Any ideas on what would help in the decline of the murder and suicide within the transgender community.
Maybe if the rest of the world were dealing with facts instead of the ignorance and superstition that haters like to propagate?
Quote from: Jill F on October 18, 2015, 04:54:18 PM
Maybe if the rest of the world were dealing with facts instead of the ignorance and superstition that haters like to propagate?
^^^ Pretty much this.
Definitely better education to raise awareness and steamroll ignorance... might have a flow through. Although one has to wonder about people who murder - they're often happy to remain arrogant and pig ignorant.
As for suicide - much better, cheaper and more accessible and less judgemental services for the whole aspect of transition. Better anti-discrimination laws. Services for family and SOs to help them understand their support is crucial.
Full protection from discrimination based on gender expression and identity. You don't have to make everyone accept and respect us, but taking hate crimes seriously and actually enforcing it without giving credence to bs like hetero-panic.
Hugs,
- Katie
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I still believe that more education is needed. Many folks don't have a clue about transgender topics. I also believe that each transgender individual will need o be couneled in aloving and nurturing manner. Many folks have carried the negative baggage others have heaped on them over the years. Transgender people need to love themselves because there never was nothing wrong with them.
:)
I think from the recent news items that families need help in not being in such denial about their children being a gender they don't want to accept.
Remove the stigma that forces us to suppress it until it bursts. Society has to accept that it's real so that people affected can take appropriate steps while young and not spend their lives suppressing what isn't going to go away. This would also go a long way towards preventing people from getting into marriages that are guaranteed to run into problems with this later.
The Christians have to stop saying its all about hating God or being possessed by demons. I laugh at their buffoonery now but for a child this can have a really bad effect coming from their parents. They have to stop telling people that you can pray it away. If that has actually worked for anybody for more than a few days I'll be very surprised. Their lies are at the root of so many people being destroyed.
We now have had two transgender suicides who have said in their suicide notes, "fix society." But within fixing society there are three components:
1) Ending discrimination.
2) Ending religion based mistreatment, both within families and in society as a whole.
3) Much, much better access to health care services, ranging from therapy to hormones to FFS to GRS. Even in socialist countries that pay for those services, there still seem to be very long waiting lists. And in the U.S., health insurance companies need to pay for all those services, not pick and choose among them.
I was sitting with a documentary producer and he is considering producing a documentary about TGs - especially in Asia. Of course we discussed the high Suicide rate among our community.
The more information we can get out there the better the chances that people can understand. Educating the masses to understand and accept diversity must be the long and medium goal.
We need to provide therapist and doctors who understand how to help our community and ensure that even those without money receive the care they need. We need protection from those that hate us for being different.
But we too have to learn to accept that each of us has a unique story and to accept those that stand up boldly to support us.
Education is a difficult subject to explain to people. What we mean and what they think we mean are two different conversations. Since the science STILL hasn't caught up to us, it's very difficult to discuss real scientific data other than the sheer number of us who are the way we are. Numbers do count as a data point for what it is worth. But then... how many of us are there? It's not like we sign up anywhere. We have some studies that suggest reasons but they are not verified by independent researchers.
More of us have to go public. We have to show "normal people" that we are normal too. We are no threat. They will learn and understand. I just went public on my FB page and I received many positive comments by people I never thought would do so. I talked it over with my therapist before hand. Yes, I see one at the moment for other stuff going on in my life which is getting tidied up quite nicely. She told me that I could take on the cause and that perhaps I should. I'm not planning any flag waving ceremonies but I did get her point. I'm older now. I'm retired early. I don't expect another relationship. Why not? So, is exposure education? Yes. The more of us people see the more they will subdue their phobias.
I suppose that within a generation, perhaps by the end of my life, we will be widely accepted. There will always be bigots for all sorts of causes but by and large, I sincerely hope their numbers shall diminish.
Something else we can do is this: Many of us have tried the suicide route. Some have not. It doesn't matter. We must make personal relationships to others reaching out for help. All of us face an unsteady future when we start transition. It is scary. It is frightening. We have terrible experiences. Carefully reach out to someone you connect with here or somewhere else. Become a friend. Give them a personal caring friend they can turn to when life turns sour.
And if you are scared. If you are frightened. Don't wait to reach out here. This is a caring place.
After all we can do, we will lose someone close to us. It has happened to me far too many times. Carry their memories, for as long as they are remembered, a part of them still lives.
Now... I need to go get a tissue.
Cindi
On the suicide piece
I'm not sure there is a cure for this, or ever will be.
I have the disease. I cannot say for sure what causes it to rear its ugly head on a regular basis. Can I blame being Teansgender? Yes, but clearly there is so much more involved. I do know with support, it can be managed.
I started my day doing well, by midday, I fell into the abyss like I do regularly. I tried to gather, go out and re-boot, to no avail. I hope to wake tomorrow re-set. It's a curse, and wears you down terribly.
Chrissy
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Quote from: Obfuskatie on October 18, 2015, 05:06:41 PM
Full protection from discrimination based on gender expression and identity. You don't have to make everyone accept and respect us, but taking hate crimes seriously and actually enforcing it without giving credence to bs like hetero-panic.
Hugs,
- Katie
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Full protection is wishful thinking and the laws can't do jack->-bleeped-<- about certain form of protection because the laws demands evidence, and some people can fly under the radar because evidence would be hard to spot. They already tried outlawing discrimination, and there's still pay gaps between people who are considered black and others who are considered white. All they have to do is simply resort to covert form of discrimination and group of minorities will still have to suffer.
As for the topic question in mind, the law enforcement really oughta support transgenders more or less often. That's all that can be realistically done outside of moral education.
Quote from: Reptillian on October 18, 2015, 07:06:03 PM
Full protection is wishful thinking and the laws can't do jack->-bleeped-<- about certain form of protection because the laws demands evidence, and some people can fly under the radar because evidence would be hard to spot. They already tried outlawing discrimination, and there's still pay gaps between people who are considered black and others who are considered white. All they have to do is simply resort to covert form of discrimination and group of minorities will still have to suffer.
Ah but I never said it was a solution for equality, just a stop-gap to end the violence and murder.
Hugs,
- Katie
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Quote from: Obfuskatie on October 18, 2015, 07:08:14 PM
Ah but I never said it was a solution for equality, just a stop-gap to end the violence and murder.
Hugs,
- Katie
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Attempting full protection is a start to reducing such things, but I don't think there's anyway to end violence and murder of trans people any more than there's anyway to end violence and murder of white people. It's just a thing that'll happen. Seem like moral education might go further to reduce such events since motivations and intents tends to start there.
Quote from: Reptillian on October 18, 2015, 07:10:45 PM
Attempting full protection is a start to reducing such things, but I don't think there's anyway to end violence and murder of trans people any more than there's anyway to end violence and murder of white people. It's just a thing that'll happen. Seem like moral education might go further to reduce such events since motivations and intents tends to start there.
If more states made it a hate crime to murder a trans person, it's the difference between a needle and life in prison. Unless the system actually enforces and makes it extra illegal to be a bigoted murderer, people will take it as tacit systemic approval to keep the status quo.
It'd also help if the corrupt people in charge of handing down manslaughter sentences for trans-murderers could be prosecutable as well. Or at least impeachable for being terrible people and bad at their job.
Hugs,
- Katie
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just the recent case the police keep refusing to call it a hate crime even though the evidence is there suggesting she was killed for being transgender.
loving families would help with suicide rate and better education on gender and how bodies work would help decline murders
Better education, understanding and support among both society and also within the transgender community itself
Obviously a degree of this has taken place and we've come a long way but I feel that true acceptance is still in it's infancy and we still have a long way to go and there is plenty of progress to be made
I would like to lend hope for future generations to be more open and accepting and leave the ignorant contentions held by today's society behind them
Peace and Love to all
Hugs
V M