The times are changing

One more from Keith Hartman:
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'The first black president should [insert assumption]'

Newsweek just published a mostly astute piece by Jacob Weisbert about Obama's failure of moral leadership on civil rights issues like immigration, Islamophobia and LGBT rights. Joe posted it here. But there is one sentence that I have an issue with:

How dismal that America’s first black president will be remembered as shirking the last great civil-rights struggle.

Now, I agree that Obama should show more moral courage in addressing civil rights issues, but the "first black president" reference always grates on me, and I hear it a lot. It's almost obligatory these days, as in "the first black president" should do this or "the first black president" should stand for that. Using this phrase in this context is evaluating someone on the basis of a physical characteristic. Granted, it's not as egregious as tea partiers showing pictures of watermelons on the white house lawn, but it's troubling nonetheless.

The problem I have with this phrase is the assumption that Obama will be more understanding of struggles against prejudice because he has had to struggle with it himself. Well, maybe he will, and maybe he won't. (Look at Clarence Thomas.) We should expect every president to stand up for equal treatment under the law, regardless of race, sex or sexual orientation.

No one wants to perceived as a token, nor should they be. I know I would be uncomfortable if people were constantly telling me "as a lesbian you should understand" or "as a gay person, how can you...", even if the attribute I am assumed to share is a positive one. Once you start making assumptions and grouping people according to physical characteristics, it's a small step to assuming negative attributes, like “lesbians just need a good f*!%” or "all gays are child molesters."

I think Obama deserves criticism. But people should be judged as individuals on the basis of their actions, not whether they conform to a stereotype, even if that stereotype can arguably be construed as positive. Maybe that sentiment sounds trite, but it doesn’t make it less true. Read More...

Even World Nut Daily is promoting Obama's opposition to marriage equality

World Nut Daily's Joseph Farah, pictured here, has become the leading conservative voice against marriage equality. Pam reports Farah will be debating marriage with GOProud's Chris Barron will be debating Farah at a right-wing conference later this month.

Today, WND prints an "Open letter to Conservatives who support same-sex marriage" from David Kupelian. Here's how it starts -- with one of the favorite talking points from marriage opponents:

"I do not support gay marriage. Marriage has religious and social connotations, and I consider marriage to be between a man and a woman." – Barack Obama

"Marriage has got historic, religious and moral content that goes back to the beginning of time, and I think a marriage is as a marriage always has been, between a man and a woman." – Hillary Clinton

To my conservative friends and colleagues,

Just two years ago, supporting homosexual marriage was such an extreme, politically radioactive position that Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton – both Alinskyite progressives and long-time gay-rights supporters – saw fit to publicly and repeatedly declare their opposition to same-sex marriage.

Today, as the homosexual newspaper the Washington Blade puts it, "conservatives have taken the leadership role in achieving marriage equality."

Yes, they have. Now, even WND is using Obama to challenge the conservatives who are more progressive on marriage than the President. Read More...

London's Hackney Trans Evolution

The United Kingdom and some other western nations seem like another planet in how far more advanced they are than our supposed "Land of the Free" United States when it comes to LGBT rights. This is an interesting speech from a voice in working class Hackney, a borough of London, that has had to address a rise in hate crimes against the LGBT community. I am asking the reader to initially suspend judgment when reading this speech and to consider the ideas presented then contemplate the similarities and differences we share along with the gender dynamics mentioned by this trans man speaker, Jamrat Mason, addressing Hackney Pride and the struggles we all experience due to the question of gender and society's role in attempting to define acceptable roles for all of us.

My name is Jasper Murphy and I have a vagina. I'm involved in East London Community Activism but today I'm here to speak “as a trans person” about transgender issues. The term “transgender” is a broad term that refers to to a massive spectrum of people who in some way veer away from the gender written on their birth certificate. So, I cannot, in any way whatsoever, be representative of transgendered people. I can only talk about the world as I see it, from where I'm standing, as a transexual.

I'm a lucky tranny. First of all because I'm alive. And secondly because I have a family who loves me. That shouldn't be lucky, but at the moment, it is. My own experience is quite unique so I thought I’d give you a quick history: At 3 years old my first sentence was “I'm a boy”, at 7 years old when I was still convinced that this was true, my parents took me to a psychologist. The psychologist said I probably have “Gender Dysphoria”. My parents talked to my school and allowed me to cut my hair and wear a boy's uniform. When I was 8 I was referred on to a specialist in London (on the NHS) who I saw until I was 18. When I was 12 I legally changed my name which my granny paid for. So I've been living as male since I was about 7 or 8. I went through a full female puberty and eventually got testosterone when I was 21. I had surgery when I was 22. I'm 24 now so I've looked like this for about 2 years.

It’s not my intention to simple ask for a complacent acceptance of trans people- for people to just stop insulting us and beating us up... I want to talk about transphobia as an issue that affects all of us- and that we can all play a part in fighting. We must, as a society, be better at gender.

I came to the conclusion it truly is a universal issue and we need to continue to push for an evolved understanding of gender expression. Only then will all of us in the LGBT community be truly free. What is your verdict? Read More...