Laverne Cox, Gabrielle Union and Halle Berry have joined hundreds of prominent feminists in taking a stand for trans women and girls.
More than 465 feminist leaders in business, entertainment, media, politics and social justice signed an open letter released by GLAAD in honour of the Transgender Day of Visibility on Wednesday (31 March).
The letter calls for an end to the ongoing discriminatory rhetoric and attacks against trans people, and serves as a proud statement of solidarity between cis and transgender women.
Signatories include A-list celebrities such as Regina King, Selena Gomez and Megan Rapinoe, as well as activists and women’s rights groups like Gloria Steinem, the Me Too Movement and Planned Parenthood.
Others who signed include Mj Rodriguez, Patricia Arquette, Judith Light, Cynthia Erivo, Anna Wintour, Chelsea Clinton, Sarah Paulson, Peppermint, Lena Dunham, Beanie Feldstein, Alison Brie, Bella Hadid, Lena Waithe, Wanda Sykes and Janelle Monáe.
“Trans women and girls have been an integral part of the fight for gender liberation. We uphold that truth and denounce the ongoing anti-transgender rhetoric and efforts we witness in various industries,”
“We acknowledge with clarity and strength that transgender women are women and that transgender girls are girls. And we believe that honouring the diversity of women’s experiences is a strength, not a detriment to the feminist cause.
“All of us deserve the same access, freedoms, and opportunities. We deserveequal access to education, employment, healthcare, housing, recreation, and public accommodations. And we must respect each person’s right to bodily autonomy and self-determination.”
The signatories highlight the “wave of bigoted governmental policies and legislation” launched this year in the form of bills banning trans healthcare and inclusion in sports. They draw parallels with past efforts to legislate cis women’s healthcare, warning: “We refuse to let youth endure that now.”
The letter calls on others to fight against these “unnecessary and unethical barriers” placed on trans women and girls by lawmakers, as well as “those who co-opt the feminist label in the name of division and hatred”.
“Our feminism must be unapologetically expansive so that we can leave the door open for future generations,” they state conclusively. You can read their letter here in full.
Today, we honor and celebrate the achievements and resiliency of transgender individuals and communities. Transgender Day of Visibility recognizes the generations of struggle, activism, and courage that have brought our country closer to full equality for transgender and gender non-binary people in the United States and around the world.
Their trailblazing work has given countless transgender individuals the bravery to live openly and authentically. This hard-fought progress is also shaping an increasingly accepting world in which peers at school, teammates and coaches on the playing field, colleagues at work, and allies in every corner of society are standing in support and solidarity with the transgender community.
In spite of our progress in advancing civil rights for LGBTQ+ Americans, too many transgender people — adults and youth alike — still face systemic barriers to freedom and equality. Transgender Americans of all ages face high rates of violence, harassment, and discrimination.
Nearly one in three transgender Americans have experienced homelessness at some point in life. Transgender Americans continue to face discrimination in employment, housing, health care, and public accommodations. The crisis of violence against transgender women, especially transgender women of color, is a stain on our Nation’s conscience.
To ensure that the Federal Government protects the civil rights of transgender Americans, I signed, on my first day in office, an Executive Order on Preventing and Combating Discrimination on the Basis of Gender Identity or Sexual Orientation.
Today, we are proud to celebrate Transgender Day of Visibility alongside barrier-breaking public servants, including the first openly transgender American to be confirmed by the United States Senate, and alongside patriotic transgender service members, who are once again able to proudly and openly serve their country.
We also celebrate together with transgender Americans across the country who will benefit from our efforts to stop discrimination and advance inclusion for transgender Americans in housing, in credit and lending services, in the care we provide for our veterans, and more.
Julia Monro, a spokesperson for the German Association for Trans Identity and Intersex People (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Transidentität und Intersexualität), in 2017 applied to become a police officer because she wanted to join the fight against Internet crimes. Germany’s Federal Criminal Police Office rejected Monro’s application because she is transgender.
“I was really disappointed because their own website had a point for LGBTI people, and so I felt very welcome,” Monro told the Washington Blade last month during a Zoom interview from her home near the city of Cologne. “It was a government institution.”
Germany as of January has officially amended Police Service Regulation 300 (PDV 300) that was used to prevent openly trans and intersex people to work as police officers.
PDV 300 specifically mentioned men and women, but not trans or intersex people.
Joschua Thuir, a police inspector who is an instructor at a German Federal Police center for basic training and further education, is the trans ambassador of VelsPol Deutschland, an NGO that represents LGBTQ police officers in the country. Thuir, who is a trans man, has also written a diploma thesis about the experiences of trans and intersex people who have applied to become police officers in Germany.
Thuir described PDV 300 as “a list that includes different physical and psychological criterion of exclusion.” He also told the Blade that he transitioned after his 3-year probation period ended to make sure he wouldn’t jeopardize his job.
Brett Parson, an openly gay man who previously led the Metropolitan Police Department’s LGBT Liaison Unit, is among those who Thuir considers a mentor. Bee Bailey, a member of the Gloucestershire Constabulary in England who is a founding member of Trans Cops Europe, is among the other police officers who have also supported Thuir’s work.
Policy change ‘sends a strong signal’
Monro reached out to Thuir when she wanted to change the policy.
Thuir, for his part, spoke with different equal opportunity officers in the German Federal Police, among others. Thuir also connected with other VelsPol Deutschland members across Germany.
“I asked the contact officers to get in touch with the medical services of the different police units to ask how they handle the medical examination for trans and intersex applicants, and to make them see that we need new regulations,” he said. “Together we achieved that just a hand full of trans men got a special admission for exceptional cases, to start the police basic training in 5 years.”
Monro told the Blade that she spoke with German politicians who told her it would take the government “a long time” to amend PDV 300. Thuir also met with members of the German Bundestag, the lower house of the German Parliament.
“The government answered on an interpretation in 2019, that the PDV 300 needs to open up for trans people because different criteria cause discrimination for trans men,” Thuir said, noting he spoke to the Blade in his capacity as VelsPol Deutschland’s trans ambassador. “They didn’t reform the PDV 300 only for trans and intersex people. The progress of the revision of the PDV 300 started years before.”
Thuir said he was invited to ask questions about the criteria that “caused discrimination explicit for trans women.” Thuir told the Blade he also had the chance to ask the government about “the binary construct that also excluded intersex people” in 2020.
The new policy took effect in all of Germany’s 19 police departments in January.
“We wanted to make a positive report so that a lot of transgender people can now take their chance to go to the police,” said Monro. “We wanted to show the police is a good institution for transgender people to work.”
Monro said there has thus far been no backlash against the new policy. She told the Blade she is not sure whether she will once again apply to become a police officer, but added the new regulation sends a positive message to trans and intersex Germans.
“It sends a strong signal out to the community that it’s always worth fighting for something,” said Monro. “This process took me almost three years, and if you stand together with your community and you focus on your target while you fight and be patient, then you will get victory in everything you want.”
Bailey in an email to the Blade praised Thuir and his efforts to change the policy.
“This is absolutely down to the phenomenal hero we know as Joschua Thuir and his efforts made to encourage greater change of the outdated PVD300 regulation within the Polizei(police) in Germany,” said Bailey.
“All our public desire from police and policing is that we are capable of doing our role as police to ‘protect and serve,’” added Bailey.
Thuir said a labor union plans to unveil a photo project on March 31 in commemoration of the Transgender Day of Visibility. Thuir added the German government’s implementation of the new policy remains slow, in part, because police officials lack the proper information about it.
Equality California, the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization, announced early 2022 endorsements of four Congressional incumbents in key 2022 battleground districts on Wednesday: Rep. John Garamendi (CA-03), Rep. Josh Harder (CA-10), Rep. Katie Porter (CA-45) and Rep. Mike Levin (CA-49). Protecting the four incumbents and winning back Congressional seats lost to anti-LGBTQ+ candidates in 2020 will be a top priority for the organization ahead of the 2022 midterm elections.
“Protecting our champions in Congress and expanding our pro-equality House majority are critical priorities for the LGBTQ+ community,” said Equality California Executive Director Rick Chavez Zbur. “Voters gave the Biden-Harris Administration a mandate in 2020: pass the Equality Act, reform our broken immigration system, advance racial justice and equity and expand access to quality, affirming healthcare. The Biden-Harris agenda is achievable, but only if we ensure they have pro-equality partners in Congress — and all four of these leaders have demonstrated their unwavering commitment to creating a world that is healthy, just and fully equal for all LGBTQ+ people.”
Candidate Reactions:
“I’m honored to be endorsed by Equality California—an organization that understands that we must have equal opportunity for all, do what we can to end discrimination, and remove barriers to opportunity,” said Rep. John Garamendi. “Throughout our country’s proud history, every generation has faced a national debate on civil rights issues. While these struggles have often been slow and arduous, as we have witnessed for more than two centuries, the trajectory of our society is toward more equality under the law. That’s why I support legislation like the Equality Act, which would update the Civil Rights Act to include LGBT Americans, specifically making it illegal to discriminate against them in the workplace, housing, and public accommodations. Thank you to Equality California for their endorsement. Together, we will work to end discrimination in our nation and create a more just and fair society.”
“No matter who you are or who you love, you deserve equal treatment under the law,” said Rep. Josh Harder. “I’m proud to stand with our LGBTQ neighbors and loved ones, and will keep fighting to make sure they are finally treated with the respect and equality they deserve.”
“Equality California has been a leader and a key partner as I advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, and I am thrilled to receive their early endorsement,” said Rep. Katie Porter. “Until every American, regardless of who they are or who they love, can live free from hate, discrimination, and violence, I’ll keep up the fight. I look forward to continuing to work with Equality California to build an equal and just future for all.”
“Equality California is one of the nation’s most effective organizations advancing the rights of the LGBTQ+ community and social justice,” said Rep. Mike Levin. “In the past two decades they have led the fight to pass over 150 bills and resolutions advancing human rights in the California legislature. I am deeply honored that they have recognized me as an ally and that they have endorsed my campaign for re-election to Congress.”
For a complete list of Equality California’s current endorsements, visit eqca.org/elections.
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Equality California is the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization. We bring the voices of LGBTQ people and allies to institutions of power in California and across the United States, striving to create a world that is healthy, just, and fully equal for all LGBTQ people. We advance civil rights and social justice by inspiring, advocating and mobilizing through an inclusive movement that works tirelessly on behalf of those we serve. www.eqca.org
The California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus, the LGBTQ Caucus of the League of California Cities and Equality California, the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization, announced their opposition to the misguided and dangerous effort to recall Governor Gavin Newsom during a virtual press conference on Friday (Facebook, Download). Equality California Executive Director Rick Chavez Zbur, Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara, Legislative LGBTQ Caucus Chair Assemblymember Evan Low (D-Campbell), former Chair Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco), Senator John Laird (D-Santa Cruz), Assemblymember Chris Ward (D-San Diego), Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia, League of California Cities LGBTQ Caucus Board Member Palm Springs Mayor Pro Tem Lisa Middleton and BART Board Director Janice Li praised Governor Newsom’s long record of support for LGBTQ+ civil rights and his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, national economic downturn and devastating wildfires. The leaders also spoke to the risk that the partisan recall effort, led and funded by anti-LGBTQ+ and pro-Trump extremists, poses to LGBTQ+ Californians and the diverse communities to which LGBTQ+ people belong.
After the press conference, 60* LGBTQ+ elected officials throughout California (listed below) released the following joint statement opposing the recall effort:
“As LGBTQ+ Californians and elected leaders in our communities, we strongly oppose the misguided effort to recall Governor Gavin Newsom. This attempt to remove the Governor — led and funded by anti-LGBTQ+ and pro-Trump extremists — is the product of a coordinated disinformation campaign that will cost the state of California $100 million. Instead, this money should be used to support Californians as our state recovers from the COVID-19 pandemic. The recall poses an especially grave threat to our LGBTQ+ community and the progress that California continues to make toward full, lived equality for all people.
“Throughout his career, Governor Newsom has been a dedicated ally of the LGBTQ+ community and an unyielding champion in our fight for civil rights and social justice. He stood with us at times when it was not politically popular, regardless of personal and professional risks, because he knew it was the right thing to do. He has taken bold, principled actions to advance marriage equality, expand access to life-saving HIV prevention medication, protect transgender Californians from discrimination, and ensure that California’s government reflects the diversity of our communities.
“Governor Newsom’s leadership has earned the trust of LGBTQ+ Californians, and our community stands ready to defeat a recall.”
The following officials signed the statement above:
California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara
U.S. Representative Mark Takano
California Senator Susan Talamantes Eggman
California Senator John Laird
California Senator Scott Wiener
California Assemblymember Sabrina Cervantes
California Assemblymember Evan Low
California Assemblymember Chris Ward
San Leandro Unified School District Board Trustee James Aguilar
San Leandro Vice Mayor Victor Aguilar
Berkeley Unified School District Board President Judy Appel
Signal Hill City Treasurer Larry Blunden
Los Angeles City Councilmember Mike Bonin
Anaheim City Councilmember Jordan Brandman
Former San Mateo County Harbor District Commissioner Sabrina Rose Brennan
El Monte Union High School District Board President Florencio Briones
Belvedere Mayor James Campbell
Pleasant Hill City Councilmember Ken Carlson
Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board Commissioner James Chang
San Francisco Treasurer José Cisneros
Redlands City Councilmember Denise Davis
Hacienda La Puente Unified School District Board Member Anthony A. Duarte
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Board Director Bevan Dufty
Oceanside Unified School District Trustee Eleanor Evans
Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority Director Shay Franco-Clausen
Los Angeles City Controller Ron S. Galperin
Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria
Former San Diego City Council President Georgette Gómez
Cathedral City Mayor Gregory Raymond
Sacramento Municipal Utility District Board Member Rosanna Herber
Pajaro Valley Unified School District Trustee Jennifer Holm
Palm Springs Mayor Christy Holstege
West Basin Municipal Water District Director Scott Houston
Palm Springs City Councilmember Geoff Kors
Los Angeles County Supervisor Sheila J. Kuehl
Dublin City Councilmember Shawn Kumagai
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Board Director Janice Li
Monterey Park Mayor Pro Tem Henry Lo
Former Stockton Unified School District Board President Lange Luntao
San Francisco Supervisor Rafael Mandelman
Palm Springs Mayor Pro Tem Lisa Middleton
Encinitas City Councilmember Joe Mosca
College of Marin Board Trustee Stephanie O’Brien
San Leandro Unified School District Board Member Peter Oshinski
Oak Grove School District Board of Trustees Vice President Jorge Pacheco, Jr.
Chula Vista City Councilmember and California Coastal Commission Chair Steve C. Padilla
San Carlos Mayor Laura Parmer-Lohan
Los Angeles County Assessor Jeff Prang
San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District Director Miles Prince
El Cerrito Mayor Pro Tem Gabriel Quinto
Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) Board Vice President Rebecca Saltzman
San Francisco Unified School District Commissioner Mark Sanchez
Cabrillo Community College District Trustee Adam Spickler
City College of San Francisco Trustee Tom Temprano
Marin Community College District Board of Trustees President Wanden Treanor
Los Angeles Community College District Trustee David Vela**
Palm Springs City Councilmember Dennis Woods
San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District Board President Thomas Wong
Fullerton City Councilmember Ahmad Zahra
Desert Healthcare District Director Dr. Les Zendle
*Number updated to reflect new total **Added March 18, 2021
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Equality California is the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization. We bring the voices of LGBTQ people and allies to institutions of power in California and across the United States, striving to create a world that is healthy, just, and fully equal for all LGBTQ people. We advance civil rights and social justice by inspiring, advocating and mobilizing through an inclusive movement that works tirelessly on behalf of those we serve. www.eqca.org
Republican governor Kristi Noem has issued two executive orders to prohibit trans girls from playing on girls’ and women’s sports teams in South Dakota.
Noem partially vetoed HB 1217 – also known as the Fairness in Women’s Sports bill – which would ban trans women athletes from playing in sports teams that align with their gender identity. The move shocked her conservative supporters as Noem had been a staunch supporter of the bill.
During an appearance on Tucker Carlson Tonight, Noem explained that she rejected the bill in its current form over fear that the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) would seek punitive action if it was passed. She argued that she declined the bill unless several stylistic changes are made.
However, the South Dakota state legislature voted Monday (29 March) to reject Noem’s “style and form” veto of the trans athlete bill, by a 67-2 vote. Republican congressmen Fred Deutsch wrote on Twitter: “Vote to pass the governor’s style and form veto on the Fairness for [Women’s] Sports bill fails 2-67.
“The bill now goes back to the governor for her to either sign or veto. House believes her style-and-form is unconstitutional.”
On the same day, Kristi Noem announced two executive orders would be put in place in South Dakota to ban trans athletes from participating in school sports as their correct gender. Noem said on Twitter: “Only girls should play girls’ sports.
“Given the legislature’s failure to accept my proposed revisions to HR 1217, I am immediately signing two executive orders to address this issue: one to protect fairness in K-12 athletics, and another to do so in college athletics.”
She added that she will be working with state lawmakers to “schedule a special legislative session in late May or early June” to address “this important issue” as well as “medical marijuana” and federal spending.
Under the new executive order, the department of education and the board of regents in South Dakota will need to ensure that publicly-funded K-12 school districts, colleges and universities restrict participation in girls’ and women’s sports to athletes who can prove their assigned sex at birth.
The ACLU of South Dakota vowed on Twitter that it will not “stop defending the right for everyone to live and thrive” in the state. It posted an image with text on it that read: “The fight isn’t over. If only for a moment, we were able to take a deep sigh of relief.”
Mary Trump, who needled former President Trump during his re-election bid with allegations of racist, anti-Semitic and homophobic remarks in his family, has joined a political action committee that works to elect queer women to public office.
LPAC, a political organization dedicated to electing queer women to public office, on Friday announced Mary Trump, the niece of former President Trump and a lesbian, would join its board of directors.
“We will only create lasting and systemic change for progressive values if we increase the number of diverse players in power, and that includes LGBTQ women,” Mary Trump said in a statement. “I am so excited to work with LPAC to create more opportunity for these new leaders and to build alliances with other progressives across the country.”
Founded in 2012 as a political action committee intended to give queer women a greater voice in politics, LPAC endorses and supports candidates through direct investments and independent investment campaigns. LPAC has raised more than $6.3 million and endorsed more than 150 candidates, according to a statement.
LPAC supported Democratic Sens. Tammy Baldwin and Kyrsten Sinema in recent election cycles as well as Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot. As of now, there are 11 openly LGBTQ members of Congress, including Baldwin and Sinema.
Laura Ricketts, a member contributor to the Democratic Party and LPAC board chair, credited Mary Trump with having “demonstrated thought[ful] leadership, media and political savvy over the last year as she has stormed the country with her insights and opinions.”
“We couldn’t be more excited to have her join us in building the power of our political action community and developing the next generation of LGBTQ women leaders,” Ricketts.
(Mary Trump and Laura Ricketts, co-owner of the Chicago Cubs, have something else in common aside from now both being board members of LPAC: They stand out as supporters of Democratic candidates in families that are overwhelmingly backers of the Republican Party.)
According to an article in Politico, Mary Trump joins LPAC as part of a broader effort to stay engaged in politics and recognition of the importance of LGBTQ voices.
“If it’s only men making decisions about women’s issues or straight people making decisions about LGBTQ issues, then that’s where we run into problems and we’ve seen this,” Mary Trump is quoted as saying.
Mary Trump is also working on a new book that would build on the success of an earlier tell-all book about the Trump family. The second book, “The Reckoning,” is set to examine “America’s national trauma, rooted in our history but dramatically exacerbated by the impact of current events and the Trump administration’s corrupt and immoral policies,” Politico reported.
Lisa Turner, executive director of LPAC, said in a statement Mary Trump would be a welcome addition to the organization as it pursue its “ambitious agenda for the next election cycle.”
“We can’t afford to accept the status quo,” Turner said. “We must organize across the country and develop new leaders to walk the corridors of power. That is our core mission. We are thrilled to have Mary’s help in doing so and invite all who are interested to join our effort.”
Three members of Congress have urged the U.S. Agency for International Development to use some of the money it received from the COVID-19 relief bill to support LGBTQ people around the world who the pandemic has made even more vulnerable.
U.S. Reps. Dina Titus (D-Nev.), Joaquin Castro (D-Texas) and David Cicilline (D-R.I.) in a letter they sent to Acting USAID Administrator Gloria Steele on March 24 note her agency received “approximately” $10 billion under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 that President Biden signed into law earlier this month.
“We write to you to request that particular attention be paid in your deployment of these additional funds to reach the most vulnerable populations,” reads the letter. “From the devastating experience of the first year of this pandemic, we know that traditionally marginalized communities including LGBTQI+, people with disabilities, and racial minorities are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19.”
The letter notes the pandemic “has exacerbated the inequalities and vulnerabilities that LGBTQI+ people in particular face worldwide.”
“Amidst ongoing lockdowns, many LGBTQI+ people have lost their livelihoods, are at increased risk for gender-based violence, food insecurity, and homelessness, and face even greater barriers to services, including access to sexual and reproductive health care,” it reads. “In some countries, those in the LGBTQI+ community have been scapegoated and falsely charged for spreading COVID-19, while other governments have used COVID-19 lock down measures as an excuse to violate the human rights of LGBTQI+ people and other vulnerable groups. LGBTQI+ people have also been excluded from many relief efforts due to binary gendered approaches to distribution, as well as a reliance on unsafe spaces for LGBTQI+ people, non-inclusive definitions of ‘family,’ and discrimination by relief workers.”
Transgender activists in Latin America have criticized gender-based rules that officials in Panama, Colombia and Peru implemented in order to curb the spread of the coronavirus.
Activists in South Korea formed a task force to fight anti-LGBTQ discrimination related to the pandemic. The letter that Titus, Castro and Cicilline sent to Steele notes OutRight Action International in April 2020 launched a fund to help vulnerable LGBTQ communities during the pandemic.
“As COVID-19 has demonstrated, current structures and systems of relief have allowed LGBTQI+ people to fall through the cracks, and it is only with long-term, comprehensive, sustainable measures that those in the LGBTQI+ community will not face disproportionate impacts in the face of disaster and crisis,” reads the letter. “Unfortunately, of all the supplemental COVID-19 relief funding administered by USAID, zero was allocated for LGBTQI+ organizations or populations.”
Biden last month issued a memorandum that committed the U.S. to promoting LGBTQ rights abroad.
A USAID spokesperson confirmed to the Washington Blade the agency has received the letter.
Sonoma County Pride is Back!,Beyond The Rainbow – Thriving, Reviving, and Surviving
After a challenging year of cancellations and lockdowns, this year’s Sonoma County Pride celebration returns with hope and positivity! This annual event will include a month-long series of COVID-19 aware micro-events in varied venues throughout Sonoma County. The events will offer activities for all ages and abilities. This year’s theme, “Beyond the Rainbow: Surviving, Reviving, and Thriving”, takes inspiration from THE WIZARD OF OZ to offer renewal and support to the LGBTQ community. Sonoma County Pride’s Secretary Cheryl Kabanuck puts the beloved film’s lessons into perspective. “There’s no place like home being back together with our community. Courage leads us here, knowledge is how we survive and heart is what keeps us together.”Since the worldwide pandemic forced the cancellation of 2020 Pride events everywhere, it was important to find a unifying theme to recognize we’re not all in the same space mentally and emotionally. The past year has been incredibly challenging for everyone, and each of us faced different struggles. The focus for Sonoma County Pride 2021 is on the mental, physical and emotional health and wellness of community members. Vice President @Grace Villafuer emphasizes, “While some of us are reviving and thriving, some of us are still focused on surviving. Wherever we are on our journey, we hope Sonoma County Pride 2021 will offer each of us a feeling of community, pride, and peace. We strive to not only reach our unique rainbows – our dreams and inner strengths, but we look to go Beyond the Rainbow!”According to Director of Logistics Brian Rogers, “Those of us who survived this surreal year gained new respect and meaning for the prime lesson Dorothy learned in Oz: ‘There’s no place like home.’ Now that we have nearly SURVIVED the pandemic, let’s embrace that hopeful spirit as we REVIVE together and support one another so we can once again THRIVE.”Christopher Kren-Mora, President of Sonoma Pride, promises a different but exciting series of events to bring the community back together in a spirit of celebration. “It won’t be a single weekend this year, but a month of fun, hope, and renewal that we’ve all been hoping for.” The calendar of upcoming Sonoma County Pride events will be published as dates and venues are confirmed.
Half of Generation Z thinks that traditional gender roles and labels related to the gender binary are outdated, according to a refreshing new study.
As issues of gender equality continue to challenge societal norms and influence public opinion, US-based ad agency Bigeye sought to understand consumers’ perception of gendered products and advertising.ADVERTISING
For the 2021 Gender Study the agency polled 2,000 adults from a range of ages, incomes, locations, and gender identities. Questions included the kinds of clothing they wear to their opinion on gender-neutral children’s toys and education.
They found that 50 per cent of Generation Z-ers are pushing back against the gender binary, and that sentiment is even higher among Millennials at 56 percent.
More than half (51 per cent) of all respondents agreed that, in a decade, we will associate gender with stereotypical personality traits, products, and occupations much less than we do today.
“While the majority of Americans are cisgender, a significant percentage of younger generations believe the notion of identity is fluid and decidedly non-traditional,” said Adrian Tennant, VP of Insights at Bigeye and the leader of the research team.
“This study provides a snapshot of the broad, generational spectrum of opinions and beliefs held toward gender identity and expression within the media we consume daily through TV, ads and online platforms.
“While the majority of older generations remain skeptical of advertising’s ability to change perceptions of traditional gender roles, Gen X and younger are leading the charge and challenging brands to portray more diverse audiences and expressions.”
It seems women are more likely to embrace gender-neutrality than men, as nearly three-quarters of cis female parents encourage gender-neutral play for their children (73 percent), a figure significantly higher than cis male parents (59 per cent).
And fifth of female respondents believe that none of the consumer product categories benefit at all from being gendered.
“Toiletries are constantly gendered and it is completely unnecessary. They should be labeled with the qualities of the product and the fragrance, if any. No mention of male or female is needed,” one Gen Y respondent wrote.
In another positive finding, LGBT+ participants were more likely to have faith in the next generation, with 82 per cent of queer millennials and 88 per cent of queer Boomers believing that Gen Z is better educated about non-binaryand transgender identities.