Bigots Film Transgender Bathroom-Goers

Massachusettes – A bigot hate group calling itself “MassResistance” snuck into the Peabody Marriot Hotel this past week while the annual “First Event” transgender conference was taking place. With the purpose of “exposing the horror” of transgender men and women using the restrooms. Joe.My.God posted copy from this hate group’s statements:

Transgender madness in Massachusetts: The Peabody Marriott Hotel hosted the annual “First Event” transgender conference on January 15-17, 2009. These photos and videos illustrate the insanity that will descend on all of America . . . unless this sexual radical movement is stopped: Seven-foot men in dresses using the women’s restroom. Hundreds of cross-dressers swarming the hotel, upsetting other guests (who were not forewarned). A transgender rock concert. This is what protecting “gender identity and expression” really means. Mass. Bill H1728 (now before the Legislature) would punish any opposition to such madness with fines and jail time. Even schools would be opened up to cross-dressing children, transgender restrooms and locker rooms, and sports teams. Employers would be subject to new non-discrimination regulations. (At the federal level, ENDA would force this on the country if passed.)

I see this as bigotry at it’s lowest form. Those who make up the “T” in our community are most often those of us who have it hardest in life. Transgender men and women are least likely to be employed, have adequate housing and even those lucky enough to have jobs on average make under $25000 a year. And even though it’s rarely mentioned, I think we’re all aware that people who are Transgender sit at the bottom of the LGBT pile. It needs to change.

MassResistance belongs in a hole.

Portugal To Legalize Gay Marriage

This past Friday, the Portugal parliament passed a bill which would legalize same-sex marriage in the country. Heavy protest broke out in the country, which is predominantly Catholic and anger was stoked by the local Bishop, Dom Jose Policarpo who said in a statement to the AP, “Millenary culture deems marriage as a contract between a man and a woman. Changing this understanding of what is a family can have extremely grave consequences in the future.”

Members of the Portugal LGBT Community Celebrate The Parliament's Decision

The bill currently would provide the local LGBT community with all benefits and protections as heterosexual marriages, with the exception of adoption which would remain illegal for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender individuals.

The final step in the process is a ratification by the conservative President Anibal Cavaco Silva. If and when the President approves this bill, Portugal will be join those countries more enlightened than the world’s strongest super-power, the United States. Currently, Spain, Belgiam, Sweden, Norway, the Netherlands, South Africa and Canada are the only countries to fully understand human decency.

Sutherland Institute Pockets Utah Congressman Bishop

Congressman Rob Bishop

Paul Mero and the Sutherland Institute now have one of Utah’s members of Congress full under their control according to a SL Trib article. Congressman Bishop is personally issuing donation letters on behalf of Sutherland Institute, pushing constituents to protect the values they care about from a government “out of control.”

Bishop, the “King of Earmarks” according to the Deseret News, has run into quite a bit of trouble over the past year in his help for campaign donors. For the upcoming 2010 session, Bishop earmarked over 6.5 billion dollars (that’s $6,500,000,000.00 of your money), 95% of which is directly for campaign donors. Although it’s not clear exactly how much Sutherland Institute and Paul Mero donated to his campaign, it is apparently enough for a donation letter to their constituents from “The Desk of the Honorable Congressman Rob Bishop.”

Oh yay, another immoral if not illegal act from an anti-human, gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgendered white male Mormon in Utah. I think I might faint.

Time Running Out For NJ Gay Marriage

Time is running out for Gay Marriage in New Jersey. With only a few days left before an Anti-Human Rights Conservative takes over as Governor.

NJ Governor Jon Corzine

Say what you want about Governor Jon Corzine, but he has his head screwed on right when it comes to LGBT rights. He’s promised to sign LGBT marriage into law if the New Jersey state senate passes the law before he leaves office on January 19th. Unfortunately, that vote was supposed to take place back in December. It’s been postponed and postponed by the extremist right who are bowing to pressure from the small handful of religious leaders in the state who are opposed to equal treatment.

Early in 2009, Corzine organized a bipartisan legislative/citizen panel to review the state’s current laws which allow for civil unions among gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered residents to decide if equal protections were being provided. The panel came back with a unanimous vote saying, “No,” civil unions are not the equivelant of marriage. Since then, NJ Legislators have gained huge support in passing equal marriage into law.

But in the November election, Governor Corzine was ousted by Republican Chris Christie. Christie has promised to veto any bill allowing gay marriage that comes to his desk. This gave the remaining far-righters in the Senate the out they needed, all they have to do is delay the vote until Jan 19th and the problem will go away.

Governor-elect Chris Christie

A group of 150 religious leaders in the state sent a massive petition to the Legislature this past week, asking the Senate to vote for the bill now. But with time running out, the clock may be ticking down the last hope of equality in the state for the next several years.

TRANSGENDER JANITOR FACES COMMUNITY WRATH

The American Family Association is up in arms about an elementary school janitor in Massachusetts who is undergoing the transition process from male to female. Below is a copy of their latest article on the issue.

“A pro-family advocate says parents in one Massachusetts town were perplexed when they received a letter from the school district explaining changes the janitor made over the summer break.

At the beginning of the 2008-09 school year, parents at the Clara Barton Elementary School in Oxford, Massachusetts, received a letter from the principal and superintendent, informing them that one of the school custodians had “changed his gender role” and is now a woman.

The school officials then informed parents that if their children, whose ages range from five-to-ten years old, ask school employees any questions concerning the custodian, they believe that “the best thing to tell them is that our custodian used to be a man. She has changed her gender and is now a woman.”

Brian Camenker with MassResistance is appalled. “Whether parents like that idea or not, [the school] decided that they were going to introduce this to kids if there were any questions. That’s extremely outrageous,” he contends. “The whole idea that someone like this should be in the public schools, of course, is beyond belief.”

He says his organization was made aware of the situation when the uncle of a student gave him a copy of the letter. “From what I understand, everybody is afraid to speak out because they are afraid that their kids will be treated badly [and be subject to] retribution by the school officials,” he notes.

Camenker believes parents are also fearful of liberals in the community and finds it troubling there is a climate of fear against speaking out. He adds that on the reverse side of the letter, school officials listed radical homosexual websites in order for parents to get more information on “transgender issues.” “

I went digging deeper into this story but the farther you went, the more awful and sickening it became. This poor woman is just doing her job and yet people don’t even want her in the school! But I must say that I felt SOOO bad for these student’s parents feel some form of shame or guilt at raising their bigoted voices, and setting that example for their kids.

As for the school, 5 – extremely big – stars for speaking out in a very positive manner, that both made no apologies for their janitor, but also recognized the inevitable concerns of some parents. The original letter, including the list of “radical homosexual websites” can be found here.

Florida Goes After Transgender Protections

In Gainesville Florida, several groups are attacking the new city protections that allow for Transgendered individuals to use whichever restroom (at public places) they are most comfortable with.

Relatively, it would seem to me that although this protection is very important to Transgender individuals, it should be, for the most part, a non-issue for others. But now many Christian conservatives, headed by the Citizens For Good Public Policy, are claiming that this protection is allowing creeps and perverts into the women’s restrooms. City police has pointed out that there have been NO incidents reported in public restrooms since the protection was put in place. But the Citizens For Good Public Policy, are releasing commercials and ads that twist and push fear into the minds of Gainesville voters. The most notable commercial is below.