[UK]
'I've many challenges ahead, but I am much happier'
From a young age Andrew Millington knew he was not meant to be a man.
Growing up, young Andrew used to dress in his sister's clothes, but it took many years to summon up the courage to embark on gender reassignment and become Rachel.
Now 24, she says she is much happier, but is devastated by the abuse she has suffered since her decision.

[India]
Transgender sets up own pysio clinic
Physiotherapist Muthuchelvan, 24, lost his job in the prestigious Madras Cricket Club when he underwent a sex change operation and became Selvi. Undeterred, Selvi is now setting up a physio clinic in busy Kodambakkam, hoping to net some influential clients from Kollywood. A team of Supreme Court judges who attended a conference for transgenders at Chennai last week promised to help me, says Selvi.

[Australia]
That ain't no way to treat a lady
Brigette Fell's angry and violent outburst on British Airways flight BA009 on her way home to Sydney, after undergoing sex change surgery in London, left a passenger and two crew members nursing their wounds and other passengers afraid and distressed.
The incident in December 2002 may well have ended there, except for a series of unrelated events that meant the ramifications of Fell's in-flight conduct are still being felt. (Photo: Brigette Fell)

[Canada]
Transgender N.S. woman's father a U.K. knight
The transgendered woman attempting to gain refugee status in Nova Scotia is making headlines in her homeland of Northern Ireland, partially because she comes from a high-profile family.
Tanya Bloomfield was born Timothy Bloomfield, the son of one of Northern Ireland's top civil servants. Under the headline "My son's sex swap," a story ran in Belfast's Sunday Life earlier this month featuring a supportive Sir Kenneth Bloomfield, described as the former top civil servant in Ulster.
Transgender woman may seek refugee status
Irish 'Transgender Woman' Can Request Refugee Status in Canada
[Commentary] Do you think Tanya Bloomfield should be allowed to stay in Nova Scotia?
Transgender woman can make refugee claim

[Canada]
Universal Access?
Barriers to accessing health care persist for transgender people in Nova Scotia.
For Ben Jantzen, going to see a doctor can be a frightening experience.
Jantzen first came out as a trans person two and a half years ago. Even though he was born female, he identifies as trans and presents as a male. Going for a check-up, getting a prescription, or even trying to fill out a general intake form can turn into a huge production, often without any sympathy from hospital or clinical staff.

[CA, USA]
Bearded lady reunites with son after 30 years
Vivian Wheeler embraces her ability to grow a beard, and currently holds the Guinness world record for the woman with the longest beard alive: Eleven inches. But she says her childhood was dark. "Daddy didn't want me around."
Wheeler was born a hermaphrodite, which means half man and half woman. While doctors removed the male organs at birth, she still has testosterone. "I refused shaving, and daddy said I'd never belong, said I'd never marry or anything cause society would never let me."
Wheeler says her father forced her into the sideshow life, and took the money she earned. And it was a rough life. "They would take me to a fair, to a sideshow, to a fair, I never knew where I was going." (Photo)

[PA, USA]
Transgendered ex-lifeguard testifies in her bias case
A transgendered former lifeguard, who alleges she was unfairly fired by the city, appeared today before the Philadelphia Commission on Human Relations.
Dawn Delpe, 42, of South Philadelphia, filed a complaint in 2005 claiming the City Department of Recreation discriminated against her because she was perceived to be a homosexual male.
Delpe, who also describes herself as white and disabled, worked as a part-time lifeguard at a city pool. She said the rec department allowed coworkers and pool patrons to physically and verbally harrass her. She also said the department denied her request to be transferred to a "safer worksite," according to the complaint.

[TX, USA] [Commentary]
Frank Mann - An Ethically Challenged Bigot
Unscrupulous attorneys have long been the tantalizing subject of fictional stories about lawyers who would do anything they think they can get away with, to get ahead and generate fees for themselves at any cost, including a proverbial pound of flesh. When real life exposes one of these sorts of cretins, the insidiousness of their evil takes on both personal and socially repugnant dimensions. Such miscreants also expose incompetent if not corrupt governmental institutions around them. One such example is Frank E. Mann III, whose unethical background has already been the subject of an article on this site. That the Texas State Bar Association allows him to continue practicing law, implies that the Bar Association in Texas is either as incompetent or as corrupt an institution, and one that has failed to fulfill its duty to the people of Texas it is supposed to serve, as Frank Mann appears to be.