gayly201211final 24
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GAYLY.com 24 November 2012 RDT Media, LLC Publisher Original Publishers Mick Shirron & Don Hawkins Founded in 1983 by Paul Thompson November 2012 Vol. 31, Issue 7 37 NE 37th St OKC, OK 73105 www.GAYLY.com Columnists & Contributors James Cooper Jason Dilts Rob Howard Vick Silkenpen Dorothy Heim Chuck Longacre Paula Sophia Robert C. Grupe Ken Townsend Luis Saenz Scotty Irani Zakk Flash Catherine Carte Design Intern [email protected] Ken Townsend Senior Editor & Business Manager [email protected] Dorothy Heim, JD General Counsel [email protected] Chris Lemon, JD Washington, DC [email protected] Robert D. Lemon Publisher Emeritus [email protected] Robin Dorner Editor-in-Chief [email protected] Nathan Hatcher Creative Consultant [email protected] Letter to the Editor How are transgender people treated? First off, let me say this is an opin- ion piece from a non-trans person. I personally hold the utmost respect for the trans group; especially with all medical and emotional shots they take to make themselves feel happy in their own skin. My goal [with this letter] is to not make them feel like they are a target; just like anyone else in this commu- nity. Especially after they put forth the efforts to truly make themselves happy, even at the risk of losing their friends and family by simply mak - ing their happiness a priority. I think everyone in the community needs to realize just exactly what they went through and we need to stop judging each other regardless. After hearing a few trans people say they felt more comfortable and less persecuted at times in a straight environment than they do in the gay community. Some feel that the gay community doesn’t defend or include them in our missions for equality or protection. Now, I am not saying that is entirely the community’s thoughts, but rather maybe a few and quite hon- estly, maybe a few on a bad day. I will admit since I started trying to get more involved with positive progress in this gay community, I have come to find that we often do discriminate against each other in our own community. We need to stop judging each other like we ask and fight for people outside of our com- munity to do. I know a lot of the people who are major key advocates that are often in the public forefront defending our community as a whole. Again, our community acronym is: LGBTQI, most often written as LGBT. We need to build each other up to push our efforts forward. Education and willingness to learn is the key. Thanks, Hope Thomas Oklahoma City, OK I will be speaking about transgender and faith at the University of Kansas Ecumenical Christian Ministries, and will travelling to Berkeley, CA to participate in the Transgender Law Center-Transgender Leadership Summit. We have two presenters as part of the Lawrence, Kansas LGBT Summit on November 1 st . “We have reached thousands of Kansans, and I believe that we are ef- fecting change.” Besides being founder and executive director for K-STEP, Mott is also state chair for Kansas Equality Coalition. September 6-8, 2013 will be the 1st Annual Trans-Kansas Conference, a regional transgender conference to be held in Lawrence, KS. For more infor - mation, visit www.k-step.org. STRUGGLE, from page 20 HAUNTED, from page 19 are members of a highly dys - functional family of four, be- ing rounded out by actors Enid Graham and Brian F. O’Byrne. “Annie has always been extremely talented and we’re so proud to see her rise to such success,” said Paula Stover, Lyric’s executive director. “She is a shining example of the im- mense talent found right here in our own state.” If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet will run on Broadway through December 23. LYRIC, from page 4 The GAYLY (405) 496-0011 light, and when I learned about the death of Tyra Hunter after I’d begun my transition years ago, I had a flash- back to that tornado moment when I was a kid. The dreams returned with a vengeance. Tyra Hunter was a pre-operative transsexual woman who’d died in Washington D.C. in 1995 from wounds sustained in a car accident. When responding paramedics dis- covered she still had male genitalia, they ceased work, uttering derogato- ry remarks. In addition, the medical staff at D.C. General Hospital offered substandard care, allowing her to die when most people with similar inju- ries managed to survive. Though this event was an isolated incident, I still occasionally have that nightmare of looking up at uncaring faces while struggling to breathe, while the darkness starts squeezing down my vision. It’s not a rational worry. I logically understand that most of my colleagues and fellow first responders are true professionals. I know they’d do everything within their power to save my life, but the grim reality of Tyra Hunter’s death haunts me the way storms unsettle me to this day. I guess the only thing that would keep my bad dreams at bay would be an assurance that these things could never happen again. Of course, we can’t stop tornadoes, the forces of na- ture that they are, but we can remem- ber Tyra Hunter and honor her legacy by doing the best we can to raise the public awareness of transgenders and our health concerns, by committing ourselves to educating people about our lives and struggles, becoming real neighbors, real coworkers and real friends. November 20 th is the Transgender Day of Remembrance, a day set aside every year to honor those who have perished as a result of transphobia, the fear it produces and the violence it inspires.
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Transcript of gayly201211final 24
GAYLY.com24 November 2012
RDT Media, LLCPublisher
Original Publishers Mick Shirron & Don Hawkins
F o u n d e d i n 1 9 8 3 b y P a u l T h o m p s o n
November 2012 Vol. 31, Issue 7
37 NE 37th StOKC, OK 73105
www.GAYLY.com
Columnists & Contributors
James CooperJason DiltsRob HowardVick SilkenpenDorothy HeimChuck Longacre
Paula Sophia Robert C. GrupeKen TownsendLuis SaenzScotty IraniZakk Flash Catherine Carte
Design [email protected]
Ken TownsendSenior Editor &
Business [email protected]
Dorothy Heim, JD General Counsel
[email protected] Lemon, JD
Washington, [email protected]
Robert D. LemonPublisher Emeritus
[email protected] [email protected]
Nathan HatcherCreative [email protected]
Letter to the EditorHow are transgender people
treated?First off, let me say this is an opin-
ion piece from a non-trans person. I personally hold the utmost respect for the trans group; especially with all medical and emotional shots they take to make themselves feel happy in their own skin.
My goal [with this letter] is to not make them feel like they are a target; just like anyone else in this commu-nity. Especially after they put forth
the efforts to truly make themselves happy, even at the risk of losing their friends and family by simply mak-ing their happiness a priority. I think everyone in the community needs to realize just exactly what they went through and we need to stop judging each other regardless.
After hearing a few trans people say they felt more comfortable and less persecuted at times in a straight environment than they do in the gay community. Some feel that the gay community doesn’t defend or include
them in our missions for equality or protection. Now, I am not saying that is entirely the community’s thoughts, but rather maybe a few and quite hon-estly, maybe a few on a bad day.
I will admit since I started trying to get more involved with positive progress in this gay community, I have come to find that we often do discriminate against each other in our own community. We need to stop judging each other like we ask and fight for people outside of our com-munity to do.
I know a lot of the people who are major key advocates that are often in the public forefront defending our community as a whole. Again, our community acronym is: LGBTQI, most often written as LGBT.
We need to build each other up to push our efforts forward. Education and willingness to learn is the key.
Thanks, Hope Thomas
Oklahoma City, OK
I will be speaking about transgender and faith at the University of Kansas Ecumenical Christian Ministries, and will travelling to Berkeley, CA to participate in the Transgender Law Center-Transgender Leadership Summit. We have two presenters as part of the Lawrence, Kansas LGBT Summit on November 1st.
“We have reached thousands of Kansans, and I believe that we are ef-fecting change.”
Besides being founder and executive director for K-STEP, Mott is also state chair for Kansas Equality Coalition.
September 6-8, 2013 will be the 1st Annual Trans-Kansas Conference, a regional transgender conference to be held in Lawrence, KS. For more infor-mation, visit www.k-step.org.
STRUGGLE, from page 20HAUNTED, from page 19
are members of a highly dys-functional family of four, be-ing rounded out by actors Enid Graham and Brian F. O’Byrne. “Annie has always been extremely talented and we’re so proud to see her rise to such success,” said Paula Stover, Lyric’s executive director. “She is a shining example of the im-mense talent found right here in our own state.”
If There Is I Haven’t Found It Yet will run on Broadway through December 23.
LYRIC, from page 4
The GAYLY(405) 496-0011
light, and when I learned about the death of Tyra Hunter after I’d begun my transition years ago, I had a flash-back to that tornado moment when I was a kid. The dreams returned with a vengeance.
Tyra Hunter was a pre-operative transsexual woman who’d died in Washington D.C. in 1995 from wounds sustained in a car accident. When responding paramedics dis-covered she still had male genitalia, they ceased work, uttering derogato-ry remarks. In addition, the medical staff at D.C. General Hospital offered substandard care, allowing her to die when most people with similar inju-ries managed to survive.
Though this event was an isolated incident, I still occasionally have that nightmare of looking up at uncaring faces while struggling to breathe, while the darkness starts squeezing down my vision. It’s not a rational worry. I logically understand that most of my colleagues and fellow first responders are true professionals. I
know they’d do everything within their power to save my life, but the grim reality of Tyra Hunter’s death haunts me the way storms unsettle me to this day.
I guess the only thing that would keep my bad dreams at bay would be an assurance that these things could never happen again. Of course, we can’t stop tornadoes, the forces of na-ture that they are, but we can remem-ber Tyra Hunter and honor her legacy by doing the best we can to raise the public awareness of transgenders and our health concerns, by committing ourselves to educating people about our lives and struggles, becoming real neighbors, real coworkers and real friends.
November 20th is the Transgender Day of Remembrance, a day set aside every year to honor those who have perished as a result of transphobia, the fear it produces and the violence it inspires.
