[Spain]
Priest sued over seminar 'curing' homosexuality

A Spanish clergyman is to be investigated after complaints that he is holding seminars which aim to "rehabilitate homosexuals" . Protestant minister Marcos Zapata, head of an organisation running youth centres for troubled children in Galicia, prompted the row after reports surfaced of a recent seminar he led entitled "How to Raise Heterosexual Children".

Spanish cleric to face government investigation for gay cure speech

Two Spanish clerics, one Protestant, the other Catholic are under fire by gay rights organisations for homophobic views.

[International/France]
TETU: A Huge Disappointment - Commentary by Curtis Hinkle and P. Derelle, members of OII, Organisation Intersex International

As an intersexed person with the same intersex variation as the character in the film XXY, I am shocked at the continuous misinformation coming from TÊTU (a large gay French magazine). This is not the first time that TÊTU has insisted on marginalising and invisibilising intersex people.

[Turkey]
Watchdog bans 'Huysuz Virjin,' people react

Allegations that a decision by the Supreme Board of Radio and Television to ban the popular showman Seyfi Dursunoglu from appearing on screen in women's clothes evokes intense reactions in society and the media.

[Chile]
Transexual asesinada en Chile por neonazis

Ya suman tres los asesinatos de transexuales sólo durante el 2007 • El Movilh llamó a aprobar la ley contra la discriminación en breve y acusó a las autoridades de insensibilidad frente a los atropellos padecidos por la población transexual.

[Nepal]
OHCHR Hails SC Ruling on Rights of Sexual Minorities

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in Nepal (OHCHR-Nepal) has welcomed the recent Supreme Court ruling to the government to guarantee equal rights to sexual minorities including transsexuals.

Gays y transexuales celebran veredicto a favor de reconocimiento de derechos

Gays y transexuales de Nepal celebraron hoy la victoria lograda ante el Tribunal Supremo de este país, que avaló en un veredicto sus derechos y exigió al Gobierno que enmiende las leyes vigentes a fin de garantizárselos.

[USA]
Divisive ENDA fight dominated year in national gay news

Passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) has long been at the top of gay activists' wish lists. The bill has been around in one form or another since the 1970s and after the Democrats took control of Congress in 2006, many were optimistic it would finally pass.

[USA] [News/Commentary]
Not much good to top the list of the top LGBT stories of 2007

From the ENDA debacle to Larry Craig's bathroom toe-tapping, the news from the past year did not shine a complimentary light on us.

[USA]
National Year in Review

The gay news story of the year was the fight over the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and the removal of protections based on gender identity. But that wasn't the only story making headlines. Below is a roundup of the rest of the year's top stories.

[USA]
A Medical Transition

I was recently alerted to a news release that reminded me that, inspite of all the pain and struggle, all the fighting over ENDA and other bills, and all the times it feels like there is no forward motion no transgender issues, there really are some changes going on.

[FL, USA] [Commentary]
Putting the T back in GLBT

We hear it all the time: “The LGBT Community.” We call our selves the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community, but too often we don’t include all the members of our community when we fight for rights or equality.

E este será o último post de 2007 neste blog, portanto, e agradecendo a tod@s as visitas, os meus votos para 2008 estão no gif animado que se segue.
Jinhos a tod@s e bem-hajam.

[Canada] [News/Healthcare/Science]
Information black hole on trans men's health risks

With little known, health centres still putting up barriers

[USA]
Roller Coaster Ride: 2007 Trans Year In Review

From a transgender perspective, 2007 was a year with a lot of peaks and valleys. The entertainment field, in particular, witnessed many accomplishments but the community as a whole was tested with some significant blows.

[USA]
Year in review: Gay issues languish in Congress

Political expectations were high at the start of the year. With Democrats in control of both Houses of Congress, after more than a decade under Republican majorities, now was the time to move the LGBT legislative agenda forward. But the year ended with little to show and growing frustration, even bitterness, within the community.

[ME,USA] [Editorial]
Christian priorities

At a time when the state is cutting back assistance to the elderly, children and the poor, you might reasonably assume that the Christian Civic League of Maine would have larger concerns than the bathroom practices of an elementary school student. You'd be wrong.

Bangor Daily News is Obsessed with Sex

The Bangor Daily News officially piled on today in their editorial.

Even Christians who have long supported the League read poison like this editorial and wonder if the League is being irresponsible. Allow me to reassure you, dear Christian reader, the League IS being responsible <http://www.cclmaine .org/PDF_ Files/LeagueMela nsonPressComment s.pdf>

[USA] [News/Commentary]
2007: The year that should have been better

Perhaps the most apropos metaphor for how lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders fared in 2007 happened in October when Harry Potter creator J.K. Rowling announced that the mightiest wizard in her children's best-sellers, Albus Dumbledore, was gay.

[Kuwait]
Controversy over law for transvestites - Kuwait gives own cells to `bisexual cons'

Security sources in Kuwait said the Interior Ministry has allocated certain cells in the country's central prison for convicts who are bisexual or the so-called "sexually undecided".

[USA] [Books]
Our Picks for Trans Young Adult Fiction

Five top novels for young adult -- and not-so-young adult -- readers looking for stories about the lives of young trans people

[USA] [Television]
"Teen Transsexual" on BBC America

All Richard Parker wants for his 18th birthday is to be Lucy Parker. Richard has spent his life dealing with gender identity issues and has long dreamed of the day when he can have surgery to become a real woman. Unable to get the surgery until he turns 18 and has proven to doctors that he is psychologically committed to life as a woman, Richard has spent the last two years living as Lucy. This is her story.

Premieres December 30th at 10pm et/pt. Part of BBC America Reveals.

Show promo http://www.youtube. com/watch? v=Uk2f5N7RBpU
BBC America schedule http://www.bbcameri ca.com/tvschedul e.jsp
Program description http://www.bbcameri ca.com/content/ 296/index. jsp

[Kuwait]
Transvestites held - Arab Times, Kuwait

Police arrested two Arab transvestites while they were walking in a public park in Hawalli, reports Al-Wasat daily.

Both of them were wearing female attire and were in full make-up.

Meanwhile, three transvestites were arrested while loitering in a camping area, reports Al-Shahed daily.

Sources say securitymen have been given instructions to continue the campaign against transvestites in all areas.

[Pakistan]
Government rejects eunuchs’ demand for representation

The government has rejected the demands of eunuchs to register them as a third sex and to reserve seats in the national and provincial assemblies of the country. The All Pakistan Eunuchs Association (APEA) told Daily Times on Tuesday that this was unfair. APEA said that eunuchs were treated as male voters, although they preferred to be recognised as females. "The federal government has refused to reserve seats for eunuchs ... they [eunuchs] should contest elections like other people," said an Interior Ministry official.

Govt grants no special representation to eunuchs in assemblies

Excerpt: APEA also said that there are around 1.5 million eunuchs living in Pakistan and they are all treated as male voters while most of the eunuchs prefer to be recognised as females. The association said that it would be quite difficult for eunuchs to vote at men's election booths.

[CA,USA]
Calif. anti-bias bill causes stir over 'gender'

Warning that boys soon will be able to use girls' bathrooms and locker rooms, social conservatives and religious groups are trying to block a California law from taking effect in January that is designed to prohibit discrimination against gay and transgender people in schools.

Half a Million Signatures Sought to Bring Pro-Gay School Bill to Voters

Excerpt: Furthermore, if the student wishes to keep his sexual status from his parents, the teachers and administration must refer to the masculine pronoun (him/he) when talking to the parents and use the feminine pronoun (she/her) at school.

"This shocking policy treats parents as the enemy of the transgender student," CRFI states. "Teachers are expected to abet the student in keeping vital information from parents."

[News/Commentary] Pro-family Group Identifies Worst Offenders of Faith, Family Values

Reflecting back on 2007, a California pro-family group has identified what it considers the worse cases of hostility toward faith, family, and freedom in the state.

[PA,USA] [Blog/Commentary]
Life as a Trans Woman Ain't Easy

Excerpt: By way of (brief) introduction, I'm a trans woman in her late 40's; I started transitioning 4 years ago. I'm white, middle-class, Jewish, queer, dealing with multiple disabilities, and a survivor of long-term adulthood sexual abuse. I identify strongly and proudly as a feminist. I don't classify my feminism (second-wave, third-wave, etc, etc), but I think that I take a decent amount of my thought and ideas from radical feminism (even as I argue with some radical feminists over trans issues).

[UT,USA]
Housing dilemma

SUU has no place to put transgender student who can't prove he's a man

[USA] [Blog/Commentary]
Challenging Transsexuality?

"Without gender differentiation... There would be no need to reconstruct genitalia to match identity - interests and life-styles [would] not [be] gendered." - Judith Lorber

[NY, USA]
Police brutality — and intervention - LGBT groups hold provocative forum on violence in police ranks

To resist or not to resist?

That was the question, and the title of a forum earlier this week in which playwrights, community members and activists came together at the Audre Lorde Project in Fort Greene to discuss police violence and bystander intervention

[South Africa]
Zulu boy returns as drag-queen diva

Sfiso was a starry- eyed Zulu boy from a humble township home when he left for London seven years ago.

This week he returned to South Africa as a glamorous drag queen — adorned in lipstick and long lashes.

[Nepal] [Commentary]
Third Sex: Illusion or Reality?

Masculine characteristics are referred to as aggressive, more logical, made for policy level decisions and heading the families among others whereas feminine characteristics implicate more emotional, loving, depending and caring nature, which leads to assisting people and devoting their lives to others.

[India]
Transvestites crave for their place in society

Transvestite (Nupi Manbi Nupa) population in Manipur who are also considered high risk behaviour group of HIV/AID infection/affection have appealed to Manipur AIDS Control Society (MACS) and National AIDS Control Society (NACO) for paying special attention to their problems at the time of formulation policies and programmes related to HIV/AIDS issues.

[USA] [Commentary]
David Carlin: Bathrooms for the transgendered

Excerpt: They have improved the bathroom lot of a small (and mentally ill) fraction of the student population, and they have inflicted embarrassment and discomfort on everybody else. Well, not quite everybody else. The politically correct administrators who run many of our colleges will feel a glow of moral superiority every time they relieve themselves in a gender-neutral rest-room.

[CO,USA] [PR/Commentary]
Gays, families face difficult holiday times

It is no secret that the holidays put a lot of stress on the family, and that these are not always times of peace and joy in every household. Whether because of serious illness or recent death in the family, or perhaps because of substance abuse or marital strife or other dysfunctionality, many or maybe most families at Christmas don't bear much resemblance to a made-for-TV movie.

[Nepal]
Nepal's sexual minorities emerge as 2007's winners

With its political parties failing to provide good governance and hold elections, and the Maoists continuing with violence despite signing a peace pact, Nepal's gay community has emerged as the only winners of the year that saw the country suffering from a series of dismal failures.

Nepal court rules on gay rights

Nepal's Supreme Court has ordered the government to scrap laws that discriminate against homosexuals.

[VA, USA]
Suffolk resident guilty for injecting silicone in transgender person

A person charged with injecting silicone into another transgender individual pleaded guilty Friday to practicing medicine without a license.

[Spain]
Sacked transexual accepts out of court settlement

A transsexual who was sacked by the Barcelona province branch of a German multinational has received an out of court settlement for a claim she presented with the support of the union, UGT.

Una multinacional despide a Mathias por querer ser Sara

Sara estaba feliz ayer. No paraba de recibir felicitaciones por su móvil. La UGT difundió ayer una nota en la que explicaba que Sara Shulze, legalmente todavía Mathias Shulze, de 36 años, había llegado a un acuerdo con la empresa que la despidió el 28 de septiembre por bajo rendimiento y mal trato a clientes y compañeros. Pero Sara, ingeniera industrial, sabe que es por otra razón: en mayo comunicó a sus jefes su condición de transexual y su deseo de vivir durante un año como mujer antes de someterse a una operación de cambio de sexo. Tres meses más tarde fue despedida. No lo dudó y presentó una denuncia por discriminación. El lunes era el juicio, pero no se celebró: fue indemnizada por despido improcedente con 22.000 euros.

Empresa indemniza con 22.000 E transexual despedido al conocerse su condición

Una transexual ha sido indemnizada con unos 22.000 euros por la multinacional alemana para la que trabajaba en El Prat de Llobregat (Barcelona) después de que la empresa la despidiera al comunicarle la trabajadora que iba a someterse a una terapia previa a una operación de cambio de sexo.

Photo: Sarah Schulze

[Itália]
Padre desafia Igreja casando transexual

Alessandro Santoro, padre de um povoado italiano próximo à Florença, anunicou que deu andamento aos trâmites nupciais para a realização do casamento de Sandra Alvino, transexual de 63 anos e de seu companheiro, Fortunato Talotta, de 62 anos.

Transexual desafía a la Iglesia Católica

La próxima primavera Don Alessandro Santero, cura de "Le Piagge", un pueblo cerca de Florencia, casará a Sandra Alvino, transexual de 63 años, con su compañero, Fortunato Talotta de 62.

[Suisse]
Un médecin transsexuel réhabilité au Tessin

Le Tribunal administratif tessinois (TAR) a réhabilité un médecin qui avait perdu son droit de pratiquer après avoir changé de sexe. Devenue femme, la doctoresse Laura Armani, 46 ans, est aussi députée au Grand Conseil tessinois.

[Nepal]
Nepal Supreme Court orders govt to guarantee gay rights

Nepal's Supreme Court Friday ordered the government to enact laws to guarantee the rights of gays and lesbians, who have long complained of discrimination in the highly conservative Himalayan nation.

Blue Diamond Society: Great victory of Nepalese LGBTI!

Supreme Court of Nepal issued directive orders to the Government of Nepal to end discrimination against LGBTI and ensure equal rights as heterosexual men and women in Nepal.

[India]
Transgender to bare it all in autobiography

Rose (28), the first trangender in the country to host a television programme and the first one to openly advocate scientific sexual reconstruction surgery (SRS), has taken to the pen. Two leading publishing houses have evinced interest in publishing 'her' autobiography, tentatively titled 'My Sexuality'.

[India]
Court serves notice to Union Ministries on sex change issue

The Delhi High Court has issued notices to the Union Home and Health and Child Welfare Ministries and the Delhi Government on public interest litigation seeking guidelines for treating those who undergo natural sex change midway through their lives as a separate category with all the benefits that are available to other members of society.

[CA, USA]
Accused stalker sentenced to jail for alleged terror campaign

A 25-year-old man allegedly shocked to learn that he was engaged in a sexual act with a transgender woman was sentenced Thursday to four months jail for engaging in a month-long terror campaign against his male-to-female sex partner and her live-in boyfriend.

[USA] [News/Commentary]
Season's greetings from HRC and Bitch

It's a bit of an understatement to say that the Human Rights Campaign's (HRC) relationship with the transgender community is a bit strained at the moment. After HRC's flip-flop on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (first they opposed any version of the bill without gender identity protections, then they reversed course and supported an ENDA bill covering only sexual orientation) , the organization' s lone out trans board member, Donna Rose, resigned in protest, and a number of transgender and other LGBT activists accused HRC of throwing the trans community under the bus.

[España]
"No somos unos bichos raros"

Apuesta por visibilizar la transexualidad porque considera que es la única forma de normalizar lo que la gente opina sobre este colectivo, para que no piensen que son unos "bichos raros"

[Bulgaria]
80% of Bulgarians Don't Accept Gay People

80% of Bulgarians have negative attitude to homosexual people, says data of 'Skala' agency survey.

The research, which examined the discriminative adjustments of Bulgarian nation, was conducted on September 10-30, this year, Darik Radio informed.

[DC, USA]
Transsexual job applicant can pursue Title VII sex bias claim

A federal district court in the District of Columbia concluded that a male-to-female transsexual job applicant could proceed with her Title VII sex bias claim against the Library of Congress, which allegedly withdrew its job offer for a terrorism research analyst position with the Congressional Research Service after the applicant disclosed that she was under a doctor's treatment for gender dysphoria and would be transitioning to a female before beginning work with the agency.

[IN, USA]
Trans Teen Takes School To Court

A U.S gay high school student who was refused admission to his prom because he was wearing a dress has filed a suit against his school, claiming they violated his civil rights.

Denied Access to Prom, He Sues

K.K. Logan of West Side High in Gary, Indiana, who identifies as "a gay bisexual male," according to a Court TV report, was stopped by his principal from going to his prom on December 12 because he showed up in a dress, even though he "had long expressed his sexual identity through clothing and makeup and was never punished for it." Lambda Legal is taking Principal Diana Rouse and the school board to court over the incident.

[USA]
Gender Status and Single-Sex Dorms

Kourt Osborn started off at Southern Utah University living in a women's dormitory — not surprising given that Osborn checked "female"on the institution's application and enrollment forms. Now Osborn — who took time off for hormone and other treatments to become a man —wants to return and live in a men's dormitory.

[USA]
Transgender people on the move to find neutral bathrooms

For transgender people, the choice between the men's room and the women's room often leaves them stuck in the middle with crossed legs and nowhere to go. They are faced with harassment from security guards, police officers and other restroom users for appearing to use the "wrong bathroom."

[CA, USA]
Lesbian runs for police union head

Excerpt: Delagnes's relationship with Theresa Sparks, the commission's transgender president, has been a chilly one, but predates her election and is no different than his no-love-lost attitude toward other commissioners with whom he has butted heads.

[MA, USA]
LGBT youth describe harassment, bullying

Excerpt: During the student forum, students from Brockton High said that while there are few out transgender students at the school, in at least one instance the administration, and particularly principal Susan Szachowicz, took steps to accommodate a trans student. One student said her ex-boyfriend was a female-to-male transman, and when he graduated last year Szachowicz allowed him to wear black robes along with the rest of the male graduates (females wore red robes) and to use his male name on his diploma. But she said there was a desperate need to educate the student body. Before her ex-boyfriend graduated she said students used to approach her and friends of the trans student and ask them, "Who is this freak?"

[USA]
Transgender News in 2007

The year 2007 saw unprecedented coverage of issues related to transgenderism. On April 27, ABC's "20/20" aired "My Secret Self: A Story of Transgender Children," a touching account from Barbara Walters who sat down with children struggling with gender identity.

[USA]
Documenting black transgender men

Kortney Ryan Ziegler is doing extremely important work. Earlier this year I posted a quote from her Chicago Reporter interview <http://www.thebrotherlove.com/bloggadocio/links_recent_quotes_from_black_lgbt_leaders.php>

discussing her "experiences as a black academic, lesbian, blogger, filmmaker and as a member of the first class in Northwestern University's African American studies doctoral program."

[New Zealand]

New club night for transgender Christchurch

Miss Hollywood - Christchurch drag personality and owner of Diva's Boutique - will launch a club night in the New Year especially for transgender people, cross-dressers, their friends and admirers.

[NY,USA] [Press Release]

N.Y. student punished for wearing pro-gay T-shirt gets apology

The Spencer-Van Etten Central School District agreed to make a public statement supporting students' right to wear T-shirts with controversial messages, satisfying demands made by civil liberties advocates after a student was punished for wearing a shirt supporting gay rights.

[UT,USA]

2nd Trans Student Claims Discrimination

For the second time in two days a transgendered college student is alleging discrimination. The most recent case involves Southern Utah University.

Groups Aid Transgender Student Who Was Denied Housing

A transgender Southern Utah University student has been denied housing in a male dorm next semester because he has yet to undergo gender-reassignment surgery.

SUU: Student must prove gender

Kourt Osborn, who is in transgender treatment, is denied a dorm room

Como se sabe, haverá hoje um debate na Assembleia para viabilizar, ou não, um Dia Nacional de Luta Contra a Homofobia. Segundo uns, foram activistas LGBT, segundo outros foi a ILGA-Portugal. Enfim, whatever.

De activistas LGBT não acredito que deliberadamente tenham ignorado precisamente quem mais sofre com discriminação, os Ts, e que não tenham feito menção da Transfobia. Da ILGA-Portugal também me admira pois ultimamente parecia que tinham finalmente reparado nos Ts da sigla LGBT.

O facto é que de Transfobia nem sinal. Afinal a luta pelos direitos Ts é sempre de curta duração. Já nem se lembram do combate que foi, quando do assassínio da Gisberta, entre activistas LGBT e outros que se diziam tal e que tiveram de dar o braço a torcer e aceder que foi um crime de ódio Transfóbico.

Por esta razão não me venham agora dizer que o dia que querem é no sentido lato, englobando a identidade de género. Se quisessem mesmo um dia que englobasse, porque não fazer um dia de luta contra a discriminação? Assim não ficava ninguém de fora... Se calhar já existia um, afinal todos os dias são dias de qualquer coisa né? Enganem-me que eu gosto.

E depois venham-me dizer que a Transfobia não existe. Existe e está firmemente enraizada mesmo dentro dos movimentos onde não era suposto estar.

[Argentina]
'XXY' in the Balance in Pinamar

Argentine hermaphrodite drama "XXY" extended its winning spree, picking up the top honor -- the Gold Balance -- at the fourth Pantalla Pinamar Festival, which wrapped Dec. 15 in the coastal town.

[UT, USA]
Transgender student fights denial of housing at SUU

Outwardly, Kourt Osborn is a man. The 22-year-old looks, dresses and even sounds like a man.

But, Osborn can't live in a male dormitory at Southern Utah University because, medically, he's still a woman.

Transgender Student Claims Denied Dorm Room

A Utah college student says his school is discriminating against him because he is transgender. Kourt Osborn says when he applied to live in the male dorm he was denied a room.

[FL,USA]
Police: Man Beat Boy For Putting Pink Fingernail Polish On Nails

A man was arrested on child abuse charges after he beat a 7-year-old boy with a belt because the child put pink fingernail polish on his own nails, according to Orange County sheriff's deputies.

[USA] [News/Healthcare]
Less invasive hysterectomy okay for transsexuals

Total laparoscopic hysterectomy, a type of minimally invasive "key-hole" surgery, is suitable for removing the uterus in female-to-male transsexuals, according to a report in the journal Obstetrics and Gynecology.

[IN,USA]
Gay Ind. teen sues school that wouldn't let him go to prom in a dress

When Kevin Logan went to his high school prom in 2006, he was hoping it would be a night to remember. What he'll remember, though, will be standing outside in the parking lot while his classmates danced inside.

[CA,USA]
New California law protecting gay, transgender students meets resistance

A recent amendment to California's education code has outraged many conservatives, who say the new laws push a gay agenda in public schools, according to a story in the Washington Times.

[Uganda] [Commentary]
Homosexuals, lesbians erode national decency

UGANDA is experiencing an internationally orchestrated crescendo of demands for "rights" by the homosexual fraternity: male, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and transvestite. Essentially, these "rights" reduce to only one; the absolute, non-negotiable, "right" to enjoy sexual pleasure man with man, woman with woman; with the bisexual exploiting the pleasures of both worlds and the trans gender coveting and securing the sexual pleasures which both God and his or her heterosexual parents did not give him or her.

[Samoa]
Men donning female tattoos warned

Men who live like women in Samoa have been warned they could be cursed and die if they get tattoos with designs traditionally worn by the country's females.

[USA] [Commentary]
The LGBT Follies

THE Employment Non-Discrimination Act, which would ban discrimination in the workplace based on sexual orientation, passed Congress in November.

[MA, USA]
Denied at NECC

Northern Essex Community College has denied the use of the men's locker room to a transgender student because of his female anatomy.

[España]
Cambio de sexo gratis vivas donde vivas

Las comunidades acuerdan centros de referencia para atender a los transexuales.

Un transexual de Ávila podrá beneficiarse de las mismas pretaciones sanitarias que uno de Madrid. El Consejo Interterritorial de Sanidad dio ayer un paso más para garantizar la equidad entre todos los beneficiarios del Sistema Nacional de Salud.

[España]
Cromosomas equivocados

El progreso social no consiste sólo en mejoras económicas, en disponer de una vivienda digna, en quedar garantizados los alimentos y el agua, en poder enviar a tus hijos a la escuela, en tener a mano hospitales a los que acudir en caso de enfermedad, en hablar en tu lengua, en recibir información no sesgada del mundo que nos rodea, en votar cada cuatro años pudiendo elegir entre opciones muy diferentes o en adoptar sin riesgos tanto el credo confesional que se desee como ninguno de ellos.

[Spain/UK]
Spain recognises UK civil partnerships

A gay couple who took on the British and Spanish governments over the recognition of their civil partnership have won a major victory.

[UK]
Debate on transsexual regulations is delayed

The Government has postponed a Parliamentary debate on new transsexual discrimination laws which impact on religious liberty.

[France] [Blog]
Quand le genre remplacera le sexe

Dans les pays à culture anglo-saxonne, la notion de genre est supérieure à la notion de sexe.

[Canada]
L'avocate transgenre Micheline Montreuil ne sera pas candidate du NPD

L'avocate transgenre Micheline Montreuil ne sera finalement pas candidate du Nouveau Parti démocratique (NPD) lors des prochaines élections fédérales.

Transgendered candidate cries foul

A lawyer from Quebec City says she was dumped as a federal New Democratic Party candidate because she is transgendered.

[India]
Short film on transexual man goes to New York Film Fest

A Marathi short film, portraying the mental trauma of a transexual man, who is ostracised by the society, has been selected for the New York International Independent Film and Video Festival to be held from February 28 to March 6, 2008.

[Canada]
So many victims

Excerpt: In Winnipeg, the bodies of 19 prostitutes -- 17 women and two transgendered men -- have turned up north and west of the city in the past 25 years.

[OR,USA]
Transgender murder suspect says he's innocent

A transgender man from Oregon who was once featured on "America's Most Wanted" after fleeing from police investigating his roommate's murder claims he's innocent.

America's Most Wanted Suspect Back In Oregon

A Portland murder suspect profiled on America's Most Wanted is back in Oregon, and he made his first appearance before a Multnomah County judge on Friday.

[USA] [Commentary]
Quick, call the doctor!

Excerpt: How about having your request for a special drug treatment needed to save your life rejected because it's "too expensive"? Yet your health plan covers sex-change operations that can run more than $35,000! And, more nightmarish, your plan also covers tattoo removal for a sex-change patient - at almost the same cost you need to save your life - so he might look more attractive in sleeveless dresses!

[Portugal]
Espécies em risco - Vítimas do progresso

A ameaça de extinção de espécies também afecta Portugal. No País, 19 por cento dos anfíbios, 26 por cento dos mamíferos, 69 por cento dos peixes de água doce, 32 por cento dos répteis e 38 por cento das aves estão ameaçadas de extinção e o ritmo aumenta a uma velocidade preocupante. As causas são muitas e quase todas têm a intervenção humana, que tem descurado as preocupações ambientais em detrimento de um desenvolvimento cego e sem regras.

[Portugal]
Tribunal para agressor de Gisberta

Tribunal pronunciou aluno das Oficinas de São José por três crimes de ofensa à integridade física qualificada e um crime de omissão de auxílio. Testemunhas garantem que o colega «nunca agrediu» o transexual e até pedia aos outros para pararem
Agressor de Gisberta vai ser julgado em tribunal
O Tribunal de Instrução Criminal do Porto decidiu levar a julgamento, no próximo mês de Fevereiro, o jovem, de 18 anos, das portuenses oficinas de S. José, suspeito de envolvimento nos espancamentos que levaram à morte do transexual Gisberta, em Fevereiro do ano passado. Irá responder por três crimes de ofensa à integridade física qualificada e um crime de omissão de auxílio.

Investigação: Jovem de 18 anos será julgado em Fevereiro - Viu bater em Gisberta

No próximo dia 7 de Fevereiro, na 2.ª Vara do Tribunal de São João Novo, começa o julgamento de Vítor Santos, hoje com 18 anos, acusado de envolvimento na morte da transexual brasileira, atirada com vida a um poço num edifício no centro do Porto. O jovem vai responder por três crimes de ofensa à integridade física qualificada e um crime de omissão de auxílio.

Alegado agressor vai a julgamento

O rapaz vai responder por três crimes de ofensa à integridade física qualificada e um de omissão de auxílio.

Não deixa de ser cómico como as autoridades transformam um assassínio em simples ofensas à integridade física de uma pessoa. Com a idade deles, lembro-me bem dos meus tempos de escola e das lutas (ofensas à integridade física) entre alunos, em que muitas vezes havia sangue. No entanto, nunca aconteceu uma coisa destas pois, além de regra geral serem lutas mano-a-mano, nunca morreu ninguém por causa delas, nem nenhuma luta se prolongava por três dias, nem se torturava ninguém. Mas alguém acredita que esta personagem não tomou parte activa no sucedido? Mais, é sabido que psicológicamente nestes bandos de marginais, os mais velhos incitam e dão o exemplo aos mais novos. Esta é a justiça de que tanto nos devemos orgulhar?

[Portugal] [TV]
3 D Odisseia - Aniversário

O Corão não faz qualquer menção sobre a transexualidade. Por este motivo, no Irão a transexualidade não é nem proibida nem condenada, mas os transexuais enfrentam uma vida esquizofrénica num ambiente esquizofrénico.

Janeiro - dia 09 às 21:00 e dia 10 às 09:00 e 14:00 no canal Odisseia.

Depois de ver este documentário ontem às 06:00 da manhã, fiquei com a impressão de que, apesar de algumas facilidades a nível estatal, as pessoas transexuais estão bem pior que nós. Basta ver o que sucede com duas transexuais femininas no fim do documentário. Vejam e analisem...

[MD, USA]
Beyer drops bid to replace Maryland delegate

A transgender woman dropped her bid this week to succeed a Maryland state legislator who died.

Activist blames 'trans phobia' for withdrawal

[USA] [EDITORIAL]
A disappointing year

Excerpt: The year got off to an encouraging start, with Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean telling the party's GLBT Caucus in February that he would push for a vote on a trans-inclusive ENDA in 2007.

[UT,USA] [Blog/News]
BREAKING: Transgender student denied campus housing at public Utah college

Excerpt: Kourt said the university will only allow him housing in male residence halls after he provides:

- a letter from the doctor that monitors my hormone treatment;

- a letter from my therapist that I have gender identity disorder, or gender dysphoria; and

- official documentation that I have had sexual reassignment surgery.

[España]
LOS TRANSEXUALES SON LAS PERSONAS QUE MÁS RECHAZO DESPIERTAN ENTRE LOS ESCOLARES ESPAÑOLES

Los transexuales son las personas que más rechazo despiertan entre los escolares españoles de 11 a 19 años, según el estudio "Actitudes ante la diversidad sexual de la población adolescente de Coslada (Madrid) y San Bartolomé de Tirajana (Gran Canaria)".

[España]
El Govern aplaza sin fecha las operaciones de cambio de sexo

Los catalanes que decidan cambiar de sexo tendrán que seguir pagando de su bolsillo la operación que les permita dar este importante paso. La consellera de Salut, Marina Geli, anunció ayer que el compromiso de legislatura anunciado por el Govern para financiar estas intervenciones a partir del 2008 deberá esperar a después del 2009 porque existen otras prioridades, como la atención bucodental de los niños, y "los recursos son limitados".

[España]
Junta cree Carlos Haya de Málaga será centro de referencia para transexuales

La consejera andaluza de Salud, María Jesús Montero, ha opinado hoy que el hospital Carlos Haya, de Málaga, será uno de los centros de referencia nacional para la atención hospitalaria de los transexuales, prestación que ayer acordó incluir entre sus servicios el Sistema Nacional de Salud.

[España]
Amor desde Topas

Excerto: La recién casada es el primer transexual que logró entrar en prisión en un módulo de mujeres siendo todavía hombre en 2006, cuando ya había conseguido que la dejasen usar ropa de fémina cuando estaba recluida en un módulo de varones.

Doblemente esposados

El transexual María Jesús Lastra contrajo matrimonio en el Juzgado de Paz de Llanera con su pareja desde hace un año

Boda transexual en Llanera

María Jesús Lastra, el primer recluso que consiguió acceder a un módulo de mujeres sin cambiar de sexo, se casa con un compañero de Villabona

[UK]
Ministers clash over gay equality

Excerpt: The letter to the committee said the First Minister was: "not agreeable to the explicit inclusion of reference to transgender or gender reassignment in the regulations because of concern over definition and possible impacts on business owners and service providers".

[Brasil]
Suspenden sentencia que incluía cirugía de cambio de sexo en sistema público

La máxima corte de Justicia de Brasil suspendió hoy una sentencia de un tribunal de segunda instancia que obligaba al Estado a ofrecer gratuitamente cirugías de cambio de sexo en los hospitales públicos, informaron fuentes oficiales.

STF desobriga SUS a proceder cirurgia de mudança de sexo

O Supremo Tribunal Federal (STF) suspendeu na tarde desta quarta-feira, 12/12, decisão da 3ª Turma do Tribunal Regional Federal (TRF) da 4ª Região, que havia determinado que o Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS) seria obrigado a incluir a cirurgia de transgenitalização entre seus procedimentos cirúrgicos. A decisão do TRF foi dada em agosto passado.

[South Africa]
Manifesto calls for ANC opposition to homophobia

The African National Congress (ANC) must make the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people a "living reality" at its upcoming national conference.

[Cuba]
Q&A: Righting Past Wrongs - Defending the Right to Sexual Diversity in Cuba

Cuban sexologist Mariela Castro shocked the world, and a good number of people in Cuba, this year when she announced a proposed legal reform in this socialist Caribbean island nation which would include the full recognition of the rights of gays, lesbians, transsexuals, transvestites and transgender persons.

[Chile]
Transexual fustigó el "castigo" social y familiar que sufre en Chile

Andrés Rivera sostuvo que muchas personas que nacieron "en un cuerpo equivocado" ocultan su identidad de género para evitar humillaciones y despidos.

[Canada]
Women's World - New look and a new start

MOST females who shed the stones will tell you they feel like a new woman.

But none can say it with the same conviction as Kathy Mytton who has just lost 85lb.

Kathy is a new person in the true sense. Because she used to be a burly rugby player called Peter and fathered three children by two ex-wives.

[Canada]
Siksay introduces trans hate crimes bill

Bill sends a message that transphobic violence is unacceptable, but a vote is likely far off

[USA] [Commentary]
Gay vs. Trans in America

Lesbian. Gay. Bisexual. Transgender. In the aftermath of ENDA, can't we all just get along? An Advocate round table on the state of the community now.

[USA] [Commentary]
Don't Tick Off Trans

Let's say you're at work, a social setting, or political event, and a real live transgender person says "Hi!" You don't want to say anything wrong since you recall the tedious questions and responses you've endured about your sexuality, but you want to appear interested and engaged. Thankfully, there's etiquette for talking to trans people. Here's a look at questions to avoid. Trans people will thank you for it.

[CA,USA]
Surprise twist at Adams hearing

The case of a gay man who was beaten to death in the Castro last year took a stunning twist during a sentencing hearing last week. The attorney for the defendant, Kyle Adams, revealed that Adams, 25, is a transgender woman and said that she should be given probation instead of a prison sentence because of the safety risk faced by transgender people in state prison.

[CA,USA]
Former HRC trans business leaders pave their own path

Two transgender business leaders once involved with the Human Rights Campaign have taken matters into their own hands and launched their own employment education project.

[USA]
LGBT leaders question Dems on hate crimes

The decision last week by U.S. House and Senate leaders to remove a hate crimes amendment from a Department of Defense authorization bill currently before Congress prompted strong criticism from various quarters ranging from the New York Times editorial board, which harshly criticized House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for the move, to LGBT groups including the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, which pronounced itself "deeply angered and disappointed."

[MA,USA]
Transgender student fights for rights; Born a girl, NECC student wants to use men's locker room

Ethan Santiago, a transgender student at Northern Essex Community College, is fighting school officials' refusal to assign him a locker in the men's locker room.

Santiago, 20, was born Elizabeth Santiago, but said he lives and identifies as a man.

[USA]
Surgeon Urges Others to Learn FTM Procedure

A prominent gynecologic cancer surgeon is urging fellow physicians to reconsider offering a medical procedure for transgender patients to aid in the transition from female to male. Kate O'Hanlan, MD, a surgeon in private practice in Portola Valley, Calif., provided evidence that total laparoscopic hysterectomy can be the best approach for many of these patients, the Rockway Institute announced in a press release.

[USA] [Blog/Commentary]
Prom Dress Down

A high school principal in Gary, Indiana, allowed a female student to attend prom wearing a tux. But when a male student—a male student that identifies as female, and wore female clothes to school for the past two years—showed up in a prom dress, the principal refused to let him in, physically blocking his entrance.

[International] [Commentary]
trans law 101

While we now have books and court decisions on "transgender rights," maybe we need a bit of guidance on terms and issues. Here is an introduction on Trans Law 101 by Prof Douglas Sanders.

[Germany]
German judge faces a 'tough call' he-or-she sex-change decision

A German judge, who must decide on a damages claim by a German person who was surgically converted to a man, said Wednesday it would be a tough call to decide. The court was told the claimant, who looks male, was intersexual or "hermaphrodite, " a person born with a mixture of male and female physical features who is neither strictly a he nor a she.

[Press Release] The Organisation Intersex International expresses its solidarity with Christiane Völling

The Board Members of OII from various countries all over the world wish to express our solidarity with Christiane Völling, an intersexed woman from Germany who is suing a doctor for having surgically assigned her male without her consent.

[Canada]
Community invigorated by advocates

Excerpt: Pride Award winners Rupert Raj and Deb Parent were articulate and moving. Raj, a gender specialist, urged a re-education of "doctors and psychiatrists, priests and rabbis that transgender, transvestites and transsexuals are natural and normative on Mother Nature's continuum of gender diversity."

[Canada]
Move To Tighten Canadian Hate Laws For Transsexuals

An openly gay member of Canada's Parliament has introduced legislation to add gender identity and gender expression to the hate propaganda section of the Criminal Code.

[USA] [Commentary]
How I Made a Gender Transition on the Job

I had known I was transgender for more than a decade, but I was unsure whether I would be able to bring together my work life with who I knew myself to be. After three years of working as Ian, a male, at CNET News.com, would my co-workers and sources be able to accept me as Ina, a female? And how would readers and viewers react?

[USA] [Blog/Commentary]
Chronic Indifference: HIV/AIDS Services for Incarcerated Immigrants

Victoria Arellano -- the trans woman with HIV who died in July after being denied decent medical care in an immigration detention facility for men -- was not an anomaly. On Friday, Human Rights Watch released a 73-page report on treatment of immigrant detainees with HIV/AIDS.

[USA]
Jodie Foster comes out... finally

After guarding her private life fiercely for 15 years, Hollywood actress Jodie Foster has publicly acknowledged her lesbian partner.

[CA,USA]
A Revitalized Resource

Take a step into TRANS: THRIVE's drop-in center on the second floor of 815 Hyde Street, and it feels immediately like a home away from home, with couches, books, a shower and friendly people around every corner.

[DC,USA] [News/Commentary]
HIV/AIDS epidemic as bad in D.C. as Africa

HIV INFECTION rates for Washington, D.C., residents rank between those for the Republic of Congo and Rwanda. That's the horrifying calculation of a new study released by the District's HIV/AIDS Administration.

[OK,USA]
Sometimes You Can't Go Home Again

Homelessness among homosexual and transgendered teens is a problem under the radar for most

[IN,USA] [Press Release]
Lambda Legal Challenges Denial of Rights of Feminine Gay Male Student to Wear Dress to Prom

In court papers filed today in the Northern District Court of Indiana, Lambda Legal says that West Side High School violated Kevin "K.K." Logan's First Amendment rights when it barred him from his prom for wearing a dress.

[UK]
Scottish attitudes to LGBT changing but prejudice remains

Results from the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey which show the country is becoming more accepting of the LGBT community were announced this morning.

A push for equality

Although 65% of people agree that "Scotland should do everything to get rid of all kinds of prejudice", the depth of the problem is revealed by specific instances. For example, there are particular prejudices against gipsies/travellers and transsexuals being primary school teachers. The proportion of people who think same-sex relationships are wrong has dropped, yet 51% of people believe a B&B owner should be able to refuse a booking for a same-sex couple.

[UK]
My life in fashion: Grayson Perry

The artist Grayson Perry, 47, won the Turner Prize in 2003 for his ceramic work. He received his prize dressed as his alter-ego, Claire, wearing a pink dress embroidered with bunny rabbits. In 2005, he received a Royal Television Society award for his Channel 4 documentary Men Wear Frocks, in which he examined transvestism and masculinity. Perry is married and has a teenage daughter.

[Cuba]
Mariela Castro: «la homofobia es una enfermedad»

Una entrevista de Bruno Bimbi a la sobrina de Fidel Castro y titular del Centro Nacional de Educación Sexual, publicada en RevistaVeintitrés.

[GA,USA]
Transgender Suspect Arrested in Check Writing Scam

Police said Monday that they arrested a woman wanted in four states for check-writing scam. Investigators had to sort out some confusion about the woman's true identity because the woman by the name of Hassani Norword, used to be a man named Stefon Thomas.

[USA] [PR]
Barack Obama Statement on House-Senate Failure to Strengthen Hate Crimes Laws, Guarantee Equality

U.S. Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) today released the following statement after House and Senate Conferees failed to include the Matthew Shepard Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act.

[OR,USA]
JUICY SUITS: Cutting Off Her Own Testicles in Prison

A prisoner is suing Oregon Department of Corrections Director Max Williams and 16 other state prison officials for ignoring what he calls his severe case of gender-identity disorder.

[NY,USA]
NYS Employee Accused Of Running Trans Escort Service At Work

A New York State employee is under investigation for allegedly running an escort service for transsexuals while she was supposed to be working with developmentally disabled children.