Greetings Thread
What with the boards closed, I thought I’d set up a thread so that all the board folks are able to wish each other Merry/Happy’s. It’s not often that Christmas & the first night of Chanukah are the same night.
So, use the comments spot below to go right ahead & do that.
A Very Very Happy Holiday Season to you All!!
Another Cool Thing About Narnia
I’ve been re-reading the Narnia Chronicles as a result of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (which I highly recommend) and I’m on The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, which I’m reading slowly as it’s always been my favorite book.
But this time around I think it’s The Magician’s Nephew that’s resonating the most. There’s something about the decency in CS Lewis’ voice that just *gets* me. Because thinking about how Digory has to go after Polly, after his uncle has sent her “somewhere” on her own, via his magic rings, is just – well, it’s just mighty decent of him. And some days, I don’t know, basic decency seems really appealing in a world where people are blowing each other up all the time.
Early in the book, when Polly meets Digory Kirke, she notices he has been blubbing, and nearly says as much, but doesn’t, because it would be rude to do so. Yet he has been blubbing, because his mother is dying, and it’s one of the only instances I can even think of in any book, children’s or otherwise, where a boy is crying, and it’s totally normal and natural that he is crying, and that in fact, no big deal is made of his crying – except for the fact that Polly is a nice enough person to know not to mention it.
And her not mentioning it has nothing whatsoever to do with him being a boy. That’s what I like about CS Lewis’ universe. In his world, boys do cry.
Without a Trace
Tonight, the crime drama Without a Trace took on a storyline featuring a transwoman – including a transman she knew, her ex-wife, brother, and parents – and did a fine job presenting the story. The episode is called “Transitions” and though I won’t give away the plot, I was really heartened to see a tv show – especially a crime drama – portray a transwoman who wasn’t evil or insane at the end.
Thanks, CBS.
Diversity in the Classroom Guide
An old and dear friend of mine recently put together a book about diversity in the classroom. It’s not a regular book – more of a workbook or guide for teachers, school therapists, and other people who actually work with kids in schools. It’s called Voices of Diversity: Stories, Activities and Resources for the Multicultural Classroom.
The good news is that she’s an old friend of mine, and asked me for a trans story – maybe some of you remember me asking around for someone who had a first-person account of a trans student and some crisis that came out of transness – but I can certify that at least this book has one trans student in it.
The others that I read – one featuring a gay couple dealing with Mother’s Day – were all really wonderful, & helpful.
The Return of the Boards (Not Yet)
Betty and I have re-organized and re-designed the boards somewhat, and will be revealing the changes on Monday, Boxing Day, December 26th.
Light at the End of the Tunnel
The good news is in that an end to the strike is imminent, but I have to say: our news commentators and leaders need a “Labor History 101.” I’ve been astonished at he amount of times I’ve heard someone say “You don’t get anything done by breaking the law” – a comment first articulated by Mayor Mike Bloomberg – because of course that’s not true at all. Every major strike in this country had injunctions thrown at it, fines levied, and involved some law-breaking by the strikers. Susan B. Anthony broke the law when she registered to vote, Rosa Parks when she sat down on that bus.
It goes to show that the law is often there to protect the owners and the people who already have power.
I am especially disgusted with Bloomberg. Bloomberg calling Toussaint a “thug” is out of the 1920s. It has been a long time that union leaders have been respected participants at the bargaining table. The rhetoric was a kind of flashback, to me, of the era of Carnegie and the Ludlow Massacre – though of course things didn’t become as bad as that.
The larger issue at stake still seems to be the fact that the MTA is a bossy boss, that TWU workers don’t feel respected or heeded when they suggest changes.
Questions Answered
I’ve been asked two questions by MHB boarders:
1) Is Thursday chat still on?
YES. 9pm EST, Yahoo messenger. Donna usually starts chat if I’m not around to, but I’ll show up one way or the other.
2) Is the next in-person meeting of the group going to happen?
YES. 8pm, Tuesday, January 3rd, at the LGBT Center in Manhattan.
Peaceful Solstice
The moment of Winter Solstice occurs December 21, 2005, at 10:35 am Pacific Standard Time. At that moment, the northern tip of the Earth’s axis of rotation will be at its maximum tilt away from the Sun. Winter Solstice is the shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, traditionally marking the beginning of winter. The length of daylight has been shrinking continuously since the end of June; it hits a minimum tomorrow, and thereafter will start increasing in length. For the next six months, the length of daylight will increase; in this way, the mystics say that the first day of winter is the first day of summer.
Have a peaceful, joyful solstice: the days of darkness are on their way out.
(Much thanks to Mike McGarry for the useful and timely information.)
Five Questions With… Vanessa Edwards Foster
Vanessa Edwards Foster is the board chair of
NTAC (National Transgender Advocacy Coalition). A Houston-based activist, Foster is one of the people who lobbies the US Government every year on behalf of transgender people everywhere.
1. Why did you become an activist on trans issues?
Circumstances. Hormones took to me far too quickly, and I lost my job before I was ready to transition. This was back when I thought (having good natural features) that I’d have a seamless transition. It was the late 90s (greatest economy ever), and I was unemployed for nearly 21 months, so it was obvious what was happening. At the time, I led two other local groups and started thinking about what they were experiencing, and how bad it must’ve been for them. And I couldn’t interest anyone else in doing it for us, or for me. So I decided to bite the bullet and do what came unnaturally for me — political activism.
My heritage is heavily native, and my ancestors on all sides were part of the Trail of Tears, as it’s called. So I grew up like all of us were taught: we hate government, we hate politics and politicians (plastic people), we hate the manipulation, the deceit and the devotion to self-interest. Politics was the seamiest of trades, promises from them were made to be broken and any attempt to get involved politically was an exercise in futility and ultimate frustration. The only ones attracted to the political life were lusting for power and money. My parents initially thought me crazy to involve myself in this, then later seemed hopeful and proud of this actually making a difference. But as time went on, these last couple years have reaffirmed their warnings rather than disproved them. Politics, as it is today, is no savior. Quite the opposite.
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