"I'm trying to find the truth
in words, in rhymes, in notes,
in all the things I wish I wrote."
Lover of grammar, poetry, literature, hiking, camping, horses, and Latin
Catching Elephant is a theme by Andy Taylor
President Obama’s inauguration speech was beautiful: “We, the people, declare today that the most evident of truths—that all of us are created equal—is the star that guides us still; just as it guided our forebears through Seneca Falls, and Selma, and Stonewall; just as it guided all those men and women, sung and unsung, who left footprints along this great Mall, to hear a preacher say that we cannot walk along; to hear a King proclaim that our individual freedom is inextricably bound to the freedom of every soul on Earth.”
He is a brilliant speaker, and his willingness to bring Stonewall into the spotlight—the first time a president has acknowledged this uprising—was a validation of all of the hard work of groups such as the HRC. But one eleven-year-old girl, Sadie, questioned President Obama’s exception of trans* individuals in his speech. Thank you, Sophie, for this elegant letter.
Now, President Obama has done a lot for the trans* community, but Sophie is right. The main thing the community needs right now is visibility and support. The President’s choice to mention Stonewall was a major victory, and hopefully in the future his vocal support for the trans* community will stretch into the public arena so visibility will help promote good works, such as this story out of Oregon, which I hope reaches Sophie and makes her smile.
Trans* kids do not have the same access to healthcare as many other individuals, but Oregon is becoming the first state to cover treatments for gender dysphoria in children and teens under Medicaid. Beginning in October 2014, coverage will extend to cover counseling, medication to suppress puberty, and other procedures and care to help trans* kids to handle dysphoria or to transition. Medication to suppress puberty can cost in excess of $1000 a month. Oregon’s steps to help trans* children and their parents will hopefully be followed by other states.
“A few days ago, I found this article, describing a young adult novel written from the first-person perspective of a transman: Beautiful Music for Ugly Children by Kirstin Cronn-Mills. After reading the article, a defense by Cronn-Mills of her decision to write from the perspective of a trans* individual despite being cis, I decided to read the book myself and see how I felt about it. Where does the line between trying to represent the community and appropriation and misrepresentation lie?”
(via knowhomo)
“2012 has been a year of great news for the community. Four states voted for marriage equality in November. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ruled gender identity is covered under Title VII protections. The American Psychiatric Association (APA) announced their new Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders will list gender dysphoria instead of gender identity disorder and also put out a release in support of the trans* community. But what were your favorite Exploring Gender articles of this year?”
“Did you know that in Virginia you can be fired or not hired simply because of who you love? Virginia has no workplace discrimination law to protect the LGBT members of our community. Senate Bill 701, sponsored by Senators Don McEachin and Adam Ebbin would change that, codifying the basic human right of all state employees to be free from discrimination in the workplace based on sexual orientation and gender identity.”
Text from Equality Virginia.
“The number one question I am asked by other trans* individuals is: “Do you know of any uplifting media centered on trans* characters?” So what do we have in the way of stories to support us and to help us through those bad days?
"There is a sad lack of good stories with trans* characters. Most media is either incredibly sad or in some way fetishizes the character. The trans* canon tends to be overwhelmingly violent as well: in books, movies, and on television. But we want to see the good things. We want to know loves can work out and not everything is a horror story. We want happy endings. I would love to see a sappy romantic comedy with a trans* character and have it be just as sappy and romantic as any other, but we just don’t have that.”
Great article on being trans* and playing sports and the Stockholm Consensus.
“There are so many facets to being trans*. Between community, relationships, and transition, it can be difficult to find a place to feel comfortable. But how do you find comfort when your body does not align with your image of yourself? How do you handle dysphoria?
"Dysphoria is the feeling that your body does not match who you are, that almost constant form of anxiety which trans* people often experience on different levels. Every person experiences dysphoria differently, having different triggers for that anxiety and having different levels of mental and emotional pain based on the misalignment of their sex and gender identity.
"Dysphoria is hard. It is sometimes crippling, sometimes unexplainable. A good day can turn into a bad one simply by looking in the mirror, taking a shower, or running into someone who may have known you at a previous time in your life and doesn’t know you don’t use your birth name anymore. Sometimes it is hard to get past those little things, and we all have different coping mechanisms, some we may realize, some we may not. For example,I have noticed I don’t really look at myself in the mirror because it is easier not to be faced with myself and how that image does not necessarily reflect me…”