News round up: Inspiration from New York to the UN!

Encouraging developments within the movement for LGBT equality and justice have been seen both in our own state and around the world this week.

The Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund is bringing a lawsuit against New York City for its outdated and cruel policy that prevents transgender people from obtaining birth certificates that accurately display their gender. The Pride Agenda has been urging this change for years locally and statewide and is sorry to see this become a legal figh, but it’s not too late to change. We ask you to take a moment to leave a positive comment on these articles in the New York Post and the New York Daily News.

The NYPD is considering the beating death of Anthony Callao in Queens an anti-gay hate crime. This follows an incide last month, when Williamsburg resident Barie Shortell was severely beaten by a group of teenagers who also yelled anti-gay slurs. The five days Barie spent in the hospital and the months of follow-up care he will require will likely add up to tens of thousands of dollars. Barie now plans to get involved with teen anti-violence education. A vigil was held last night for Anthony. These tragedies remind us that there is still a long way to go in the fight to achieve equality and justice for the LGBT community.

Mayor Bloomberg has promised to do his part to push Senate Republicans to support the marriage bill.

Also, a heartwarming story was published this morning about Jamestown newlyweds Amber and Katie Allison. The Allisons recently traveled to Connecticut to get married and are now planning a ceremony in Jamestown. The two women submitted a wedding announcement to the local paper, which was published without question. Despite some negative feedback from their community, Amber and Katie welcome the opportunity to change people’s perceptions about the LGBT community.

Finally, on his recent trip to Brazil, President Obama found common ground with Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff. The pair announced that they would seek to establish within the Organization of American States a “Special Rapporteur” dedicated to achieving respect for LGBT individuals, a first-of-its-kind position in the world. The administration also urged the United Nations to address human rights abuses against LGBT people, a marked departure from past presidents and a step towards more international consensus that all people have human rights.

Transgender Americans: Young and old; in the workforce and in our families

Recent news stories have highlighted breakthroughs and challenges for transgender Americans, both young and old, in the workforce and in our families. As he begins his transition journey, Kye Allums has gotten approval to remain on the George Washington University women’s basketball team. Like many in the college generation today, his teammates came around pretty quickly, supporting their coach’s decision to be inclusive. To help high school and college athletic programs navigate a world in which more transgender students are coming out, the National Center for Lesbian Rights and It Takes a Team! have co-published a guide for schools,which was cited in the New York Times article.

That same week, a Huffington Post column by Joanne Herman highlighted the challenges coming up for an earlier generation of transgender people as they age, often bringing the legacy of unemployment, under-insurance and mistreatment by health care providers into their final years. This story shows how urgent equal employment opportunity is for transgender Americans. The Pride Agenda is working to pass the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) in New York State as soon as possible.

That urgency heightens the significance of the breakthrough last week by Victoria Kolakowski, who won her election as California’s Alameda County Superior Court Judge—the first transgender trial judge in the country. Unfortunately, it is all-too-common for transgender people to lose their jobs when they transition.

A moving story in this Sunday’s New York Times Magazine makes passing reference to the likelihood that an emerging transwoman, who teaches music at a Catholic school in the Bronx, will lose "his" job. But the focus of that story is on the journey of this transwoman’s sister, from resistance to acceptance, as her “brother” becomes her “sister.”

Everyone who is in circle of a transgender individual – family, friends and colleagues - goes through their own transition along with them. Indeed, inclusive workplace policies and trainings have a broad impact. Both our Pride in My Workplace and Pride in Our Union programs provide the trainings that can support not only transgender employees, but also the employees and union members who are family and friends of transgender Americans.

Post by Desma Holcomb, Program Director