Year: 2013

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The Pope Can Quit?

A friend texted me that question this morning and all I could think was, “Does the Pope wear white?” Of course he can quit. He’s the Pope.

I’m pretty sure this is terrifying news, to be honest. This Pope Maledict wouldn’t leave unless he knew someone more conservative even than he will be the next to be elected. Of course that never, ever means it’s a done deal: the Cardinals are not unpowerful men themselves, and depending on how many enemies he’s made while Pope, there are all kinds of conversations going on about who might be next.

My guess? A homophobic cardinal from the Global South.

But it’s time for all of us recovered, recovering, and practicing Catholics who are on the side of the good to maybe say whatever kind of prayer you can muster for a Pope who will lead the real Catholic Church: the one that will start speaking truth to power about poverty and violence and discrimination. It’s what we do best. Let Vatican Council II’s dying embers spark.

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Last Night Right Now

I was pleased to get to speak to Senator Tammy Baldwin for a brief minute last night – in a gender-neutral bathroom, no less – who gave me a thumbs up when I mentioned that I taught gender studies. That was cool. She spoke while introducing historian Dick Wagner, who was receiving an award from Fair Wisconsin. She told the story of seeing Geraldine Ferraro accept the US VIP nomination in 1984, and it was pretty incredible. From what I hear, she has told that story before, but I had never heard it, and it brought me back to watching that myself – and the same feelings for me, at 15, thinking “anything is possible now.” It was a big, big, audible crack in the glass ceiling — as is Senator Baldwin’s current seat.

I also had a nice talk with Zach Wahls about the terms ally, queer, queerspawn, and the like. He is a pretty remarkable guy, and his talk was the right combination of serious, sad, frustrated, and full of love. We should be very, very glad to have him in these queer communities. And that he speaks on behalf of equality – not just marriage equality, mind you – as an Eagle Scout is pretty damned cool. Hopefully I will do an interview with him in the next couple of months.

Finally: I am not disappearing altogether from blogging. I am taking a huge break from FB, specifically, because I have too many ongoing misgivings with the site, for various reasons – and now seemed like the right time. In some ways, what I’m frustrated by is the odd merger of personal and professional life that FB encourages; here at my blog, it’s a little easier to stay at arm’s length, which is what I need right now. But there is nothing wrong, per se; I am not depressed or angry or hurt or anything like it. A little tired of the shallow ways of connecting that FB also encourages, perhaps, but that is all.

I am happy to have people send me a heads up about interesting things going on about gender or transness or all of the other stuff you know I’m interested in. Feel free to email me or leave a comment if you want to say hi.

A huge THANK YOU to those of you who have written expressing concern or good luck or just to say: you earned a break. It’s very, very much appreciated.

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Dinner With Tammy Baldwin

Tomorrow I’ll be at the Fair Wisconsin Education Fund’s conference; tonight, at Fair Wisconsin’s Gala Celebration, where Zach Wahls will be speaking and Tammy Baldwin will be in attendance.

I’m doing a workshop on gender identity and the LGBTQ, and there are tons more useful and interesting workshops and panels. You can check out the whole conference book here.

It’s not too late to register or buy a ticket to the gala dinner, so get on it!

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Lynda Barry Talk

Lynda Barry spoke at a recent Lawrence University convocation, & it was one of the best I’ve seen. This is a totally worthwhile hour whether you’re an artist, a fan of Barry’s, or neither.

I’m not sure how she became who she is, but she’s a miracle as far as I’m concerned.

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CFP: TSQ

CALL FOR PAPERS: TSQ: Transgender Studies Quarterly 1.4, “Trans* Cultural Production”, deadline: April 15, 2013

The arts have served as a cultural arena for imagining, creating, and proliferating transgender experiences and communities around the world. As part of its inaugural year TSQ: Transgender Studies Quarterly will feature a special issue examining trans* cultural production in art, film, dance, design, architecture, literature, and music. We seek papers that critically analyze the current state, history, and significance of these expressive forms as they address, depict, and are mobilized by trans* subjects broadly defined, including people whose gender/sex expression is not informed primarily by contemporary Western constructions and conventions. The issue will feature trans* makers and communities alongside essays exploring cultural production by non-trans* makers as such production impacts trans* lives, trans* politics, and/or trans* theory. We invite submissions exploring the repercussions and resonances of trans* representation in non-trans* contexts as well as work developing trans* interpretations of creative work not originally intended to engage specifically trans* people or concerns.

Rather than a survey of best practices or major figures, the issue aims to offer a forum to examine the wider issues attending to the representation of trans* in the arts and to demonstrate the value of trans* as a heuristic lens for interpreting creative work more generally. While the focus of the issue is scholarly research, we also hope to include a small selection of shorter, less formal essays that engage with critical issues in trans* cultural production from curatorial, marketing, and practitioner perspectives. Continue reading “CFP: TSQ”

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Writing, Women, & the Web

Chapters are needed for this upcoming book:

Women, Work, and the Web: How the Web Creates Entrepreneurial Opportunities, Book Publisher: Scarecrow Press

Co-editor: Carol SmallwoodCo-ed., Women on Poetry: Writing, Revising, Publishing and Teaching (McFarland, 2012) on Poets & Writers Magazine “List of Best Books for Writers.” Writing After Retirement: Tips by Successful Retired Writers forthcoming from Scarecrow Press.

Co-editor: Joan GelfandDevelopment Chair for the Women’s National Book Association, member of the National Book Critics Circle, Joan blogs regularly for the Huffington Post, teaches writing, and is an award winning author.

Seeking chapters of unpublished work from writers in the United States and Canada for an anthology. We are interested in such topicsas: Women Founding Companies Existing Only on the Web; Women Working on the Web With Young Children or Physical Disabilities; Woman’s Studies Resources and Curriculum Development Webmasters; Women as Founding Editors of Webzines and Blogs; Surveys/Interviews of Women on the Web.

Chapters of 3,000-4,000 words (up to 3 co-authors) on how the Internet has opened doors, leveled the playing field and provided new opportunities for women, are all welcome. Practical, how-to-do-it, anecdotal and innovative writing based on experience. We are interested in communicating how women make money on the Web, further their careers and the status of women. One complimentary copy per chapter, discount on additional orders.

Please e-mail two chapter topics each described in two sentences by March 28, 2013, along with a brief bio to smallwood@tm.net  Please place INTERNET/Last Name on the subject line; if co-authored, paste bio sketches for each author.

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A Message from Leslie Feinberg

(Please take action & repost)
Message from Leslie Feinberg:

I am ordered to begin trial in Minneapolis today, Feb. 4 at 9 am (Central U.S. time zone).

The jury trial is expected to last about 2 days.

I am charged with 3rd-Degree Gross Misdemeanor for my June 4 solidarity action demanding the release of  CeCe McDonald. The charge threatens a maximum 1 year sentence.

Help deliver the peoples’ verdict:
‘FREE CECE!’

Send messages to Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak and the city prosecutor — a mayoral political appointee:

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak — twitter: @MayorRTRybak; email: rt@minneapolis.org; fax: (612) 673-2305;
phone: (612) 673-2100.

Minneapolis City Attorney Susan Segal —
email: Minneapolis311@ci.minneapolis.mn.us;
fax: (612) 673-2189;
phone: (612) 673-2010.

(via Original Plumbing.)

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Transition Later in Life: Ethical Questions

Wow, the NYT’s Ethicist column is not the place I’d expect to see this question raised, but I’m glad it has been, and his answer isn’t horrible for a newbie to trans lives. I say that because the letter writer did not mention being suicidal, and in fact does seem to have a lot of other, recognized causes for happiness in his life.

(For the record, there are trans women who choose not to transition because of previous commitments who manage to live and even thrive. )

That said, not every decision should or can be made based on the ethics of a situation, in my opinion – although they should always strongly inform major life choices.

This bit in particular rang out to me:

“Now, I realize what you’re referring to is a deeper, existential version of happiness that all people crave (and which goes far beyond having a good relationship or a good job). There are, however, many people who never experience that level of happiness, regardless of how they view their sexual identities. Even if you become someone else, you may never find it. So what we’re really weighing are the ethics of taking an irreversible gamble that will potentially improve your own interior life while significantly reinventing the lives of those around you.”

“Reinventing” seems a light way to put what can happen to a family as a result of transition.

And for some trans people, not transitioning is taking an irreversible gamble as well exactly because not transitioning can lead to suicidal depression.

That said, I do think any trans person who is married with children has an ethical responsibility to make sure they care for the people whose lives will be hurt the most in a myriad of ways: financial, emotional, etc.

(There are already 57 comments, but I haven’t made my way through them yet. I’m still a little post traumatic about reading comments section in response to any articles published anywhere about trans lives, and even though many people tell me the general tone of them has gotten a lot less hateful in the past few years, I’m really always a little worried that I will have to wade through 8 tons of transphobic bullshit.)