is not supportive.

Quote from: redfish the posthuman on May 07, 2008, 08:53:40 AM
but he can go to Hell.

LOL  Having met Jamie a few times and knowing Shelley, I'm sure he got a little "hell on earth" at the meeting.

Beverly

Quote from: BeverlyAnn on May 07, 2008, 09:23:42 AM

Quote from: redfish the posthuman on May 07, 2008, 08:53:40 AM
but he can go to Hell.

LOL  Having met Jamie a few times and knowing Shelley, I'm sure he got a little "hell on earth" at the meeting.

Beverly

"It looks like [HRC] is working toward [a trans-inclusive bill] for 2011, assuming a friendly Democrat got into the White House," [Jamie Roberts] said. "I'm just adopting a wait-and-see attitude to see how serious they are about including gender identity in the bill."

---

[Sir Jesse] McNulty, however, said Solmonese's apology wasn't truly enough.

"He apologized for the 'misspeak', but never apologized for the action," he said. "His rationale is that the vote was necessary and is still a victory."

"They're called the Human Rights Campaign, and that's more than just gays and lesbians," he said. "Butch lesbians and feminine men face the same discrimination we do. It's not OK what they did."

Quote from: redfish the posthuman on May 07, 2008, 01:48:33 PM
I still hate how appeals have to be made to the gay and lesbian community though that it helps them too.

Because, you know, it isn't enough to just help us out unless there's some benefit to it.

Please, please, please, do not condemn the GLB community for the actions of salmonella and barney the dinosaur!  Most of the GLB community were overwhelmingly against the actions taken by HRC and barney!

Virtually everyone the the entire LGBT community recognized how gender identity would benefit all members of the community.  Yeah there were a few vocal and oddly mean spirited members of the community who thought the the transgender community was attempting to ride on the coattails of the progress made by the GLB community.  This, of course, ignored the heritage of the LGBT movement which had its violent beginning at the stonewall where police regularly shook down the gay and transgender members of the bar and they rioted after too many shake downs.  Our current history is joined.  We cannot reject or hold anyone but HRC, specifically Joe Salmonese, and Representative Barney Frank for throwing us under the bus!

We must hang together or we shall certainly hang separately!

-Sandy

There were hundreds of organizations connected with the LBGT that denouced HRC's and Barney's backing of a non-inclusive ENDA. We are all still one, it is the president of HRC and some of his board members who are at fault and we must not forget the all unforgettable Barney.
Sheila

The HRC is a political orgnization, as such you can only trust them as much as you can trust any polititian.

how much trust do you have in G.W. Bush?

how many times did he lie?

We still must work with bush, at least untill january.

we still must work with HRC no mater how much we do not trust them.  (no term limit on that one)