beautiful. i love the spirit of this post, and if i didn't have the week off, i would totally be spreading awareness of this day around my school.

beautiful. we should all be spreading awareness today, tomorrow, and always. :D

Thanks for your lovely post, Julia, and I'm glad to have a link to your site now. I saw you perform a spoken word piece in Berkeley a few years ago, and I remember being very moved. Your words have really stuck with me. Thanks.

Hmm, perhaps last night's episode of Cold Case wasn't a coincidence? It was about a transgendered girl--I think that's the right term? I get confused sometimes. A girl who dressed as a boy but who was still sexually attracted to males. That stupid show always makes me cry, but this one was especially sad.

I wonder what would happen if we could get laws into play, or at least precedent, saying that no one has a responsibility to describe their genitalia before dating (they should probably mention it before intercourse-- but pre-op trans people usually do that anyway) or mention that they were once another sex if they are post-op. Crimes against transsexuals because they are transsexuals are hate crimes. That Gwen Araujo story should never be repeated.

Does anyone know if there are currently any attempts to pass protections for transgender people? I know that the bill about workplace discrimination took out the needed protections but is there at least something in the works to protect people from violence?

I hear things like this and it makes me want to go find some douchebag and punch him in the face.

Sigh. Unfortunately, it probably wouldn't help.

I think at this point all I can do is yell about it. Which, I suppose, is the best thing for it, really.

Keep up the good work, people.

I think that hatred towards transgendered people isn't only portrayed physically- it's also an emotional attack. Society's reaction to transgendered people can have more of an affect on those who aren't being physically harmed.

A close friend of mine recently lost his transgendered brother to suicide. The worst part of the entire ordeal (although that in itself is horrible enough) was the newspaper publication on the front page informing the entire conservative, republican town that "she" "suffered" from being transgendered, and revealed his name and family information. We haven't really spoken about his death, and part of me is glad that I'm not in town to hear all of the terrible things I know are being said.

I appreciate the tolerance practiced by so many people empathetic towards this cause. I only hope that as we educate and spread awareness we are met with tolerance and acceptance... two things I have found surprisingly rare in my community.

Julia, thank you so much for this enlightening post, and all of your work smashing stereotypes. As a trans woman and a feminist, I am incredibly encouraged by seeing your message reaching an ever-widening audience. You speak for many of us, and we are here fighting as well.

Basiorana: While it's not quite the same thing, the Gwen Araujo prompted California to outlaw the use of the "gay panic" defense, which was invoked in the first trial (which ended in a deadlocked jury). Yes, being trans and being homosexual are two different (but not mutually exclusive) things, but the "gay panic" defense intentionally relies on confusing the two.

(FWIW, I've never heard of a case involving a FTM where that defense was invoked -- as Julia said, it invariably involves discovering that the woman in question was born male.)

June: I didn't see Cold Case, so I can't comment on the specific character, but generally it's preferred that one refers to an individual's desired gender. So if it was someone born female, but saw himself as a man, the you'd use male pronouns and refer to him as a trans man. Admittedly, it can be a tricky issue sometimes (some folks prefer gender-neutral pronouns, crossdressers like myself will often use different pronouns depending on whether we're en femme or en homme, etc.), so it's best if possible to just ask someone who how they'd like to be referred to.

Julia Thanks. I know you've made the point before, but it bears repeating.

Thanks everyone for all the wonderful comments!

With regards to legislation, according to the National Center for Transgender Equality only 7 states plus DC have hate crime legislation that protects trans people:
http://www.nctequality.org/Hate_Crimes.asp

-julia

FBI has released statistics about hate crimes. Not surprisingly, hate crimes against GLBT people are on the rise.

In reference to the response about state legislation protecting trans people, it is worth mentioning that the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition, a group with which I am heavily involved, is currently working very hard to get a Transgender protection bill (currently known as HB 1722) passed in MA. It is surprising, to say the least, that a state generally known for its progressive attitudes fell victim to the unfortunate inclination in parts of the queer community to accept rights for some in lieu of rights for all.

Wonderful post. I swear I'll put something up about this tomorrow.

I wish I could contribute more since this post doesn't have near enough comments, but I'm afraid I would only get upset.

So I'll just say this is a worthwhile thing to bring to people's attention.

I have been looking at many of the cases of transwomen being murdered and have compared their murders to those of other women.

I think "deception" is just an alibi, an excuse used if caught.

The reality is that many women's lives are not valued and the pursuit of their murderers seems to not be seriously pursued.

Predators know that the lives of sex worker, transwomen, women labeled as sluts and often poor women considered part of the lumpen proletarian masses simply are not as valued as the lives of straight middle class or higher "respectable women".

It is the same thing that happens to rape victims. How seriously the charges of the victim are treated is dependent upon the social status and respectability of the woman who was raped.

It is as though certain people are picked as victims because the attackers know the police and courts are unlikely to treat any crimes committed against them seriously.

When it comes to M to F transsexual and transgender people the attackers learned this from the cradle when they were not only not punished for bullying and abusing transkids but were rewarded for beating up the sissy. Julia talks a lot about misogyny in her book. Jessica says in the opening of Full Frontal Feminism that the worst thing you can call a boy is "girl".

The worse thing a transkid assigned boy can be is girlish.

Those who bully the transkid and are rewarded by being told how tough and manly they are may be killing the fear they themselves are girlish but they also learn that it is ok to hurt the sissy.

As adults those grown up transkids are now part of the group that it is ok to victimize and the same people who bullied them as kids now murder them.

Thanks for blogging about this important issue. One of my housemates is FtM trans and the accusation of "deception" would hurt him terribly, even if it were left at an accusation and not used as the horrible justification for violence or discrimination.

Deception? Many years ago I had an operation. It gave me wholeness, a body that matched my heart, mind and soul.

My living a lie and deceiving people about who I am ended the day I came out and started living as a woman nearly 40 years ago.

Back about 10 years ago I was in a discussion with a much younger woman who claimed women born transsexual weren't socialized as women. I asked how old she was. She had been alive fewer years than I had been a woman. Socialization is an on going process. I had a transchildhood. that meant people tried to crush who I was out of me.

One of the people who is a kind and gentle counselor of people with transissues is Millie Brown. she has a book called "True Selves".

Deception? People who deal with having been born transsexual have stopped decieving people.

June, to answer your question -- a person is usually referred to as the gender in which they present. So, if a person born female transitions to male, but still wants to be known as transgender, we call him a 'transgender male (or man)'.

Note that many of us no longer use the word "transgendered", but instead simply use the noun (or adjective) 'transgender'.

Dallassuz -- right on!

Thanks, Julia, for the post.

I agree with most of what you have written. There is only one point where I think you veer off course.

[i]Few attempts to blame the victim are more blatant than when trans people are accused of “sexual deceit� or “sexual assault� simply because other people have chosen to express their attraction toward us. In reality, it is they who are guilty of cissexual/cisgender assumption (when one presumes that every person they meet is nontrans by default). Trans people simply exist, we are everywhere, and the rest of the world has to start recognizing and accepting that.[/i]

So far so good. I take it you decided to watch the show and draw your own conclusions. In fact Miriam did nothing in that show (so far) that is really out of the ordinary for any woman. The only thing she did not do is share a medical fact. A fact which would not be those guys business at that stage in a relationship.

There is nothing "deceptive" about any of her conduct on that show. That is all I have ever really had to say about it.

[i]
Programs like "There's Something About Miriam" not only reinforce the stereotype that trans people’s birth sex is “real� and our identified/lived sex is “fake,� but they perpetuate the myth of deception and thus enable violence against us.[/i]

I don't see that at all. If anything Miriam's presentation on that show is all about her and how she thinks of herself as a transsexual woman. Where a large audience gets to know a little bit about a transsexual in depth and not just that final reveal. Hopefully the open minded among the audience realize just how real her femaleness is and how incidental her "thing" is. That what matters is who someone is between the ears and in their heart and not so much between their legs.

She says it well in her own words at the very end of the show.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uQ1ORB8fxRs

I was kind of shocked to see discussion of the Day of Remembrance (remembering the tragic deaths of mostly straight, mostly colored, mostly poor, and mostly young and desperate transgirls) right next to a political commentary about "There's Something About Miriam" with nearly no mention of Miriam herself...

...like how nine months ago she was beaten with a hammer and thrown from a 4th floor window?

http://phettisaam.blogspot.com/2007/11/shemale-superstar-miriam-rivera.html

I understand that the bulk of the politically active parts of the trans community are *personally* most concerned with oligarchic-personality-issues of public pride and public shame rather than with making material improvements to the lives of trans women.

Nonetheless it's kind of tragic to me to see the political priorities of our so-called community so dramatically revealed by the words that were not included in this inspirational essay (and how little complaint the lack inspired) :-(

I suspect, Julia, that you didn't even know about this and would have said something about it if you had, but that's sort of what I'm getting at. The critique is more relevant to "the structure of our community and the way our biases are shown in what gossip gets around". This isn't a critique of you, it's a critique of *us* (myself included).

I am returning to this blog post to make it known that I have since had the opportunity to meet Dr. Serano. This was at a talk she gave at NU in Evanston this past Friday. I have blogged about it . A Talk With Julia Serano, Then Walking Dr. McCloskey's Dog.

She's very Cunty, very real. I mean she is at the low end of female heights. Washed face, hair snatched back, cunty bitch realness. Ovah.****

I was made aware of this talk by a friend, who just happens to be Dierdre McCloskey's TS grad student. Who afterward granted me access to Dr. McCloskey's residence, so that we could walk her dog. It is quite impressive. (Prof. McCloskey is out of the USA)

She talked about sexism as it effects MTF transsexuals and I agreed with much of what she had to say. I did ask her to explain further about what she meant in this blog.

My blog is in part my reaction to that.

****Don't be offended by these words right off. Read my blog to find out what I mean by them. They ways different people use language, and culture, are central to these questions.