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Don’t leave the “T” out of GLBT
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| By: Ines M. Mevs |
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Very often, we tend to lose site of an important segment of our community: our transgender brothers and sisters. Yes, we have many issues, many challenges as gays and lesbians. The victories we have managed to achieve, particularly in recent times, lift our spirits. But in those victories, there can be some emptiness when we overlook the relationship that transgendered men and women, and people in transition, share with us. Their causes are interwoven with ours, and to put their issues and challenges on the back-burner is to ignore an essential part of the bigger picture. Many of us have friends and acquaintances, or we know people who are moving along the transgender continuum. It may be that some of us have experienced, or continue to feel, shock and discomfort in being face-to-face with transgender persons. Perhaps, what we need to do is to learn more or re-acquaint ourselves with basic information so that we don’t leave the “T” out of “GLBT.” The books and journals, websites and blogs, forums and seminars are there for a reason. Movies based on real-life transgender persons provide visually powerful and thought-provoking aspects, such as “A Girl Like Me: The Gwen Araujo Story” (2006), or news stories such as “'I'm a Girl' -- Understanding Transgender Children” on ABC’s 20/20 (April 27, 2007). Taking some time to equip ourselves with as much information as possible will not only provide support for our transgender brothers and sisters, it will also increase our own empowerment and circles of influence. In order to inform ourselves, it is very important that we leave our negative attitudes and preconceptions at the door. Also, it cannot hurt to assume the cloak of compassion and willingness to “walk a mile in another person’s shoes.” After all, don’t we as gays and lesbians, as well as GLBT-friendly-and-loving straight family and friends, want reciprocation of compassion, too? People dealing with gender identity and expression are worthy of such compassion, and they are very much deserving of our respect. TheGLBT.com is committed to building awareness of the issues and we seek to provide as much support as possible to persons and organizations engaged in the struggle for equality. To this end, we would like to connect our readers to some basic, and hopefully, enlightening articles and resources. At the beginning of your journey, we offer the following introductory articles, the origin of which is the very well-known website of the Human rights Campaign (HRC). The first article, “Transgender Basics,” provides some brief definitions and explanations of specific terms, and it also responds to several questions, including the following:
The second article is entitled, “Transgender 101: An Introduction to Issues Surrounding Gender Identity and Expression.” It is short but powerful, and it opened a new dimension of insight and knowledge for this writer. The last paragraph drove the point home for my partner and me. In it Mara Keisling states: "We sometimes like to say that transgender people are just ordinary people. I think that misses the point. Unlike most people, we have had to evaluate who we are and who we need to be. We have faced our fears and risked just about everything. By coming out as transgender, we have engaged in a humbling act of courage that would frighten almost anyone. Transgender people are not simply ordinary; we are extraordinary." If you are inclined to begin your journey in learning more about this subject, here are some more resources with which you may want to expand your research by using the following links. This list is by no means exhaustive, but it should provide a basic foundation on the issues and aspects affecting the many courageous transgender persons, their families and friends, and the public at large. In closing, I would like to offer you this quote from Constantine Peter Cavafy: “When you set out on your journey…, pray that the road is long, full of adventure, full of knowledge.” www.bodiesunderconstructiononline.com www.hrc.org/Template.cfm?Section=Transgender_Issues http://nclrights.org/projects/transgenderproject.htm www.eqfl.org/issues/gender.html www.lambdalegal.org/our-work/issues/rights-of-transgender-people/ http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=3088298 www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18618970/site/newsweek/ www.karenserenity.com/OldSerenity/Friends3.htm www.ibiblio.org/gaylaw/issue5/index.html www.ibiblio.org/gaylaw/index.html www.qworld.org/friends/Tworld/tw3.htm www.firelily.com/gender/sstgfaq/tstg.html www.nctequality.org/default.asp www.aclu.org/getequal/trans.html |