Transgender People: We Are Making Progress
http://blogs.montrealgazette.com/2012/11/20/transgender-people-we-are-making-progress/ (http://blogs.montrealgazette.com/2012/11/20/transgender-people-we-are-making-progress/)
11/20/12
Jillian Page
As this solemn Transgender Day of Remembrance draws to a close, I am encouraged by some of the news I have heard today.
From the White House, the Obama administration marked TDoR, according to a report from LGBTQ Nation. Among the comments was this one from Labor Secretary Hilda Solis: "I stand proudly today — and every day — as an ally to the transgender community and to every person and family impacted by anti-transgender bullying and violence. Transgender people are part of the diversity that America celebrates today and they, like every American, deserve to live without fear of prejudice or violence."
I was talking to a good friend at the weekend who does a lot of work in the community on GLBTIQ matters, and Tasmania has gone from being the most homophobic and transphobic State to the one with the strongest anti-discrimination laws in the country. It will be interesting to compare Saturday's Pride Parade with last year's, which was the first in over 20 years.
This friend lives in a small country town where attitudes have done a complete U-turn, to the point where anyone who is in town and looks a bit "alternative" is assumed to be a friend of hers.
Karen.