So this is what the person you all know as Betty does these days – she made it all herself, including writing the music. It should give some of you a better idea what we do here, & why we are here in the first place – Lawrence is a pretty cool place.
I’m about 6 minutes in, talking about synthesis & disciplines & double majors.
This article on women characters in movies – skip to the end – is very funny. I think her Ethereal Weirdo is my favorite, although I will admit to having women like her. They’re usually stoners. I’ve always thought of her as the Cortazar Hopscotch fantasy woman, because I dated a guy who actually admitted, out loud, that he fell in love with the woman in that novel when he read it.
This girl can’t be pinned down and may or may not show up when you make concrete plans with her. She wears gauzy blouses and braids. She likes to dance in the rain and she weeps uncontrollably if she sees a sign for a missing dog or cat. She might spin a globe, place her finger on a random spot, and decide to move there. The Ethereal Weirdo appears a lot in movies, but nowhere else. If she were from real life, people would think she was a homeless woman and would cross the street to avoid her. But she is essential to the male fantasy that even if a guy is boring he deserves a woman who will find him fascinating and perk up his dreary life by forcing him to go skinny-dipping in a stranger’s pool.
But no post about women in film is complete without Bechdel’s Test for Women in Movies:
Some days it’s hard to come up with any that do pass the test. Help me out, readers?
Somewhere in the last week’s insanity I did an interview with Susan James of ABCNews.com about a recent article published in the Boston Globe by a journalist whose husband transitioned from male to female.
It was a lovely interview, and quite a few things I said I can see reflected in the story (such as the suspicion of the 55% statistic).
An estimated 45 percent of those surveyed said that their relationship with a spouse or partner ended because of their transgender identity. Surprisingly, 55 percent, stayed on or their relationship ended for other reasons, according to that report.
But those like Diane who have gone through transition with a loved one, say it is a long and painful process — and most spouses leave the marriage.
ABC has a few other good clips up as well, so do go check out the article. If you’re the type, thank James for doing such a good job with the story. She’s covered trans issues before and really seems to get it.
If you haven’t read it yet, The New Rebublic recently did a cover story on trans issues as the next civil rights issue.
Transgender people are regularly evicted from their homes, fired from their jobs, and denied medical treatment. Last July, emergency room staff in an Indiana hospital refused to help a trans woman who was coughing up blood, referring to her as “it.” More than a quarter of transgender people surveyed say they have lost a job because of discrimination. Transgender people are more likely to become homeless (at an average age of 13, in New York City). And then there is the obstacle course of inconveniences that reminds transgender people every day that they don’t belong. One trans woman told me her company requires her to lock herself in when she uses the restroom—even though it’s multi-occupancy—so she is acutely aware of making other women wait. In some states, a court order is required to change a person’s gender on a driver’s license. Many health insurance plans only cover procedures for one gender, so a person born male who transitions to female can’t get both a prostate check and a mammogram.
It’s a good piece, a general overview; there’s nothing new in it to those who have been paying attention to trans issues, but it’s a good introductory piece for social justice types in particular.
PBS has put together an interactive map of third gender traditions from all over the world for the new documentary “Two Spirits”. Their blurb:
On nearly every continent, and for all of recorded history, thriving cultures have recognized, revered, and integrated more than two genders. Terms such as transgender and gay are strictly new constructs that assume three things: that there are only two sexes (male/female), as many as two sexualities (gay/straight), and only two genders (man/woman).
Yet hundreds of distinct societies around the globe have their own long-established traditions for third, fourth, fifth, or more genders. Fred Martinez, for example, was not a boy who wanted to be a girl, but both a boy and a girl — an identity his Navajo culture recognized and revered as nádleehí. Most Western societies have no direct correlation for this Native “two-spirit” tradition, nor for the many other communities without strict either/or conceptions of sex, sexuality, and gender. Worldwide, the sheer variety of gender expression is almost limitless. Take a tour and learn how other cultures see gender diversity.
Very cool stuff indeed.
Larkin Street Stories: Serving Homeless LGBTQ Youth is a three-part video series (approximately 6–9 minutes each) offering tips on best practices for providers serving lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth who are homeless.
In the videos, staff and youth from Larkin Street Youth Services in San Francisco discuss and share lessons learned regarding their approach to supporting LGBTQ youth who are homeless. The video series begins by introducing Toby, Loch and the youth from Larkin Street Youth Center. It describes the importance of being “present” for youth, and helping youth see their own strengths and resources. The youth talk about being rejected by their families due to their LGBTQ identity and leaving home as a result.
The Larkin Street staff provide tips on how to create a safe and welcoming space for LGBTQ youth, including how to handle hate speech. The final episode explores the importance of never making assumptions about a youth’s sexual identity or gender expression, allowing youth to self-identify, and empowering youth to reach their full potential despite the challenges they have faced.
Dr. Keith Ablow recently wrote a piece about Chaz Bono that is hateful. I won’t link to it – fuck Fox News – but I did want to say something about it because Betty and I were on his show.
At the time, he was compassionate and even-tempered. I remember reading his articles about pedophiles and how sane & sensible he seemed about such a difficult topic — and which gave me the idea we would be treated even-handedly on his show. I was right. We were.
Apparently somewhere along the way, Ablow sold his soul to the devil. It’s a shame to see someone LCD* like this, but it won’t be the first or the last time I’ll see it. I don’t know what happens to people – they get just enough of a taste of celebrity that their humanity departs, maybe – but it’s always pathetic.
Ablow sold out, sold his soul. I think that’s 7th Circle, right?
He’s not a quack. He is an actual doctor with actual credentials. But what I want to know what he thinks “do no harm” means these days and how, or why, he has switched from understanding people to judging them and condemning them. It is not an easy world for trans people – not even for trans people like Chaz Bono, for all his privilege. I don’t understand how anyone could make a decision and use a public pulpit to preach condemnation; the kind of language he uses, the lack of respect he shows, directly contributes to why trans people’s lives are as hard as they are.
I’m not sure I can even explain the depth of the betrayal I’m experiencing. Ablow was one of the good guys, or at least one of the guys who looked good when everyone else sucked so much. He should be deeply ashamed of what he’s written, and owes Chaz Bono – and the rest of the trans community – an apology.
Don’t hold your breath.
“And speaking of wake up calls, he needs one about misogyny. He blatantly talks about how he believes in “biological differences” in men and women because T made him dislike small talk and has lost a lot of his “tolerance for women.” That’s not T, dude, that’s your misogyny! Lots of people get irritable for a couple months when they first start T, so if something kinda annoyed you before T, those first few months it might make you super annoyed or worse. Chaz probably just never liked certain things and now his “tolerance” is gone cause he’s got hormonal mood swings. He’s claiming its some “biological differences” in men and women, when really it’s his sexist stereotypes. Feministing gives Chaz the benefit of the doubt, assuming they were taken out of context via a known to be transphobic interviewer. But he wasn’t taken out of context when he repeats himself almost word for word on Oprah. Dudes got some demons over there, and none of them are feminists. Thanks for making all of us transguys on T look like macho jerks, Chaz, but at least it bought to a ticket as a socially acceptable “normal” guy.”
I couldn’t agree more. You can read more at Midwest Genderqueer.
Check this other critique by Nick Krieger, author of Nina Here Nor There.
If you haven’t seen Stonewall Uprising on PBS’ American Experience yet, do. It’s good stuff. Here’s the first (of nine) chapters:
Watch the full episode. See more American Experience.
A film made about the life & death of Angie Zapata is premiering this week in Denver:
This local story is told by local filmmakers. Denver company Loco Lane Filmworks, helmed by Director Alan Dominguez, created this 1-hour documentary by speaking to Angie’s family and friends as well as showing photographs of Angie. Scored by Mackenzie Gault (of Flobots fame) and featuring a song by L.A.-based band Ozomatli, the film focuses on Andrade’s life as remembered by her family as well as the trial of her killer.
It’s called Photos of Angie.
I know we’re going to get into a new round of conversation about art and humor and whatever the fuck else, but I’m horribly offended by the idea of a “mockumentary” about a supposed musical based on Brandon Teena’s death.
Just stop it already: leave trans people out of this bullshit.
It would have been just as possible to create a mockumentary about how stupid & shallow musical theater people can be without dragging that young man into it.
Ugh. Bad taste doesn’t even begin to describe my disgust.
And no, I don’t have to see the goddamn thing. I barely held back the contents of my stomach watching the short preview.
I did actually check to make sure this wasn’t published on April Fool’s Day, in some hope that it was a joke. It wasn’t, and it isn’t.
It turns out that some high schools are filtering out sites like GLAAD’s, or the It Gets Better campaign. Honestly? It just pisses me off. God forbid we help save the lives of at-risk youth; somehow that’s perceived as advanding the so-called gay agenda.
If White Power youths were committing suicide at alarming rates, we would all want to see them stop. What is it about LGBT youth that people are so hateful about? Is it this proposed ‘gay agenda’? How is it that homosexuality has trumped even suicide as a sin against God?
They drive me nuts. At least the ACLU is on it. You can check your school’s filtering and report them if necessary.
You can mix and match two ads for toys: one aimed at girls, one at boys. Entertaining, but interesting especially to parents, I’d think.
The interview I did the other night is now up at Safe Space Radio’s website. It was a good one, and I think you can tell that we both enjoyed the conversation which is the best kind of interview. Honestly, we probably could have talked for another hour.
As others on our mHB message boards have noticed, there is a certain tone of disbelief in stories about trans women who are attractive that is offensive, frustrating, and yet – and yet – progress.
In this story about a trans woman and trans man not being allowed entry into Egypt, it’s just a mention of her “outstanding beauty” – I’m sure she was – but once you’ve read enough news stories like this you just get a kind of creepy feeling. I have a friend who used to refer to it as the “look ma, it can talk!” tone (except he was taking about stories about African Americans).
& That’s aside from there being no explanation as to why, when everything they said was true, and their IDs checked out, they were still sent back to Jordan.
And because I have some very literal readers, I will add here that I find this practice of being amazed that a trans woman can be not only a woman but an attractive woman, appalling and offensive.
Bodies of Work, a new Art and Literature Magazine is looking for submissions.
We, the editors, are three trans artists who believe art and literature are two of the most vital parts to our world today. At this moment, there is no magazine which brings all transgender, transsexual and gender variant writers and artists to the forefront. We believe it is time to publish such a magazine!
The purpose of Bodies of Work is to publish and promote literature and art that celebrates the diverse visions and understandings of the transsexual, transgender and gender-variant international community through language and image. We want to inspire and be inspired by the innovative output of our communities and come together with trans artists of all genres in creative discourse. We want to engage and support our creative processes and learn how trans artists and writers create.
Bodies of Work will:
* Introduce a wide audience to literature and art by the trans and gender-variant community.
* Provide a unique opportunity for underrepresented writers and artists viewpoints.
* Discover and publish emerging and developing writers and artists. More
Even if this year’s Superbowl commercials suck, there’s always this incredibly offensive yet hilarious Guinness ad:
(If anyone knows where or when it was on TV, do let me know. Once again: a student sent me the link, & thanks to her for it.)
Happy Superbowl! Please don’t drink and drive.
I’ll be interviewed on “Your Time with Kim Iverson” tonight (Tuesday) at 10PM CST. And look! She just had John Gray on her show back in May! I can’t wait to talk about “man caves”. [/sarcasm]
