Transgender / Transsexual

This year’s latest casualty in the ongoing war on transgender women is Josie Berrios, 28. She lived in Ithaca, New York, and was described by those who loved her as a proud transgender woman of color. Berrios had what police say was a “personal relationship” with a man named Michael Davis, 45. Police have charged him with her murder as well as first-degree arson, apparently for setting fire to her body, reported WSTM-TV. Detectives arrested Davis late Tuesday night and he was arraigned in Ithaca City Court, according to police. He’s incarcerated at the Tompkins County Jail and being held […]

  Gov. Kate Brown has signed a bill that will make it easier for transgender people in Oregon to shield any updates they make to their birth certificates, a process typically conducted through the court system without privacy from public view. The measure, which takes effect next year, makes Oregon the second state after California to adopt laws specifically designed to help mitigate potential discrimination against transgender individuals from employers, landlords or anyone else who is otherwise able to dig up birth-record changes through public record. The new law eliminates the requirement that changes to someone’s name or gender identity […]

Local Psychotherapists Who Work with Transgender People/Issues A gender therapist resource list for those in Sonoma County. All vetted and approved by The Queer Life radio show. 1. Frances Fuchs, PhD Address: Santa Rosa, Downtown Phone: 707-544-7959 Website: http://www.francesfuchsphd.com Gender issues, grief/loss, recovery, relationships, anxiety, life transitions, Client-centered therapy, Expressive arts therapy, clinical hypnosis, individuals and couples. Queer rights advocate, many years experience with GLBTQI clients. 2. Shawn Giamniettei, PhD Address 1: 1549 Pacific Avenue, Santa Rosa Address 2: 999 Sutter Street, San Francisco Phone: 707-544-3822 Email: drshawn@questfamilies.com Website: http://www.questfamilies.com Over 10 years working directly with the trans population. Trains mental health practitioners in delivering culturally competent […]

A 2009 hate crimes law meant to make federal prosecutions easier has resulted in relatively few convictions nationwide. An Associated Press analysis using data gathered by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University show that 47 people nationwide have been prosecuted using the law, with 37 convictions. Another 300 people were referred for prosecution, but hate crimes charges were never filed. In at least half those cases, there wasn’t enough evidence or prosecutors couldn’t prove intent, a key threshold. Shown here are the total number of cases that law enforcement agencies presented to federal prosecutors in each state, followed […]

Recent developments have prompted Association of Title IX Administrators (ATIXA) to revise and reissue its position statement on the protections of transgender and transitioning people under Title IX. The arguments for inclusion remain largely unchanged, however the history of the issue has been edited to reflect changes in the current political winds. This ATIXA position statement reflects the importance of protections for gender nonconformity, gender identity, gender expression, transitioning and transgender status conferred by Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. Allegations of such discrimination should be subject to a civil rights, equity-based response from any educational program or activity […]

With 40 state legislatures convened thus far in 2017, analysts report there are more than 30 measures introduced in 11 states that are intended to weaken or remove civil rights safeguards for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Americans. In this polarized political climate, a majority of Americans state they oppose measures that erode civil rights for LGBT people: Two-thirds (66%) of adults say they oppose laws allowing businesses to refuse service to LGBT persons because of their religious objections (and a similar proportion (68%) stated their opposition in a May 2016 Harris Poll.) 62% of adults oppose state laws […]

Two Lambda Legal clients who are transgender are one step closer to having their names legally changed to match their gender identity. The Georgia Court of Appeals unanimously reversed a lower court decision Friday, saying that the judge had abused his discretion in denying name changes where there was no evidence that the requests were made for an “improper purpose.” The Court sent the case back to the trial court with direction to grant the name changes sought by Rowan Feldhaus and Andrew Baumert. Baumert said: It was hurtful and insulting to be denied my legal name change. I’m happy that […]

  A transgender woman in South Dakota was found dead Friday night in her apartment in an apparent homicide, KSFY reports. Hers is the second reported murder of a transgender person in the United States in 2017. According to Sioux Falls Two-Spirit and Allies, 28-year-old Jamie Lee Wounded Arrow was originally from the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota and was a member of the Oglala Lakota tribe. Police are expected to release more information about the homicide investigation on Monday. The group asked for prayers for Wounded Arrow’s family on Facebook Saturday and said they believe she was killed on […]

In the most comprehensive investigation of transgender-related homicide to date, Mic Thursday released “Unerased: Counting Transgender Lives,” a project looking at trans murder in America. Working in collaboration with transgender advocacy organizations, activists, academics and victims’ loved ones and families, a team of reporters at Mic has launched an interactive database of transgender homicides from 2010 to the present. Intended as a resource for activists, journalists and academics, the database contains a wealth of demographic data about each victim, including biographies and multimedia. In an effort to elevate the stories of marginalized populations, Mic will continue to track transgender homicides […]

The Transgender Day of Remembrance was set aside to memorialize those who were killed due to anti-transgender hatred or prejudice. The event is held in November to honor Rita Hester, whose murder on November 28th, 1998 kicked off the “Remembering Our Dead” web project and a San Francisco candlelight vigil in 1999. Rita Hester’s murder — like most anti-transgender murder cases — has yet to be solved. Although not every person represented during the Day of Remembrance self-identified as transgender — that is, as a transsexual, crossdresser, or otherwise gender-variant — each was a victim of violence based on bias […]