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AEGIS Internet News, February 1997

Posted on May 29, 2013 in AEGIS Online News, Editing & Layout, Gender

In May, 1995 when I was Executive Director of the nonprofit American Educational Gender Information Service, I compiled and transmitted what I believe was the first transgender-specific online news feed. It was called AEGIS Online News. The News initially went out to several hundred AEGIS members and other subscribers as a plain text file over the fledgling internet.

In those days there wasn’t much news to repost. Consequently, the News was initially distributed every other month; it took that long to compile enough material to create a newsletter. Within two years, however, there was almost too much news to handle.

I posted material as I came across it, both from primary sources and from other newsfeeds. Rex Wocker’s LGBT newslist was a valuable resource. Soon, subscribers were sending me material.

In November I moved the News to a majordomo automated list which kept track of subscribers; before that I handled subscriptions, unsubscriptions, and address changes manually and sent out the news via blind carbon copy. The name was changed to AEGIS Internet News and the introductory material about AEGIS was removed because it was available to readers on demand from the server. The list, initially hosted by my ISP (Mindspring) was eventually moved to a server hosted by Kymberleigh Richards, the publisher of the magazine Cross-Talk. This enabled me to send e-mails to the server as I came across news items, yet distribute them as a digest once per day– sometimes twice or three times daily if there was a lot of news. This was easier on both me and the readers, who had been receiving up to eight e-mails a day.

I stopped publishing AEGIS Internet News in mid-1998.

On January 1, 2000 AEGIS was repurposed as Gender Education & Advocacy. Under the supervision of the late Penni Ashe Matz, news went out as Gender Advocacy Internet News.

Many posts have been lost, but we preserved several hundred. Here are issues of AEGIS Internet News from February, 1997:

1997, 3 February

Originally From: aegisnws-digest@xconn.com Original Date: Mon, 3 Feb 1997 03:33:56

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AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 2 Feb 1997 06:00:45 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E67bv; Sun 2 Feb 1997 06:00:45 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: GENDERPAC & NOW MEET ON TRANSINCLUSION Date: Sun, 2 Feb 1997 06:00:45 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702020600.E67bv@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 02 Feb 1997 08:44:34 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

GENDERPAC & NOW MEET ON TRANSINCLUSION =======================================

[San Francisco, CA – January 25, 1997] PURSUING RATIFICATION of a 2 year-old trans- inclusion resolution which has languished at NOW’s National Board, representatives of GenderPAC and other groups made an impassioned presentation to NOW’s prestigious President Conference this afternoon.

The Conference is an annual roundtable event, attended by the heads of NOW state chapters from around the country. The hour-long effort was attended by 25-30 of state presidents as well as Ms. Patricia Ireland, NOW’s National President. The event was coordinated by NOW-NJ’s Bear Atwood, and Terri McCorcal, GenderPAC’s NOW Coordinator.

The trans-inclusion resolution was originally passed by NOW-NJ at their State Conference in 1995. It was submitted to NOW National only months later, after Menace activists succeeded in rounded up hundreds of signatures at NOW’s ’95 National Conference in Columbus, OH. Included among them was Ellie Smeal, NOW’s first president and current head of the Feminist Majority. but the resolution bogged down and has never come to a vote.

The presentation, which opened with an overview by GenderPAC Executive Director Riki Anne Wilchins, continued with a discussion of the theory and politics of transinclusion. Strong presentations were made by Cheryl Chase, Executive Director of the Intersexed Society of North America, author/activist Susan Stryker, trans-academic and activist Jacob Hale, and local activists Katie Collins and Nicole Sharkey, among others. Hale and Stryker are also co-chairs of the National Coalition for GID Reform (NCGIDR).

Said Wilchins, “It’s interesting that my own NYC chapter — the oldest and founding chapter — told me that I was a man, transexual men were *also men, and as for herms, well, I don’t even want to *guess what they would have made of Cheryl and ISNA. I wanted to underscore that policing who is a ‘woman,’ feminism actually hardens the barriers between the sexes instead of breaking them down. It limits what women can be or become. Transpeople are a doorway *out, not just barbarians at the gender gates.”

Individual presentations were followed by a spirited Q & A on the politics of inclusion. At the sessions’ end, Ms. Ireland and several State Presidents encouraged activists to submit workshop proposals on transinclusion to NOW’s 1997 National Conference (July 4th weekend, Memphis TN). GenderPAC’s Terri McCorcal has already begun working with NOW staffers on developing appropriate topics and presenters.

—

Trans-inclusion continues to draw local support, as activists in Seattle NOW report the city has just become the newest chapter to (unanimously) endorse trans-inclusion.

###

Dallas Denny, M.A., Executive Director

American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc. A 501(c)(3) Nonprofit Corporation P.O. Box 33724, Decatur, GA 30033-0724 (770) 939-2128 Business (770) 939-0244 Information & Referrals (770) 939-1770 FAX aegis@gender.org E-Mail

Our website is http://www.ren.org/rafil/aegis.html Visit the AEGIS FTP Site: ftp://ftp.mindspring.com/users/aegis/ User ID: anonymous Password: (your email address)

We have several electronic mailing lists: AEGIS NEWS: Trans-related news, press releases, and items of interest GENDER HELP: Discussion of issues related to transition and personal growth (Send e-mail to listserv@xconn.com; on separate lines in the message, include the following: subscribe aegisnws subscribe gendhelp

If you’re on AOL, try the keyword AEGIS

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 2 Feb 1997 06:00:45 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E62RV; Sun 2 Feb 1997 06:00:45 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: AEGIS Board Gives Provisional Approval to GPAC Membership Date: Sun, 2 Feb 1997 06:00:45 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702020600.E62RV@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 02 Feb 1997 08:44:48 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

At its telephone conference Board meeting on Sunday, 26 January, 1997, the AEGIS Board of Directors approved AEGIS membership and participatation in GenderPAC, an association comprised of representatives from various transgender and other queer organizations. The Board expressed some concern about the fact that the signed Articles of Association were incomplete due to the inadvertent omission of several sections, and concern about factitiousness among the board members; the Board will revisit the issue at its next meeting (in about 3 months) to see if the Articles have been signed and if the Board has resolved some of its internal difficulties.

AEGIS Director Dallas Denny said, “While GenderPac continues to do good work– for instance, there are ongoing negotiations with NOW about the issue of transinclusion, and GPAC is working with the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) to formulate a response to Holiday Inn’s pulling of its SuperBowl ad, which featured a transsexual woman returning to her class reunion– this work seems to be happening more IN SPITE of the Board than BECAUSE of it. If the Board cannot get beyond its present state of posturing and negativism, it is unlikely that AEGIS will continue to be part of the GenderPac.”

Dallas Denny, M.A., Executive Director

Our website is http://www.ren.org/rafil/aegis.html Visit the AEGIS FTP Site: ftp://ftp.mindspring.com/users/aegis/ User ID: anonymous Password: (your email address)

If you’re on AOL, try the keyword AEGIS

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 2 Feb 1997 06:00:46 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E41yJ; Sun 2 Feb 1997 06:00:46 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: ITO! Position on GID Date: Sun, 2 Feb 1997 06:00:45 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702020600.E41yJ@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 02 Feb 1997 08:44:56 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

The difficulties with GID, and with our selves… by Lori Buckwalter Director, It’s Time, Oregon!

Within the community of people who have become externally- or self-identified as ‘queer’, or alternative, respective of traditional sexual, gender and/or affectional orientations, there has arisen an awareness of the uses and abuses of a medical or psychiatric definition now referred to as GID (Gender Identity Disorder). There is at once a call for the elimination of the diagnosis to restrain its abuse, and a call for its retention, to maintain the positive aspects of treatment, medically, legally and socially, which have accrued to its use. It’s Time Oregon! will present a proposal which takes into account the historical and current perspectives of this problem, and which is a theoretical and practical framework for the evolution of solutions to the problems remaining.

There is a current distinction between the uses of the terms ‘gender’ and ‘sex’, especially within the queer community. In common practice, and for our purposes, ‘sex’ refers to an individual’s physiological (genetic, psychological, endocrinological) differentiation. There has come to be recognized a wide number of combinations of the possible indicators of ‘sex’ for an individual, so that each person may have some or all of those physiological or psychological factors which might define them as belonging to one of two traditionally defined sexes, or may have a combination which makes such binary differentiation difficult or impossible. ‘Sex’ is, in any case, a descriptor of identity, objective or subjective. Conventionally, the categorization of ‘sex’ is male or female.

‘Gender’ has come to mean something different from sex, in light of current understanding, and an expanded cultural perspective which includes historical evidence of great importance. ‘Gender’ refers to an expression of actions, relationships and appearance. It is what people do, as opposed to their identity. Gender ‘expression signals’ are culturally relative. The confusion about ‘sex’ and ‘gender’ has arisen because of restrictive cultural perspectives which have not allowed for nonconformant expressions of sex/gender signals. In the dominant Western culture, there has been a stringent linkage between sexual identity and gender expressions, which are often divided into ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’.

As previously stated, current inclusive understanding of these distinctions has led to a new perspective and terminology about ‘sex’ and ‘gender’, in which the restrictive linkage of the categories along Euro-centric, Judeo-Christian lines is seen as oppressive to a wider range of valid human experience. The term ‘transgender’ has come into use to describe individual expressions which defy conventional categorical sex/gender linkages. In addition, the liberation of affectional preference from restrictive convention has enabled a picture of human variability unclouded by dogma. We state unequivocally that there is an inalienable right of each individual to affectional preference, gender expression, and sexual identity, but that these are not strictly the same, nor intrinsically linked in any ‘proper’ configurations. The combinations of these factors is as diverse as there are people who are diverse.

With this as background, we bring to consideration the syndrome of an individual’s perception of their discrepancy of sex and gender which has been called previously ‘gender dysphoria’, and now ‘gender identity disorder’. Its inclusion in the DSM–IV has been a matter of much contention within the transgendered and other alternative communities. It is both desperately defended and vehemently attacked. This is largely a result of confusion between ‘sex’ and ‘gender’.

Whatever GID is supposed to represent, in the light of our current understanding of sex and gender, its name is contradictory. It confuses ‘gender’ and ‘identity’ (which refers to ‘sexual’ identity), and as such this name is worse than useless – it is a real impediment to solution of our problems. The syndrome of symptoms which GID would appropriately describe, in a culture which sees ‘gender’ expression as a matter of preference rather than naturally mandated, is restricted to the reported discrepancy which individuals feel between aspects of their physiology, and what they feel is psychologically ‘right’ for them. This reported discrepancy is of long standing, and both painful and inescapable to an individual. This is different from the individual’s conflict of gender expression with cultural norms, which are relative to their cultural milieu. It is true that in the eyes of others, there may be a necessary connection, but this is not so. We might, for example, propose a new diagnostic label, such as “Sexual Somatic Dissonance”, which speaks of an individual’s dissonance with pre-assigned sexual identity.

GID has been used in the past to substantiate medical treatment of individuals to bring their physiologies into concurrence with what they see as strictly necessary to the integrity of their sexual identities. Techniques have included hormone and surgical therapies, and have led to the title of ‘transsexual’ for those people whose physiology has been, is being, or will be modified to alleviate their suffering, allowing them to adjust to their life situation more successfully. These therapies have not been universally successful, but are still ardently sought and are generally improving over time. Great strides in surgery and hormonal management are in progress. This path must be allowed to develop as individuals seek it as informed and responsible adults.

The abuses of GID must be eliminated, however. These abuses have been attributed previously to the medical and psychiatric communities, since they have been the administrators of remedial therapies. The failures of proper treatment, we feel, are largely due to two factors: immature or experimental techniques, and cultural bias on the part of the medical community, or those to whom they are officially responsive. In addition, GID has acquired an implicit stigma, as it is misunderstood by the public to be debilitating, or the product of a ‘sick’ mind. This is not intrinsic to its definition, but a by-product of cultural bias. In fact, we must deal with the misapplications of medical techniques, while fully recognizing the immense debt of gratitude which we owe to medical practitioners. Their compassion and aid have enriched our lives in many ways.

How can we keep the benefits and progress which has been accomplished, while ridding ourselves of the confusion and abuses of this diagnosis?

How can we apply the wider understanding which we now bring to bear medically and culturally?

How can we do so in such a way that individuals who must deal with these issues personally are best served and protected?

How can this be done in such a way so that allowance is made for progressive evolution of understanding within a framework which accounts for human dignity and worth?

How can we allow all people to have the freedom and responsibility of self-determination within the larger community, recognizing their common aspirations and unique situations?

These are difficult questions. No easy answers will suffice. They must, however, be answered in such a way that the aspirations for civil protections and hopes for medical treatment derive from a common belief that they are human rights, which anyone should expect.

We at ITO will not accept a solution which is fractious of communities of aspiration or interest which must naturally be present in our lives. We are people who desire the fullest participation and integration into society. We are people of worth and dignity, and just as we recognize this dignity and worth in ourselves, we look for it in all other humans, queer or straight, transgendered or non-transgendered, of all cultures, philosophies and races.

There are no special rights which we seek. We only desire to share our lives and talents with the human community, in an effort to enrich us all. There is no true power which is exclusive. True power includes and connects, and is enhanced. and not diminished, by its being shared. We have so much to share with the world, which we have held back for too long a time. The time is now to begin, here. It’s Time, Oregon!, to stand together as a community, rather than accept the politics of division.

*****************************************************************

The policy suggestions of It’s Time, Oregon! regarding GID: ***************************************************************** To further the rightful aspirations of all people for self-determination in their sexual identities, gender expressions and affectional preferences, It’s Time,Oregon!, is compelled by the nature of current controversy surrounding the status of Gender Identity Disorder, to explain its position on GID. We offer suggestions to resolve problems with the current use of GID, and closely related issues.

After a thorough consideration of the history and current criticisms of GID, ITO recognizes:

Gender Identity Disorder diagnosis has provided significant benefits for the transgendered community: * civil rights protections in some jurisdictions * medical justification for transsexuality * increasing availability of remedial care * potential reimbursement for treatment * a basis for continuing research and refinement of remedial procedures * visibility of long-standing problem of sexual identity * political basis for otherwise controversial legislation

Gender Identity Disorder diagnosis also imposes significant difficulties upon the transgendered community and others, including: * negative stereotyping as recipients of a psychiatric diagnosis * used inappropriately for gender conformity * seen as divisive of the gender community * affective description tends to limit etiological inquiry

Because ITO feels that the benefits of GID diagnosis are important and must be retained, but the incumbent difficulties are significant and must be eliminated, we resolve that:

1) GID should be immediately replaced with a diagnostic category, perhaps SSD (Sexual Somatic Dissonance) which more accurately, exclusively and explicitly defines those people who may require remedial medical treatment to resolve demonstrable or perceived dissonances in their sexual self-identities.

2) Federal civil rights protections should immediately be amended or reinterpreted to include the rights of self-determination of gender expression, affectional preference, and sexual identity. Provisions must be made for individuals’ self-determination and documentation of sexual identity which are independent of medical verification or approval.

3) Current standards of medical treatment, availability and reimbursement must be equal to or enhanced under the new SSD diagnosis.

4) The effect upon medical availability, quality, cost and reimbursement for care of transfering SSD from a DSM (psychiatric) to ICD (medical) diagnosis must be thoroughly researched.

5) Research and refinement of remedial medical treatments and technologies must continue to expand and improve, particulary for female-to-male transsexuals. Research into underlying physiological indicators of SSD must be continued and expanded.

6) Review of all applications of this diagnosis must assure that it is not being inappropriately used to enforce conformity of individuals’ gender expressions, affectional preferences or sexual self-identities to some presumed or explicit cultural conventions.

7) Mental health professionals must guarantee an elimination of attempts to modify sexual identities or gender expressions unless at the patient’s fully informed request. Care must still be available for those who have other diagnosable conditions that may be related to SSD (ie. major depression, dysthymia, etc.).

8) Minors cannot give fully informed consent to remedial medical treatment. The distinct diagnosis of pre-adolescent SSD should be dropped at this time. SSD should become a strictly medical diagnosis applicable only to those capable of informed legal consent, who are initiating or undergoing medical remedial treatment. Likewise, medical interventions applied to intersexed individuals must be strictly related to preservation of their lives or physical health, in the absence of their informed adult legal consent.

9) When the above conditions have been completed or guaranteed, reclassification of SSD as an ICD diagnosis should occur.

Dallas Denny, M.A., Executive Director

Our website is http://www.ren.org/rafil/aegis.html Visit the AEGIS FTP Site: ftp://ftp.mindspring.com/users/aegis/ User ID: anonymous Password: (your email address)

If you’re on AOL, try the keyword AEGIS

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 2 Feb 1997 18:40:15 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E06WW; Sun 2 Feb 1997 18:40:15 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Letter to the president Date: Sun, 2 Feb 1997 18:40:15 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702021840.E06WW@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 02 Feb 1997 21:17:41 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Feb. 1, 1997

Terry Murphy PO Box 8627 Atlanta GA 30306 merrfi@aol.com

Holiday Inn Worldwide Corporate Headquarters Three Ravinia Drive, Suite 2900 Atlanta, Georgia 30346-2149

Office of the President:

I am writing to congratulate Holiday Inn on its clever Super Bowl broadcast commercial and encourage you to ignore criticism of the spot by self-appointed moralists who don’t consider it “appropriate for a wholesome program.” (I’m referring specifically to the “Good Morning America” critique broadcast the day after the Super Bowl.) I understand from an Associated Press report that you have responded to this smattering of criticism by pulling the ad from your future broadcast schedule. I understand your reaction, but I am writing to give you another perspective that, I hope, will inspire you to reconsider that decision.

I, too, am transgendered. I am also a meeting planner and a Holiday Inn client. The spot, in my eyes, was perfectly appropriate and a welcome change from the stereotypical depiction of transgender characters so prevalent in the electronic media. Millions of transgendered Americans would agree; among whom are, no doubt, many significant Holiday Inn clients such as myself.

I run an annual educational conference and convention for the transgender community that has been held for the past two years at Holiday Inn Atlanta Central. This fall’s 7th Annual Southern Comfort Conference is again booked at the property. The staff there welcomes our business and takes excellent care of our group, and SCC’s board of directors intends to continue to meet there as long as the price and service are right. In 1996, we were responsible for approximately 575 room nights and spent about $25,000 in catering. Additionally, our group spent liberally in your restaurants for non-function meals and at the cocktail lounge.

Dozens of similar transgender events are held each year at convention hotels around the country. I would also like to point out that invisible transgendered clients–both crossdressers who appear non-transgendered in business environments and completely transitioned male and female transsexuals–are no doubt responsible for deciding where millions of dollars of business travel and convention business is sent; something to keep in mind as you hear from anti-transgender moralists who insist our lives not be mentioned in polite society.

Your television advertisement features a transgendered character possessing the ordinary dignity of any productive American attending his or her high school reunion. Hooray for you. That is a remarkably accurate portrayal of transgendered lives; and it’s a welcome departure from the typical media portrayal of our community. (That the non-transgendered character’s gradual awareness of the situation progresses beyond surprise to a mild horror is a bit unpleasant; though the spot, as filmed, is hardly insulting and does represent a not-infrequent reaction we experience in real life.)

The truth of the matter is that transgendered lives are coming out of the closet and becoming more mainstream, as your pre-broadcast focus groups indicated. Including non-stereotypical transgendered images (though I understand the actress in your commercial was not transgendered herself–more’s the pity), you lend Holiday Inn a hip, contemporary and progressive image that has to help in your efforts to promote your brand and keep it vital and fresh in today’s marketplace. I encourage you to resurrect the spot.

Thanks for listening to this appreciative transgendered Holiday Inn client.

Regards, Terry Murphy (merrfi@aol.com)

Dallas Denny, M.A., Executive Director

Our website is http://www.ren.org/rafil/aegis.html Visit the AEGIS FTP Site: ftp://ftp.mindspring.com/users/aegis/ User ID: anonymous Password: (your email address)

If you’re on AOL, try the keyword AEGIS

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 2 Feb 1997 18:40:16 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E09RS; Sun 2 Feb 1997 18:40:16 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: InYourFace! GenderNews RoundUp Date: Sun, 2 Feb 1997 18:40:15 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702021840.E09RS@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 02 Feb 1997 21:17:28 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Highlights: ———–

. SUPERBOWL TRANS-ADVERT PULLED

. TRANS-INMATE LOSES PRISON RAPE SUIT

. WRONGFUL DEATH SUIT ALLEGES POLICE BRUTALITY

. BI & TRANS-ACTIVISTS CALL FOR INCLUSION AT GAY INAUGURAL BALL

. TRANSPRISONER ALLEGES SEXUAL ASSAULT BY CORRECTIONS OFFICER

. ARGENTINE POLICE CHARGED WITH TORTURING TRANSVESTITES

. NEW YORKER PIECE TRASHES BRANDON TEENA

SUPERBOWL AD PULLED ===================

[New York, NY January 28, 1997] SOME VIEWERS WERE shocked and others amused as Holiday Inns of America aired a Super Bowl ad which featured a leggy blonde returning to her high school reunion. As a former classmate recognizes her as “Bob,” his expression goes from shock, to dismay, to horror.

The ad, which goes on to favorably compare her $12,000 of “improvements” to the $1 billion improvements completed by the Inns, was pulled after it provoked controversy. An AP story noted, “The company said it aired the ad because consumer sampling prior to its broadcast showed that many people liked it.”

An “expert” reviewing SuperBowl ads on Good Morning America the next day called it “inappropriate for a wholesome program”, as anchor Charlie Gibson repeatedly referred to well-known transperson Tula (AKA Carolyn Cossey) as a “transvestite.”

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) and GenderPAC have been working on a cooperative response to the ad. In addition, two of GenderPAC’s Anti-Defamation Coordinators have been privately seeking a meeting with GMA executives, Holiday Inns of American, and the NYC ad agency which developed the piece.

Ironically, while the ad certainly trivialized the physical changes some transpeople make, it also had positive elements in which the Holiday Inn chain favorably compares itself with the ad’s transexual protagonist. Unfortunately the piece’s “transexual” was played by a non-transexual actress – doubtless because all the “real” transexual actresses were booked up for the weekend.

###

TRANS-INMATE LOSES PRISON RAPE SUIT ===================================

[Madison, WI January 26, 1997] TRANS-INMATE DEE FARMER, who fought all the way to the Supreme Court for her right to sue the Federal prison where she was raped, has lost her suit.

The trial, which opened Tuesday, January 22nd in Madison Wisconsin, was attended by members of the local gender community. Ms. Farmer had phoned GenderPAC from an Oklahoma prison while in transit to her trial, seeking support from the community for her trial.

Ms. Farmer originally sued the Federal Bureau of Prisons for neglecting to protect her against a virtually inevitable sexual assault. Prison official then denied all responsibility in the matter, saying that she had not formally notified them.

Madison Federal Court Judge John Shabaz then denied her suit, whereupon Ms. Farmer appealed to the Supreme Court. The Court recently held that prison officials did not need to be formally notified if an obvious threat existed — a criteria Ms. Farmer appeared to easily meet — and returned the case for trial.

But after only hours of deliberation in the 2-day trial, the 7-member jury returned a verdict against Ms. Farmer, effectively closing the case. Local activists on-hand expressed surprise and dismay, stating that Farmer had been ably represented by competent counsel who made a compelling case. However, noted one, “Nothing I heard the day before linked the wardens in a conspiracy. Dee’s case, as I heard it then, was basically a circumstantial one that she was being placed in a penitentiary setting with a much higher rate of violence.”

Fears from his earlier ruling that Judge Shabaz might be transphobic were dispelled as several times he ruled, with increasing exasperation, against the prison’s attempts to dodge responsibility through various arguments.

It is not known what effect, if any, the disposition of Ms. Farmer’s case will have on the thousands of genderqueer prisoners in state and federal prisons. However, the ruling appears to give prison officials increased license to turn a deaf ear to the pleas of the most sexually vulnerable of the inmate population.

###

WRONGFUL DEATH SUIT ALLEGES POLICE BRUTALITY ============================================

Hoffman Estates, IL, Jan. 16 (UPI) – THE SURVIVORS OF a 23-year-old person who died while in custody of a suburban Chicago police department say he died because he was beaten, but the city says the person succumbed to complications from a sex-change operation.

The family of the late Logan Smith filed suit Thursday against the Hoffman Estates Police Department and a hospital, charging they were negligent in not attending to Logan’s worsening condition.

They contend Smith died on Jan. 22, 1996, because a police officer kicked Smith in the stomach after pulling the driver of a car he was in for minor traffic violation.

The family’s attorney says Smith’s repeated pleas for help were ignored for too long while he was in the city lockup, and he eventually died from septic shock due to a punctured bladder.

But Hoffman Estates Village Attorney Richard Williams said the city is relying on a report from the Cook County Medical Examiner stating that Smith died not from trauma, but from complications arising from a sex-change operation.

Attorney Monica McFadden says Smith and his brother were riding in a car outside his family’s home when they were stopped by police, maced and kicked. She said Smith was not heeded immediately when he complained of increasing pain. He was brought to a hospital, which allegedly failed to recognize the seriousness of his condition and released him back into police custody.

The suit alleges that Smith grew worse while in jail but his please were ignored until it was too late to save his life. Williams said the city wouldn’t comment on the particulars of the family’s account until it had a chance to look closely at the allegations.

###

BI AND TRANS-ACTIVISTS CALL FOR INCLUSION AT INAUGURAL BALL ================================

Contact: Stephanie Berger virago@slip.net

[Washington, DC: Jan 22, 1997] AT THIS YEAR’S Gay and Lesbian Inaugural Ball sponsored by HRC, The Victory Fund and NGLTF, the talk was not just about who sported the smartest tux or the most sequins, but also about issues of bisexual and transgender inclusion.

Prior to the Ball, activists from bisexual and transgender organizations had hosts for inclusion in the events print ads and promotions, as well as circulated a petition signed by scores of prominent individuals and organizations calling for “the visible inclusion of Bisexual and Transgender people” within the gay movement.

Inclusion continues to draw media attention, as evidenced in recent pieces in OUT, THE ADVOCATE, and even NEWSWEEK. In addition, pro-inclusion activists have begun to establish an increased presence on Capitol Hill, with BiNet USA and GenderPAC conducting a series of cooperative lobbying efforts.

Declared one activist, FTM International’s Yosenio Lewis, “Bisexual and transgender people share many of the same issues as gays and lesbians.” Continued another, “The Right is not exclusive in their campaigns; Transgender and Bisexual people are called out and targeted for attack. If our enemies can remember to name us, so can our friends.”

###

TRANSPRISONER ALLEGES SEXUAL ASSAULT BY CORRECTIONS OFFICER ================================

Contact: John Campbell johnc@pioneer.net

[January, 25, 1997 – Walla Walla, WA] CRYSTAL MARIE SCHWENK, a transexual inmate in the Washington state prison system, has filed a civil rights action against a prison guard, Robert Mitchell, charging him with sexual assault, harassment and intimidation.

Another inmate who has supported Ms. Schwenk in her suite, Donald Merlyn Snook, states that since the charges were filed, the prison hierarchy have been waging a campaign to retaliate against Ms. Schwenk.

A trail date for the litigation has been set for July 14th. The State Attorney General’s office is currently using taxpayer dollars to defend accused guard Robert Mitchell.

Trial Information: 9 a.m. July 14th Walla Walla Cty Superior Courthouse 315 W Main St. Walla Walla, WA

To protest Ms. Schwenk’s mistreatment, write to: Nancy J. Krier, Asst. Attorney General Corrections Division PO Box 40116 Olympia WA 98504-0116

Governor Gary Locke Office of the Governor Legislative Bldg. PO Box 40002 Olympia WA 98504-0002

Please reference “Douglas W. (Crystal) Schwenk, #902875” in all correspondence.

###

ARGENTINE POLICE CHARGED WITH TORTURING TRANSVESTITES ==============================

[Buenos Aires, AR – January 31, 1997] “THEN FOUR OF THEM came in and took me to the patio. They. grabbed me by the hair and neck while others took both my legs and strongly opened them, pushing my tights against the floor with their knees’ weight while still another one was twisting my right hand fingers and the last one did the same with my other arm. I screamed in total desperation. Then they put me facedown, forced my arms behind, tied a straight jacket around me, beat me in the stomach, and from then on I can not remember what else happened. Among the insults and threat I managed to hear some of the neighbors screaming: they had come to the Police Station alarmed by my shouting” (events of January 11, 1997).

So went a statement by Nadia (last name withheld by request), a local transvestite rights activist, about her assault at the hands of the Federal Police. Activists allege that at least 64 transvestites have been murdered by Federal Police in the Buenos Aires over the last 10 years.

Yet, in spite of the fact that sexual orientation is currently a protected class in Buenos Aires, none of the officials involved have been brought to trial, or even charged.

Local organizations including the Argentinean Transvestite and Transsexual Organizacion (OTTRA), Argentine Transvestite Association (ATA), and Fighting for Transvestite Identity Association (ALIT), charge that Federal Police systematically and arbitrarily arrest transvestites, gays, lesbians and sex workers.

Furthermore, they charge that in the case of transvestites, the arrest often extends to 24 hours and includes humilliation, beatings, mistreatment, sexual abuse, death threats, and, in some cases, actual murder.

To protest the mistreatment and murder of Argentine transpeople, please contact:

Dr. Carlos Saul Menem Presidente de la Nacion Argentina postmaster@presidencia.gob.ar

Dr. Carlos Corach Ministro del Interior postmaster@minte.gob.ar

Dra. Alicia Pierini Subsecretaria de Derechos Humanos y Sociales sdhlc@wamani.apc.org.ar

Dr. Fernando de la Rua Jefe de Gobierno de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires delarua@ssdnet.com.ar

###

NEW YORKER PIECE TRASHES BRANDON TEENA ======================================

[January 15, 1997 – New York, NY] IN YET ANOTHER incidence of Brandon Teena’s tragic murder being appropriated for someone’s larger cultural agenda, the January 13th New Yorker aired the long-anticipated piece by well-known writer John Gregory Dunne.

Titled “Murder at the Farmhouse,” the piece was the featured article, and ran for almost 20 pages. Dunne, who steeled himself for the journey and “prepared by re-reading Willa Cather’s `My Antonia’ and `Obscure Destinies'” charged into the backrodes of Kansas to discover “the dangerously drifting youth of the underprivileged heartland.” Apparently Mr. Dunne was unfamiliar with New York at the time.

Dunne refers to Brandon as “she” and “Teena” in multiple places, portraying the dead man as a confused lesbian who specialized in seducing “nymphets” and “pre-pubescent girls.” He also graphically relates local tales of murder and sado-masochistic torture as apparent testimony to the general lawlessness of the area and as pre-courser to Brandon’s 1994 murder.

Marinating himself in the sadness and sorrows of this already over-exposed group of grieving mothers and shattered girlfriends, Dunne exposes the sex lives of all and sundry, dwelling on each instance of poverty, interracial liaison, or same-sex as a sign of incipient moral decay. He succeeds not so much in being transphobic as trans-ignorant, and classist and racist to boot.

Treading well-worn ground, Dunne also rehashes everything from Brandon’s kissing, “cuddling,” to the socks allegedly worn in his pants.

Then he bravely concludes — not even in the first person, but attributing the observation to what an absent Willa Cather would assume — “her obsession with gender and its discontents as self-indulgent, and her gender confusion as an excuse to abdicate personal responsibility.”

As a person of finer sensibilities, far from the dangerously drifting and underprivileged heartland, one can only imagine how morally arduous it must have been for Mr. Dunne to appropriate the voice of one great and dead writer in order to defame the life of one isolated and murdered transexual man — with neither of them present to disagree or cry out in dissent. But then, truly good writers rise to the occasion.

At press time FTM International and GenderPAC had both filed letters of protest with the New Yorker, and were coordinating a combined response with the Gay & Lesbian Anti-Violence Project (AVP) and GLAAD.

The New Yorker can be contacted at: 20 W 43rd St. NY, NY 10036

###

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 2 Feb 1997 18:40:16 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E02lZ; Sun 2 Feb 1997 18:40:16 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: The Lady Chablis Date: Sun, 2 Feb 1997 18:40:16 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702021840.E02lZ@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 02 Feb 1997 21:18:04 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

>From Southern Voice, 23 January, 1997. Reprinted with permission.

Dish

On TV with Lady Chablis

Savannah belle The Lady Chablis, who ascended to international celebrity as a character in John Berendt’s best-selling “Midnight in the Good and Evil,” gets another seven minutes of fame next month on the nationally broadcast gay news magazine program, “In the Life.” The February episode of the show including “A Day in the Life of Lady Chablis,” which takes the viewer along with Miss Thing as she shops for wigs, signs her autobiography “Hiding My Candy,” visits her friend Emma “The Lady of 5,000 Songs” Kelly and prepares for a midnight performance at Club One. “In the Life” airs on approximately 100 public TV stations nationwide, hitting 19 of the top 20 markets; in Atlanta, catch it at midnight on Sunday, Feb. 2, on WPBA channel 30. Dish can’t wait!

Dallas Denny, M.A., Executive Director

Our website is http://www.ren.org/rafil/aegis.html Visit the AEGIS FTP Site: ftp://ftp.mindspring.com/users/aegis/ User ID: anonymous Password: (your email address)

If you’re on AOL, try the keyword AEGIS

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———————————————————————— NOTE: The AEGISNWS list is a one-way newsfeed. You may not post to it. Your comments and news items should be sent to <aegis@gender.org>. For listserv assistance, send the message HELP to <listserv@xconn.com>. Originally From: sysadmin@xconn.com Original Date: Mon, 03 Feb 97 08:47:29 PST

A couple of weeks ago, with no fanfare, I made some adjustments here that cause the digest to be sent around 4:00am PT on any day when there was news received for it during the preceding 24 hours.

I did this primarily to allow the digest to be transmitted faster; this has been a wonderfully successful venture for AEGIS and Cross Connection and the growing number of list subscribers made the digest consume far too much server time on the days it was sent. This shorter, almost daily version is much less of a load, and Dallas agrees, since we provide the listserv at no charge to AEGIS, with any adjustments that need to be made to lessen server strain.

The good news is that most of you either didn’t notice the switch or like it so much to say anything!

The even better news is that news now gets to you faster, without the overload on your mailboxes of individual articles. This is something several have asked me about in the past, and I am happy that it seems to be working fine so far.

I am presently working on raising funds to make Cross Connection (the BBS) accessible in real-time via the Internet. Once that is done, those of you who can’t even wait for the digest can login here and read articles as they come in from Dallas and her contributors. (Actually, you could do that now, but the long distance charges get in the way.) So keep your fingers crossed that someone writes us a $15,000 check real soon! 🙂

As always, I remain available to help with any technical issues regarding the list.

||| Kymberleigh Richards, System Administrator |||

||| CROSS CONNECTION Los Angeles, CA (818) 786-8887 (5 lines) ||| ||| Info: e-mail <bbs-info@xconn.com> ||| | The senders of unsolicited commercial e-mail to users at this site are | | liable for a $500 per message charge under 47 USC 227. |

1997, 6 February

Originally From: aegisnws-digest@xconn.com Original Date: Thu, 6 Feb 1997 03:19:07

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AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Wed 5 Feb 1997 20:17:04 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E10id; Wed 5 Feb 1997 20:17:04 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: WOCKNER/QUOTE UNQUOTE #83/21 Jan 96 Date: Wed, 5 Feb 1997 20:17:04 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702052017.E10id@xconn.com>

Original Date: Wed, 05 Feb 1997 23:14:15 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Reprinted with Permission

======================================= = QUOTE UNQUOTE #83 – Jan 21, 1997 = = by Rex Wockner = =======================================

<><><14><><>

“In fishnet and feathers, he’s a unisex wreck.”

–Fashion critic Mr. Blackwell Jan. 14 in naming Chicago Bulls transvestite Dennis Rodman last year’s “Worst-Dressed Woman.”

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>From listserv@xconn.com Wed 5 Feb 1997 20:17:04 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E75ZR; Wed 5 Feb 1997 20:17:04 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: WOCKNER/INT’L NEWS #142 Date: Wed, 5 Feb 1997 20:17:04 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702052017.E75ZR@xconn.com>

Original Date: Wed, 05 Feb 1997 23:14:08 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Reprinted with permission.

T O N E W S E D I T O R

============================================= = INTERNATIONAL NEWS #142 – Jan 15, 1997 = = (c) Rex Wockner = =============================================

>> AUSSIE STATE TO HOUSE TRANSGENDERED MALE INMATES WITH WOMEN

The Australian state of New South Wales has announced plans to move transgendered male inmates to women’s prisons, reported the Sydney Sunday Telegraph. The Corrective Services Department said the policy will reduce violence against transgendered males. Transgender lobby groups hailed the decision, saying prisoners should be allowed to serve their sentence under their elected gender. There are believed to be fewer than 100 transgendered males in NSW prisons. A reverse policy will apply to any women who consider themselves male.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Wed 5 Feb 1997 20:17:04 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E41JK; Wed 5 Feb 1997 20:17:04 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Art Imitates Life Date: Wed, 5 Feb 1997 20:17:04 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702052017.E41JK@xconn.com>

Original Date: Wed, 05 Feb 1997 23:14:13 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Dallas,

For immediate release:

Holiday Inn’s infamous Superbowl commercial features a fictitious transsexual going back for her fictitious high-school reunion. Well, that’s not so far fetched. Last November, long-time post-op and transactivist Jennifer Freeman when back for her 25-year high-school reunion on Staten Island, N.Y. Reactions there ranged from full acceptance to sudden surprise, but no mild horror as depicted in the Holiday Inn commercial.

Sincerely,

Jennifer T Freeman

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1997, 9 February

Originally From: aegisnws-digest@xconn.com Original Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 14:12:28

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AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E86Vw; Sun 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Crime Scene: Drag Busts Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702090558.E86Vw@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 08:34:49 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Reprinted with permission from Etcetera, 7 February, 1997

Crime Scene: Drag Busts

Atlanta– Two well-known local entertainers were arrested on various drug charges early last month. John Barber, who performs under the name Tweeka Weed, was arrested at his home on Monroe Drive in Atlanta, 14 January, and charged with possession of cocaine and possession of marijuana. According to police, Barber refused entry to warranted officers and attempted to flee when they made a forced entry. In addition to several ziplock bags of cocaine, police said they found a coffee grinder and measuring spoons “covered with cocaine residue.”

A small amount of marijuana was discovered by police during a serch of the residence of Dina Jacobs, whose legal name is Clifford Montalbo, on 8 January. According to Jacobs, she had already been arrested outside a bar on Peachtree Street, 3 January, and charged with possession of coaine with intent. “Someone in this community has nothing better to do than drop dimes on people,” Jacobs said, indicating police had been tipped off about her alleged activities. According to the attorney for both suspects, Michael Hauptman, no hearing or trial dates had been set at press time.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E70qD; Sun 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Why should Feminists be interested in intersexuality? Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702090558.E70qD@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 08:34:47 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Why should Feminists be interested in intersexuality? Will be presented by Dr. Suzanne Kessler

Association for Women in Psychology 8 March 1997 Pittsburgh

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E24EH; Sun 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Dr. Elders Snubs Herms Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702090558.E24EH@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 08:34:44 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Dr. Elders Snubs Herms

Joycelyn Elders, the former Surgeon General, is also a pediatric endocrinologist, whose career before Washington included many interventions with intersex children in Arkansas.

Elders, who discussed her interventions with hermaphrodites in a 1994 article in the New Yorker magazine, has ignored all attempts by ISNA to reach her for comment or dialog.

Dr. Elders’ Medical History from New Yorker, 26 September 1994: 45-6.

And whenever obstetricians were at a loss to solve the central , dramatic mystery attending the birth of a newborn–“Is it a boy or a girl?”–they paged Dr. Elders. “Any baby born with ambiguous-looking genitalia, I was always called,” she said. “These were pseudo-hermaphrodites.” She would treat such babies to insure that their external sex organs matched their chromosomal and gonadal makeup. Like many experts, she believes that gender identity forms at the age of two or three, and that thereafter there’s no turning back. When treating older children, she said, “Whatever they were raised as, you would try to keep them. If you have a boy thinking that he’s a girl, then all you can really do is just take out everything and make a good vaginal pouch, and the child can function very well as a female.”

At the University of Arkansas, Dr. Elders taught about these rare surgical procedures: “I always taught my students, ‘I can make a good female, but it’s very hard to make a male.’ See, the *greatest* tragedy is if you’ve got someone who’s genotypically a girl and you let them grow up thinking they’re a boy. Then you would do all you could to make them into the best boy you could.”

from “Dr. Elders’ Medical History.” New Yorker v70 n30, 26 September 1994: 45-6.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E00pP; Sun 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Research Project Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 05:58:26 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702090558.E00pP@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 08:34:54 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

We received the following in the mail:

Call for Assistance with Research Project

“What are the effects of disclosure of crossdressing behavior of the male parental figure on the maturational development of children in the family system?” “Should I tell the kids about my crossdressing, should it be kept a secret, or should I abstain from crossdressing until the children have left home?” This research makes no judgement about the matter but instead will try to learn about the actual experiences of the young people in a family with a crossdressing father. The goal is to talk with adult and adolescent children who have emerged from that special family system to glean what they felt and thought the experience meant to them. The attempt will be made in this manner to help determine what those effects are.

The researcher needs to talk to the children of crossdressers (of all sorts; TV, TG, TS) who are between the ages of 16 and 25 (though younger and older children of crossdressers will be considered as well). Parents of those children under the age of eighteen will be provided with parental consent forms. This study will consist of a few questions that the child will be asked in an open-ended manner in an in-person interview setting and completing a simple form.

The participant criteria is as follows: your child is between the ages of 16 and 25, has known about and experienced your crossdressing behavior (around the house or in public) and who would be willing (without parental coercion) to share their experiences with me.

It is hoped that individuals and groups will volunteer to assist with this study so that a foundation for further study may be laid and definitive conclusions arrived at. The pilot study, which will require participation of several children of crossdressers, is slated to begin in 1997. If you are such a parent or know of a crossdresser who is a parent, please contact me at:

Research Project Ted J. Clement, M.A. 10400 Rio Hondo Parkway El Monte, CA 91733-1354 818-444-4354 tedclem@ix.netcom.com

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1997, 10 February

Originally From: aegisnws-digest@xconn.com Original Date: Mon, 10 Feb 1997 03:22:15

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AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E33fG; Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Science and Homosexualities Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702091417.E33fG@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 16:34:47 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Reposted from ISNA News

Vernon Rosario’s anthology, Science and Homosexualities, is finally available. If you can’t find it locally, try http://www.amazon.com.

While many of the essays bear on the ideological context in which current medical thinking about intersexuality developed, those by Alice Dreger and Anne Fausto-Sterling specifically discuss that subject.

“Its analyses of 150 years of biomedical research on homosexuality draw on state of the art history of medicine and the sciences, lesbian-gay-queer studies, and feminist theory. In examining how the biomedical categories used to scrutinize homosexuals were historically produced, thse accounts both engage and show how to move past problematic positions in such contemporary philosophic debates as those about the functions of essentialism, reaslism vs. constructivism, and objectivism vs. relativism. The essays are as accessible to newcomers to these issues, and they are also fun to read.”

— Sandra Harding

Dreger, Alice. 1996. Hermaphrodites in Love: The Truth of the Gonads. In Science and Homosexualities, ed. Vernon Rosario:46-66. New York: Routledge.

On “gay brain” and “gay gene” research: “this sort of attempt to free the homosexual via scientific evidence of the ‘congenital’ nature of his/her sexuality winds up again [as with earlier efforts exemplified by Ulrichs, Mayne, Krafft-Ebing, Ellis] associating the homosexual with the hermaphrodite–a being who has never been the object of real social tolerance.”

Fausto-Sterling, Anne. 1996. How to Build a Man. In Science and Homosexualities, ed. Vernon A. Rosario:219-225. New York: Routledge.

“Biological investigators … use the infrequent to illuminate the common. The former they call abnormal, the latter, normal. Often, as is the case for Money and others in the medical world, the abnormal requires management [conversion to the normal]. Thus we have a profound irony. Biologists and physicians use natural variation to define normality. Once armed with the description, they then set out to eliminate the natural variation that gave them their definitions in the first place.”

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E48HM; Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: TG discrimination is now against the law in Pittsburgh Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702091417.E48HM@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 16:34:51 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Press Release from Wendy Miller

WE HAVE DONE IT! We started over 23 months ago working with our local Human Relations Commission and City Council Members, and tonight at midnight it becomes the law. The City of Pittsburgh passed legislation which amends their anti-discrimination ordinances to include TGs by defining the term “sex”. This definition did not exist under the ordinance before. The definition is as follows: Sex: the gender of a person, as perceived, presumed or assumed by others, including those who are changing or have changed their gender identification.

This change was included in a bill that the Human Relations Commission of Pittsburgh proposed to City Council. The purpose of this bill was to re-codify existing ordinances to meet HUD standards. By making changes to the ordinances Pittsburgh is now entitled to an additional $27,000 annually in federal funds. The definition of sex was not actually necessary for this, but it was politically expedient to include this new definition in this bill. Sometimes a bitter but appropriate and right pill is easier to swallow if it’s taken with something sweet.

We’ve been very quiet about what has been going on here in order not to bring a lot of attention to a very right and necessary piece of legislation. The final vote of the City Council was 8 to 1 in favor, all council persons understanding the significance of the gender language. There was never a call for a public hearing, which the one dissenting vote could have requested. Today is exactly 10 days after the vote. Midnight tonight it automatically becomes law with or with out the signature of the mayor who could have vetoed the bill, and called for a public hearing also. As of 6:45 PM we don’t know if Mayor Murphy signed it or not, however we believe it was his intention to do so, because he understands it’s the right thing to do.

We here in Pittsburgh are all very proud of our local government officials and their understanding of these human rights issues. We worked with the system and the system worked for us. Now our hope is that others work locally to accomplish this same goal. It’s a web of understanding and acceptance of diversity that is slowly growing and eventually will cover everyone of us, but we all have to continue to work for it to happen.

Wendi Miller

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E87SQ; Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: New Electronic Journal Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702091417.E87SQ@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 16:35:04 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Here’s another forwarded notice. Contact info. below.–Jacob Hale

From: littleja@potsdam.edu (Judith A. Little)

INJUSTICE STUDIES (IS) is a new refereed international interdisciplinary electronic journal that helps focus academic attention on the study of injustices around the world. The editors welcome essays devoted to understanding the nature of injustice, types of injustice, and the history, politics, and moral psychology of particular injustices, ranging from global to local events. Please visit our homepage at:

http://www.philosophy.ilstu.edu/philosophy/injustice/injustice.htm

or E-mail:

littleja@potsdam.edu

************************************************************************* Dr. Judith Ann Little Philosophy Department SUNY-Potsdam Potsdam, NY 13676-2294 littleja@potsdam.edu

***********************************************************************

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E51Em; Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: SEX MANUAL Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702091417.E51Em@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 16:34:57 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

This comes courtesy of Angela Wensley.

The following is a reprint from The Madison Institute Newsletter Fall Issue, 1894:

INSTRUCTION AND ADVICE FOR THE YOUNG BRIDE on the Conduct and Procedure of the Intimate and Personal Relationships of the Marriage State for the Greater Spiritual Sanctity of this Blessed Sacrament and the Glory of God by Ruth Smythers beloved wife of The Reverend L.D. Smythers Pastor of the Arcadian Methodist Church of the Eastern Regional Conference Published in the year of our Lord 1894 Spiritual Guidance Press New York City

INSTRUCTION AND ADVICE FOR THE YOUNG BRIDE

To the sensitive young woman who has had the benefits of proper upbringing, the wedding day is, ironically, both the happiest and most terrifying day of her life. On the positive side, there is the wedding itself, in which the bride is the central attraction in a beautiful and inspiring ceremony, symbolizing her triumph in securing a male to provide for all her needs for the rest of her life. On the negative side, there is the wedding night, during which the bride must pay the piper, so to speak, by facing for the first time the terrible experience of sex.

At this point, dear reader, let me concede one shocking truth.Some young women actually anticipate the wedding night ordeal with curiosity and pleasure! Beware such an attitude! A selfish and sensual husband can easily take advantage of such a bride. One cardinal rule of marriage should never be forgotten: GIVE LITTLE, GIVE SELDOM, AND ABOVE ALL, GIVE GRUDGINGLY. Otherwise what could have been a proper marriage could become an orgy of sexual lust.

On the other hand, the bride’s terror need not be extreme. While sex it at best revolting and at worse rather painful, it has to be endured, and has been by women since the beginning of time, and is compensated for by the monogamous home and by the children produced through it. It is useless, in most cases, for the bride to prevail upon the groom to forego the sexual initiation. While the ideal husband would be one who would approach his bride only at her request and only for the purpose of begetting offspring, such nobility and unselfishness cannot be expected from the average man.

Most men, if not denied, would demand sex almost every day. The wise bride will permit a maximum of two brief sexual experiences weekly during the first months of marriage. As time goes by she should make every effort to reduce this frequency.

Feigned illness, sleepiness, and headaches are among the wife’s best friends in this matter. Arguments, nagging, scolding, and bickering also prove very effective, if used in the late evening about an hour before the husband would normally commence his seduction.

Clever wives are ever on the alert for new and better methods of denying and discouraging the amorous overtures of the husband. A good wife should expect to have reduced sexual contacts to once a week by the end of the first year of marriage and to once a month by the end of the fifth year of marriage.

By their tenth anniversary many wives have managed to complete their child bearing and have achieved the ultimate goal of terminating all sexual contacts with the husband. By this time she can depend upon his love for the children and social pressures to hold the husband in the home. Just as she should be ever alert to keep the quantity of sex as low as possible, the wise bride will pay equal attention to limiting the kind and degree of sexual contacts. Most men are by nature rather perverted, and if given half a chance, would engage in quite a variety of the most revolting practices. These practices include among others performing the normal act in abnormal positions; mouthing the female body; and offering their own vile bodies to be mouthed in turn.

Nudity, talking about sex, reading stories about sex, viewing photographs and drawings depicting or suggesting sex are the obnoxious habits the male is likely to acquire if permitted.

A wise bride will make it the goal never to allow her husband to see her unclothed body, and never allow him to display his unclothed body to her. Sex, when it cannot be prevented, should be practiced only in total darkness. Many women have found it useful to have thick cotton nightgowns for themselves and pajamas for their husbands. These should be donned in separate rooms. They need not be removed during the sex act. Thus, a minimum of flesh is exposed.

Once the bride has donned her gown and turned off all the lights,she should lie quietly upon the bed and await her groom. When he comes groping into the room she should make no sound to guide him in her direction, lest he take this as a sign of encouragement. She should let him grope in the dark. There is always the hope that he will stumble and incur some slight injury which she can use as an excuse to deny him sexual access.

When he finds her, the wife should lie as still as possible.

Bodily motion on her part could be interpreted as sexual excitement by the optimistic husband.

If he attempts to kiss her on the lips she should turn her head slightly so that the kiss falls harmlessly on her cheek instead.

If he attempts to kiss her hand, she should make a fist. If he lifts her gown and attempts to kiss her anyplace else she should quickly pull the gown back in place, spring from the bed, and announce that nature calls her to the toilet. This will generally dampen his desire to kiss in the forbidden territory.

If the husband attempts to seduce her with lascivious talk, the wise wife will suddenly remember some trivial non-sexual question to ask him. Once he answers she should keep the conversation going, no matter how frivolous it may seem at the time. Eventually, the husband will learn that if he insists on having sexual contact, he must get on with it without amorous embellishment.

The wise wife will allow him to pull the gown up no farther than the waist, and only permit him to open the front of his pajamas to thus make connection.

She will be absolutely silent or babble about her housework while his huffing and puffing away. Above all, she will lie perfectly still and never under any circumstances grunt or groan while the act is in progress. As soon as the husband has completed the act, the wise wife will start nagging him about various minor tasks she wishes him to perform on the morrow. Many men obtain a major portion of their sexual satisfaction from the peaceful exhaustion immediately after the act is over. Thus the wife must insure that there is no peace in this period for him to enjoy. Otherwise, he might be encouraged to soon try for more.

One heartening factor for which the wife can be grateful is the fact that the husband’s home, school, church, and social environment have been working together all through his life to instill in him a deep sense of guilt in regards to his sexual feelings, so that he comes to the marriage couch apologetically and filled with shame, already half cowed and subdued. The wise wife seizes upon this advantage and relentlessly pursues her goal first to limit, later to annihilate completely her husband’s desire for sexual expression.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E20pj; Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Reminder: True Spirit Conference, with updated information Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 14:17:39 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702091417.E20pj@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 16:35:06 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Please repost to interested forums. Please drop a line to <transman@netgsi.com> to let us know where you reposted it. If you received this announcement, you will receive other announcements about the conference. If you do not wish to receive further announcements, please let us know and we will be happy to remove your name from our mailing list.

* * * * * * * * * *

PRESS RELEASE TRUE SPIRIT CONFERENCE

If you identify as a f2m, mtm, transman, butch, tomboy, masculine female, drag king, crossdresser, intersexual, androgyne, or you are a significant other, friend, family member, or ally (soffa) this conference is for you.

The conference will address personal, social, medical, legal, and political issues of concern to gender variant people categorized at birth as female but who feel that is not a complete description of their total selves. The participation of all persons of any gender and orientation who are supportive of these issues is welcome.

Keynote speaker: Leslie Feinberg author of Transgender Warriors and Stone Butch Blues. Feinberg came of age during the 1960s as a young drag king in the factories and gay bars of Buffalo, New York. Since then s/he has been a grass roots activist, journalist, and lecturer on behalf of the lesbian/gay/bi and transgender movements.

Other authors will include Gary Bowen, author of the Stoker Finalist novel, Diary of a Vampire; Cecilia Tan, editor of Genderflex; Jay Allen Sennet, Minnie Bruce Pratt, Cheryl Cost, and others. The two day conference will feature speeches, presentations, workshops, panels, informal caucuses, a dance with live music by transgendered musicians, a pool party, and a large exhibit hall with vendors and displays.

The Native American theme addresses the Spirit which moves within each of us, granting us visions of who we are and describing our complete essence. We will attempt to explore the manifestation of that essence in the material world.

The Conference will take place February 22 – 23, 1997, at the Best Western Hotel in Laurel, Maryland (near Washington DC). Conference registrations are $25.00 per person, with scholarships available. Spanish and sign language intrepretation, child care, crisis intervention, and other services are available.

Conference registrations to: True Spirit Conference Registrations, 26-A Ridge Road, Greenbelt, MD 20770-1759. Make checks payable to the American Boyz. Hotel reservations at: 301-776-5300 ask for the True Spirit Conference to get the special room rate: $65.00 for single or double occupancy.

True Spirit is pleased to enjoy the support and participation of representatives of many transgender and queer organizations, including but not limited to: The American Boyz, FTM Intl, FTMCEP, Boston FTM Conference, Philadelphia Gender TransGressors, Rennaissance Education Association (REA), International Federation for Gender Education (IFGE), American Education Gender Information Service (AEGIS), International Committee for Transgender Law and Employment Policy (ICTLEP), Gender Public Advocacy Coalition (GPAC), It’s Time America (ITA), Trans Gender Education Association (TGEA), Tiffany Club of New England, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF), BiNetwork, Parents and Friends/Families of Lesbians and Gays–Transgender Special Outreach Network (PFLAG-TSON), Metropolitan Community Church, National Institute for the Study, Prevention, and Treatment of Sexual Trauma (Natl Inst), Ingersoll Center, Whitman-Walker Clinic, plus many individual activists, entertainers, authors, educators, helping professionals, clergy, and other interested individuals.

The True Spirit Conference is being held in conjunction with the Transgender Education Days sponsored by ICTLEP and other organizations, which will immediately follow True Spirit. More information about Transgender Education Days is available from: ictlep@aol.com.

Volunteers and input are still appreciated. Pitch in to help make this a conference that addresses your needs. Liasons are available for people of color, Spanish-speakers, Deaf, soffas and differently-abled. The general contact eddress is: transman@netgsi.com; the paper mail address is: True Spirit Conference, c/o The American Boyz, POBox 1118, Elkton, MD, 21922-1118.

Media and research representatives should contact: TheXGrrrl@aol.com or phone Jessica Xavier at: 301-949-6049 to get a copy of the Media Policy and/or to schedule interviews with VIPS or other attendees. An open press conference will be held at 5: 15 pm Sunday, 23 FEB or immediately after the conference.

True Spirit Conference info available from: transman@netgsi.com. Downloadable registration forms and more information are available at: http://www.geocities.com/WestHollywood/2987/reg_info.html

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:40 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E69gg; Sun 9 Feb 1997 14:17:40 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Empowerment Workshops for Transsexuals Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 14:17:40 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702091417.E69gg@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 16:35:23 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Renee Chinquapin has announced Honoring rebirth: Empowerment and Emotional Healing for Transsexuals, a series of transformative workshops. Here’s the blurb:

The Healing Work

The sacred, extraordinary act of transsexual survival and rebirth can wreak havoc upon our bodies, friendships, family, and worklives. Where can we go to find the peer and professional support we need to heal our psychic bruises and build meaningful, joyous lives?

These facilitated workshops provide a safe and confidential opportunity to grieve the people we once were, acknowledge the trauma of transition, and honor who we have become. Here we can tell our dreams and stories as well as problem-solve our dilemmas. We can speak from the heart, share our hard-won wisdom,and receive each others’ caring.

Who is welcome?

Female to Male Transsexuals Male to Female Transsexuals Significant Others Families Therapists

Where

1997 workshops take place in a wheelchair accessible, spacious private home near San Francisco. Public transportation is available. Under special circumstances, workshops can be held elsewhere.

Cost

Advanced registration is required with a non-refundable deposit of $50. Day sessions cost $75-$100, non-residential weekend sessions $145-$175, depending on income. Prices include lunch and snacks.

2nd Sunday Workshops Dates for 1997

March 9 April 13 May 11 June 8 September 14 October 12 November 9

Weekend Workshop Dates for 1997

June 7-8 September 27-28 November 22-23.

For further information on availability and other concerns, including private or telephone consulting, feel free to contact:

Renee Chinquapin 1140 Grizzly Peak Blvd. Berkeley, CA 94708 510-841-2101 chinquap@ix.netcom.com (Please put Workshop in the subject line of e-mail messages)

The Facilitator

Renee Chinquapin is a mtf teacher and psychologist working in the transgender community since 1987. She has given workshops for ETVC, IFGE, the Full Circle of Women, and various gender therapists; appeared on the Sally Jesse Raphael Show; counseled transsexuals their families; and written for Tapestry and Transsisters. She currently teachers Diversity and Psychology in San Francisco Bay Area colleges.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 18:24:42 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E86dG; Sun 9 Feb 1997 18:24:42 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: FCC proposes internet charges.. Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 18:24:42 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702091824.E86dG@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 21:09:29 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Please read and forward to your friends…they want to charge us more for internet use. Please note the e-mail address to which you can send your input.

PLEASE READ THIS MY FRIENDS.

I am writing you this to inform you of a very important matter currently under review by the FCC. Your local telephone company has filed a proposal with the FCC to impose per minute charges for your internet service. They contend that your usage has or will hinder the operation of the telephone network.

It is my belief that internet usage will diminish if users were required to pay additional per minute charges. The FCC has created an email box for your comments, responses must be received by February 13, 1997. Send your comments to isp@fcc.gov and tell them what you think. Every phone company is in on this one, and they are trying to sneak it in just under the wire for litiagation. Let everyone you know hear this one. Get the e-mail address to everyone you can think of. Please forward this email to all your friends on the internet so all our voices may be heard! How can the president of the U.S. leed all americans into the 21st century if many of the Americans will be left in the 20th century all because they can not afford the trip? ******************************************* End of Message

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 9 Feb 1997 18:24:42 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E63Mh; Sun 9 Feb 1997 18:24:42 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Murk Manual Date: Sun, 9 Feb 1997 18:24:42 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.01 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702091824.E63Mh@xconn.com>

Original Date: Sun, 09 Feb 1997 21:14:55 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Chrysalis: The Journal of Transgressive Gender Identities Vol. 2, No. 4, Summer, 1997 published by AEGIS http://www.ren.org/rafil/aegis.html

This will be a special issue on intersex, guest edited by me and Martha Coventry. It will contain many photographs of intersexuals — as real, live, un-monstrous people, without our eyes blacked out. It is largely filled with personal narratives, but there are two humor pieces. Here is one.

Cheryl

The Murk Manual: How to Understand Medical Writing on Intersex by Raphael Carter*

* Raphael Carter http://www.wavefront.com/~raphael/ lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and is the author of The Fortunate Fall, a science fiction novel published by Tor Books.

ambiguous genitalia

Genitalia that refuse to declare their sex to doctors- no doubt on the principle that under interrogation by the enemy you should give only name, rank, and serial number.

androgen

Andro=male; gen=making. Androgens are administered to infants to prevent their becoming androgynes. See testosterone.

androgen insensitivity

The condition of infants who callously refuse to respond to testosterone treatment; the cause of many an endocrinologist’s hurt feelings.

circumcision

A mass-market edition of intersex surgery, priced for the common man. The reasons for circumcision are too numerous to treat here, but T.V.N. Persaud of the University of Manitoba recites one ingenious opinion:

Some conditions, such as phimosis, often lead to circumcision at a later age that could have been prevented if it had been performed earlier.

Physicians thus exhibit the same prescience as the Monopods in C. S. Lewis’s The Chronicles of Narnia, who boiled potatoes before planting them in order to save doing it when they were dug up.

clitoral recession

See female genital mutilation. Despite Webster’s false cognate, “recession” is derived from “rescission,” the noun form of the verb “rescind.” Endocrinologists, like certain Congressmen, like to rescind budgets they feel are too large, even when this means cutting off essential services.

clitoromegaly

Micropenis in the female. A longer definition would be superfluous, since this condition is apt to be cut off before the patient can pronounce it.

cryptorchidism

A condition in which the testes (-orchid) are hidden (crypto-). Hidden from whom? Obviously, from the doctors. Cryptorchidism is thus practiced by those discriminating infants who do not wish to put pearls before swine.

distress

A condition produced in parents when their intersexed children go unmutilated.

estrogen

1. A character in Samuel Beckett’s Waiting for Godot, who was just pining away for a doctor to come change his sex. 2. A character in Ursula Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness, who bloody well wasn’t.

female

1. A male intersexual when the endocrinologist is through with him. 2. A female intersexual whom the urologist has not seen yet.

female genital mutilation (FGM)

The scarring or removal of the clitoris, performed by witch doctors and condemned by all right-thinking people. If the clitoris is a bit larger than average, however, the mutilation is performed by accredited surgeons and covered by all major insurance plans.

formerly intersexed

A term used by specialists to refer to any intersexual old enough to talk back. Such a person has no right to speak for intersexed infants; let the infants speak for themselves.

gynecomastia

Enlargement of the breasts in a patient whom we have decided to call male. In a patient whom we have decided to call female, the same trait is called “excellent breast development.”

hypertrophy

Literally, too much meat. How much is too much? More, madam, than your sister has; less, sir, than you will have when we are through.

hypogonadotropic hypogonadism

A condition in which the gonads are small owing to a lack of the chemical signals that activate them. To be distinguished from hypergonadotrophic hypogonadism, in which the gonads are small owing to an excess of the chemical signals that activate them. The progress of medical science makes possible these ingenious explanations of formerly murky phenomena.

hypospadias

A condition in which the meatus of the penis exits elsewhere than the tip. The etymology of this term is worthy of great meditation: hypo=too little; spadix is the Latin for sword. If only the infant’s sword were larger, he would be able to fight off the surgeon.

idiopathic

Found in solitude. A condition that boors never allow to persist in women or in symptoms.

Contrary to previous report, idiopathy does not mean “stupid medicine,” there being no need of a special term to identify that thriving Science.

Klinefelter’s Syndrome

One of that large class of syndromes named for people who did not have the syndromes. Even Lou Gehrig’s Disease has been renamed for some doctor who probably couldn’t even hold a bat.

lusus naturae

A freak of nature. It may at first surprise the reader that this term is not applied to people who cut up perfectly healthy genitals; but while that behavior is certainly freakish, nature has nothing to do with it.

male

See female. Whatever you may say of medical Fascism, it does make the males run on time.

micropenis

Clitoromegaly in the male. Cutting off the micropenis and rearing the child as female is a common way of producing a satisfactory psychological adjustment;

For it’s a fact the whole world knows That Pobbles are happier without their toes.

Edward Lear

presenting

Having. As in, “The infant presented a hypospadiac micropenis” (said by doctors) or “The jogger presented a large wallet” (said by muggers).

primary hypogonadism

Primary hypogonadism reduces the body’s sex hormones due to undeveloped testes or ovaries; see micropenis, which it sometimes causes.

It is not clear to the compiler of this Manual why some doctors feel that primary hypogonadism should be followed by a genital election.

post-operative transsexual

A person who has decided for him- or herself to get surgical sex reassignment. A therapist’s certificate is necessary. Those who decide on SRS for others are called specialists; surprisingly, no psychological examination is required.

pseudohermaphrodite

Pseudo=false; a pseudohermaphrodite is one whose falsely ambiguous genitals cruelly mislead the doctor into hopes of publication. So, at least, says pseudoscience.

res ipsa loquitur

Legal, not medical, Latin: “the thing speaks for itself.” A sponge left in a patient’s body speaks for itself, and is well paid to do so; but for the sex organ removed from the body, nobody will speak.

rights

Wrongs. In medical literature, the ‘rights’ of the intersexed refer exclusively to their right to be modified, never to any right to remain as they are. For example, one text calls for hypospadias to be “corrected” even when it is purely cosmetic, on the grounds that “by the age of five every boy has the right to be a ‘pointer’ and not a ‘setter’.”

sex determination

1. (when used by intersexuals and their parents) Divining which sex a child is. Determine: to find out by investigation. 2. (when used in medical journals) Deciding which sex a child shall be. Terminate: to put an end to the matter.

stenosis

Narrowness. A condition of meatuses and minds.

surgical sex reassignment (infant)

Making a sow’s ear out of a silk purse. Known to cause deafness.

testosterone

An androgen taking its name from the test in which it is applied to a micropenis. Micropenises that do not grow must be cut off; if they do grow then no further treatment is needed. Compare the water ordeal, beloved of witch-hunters, in which witches that float must be drowned, while those that sink may remain as they are. We Americans may be justly proud at the advances in our enlightened Society.

urologists

Those benefactors of humanity who, with considerable difficulty, distinguish intersexed infant boys from intersexed infant girls. These infants, when grown, may with equal difficulty distinguish urologists from butchers.

I pray that some day I will have the means to repay, in some measure, the American Urological Association for all they have done for my benefit. I am having some trouble, though, in connecting the timing mechanism to the fuse.

>From a letter to ISNA, reprinted in Hermaphrodites with Attitude

Dallas Denny, M.A., Executive Director

Our website is http://www.ren.org/rafil/aegis.html Visit the AEGIS FTP Site: ftp://ftp.mindspring.com/users/aegis/ User ID: anonymous Password: (your email address)

If you’re on AOL, try the keyword AEGIS

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1997, 13 February

Originally From: aegisnws-digest@xconn.com Original Date: Thu, 13 Feb 1997 15:36:34

=============================================================================

AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

=============================================================================

>From listserv@xconn.com Wed 12 Feb 1997 20:03:09 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E33gu; Wed 12 Feb 1997 20:03:09 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Elders dismisses Moreno Date: Wed, 12 Feb 1997 20:03:09 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702122003.E33gu@xconn.com>

Original Date: Wed, 12 Feb 1997 22:42:47 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Dr. Joycelyn Elders, who has ignored letters and telephone messages from ISNA, was questioned at a recent public appearance by Angela Moreno of ISNA. (See http://www.rftstl.com/features/fifth_sex.html for an interview with her.) Here is Moreno’s account of their exchange.

At the end of January, I went to see Joycelyn Elders give a lecture at nearby Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville. I decided to attend when I saw the announcement in a local newspaper and noticed that she is a pediatric endocrinologist — just like those doctors who diagnosed me with PAIS [partial androgen insensitivity, which caused her clitoris to grow at puberty] at age 12, lied to me, and referred me to a Chicago children’s hospital for clitoral recession [surgery which removes most of the clitoris, and severely damaged Angela’s sexual function].

Dr. Elders had caught my attention in the past because of her frank discussion of controversial issues, especially those surrounding sexuality and reproductive rights. When I became aware of her subspecialty, I was simultaneously nauseous and hopeful. Nauseous because I can’t shake the association I have with those words — “pediatric endocrinologist.” Hopeful because I thought surely Elders must be different.

That was why I wrote to ISNA members asking what, if anything, Elders had said publicly or written about intersex. I was disappointed to learn that she has made some really cavalier statements in the press about her ability to make “pretty good” girls out of intersexed children. That helped prepare me…

In a q/a session following her lecture, I asked: “Doctor Elders — in light of your well-noted concern for healthy sexual development, I’m hoping you can address some of my concerns regarding the prevailing paradigm for treatment of intersexed infants and children (insert serious murmur from the audience here). As you well know, the current medical literature insists that intersexed children be assigned either male or female and then have their bodies brought into line with that assignment with genital surgery and/or hormone therapy. It is my experience and the experience of other intersexual adults I’m in contact with through the Intersex Society of North America which informs my recommendation that such treatments are, in fact, detrimental to healthy development and are often profoundly damaging to sexual function. Can you speak to these concerns?”

I wish I’d remembered to take my little tape recorder because I can’t remember exactly how she answered me. But I remember feeling as though I’d been slapped in the face. She acknowledged that she has been involved in “treating” intersexed children for as long as she’s been in practice — 35 years. She admitted that “they” might have made some mistakes in the past, but that now “we” are very good at determining the true sex of the child. She started some discourse about how there are very few true hermaphrodites in the world. The rest are pseudohermaphrodites whose sex can be easily determined.

At that point, I tried to follow up, saying “I believe the distinction between true and pseudo hermaphrodites to be academic at best. That is, those diagnosed with true and pseudo hermaphroditism generally experience treatment from the medical world in strikingly similar ways. (What I was trying to say was “Look, having your genitals cut off is having your genitals cut off!” — imagine the audience murmur if I *had*.) Second, I really want to hear what you have to say about the charge that many of us experience early genital surgery as mutilating?”

Her answer to my true/pseudo observation was simply “No, it’s not just academic.” And then she proceeded to repeat herself from before as if perhaps I hadn’t understood her the first time. She said nothing about the possibility that non-consensual genital surgery might be harmful.

Essentially, the whole experience made me feel 12 years old all over again. She just didn’t care what I had to say. My existence was incidental, secondary to my “condition.” She just quoted textbooks and journal articles to me — and didn’t hear a word I had to say.

Angela Moreno

Dallas Denny, M.A., Executive Director

Our website is http://www.ren.org/rafil/aegis.html Visit the AEGIS FTP Site: ftp://ftp.mindspring.com/users/aegis/ User ID: anonymous Password: (your email address)

If you’re on AOL, try the keyword AEGIS

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>From listserv@xconn.com Wed 12 Feb 1997 20:03:10 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E01Fk; Wed 12 Feb 1997 20:03:10 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Issue One of TransFagRag Is On Its Way! Date: Wed, 12 Feb 1997 20:03:09 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702122003.E01Fk@xconn.com>

Original Date: Wed, 12 Feb 1997 22:42:41 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Yes, i know i’ve said this before, but THIS time, it’s a done deal.

Issue One of TransFagRag, the first and only international newsletter for gay and bi transmen, is already being mailed to our nearly 100 charter subscribers on three continents!

Issue One, on TransFagSex, is 22 pages, with over a dozen articles, lots of information and resources, reviews, an interview with Dr. Walter Bockting of U. of Minnesota, pioneer in research into gay and bi ftms, even personal ads and a cartoon!

Authors include Jake Hale, Mike Hernandez, Jill Nagle, Eric Kristensen, Stacy aka SheerChaos, Mick Stone, Todd Whitworth, Andrew White, and Julian Leonard.

If you have sent in a paid subscription, your copy has either gone out last week or will go out early this week. (Contributors, patrons–who paid more than the subscription amount–and those with whom i have publication exchanges went out in the first batch, other paying customers will go out next approximately in order of when the subscription was received.) If you sent your money but your snail address has changed since you did so, please contact me ASAP with your new address if i haven’t yet gotten to you to verify my information. If you have expressed interest in the Rag but not yet sent in your subscription money, please send $5 for Issue One, or $15 per year, to the address below. In a limited number of instances i am willing to send it and trust you for the check, and if you are really flat broke but want it anyway, i’ll be happy to send it and trust you to pay when you are able. If you paid, your address is current, and you do NOT receive your copy within ten days to two weeks, please contact me; i hand-addressed the envelopes myself, and am dyslexic, so chances are i screwed up your address somehow!

If you haven’t subscribed, whyever not, you silly boy? It’s simply a MUST! The 100th subscriber will receive a door prize. No, not a door; most probably a huge dildo donated by a subscriber, or perhaps a penis enlargement pump.

TFR is also a MUST for transfaghags and biofags who fancy us.

Contributors are being sought now for Issue Two, due in April/May; the topic is Mainstreaming Into The Gay Male Community: Pros and Cons, but all articles of interest to the constituency are welcome. Fiction, poetry, humor, and line art is particularly sought, as are folks interested in writing continuing columns on topics such as leather, spirituality, health and fitness, etc.

Please send subscription fees and articles or queries for articles to:

C. Julian Leonard Elessar Press 1259 El Camino Real Suite 151 Menlo Park, CA 94025

or write me here at julian7@hooked.net!

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>From listserv@xconn.com Wed 12 Feb 1997 20:03:10 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E43Lb; Wed 12 Feb 1997 20:03:10 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Holiday Inn Date: Wed, 12 Feb 1997 20:03:10 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702122003.E43Lb@xconn.com>

Original Date: Wed, 12 Feb 1997 22:43:01 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

I just came across this…

— Dallas

Holiday Inn Worldwide Issues Statement

ATLANTA, Jan. 28 /PRNewswire/ — Holiday Inn Worldwide today issued the following statement:

“Our sole intent with our Super Bowl advertisement was to communicate the significant renovation currently under way in Holiday Inn hotels. We aired it because we had the overwhelmingly positive endorsement of the ad concept when it was tested with consumers prior to its broadcast. We understand that the ad has offended some people. That was never our intention, and that’s why I have today taken the action to discontinue any further broadcast of the Super Bowl ad,” said John Sweetwood, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Holiday Inn Worldwide. SOURCE Holiday Inn Worldwide ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Holiday Inn Worldwide Corporate Headquarters Three Ravinia Drive, Suite 2900 Atlanta, Georgia 30346-2149

Telephone: 770.604.2000 E-Mail: hiwsprt@mindspring.com

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>From listserv@xconn.com Wed 12 Feb 1997 20:03:10 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E07SE; Wed 12 Feb 1997 20:03:10 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: News Items Date: Wed, 12 Feb 1997 20:03:10 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702122003.E07SE@xconn.com>

Original Date: Wed, 12 Feb 1997 22:43:09 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

Here are two items from Missippi Voice, a G/L newsletter.

— Dallas

Suit Charges Police Kick Caused Transsexual’s Death

Hoffman Estates, IL (GayNet). The family of Logan Smith, a 23 year-old transsexual, have filed a lawsuit against the Hoffman Estates police and a local hospital, charging both were negligent in treating an injury the family says caused Smith’s death while in police custody last year.

The night of Smith’s arrest on a traffic charge, the suit charges that a police officer kicked Smith in the stomach and then ignored the prisoner’s complaints of stomach cramping.

Police officials in the Chicago suburb say Smith died of complications from the sex-change operation itself, not from being beaten.

The attorney representing the family in the lawsuit said Smith died from septic shock due to a punctured bladder from being kicked by a police officer.

Cross-Dressing Bank Robber Caught

Pasadena, CA (GayNet). A male bank robberry suspect who allegedly wore women’s clothes and makeup as a disguise has been arrested by police in Southern California.

Police say the cross-dressed man, whose name is being withheld, walked into a Wells Fargo branch in Pasadena early on Saturday, 4 January. he opened a briefcase and showed a teller a bomb-like device, demanded money, and then fled

But before he could take off the clothing and makeup, police nabbed him.

The bomb squad cordoned off a wide area around the bank so they could detonate the briefcase. The bomb turned out to be a fake.

The 31-year-old suspect is being investigated by the FBI to see if he has been involved in similar robberies where he disguised himself as a woman.

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1997, 14 February

Originally From: aegisnws-digest@xconn.com Original Date: Fri, 14 Feb 1997 03:31:49

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AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Thu 13 Feb 1997 16:30:42 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E54YS; Thu 13 Feb 1997 16:30:42 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Logan Smith article Date: Thu, 13 Feb 1997 16:30:42 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702131630.E54YS@xconn.com>

Original Date: Thu, 13 Feb 1997 17:15:01 -0500 Originally From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org>

http://www.suba.com/~outlines/current/logansm.html

What Killed Logan Smith?

Life & Death in Hoffman Estates

by Mike Spitz

The life of Logan Smith seems almost as extraordinary as the circumstances surrounding his death. Whether or not the result of police abuse and negligence, the courts will soon decide how and why Logan died just hours after his emergency release from the custody of Hoffman Estates police in January of 1996.

Born a genetic male though with under-developed genitalia, Logan Smith was raised as a female, but decided, at age 15 and after surgical alterations, to be treated as a man. His medical condition was such that Hoffman Estates Village Attorney Richard Williams initially, and erroneously, reported that “Smith died not from trauma, but from complications arising from a sex-change operation.”

Young and Black, Logan lived with his mother and brother within an encircling suburban community older and whiter. Located 29 miles northwest of Chicago’s Loop and just off the Northwest Tollway, Hoffman Estates is one of the more prosperous area suburbs. Encompassing roughly 19 square miles and mostly residential, with more than three-quarters of its units owner-occupied, the village boasts a poverty level below 1% and per capita income well above the metropolitan Chicago and national average.

With flight and freedom the goal of most inner-city youth, obtaining residence in such a community might seem like the American dream incarnate. However, with a Black population less than 4% of the roughly 50,000 total, and with a lengthy history of documented racial discrimination, the pretense for Logan and his brother Brian being pulled over for a minor traffic violation is perhaps open to more rigorous speculation.

According to a lawsuit filed last month in Hoffman Estates civil court by attorney Monica McFadden on behalf of Logan’s mother, Bettijean Smith, Hoffman Estates police officer Gregory A. Polous made the initial contact. On Jan. 22, 1996, at approximately 7 a.m., officer Polous approached the Smith’s vehicle, already parked in front of their residence on the 1900 block of Chelmsford, and alleged that the driver, Brian, committed two offenses: Failure to signal a right turn while turning from a secluded residential street into a dead end, and failure to display a license plate, in lieu of a temporary license plate clearly displayed in complete compliance with Illinois law.

With Logan, age 23, already in the townhome by this time, officer Polous reportedly maced Brian as he removed groceries from the back seat of the automobile. Logan then returned to assist his now- blinded brother, in turn taking him inside to wash his eyes with water. The complaint further states that officer Polous, still having yet to issue any traffic citations or make any arrests, followed the two into the Smith residence without justification or permission, and without having obtained a search warrant. Logan, reminding officer Polous of the unconstitutionality of this act, was placed under arrest for interfering with an officer’s exercise of duties.

At this point, responding to a call from Polous, officers Paul S. Hansen and Harry J. Moore also violated the Fourth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution and entered the Smith home without authorization, the family’s lawsuit alleges. Physically seizing Logan with allegedly “great and unreasonable force,” kicking him in his abdomen and spraying him with pepper gas, the three police officers arrested and successfully brought into custody Logan Smith, who, according to Bettijean, did not understand the charges. She also said he offered no physical resistance.

Although the Hoffman Estates Police Department vehemently denies the use of excessive force, immediately following this alleged altercation Logan began to complain about severe pain he was experiencing in his abdomen, specifically and repeatedly requesting medical assistance. Finally transported by ambulance from temporary detention at the Hoffman Estates Fire Department to the Hoffman Estates Medical Center Emergency Room, Logan was diagnosed with a urinary tract infection and released, without the peculiarities of Logan’s medical status, or the circumstances of his arrest, being communicated to the presiding medical technicians.

Abdominal pains, maybe, but a urinary tract infection?-Following an alleged physical confrontation?-Here the unfortunate becomes the extraordinary, an extraordinary life becomes, perhaps through abuse or negligence or both, an unfortunate death.

As attorney McFadden relates, emergency room professionals chose to ignore, arresting officers knew yet remained silent about, and the Cook County Medical Examiner later discovered, Logan Smith was the lifelong sufferer of a congenital anatomical anomaly: Born with an external bladder and vestigial genitalia, subjected throughout his childhood and young adult life to a series of corrective surgical procedures, Logan had what professionals call a “cecal reservoir,” an alternate bladder made from a lower portion of his intestinal tract. The complaint asserts that the conflagration with police ruptured this surrogate receptacle, spilling urine directly into Logan’s abdominal cavity, precipitating the septic infection that culminated in his untimely death.

Around 10 a.m. that same morning, Logan was put into the custody of officer Mark A. Laughlin, discharged from the Medical Center and, still complaining of acute discomfort, and having difficulty in walking and even standing upright, Logan was taken for processing and incarceration to the Hoffman Estates Police Station lockup. His verbal complaints continued, his physical status visibly deteriorated. Officer Polous, back on the scene, dismissed these attempts at communication as whining and troublemaking; other officers and even other prisoners within the lockup were aware of Logan’s emphatic complaints and steadily deteriorating condition, which eventually included fever, vomiting, inability to move freely, rapid pulse, rapid and shallow breathing and extreme pain in all portions of his abdomen.

Logan remained in his cell. General police policy is reportedly to never re-admit any suspect for additional medical attention, rather, police wait for release of the suspect and thereby allay all further responsibility.

Bettijean Smith, Logan’s mother, arrived to post bond for her son at approximately 1 p.m.-she was informed by officer Polous and others of Logan’s then-critical condition. Upon seeing her son, she insisted that 911 be called. Mrs. Smith was reassured by a police officer that they are 911.

An ambulance finally arrived on the scene, rushing Logan back to the Hoffman Estates Medical Center, this time to their Intensive Care Unit. Diagnosed with septic shock, Logan repeatedly informed the medical professionals that he was kicked in the abdomen by his arresting officers. Logan remained in critical condition until his death at approximately 11 p.m.

Suspicious of his treatment by the Hoffman Estates Police Department, Bettijean Smith sought and eventually obtained legal counsel with Monica McFadden of McFadden Law Offices. Meanwhile, an initial autopsy and toxicology analysis were conducted by Dr. Bryan R. Mitchell, M.D., from the Office of the Cook County Medical Examiner. Particularly sensitive to the dynamics of this complex case, the official report was not released until May of 1996: In a CHICAGO TRIBUNE article of May 17, Hoffman Estates Assistant Police Chief Robert Boynton was quoted as saying “as far as officers using excessive force, we feel the post- mortem indicates that never happened.” According to Dr. Mitchell, however, his report neither affirms nor denies that possibility. In terms of any overt external evidence of injury, Logan sustained a visible injury to his left knee. When seeking evidence of internal injuries, standard procedure involves linear incisions placed over the back, buttocks, thighs, calves and wrists-not the abdomen. Although able to substantiate the septic infection through urine leakage into that cavity, the official manner of death remains “indeterminate.”

>From a legal standpoint, McFadden covers the case “from both sides; we feel that both parties, the police and the doctors, were at fault.” Wrongful death, medical negligence, violation of constitutional rights and racism make for a complex, intense case. The complaint has been filed, and is pending in the Hoffman Estates civil court.

The Hoffman Estates Police Department, after repeated attempts, has not responded to OUTLINES’ requests for an interview.

Relying on Dr. Mitchell’s investigation, Hoffman Estates Village Attorney Richard Williams states in a recent United Press International report that, “Smith died not from trauma, but from complications arising from a sex-change operation.” Based on the Medical Examiner’s post-mortem, this statement is false. In view of that, a retraction of a similar report was made by WMAQ Radio reporter Mike Kruger. According to McFadden, as far as she knows, the rumor was generated by the police as a kind of smoke-screen to detract from the significance of the case.

If true, such a rumor is perhaps demonstrative of an underlying homophobia-if the allegations of excessive force can be substantiated, perhaps the Village of Hoffman Estates assumes that less sympathy would be generated by a transgendered individual than by an otherwise “normal” person “merely” suffering from overt birth-defects. As far as Logan Smith’s sexuality goes, McFadden emphasized its irrelevance to her case, although she has described elements of Logan’s extraordinary medical and personal history.

Born a genetic male though with under-developed and subsequently surgically altered genitalia, Logan was compelled to urinate using a catheter. Prompted by his admittedly unique anatomy and the need for privacy, doctors and psychologists suggested that the Smiths raise him as a girl. As Logan matured and medical technologies advanced (presumably those utilized by men suffering from impotence and female-to-male transsexuals), plastic surgeons were gradually able to reconstruct his genitalia, hoping to eventually make them not only aesthetically realistic, but functional. As such, the foundation of the “sex- change woes” rumor, however homophobic, opportunistic and factually incorrect, is conceivable. At age 15, however, given the chance, Logan chose to look, act, and be treated as a man.

What remains most vexing is that such a unique person, after enduring so much, has been denied the opportunity for self-realization. Perhaps the upcoming litigation will shed both light and justice.

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1997, 15 February

Posted 15 February, 2001 or therabouts. ============================================================================= AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Fri 14 Feb 1997 19:11:49 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E99lG; Fri 14 Feb 1997 19:11:49 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: OREGON/ENDA. Date: Fri, 14 Feb 1997 19:11:49 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702141911.E99lG@xconn.com>

<< Subj: MHRC Declines to Support Oregon ENDA Date: 97-02-09 15:22:02 EST From: johnc@pioneer.net (B. John Campbell)

The following is from the Portland OR queer paper JUST OUT, Feb. 7th, 1997:

THEY JUST SAID NO

MHRC declines to support Oregon ENDA because Transsex- uals are not included in the measure

By Inga Sorensen

The motion had done deal written all over it. Or so Nyla McCarthy thought. “Never in a million years did I think it wouldn’t fly,” says McCarthy, an openly lesbian member of the Metropolitan Human Rights Commission. MHRC, whose volunteer members are appointed by the Portland mayor and the Multnomah County chair, works to advance human rights. During a Jan.14 commission meeting, McCarthy made a motion calling upon MHRC to become a co-requester of Oregon ENDA, a ststewide nondiscrimination employment bill being pushed by Right to Pride, a gay, lesbian, and bisexual rights organization. “When I made the motion I figured it would easily pass,” says McCarthy. After all, since its founding in 1992, MHRC has had a track record of supporting gay and lesbian rights. “in fact MHRC’s first official act was to affirm the rights and dignity of gay and lesbian people,” says Helen Cheek, the commission’s director. Additionally, Cheek says two of MHRC’s 15 members– McCarthy and Greg Asher– are openly gay. “When I made my motion, some members asked whether [Oregon ENDA] was inclusive of transsexuals,” says McCarthy. (Oregon ENDA does not explicitly include transsexuals or transgendered people). The concern was prompted by the fact that the commission has spent ample time of late exploring issues specifically related to the trans community. In October, MHRC voted unanimously to recommend the inclusion of “transsexuals and other sexual minorities” in Portland’s human rights ordinance. The recommendation came on the heels of fact-finding hearings held last spring which were designed to assess the level of dis- crimination against those populations in Portland. According to McCarthy, several transsexuals and their sup- porters were at the January meeting to address other agenda items. A discussion over the Oregon ENDA ensued. “I think most members were left with the impression that the transsexuals were saying, ‘Please don’t support a bill that ex- cludes us,'” she says. And that’s exactly what happened. By the end of the meeting MHRC had overwhelmingly rejected the motion by a vote of one in favor, eight opposed and three abstentions. “The commission clearly supports gay and lesbian rights, but I think members wanted to ‘do the right thing.’ To them that meant only supporting a bill that was inclusive [of trans people],” says McCarthy, who professes “shock” and disappointment in the outcome. “I told the commission that I thought it would be inconsistent for them to endorse [Oregon ENDA] while at the same time recommending inclusion in the city code,” says transsexual rights activist Margaret Deirdre O’Hartigan, who was on hand. O’Hartigan, who maintains she did not ask MHRC to reject Oregon ENDA, adds: “I support MHRC’s vote, but I will also not get in the way of anybody getting civil rights.” Lori Buckwalter, a preoperative transsexual, is the founder and director of It’s Time Oregon!, a fledgeling transgender-rights organization. Buckwalter, who was not at the meeting, says she too would not stand in the way of any group gaining civil rights protections. “I’m disappointed the bill isn’t inclusive,” she says. How- ever, ITO in no way wants to be obstructionist, and we will support any non-discrimination act that expands the rights of sexual minorities.” Barry Pack, RTP’s executive director, says he believes MHRC would have endorsed Oregon ENDA had members known that stste Rep. George Eighmey (D-Portland) was crafting an employment bill that bars discrimination based on one’s gender identification. Eighmey, who is gay, is also a main force behind Oregon ENDA. “it’s the same bill as Oregon ENDA except in the place of ‘sexual orientation’ I put ‘gender identification,'” says Eighmey. “instead of one all-encompassing bill, we have two different bills.” (On a related note, O’Hartigan has expressed “outrage” over Eighmey’s gender identification bill, saying the lawmaker did not solicit input from transsexuals while crafting the bill– a charge Eighmey flatly denies. O’Hartigan says she believes such a bill is unneccessary in light of the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries decision in October to accept complaints from trans- sexuals who claim discrimination because of their status as trans- sexuals. BOLI said that transsexualism must be considered a protected disability under Oregon law.) “I believe that [MHRC] members didn’t know about plans for this other bill,” Pack says. “Had they known, things may have been different. Now that they do know, perhaps they will revisit the vote.” >>

Dallas Denny, M.A., Executive Director

Our website is http://www.ren.org/rafil/aegis.html Visit the AEGIS FTP Site: ftp://ftp.mindspring.com/users/aegis/ User ID: anonymous Password: (your email address)

If you’re on AOL, try the keyword AEGIS

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sat 15 Feb 1997 02:36:08 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E54uT; Sat 15 Feb 1997 02:36:08 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: MLA CFP: Wild West Genderbending Date: Sat, 15 Feb 1997 02:36:08 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702150236.E54uT@xconn.com>

The Trans-Academic mailing list has been having some great conference notices:

>>Bending Gender in the Wild West: Sissies and Bull Dykes in Popular >>Print Cultures, 1870-1920 >> >>Call for papers about gender reversals, cross-dressers, and other >>subverters of traditional masculine/feminine codes in “Westerns” (pulp >>fiction, scandal sheets, broadsides, post cards, and other popular print >>cultures). This is a proposed special session panel at the MLA >>Conference (Toronto, 12/97). Please send abstract/proposal to Chris >>Packard, Liberal Studies Program, Parsons School of Design, 65 Fifth >>Avenue, New York, NY 10011. Or e-mail off-list to cfp1492@is.nyu.edu

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1997, 17 February

Posted about 17 February, 1997 =============================================================================

AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

=============================================================================

>From listserv@xconn.com Sat 15 Feb 1997 20:27:22 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E01Cf; Sat 15 Feb 1997 20:27:22 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: new leadership-LIFE Date: Sat, 15 Feb 1997 20:27:22 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702152027.E01Cf@xconn.com>

I apologize for the formatting instructions in the following message from Brenda Viola of the LIFE support group on Long Island

— Dallas

Hi Dallas ! Sorry to be bearing such bad news. As Outreach Director of LIFE it is my duty to notify the community at large that Ray Colon is no longer President of the group as was the wishes of a great majority of the group. He should no longer be recognized as anything other than an individual. Attached is the jist of it.

\par S ecurity-the \par right to confidentiality-is the predicate upon which transgendered \par people allow themselves to gather into friendships, support groups, \par and, ultimately, into a community. Security. Whether crossdresser \par or transsexual, there are those (family, employer, non-transgendered \par friends) who cannot know, now or maybe ever, of the secret person \par who dwells inside of us. \par \par Security is our safety. It alone permits \par free communication with others like us; the sharing of pain, concerns \par and even the joys which make our lives what they are. Without \par the knowledge-the absolute assurance-that who we are will be treated \par with the utmost confidentiality, we cannot speak. We are forced \par to crawl deeper and deeper into the pitch dark of our respective \par closets. Without this compact, conversations with others of our \par kind-even with our therapists-must end. \par \par In such a case we are truly alone. Our \par singular and collective voice is stilled. We are condemned to \par a silence which will eventually explode and consume us. \par \par As a result, an outsider who "outs" \par one of us has committed an unforgivable act. One of our community \par who "outs" another-even unthinkingly-needs to be called \par to account. One of us who uses another’s security as a weapon \par of vengefulness, has broken a sacred trust. There is no excuse \par for such behavior. There is no explanation. There is no apology \par or repentance possible. \par \par I have stated this platitude with care, \par so that the horror-the odious nature-of what follows will be clearly \par under-stood. No metaphors here. Just plain language so that even \par the offender, in his studied simplicity can under-stand. \par \par In recent months serious questions have \par arisen concerning the actions of Raymond Colon, LIFE’s President. \par His behavior has become erratic on first a personal, and then \par a group basis. He has found "enemies hiding where none exist. \par The sole "offense" committed by each of these against \par Ray was a refusal to assure him that he was right, when he was \par clearly wrong. In Ray’s mind, any disagreement with him "is \par a choice of sides" against him. \par \par His misbehavior in connection with LIFE \par has become legend, but until now was forgiven with each apology: \par at group meetings he has been known to entirely lose control, \par and one particular night, having gotten drunk, he threw his significant \par other’s bed and bedding out onto his front lawn, trashed his house, \par and deflated the tire of a new member who happened to be \par present. \par \par Next, having taken control of the LIFE \par treasury, he treated it as his personal "cash cow," \par borrowed against it, and put in what he has admitted are "phony \par receipts." Then, he decided that he wants to use the treasury \par funds to buy him-self a computer ("I don’t want it for myself, \par it will be the group’s, and just kept at my house"), but \par was told by the LIFE Board, and others, that he could not. Having \par gone this far, he perceived the rebuff as a personal affront and \par attack, created an "enemies list," and went on the offensive, \par spreading rumors. \par \par When the rumor mongering failed to win \par him the general support he believed was his due, and it appeared \par that he might be called to account for his actions, he did the \par unthinkable: \par \par He specifically, deliberately, and \par with a joyful malice, "outed" another member. \par \par To forgive this breach of faith with \par the thought that he is ill, that he is emotionally unstable, that \par he fails to understand his actions, or that it was a momentary \par aberration for which he is truly sorry, is to condone what he \par has done. It is to continue the kind of cover-up by which his \par friends have tried to protect him for far too long. \par \par And, even if one credits his perception \par of having been attacked, his retaliation far exceeded rationality, \par and, because of its very nature, became a threat to us all. \par \par But, as things stand, it must be clearly \par understood that Ray Colon was not attacked. He was well aware \par of what he was doing. His tenure as President of LIFE hung by \par a precarious thread, and he has stated that he does not really \par care if he destroys LIFE with his kicking. His "outing" \par of a LIFE member can, in that light, be seen as a statement that \par "… if I can’t have LIFE for myself, then nobody will \par have it." \par \par In the single act of seeking revenge \par against another by "outing" her, Ray has destroyed the \par fabric which holds us all together. He now has all LIFE members \par hostage to his personal whims. You see, he still has addresses \par and phone numbers, and anyone who "crosses" him does \par so at the risk of exposure-and the loss of family, career and \par livelihood. \par \par The most pitiful thing is that Ray is \par greatly amused by the havoc he’s caused. This is a masterful joke \par to him, and he warmly contemplates telling this tale of victory \par over his "enemies" at group meetings for years to come. \par \par So, this warning must be issued, and \par it must be made very clearly: having once tasted his ability to \par expose a transgendered "enemy," he will not hesitate \par to do so again, and it does not matter whether the "enemy" \par is real or only a friend who makes the mistake of disagreeing \par with anything he does. Anyone-let me repeat this-anyone who \par goes near Ray from this point forward, does so at their own peril, \par and at the significant risk of similar treatment. \par \par There is no excuse for such behavior. \par There is no place to hide from responsibility-not even behind \par the facade of a simple, under-educated, cuddly, teddy bear. \par \par Caveat Emptor.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sat 15 Feb 1997 20:27:22 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E95wI; Sat 15 Feb 1997 20:27:22 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Notice Date: Sat, 15 Feb 1997 20:27:22 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702152027.E95wI@xconn.com>

Looks like this is the week for within-group problems in the community…

— Dallas

IXE PO Box 20710 Indianapolis, IN 46220-0710 e-mail: ixe@aol.com web page: http://members.aol.com/ixe/fish/ixe.html

Dear Health Care Professional or Organization,

We represent the Board of IXE, the oldest organization in the state of Indiana for Transgendered persons and their families or loved ones.

Recently we have been hearing a very bad rumor, that the leadership of another gender organization here in Indianapolis, has been going to the various professionals and agencies, saying not to recommend transgendered persons to IXE because we are a dangerous and unsafe group. We feel that this is a gross misrepresentation of our group and its membership.

IXE does not allow its members to come to meeting under the influence of drugs or alcohol. We allow no weapons of any kind. In our 10 years of existence we have had no fights or personal injuries. Members are not allowed to speak ill of any group or person while attending an IXE function.

IXE will not give out the names, addresses or phone numbers of any of our members, ex-members or guests to anyone or any group. This holds true even if a person wants us to pass that information along to another. We try to greet all persons coming to IXE with warmth and respect. Sometimes we may fail. We are not perfect and probably never will be.

We feel that all this has come about because the leadership of this other group can not get IXE to do their will. There was an incident that happened a year ago involving this person, who was a member of IXE at the time, and other members of IXE. Accusations were made against both sides, but due to a lack of proof or support for either side, the issue was not resolved to this persons liking. This person then left IXE and formed this new group. We at IXE have tried to put this history behind us and go on. However this person has continued to let it fester and is doing whatever they deem necessary to obtain their desired results. This includes innuendo, saying things out of context and generally spreading falsehoods. This person has had no first hand knowledge of what is going on, or what is happening at IXE as they have never been back.

It is our concern that members of the gender community will be the losers if IXE is left out of the process. We feel that the individual should be the one to make up their own mind rather that let someone else, who stands to gain at our expense.

We would like to recommend that the professional community and agencies continue to recommend both groups and let the transgendered decide which one is best for them. We also invite you to come to any of our meetings, at any time to determine for yourself, we are what we say we are.

Yours truly,

Shannon Michaels & Edie Davis

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sat 15 Feb 1997 21:15:17 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E81Xu; Sat 15 Feb 1997 21:15:17 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: “today we are all tranvestites” Date: Sat, 15 Feb 1997 21:15:17 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702152115.E81Xu@xconn.com>

Escrita en el Cuerpo – Lesbian and Different Women’s Archives and Library Electronic News Service

“TODAY WE ARE ALL TRANSVESTITES (*)”

“When the Israeli Embassy and the AMIA [Israeli Mutual Help Association] were bombed, we all became Jews; when photographer Jose Luis Cabezas was murdered we all became him. In the same way, today gays, lesbians, bisexuals, heterosexuals, we are all transvestites” Luciana Kerner – Young Gay and Lesbians’ Group

For about six hours, almost 30 transvestite, lesbian, gay and bisexual activists -joined by Laura Bonaparte, from Madres de Plaza Mayo, Linea Fundadora- laid siege on Buenos Aires Justice Palace. Two were the demostration’s main objectives: 1) To launch our anti-transphobia campaign aimed at the general public, in order to get all citizens involved in deffending the right to free sex/gender choice and also to help them link the violence endured by transvestites with that suffered by other groups the system needs to keep under control as it can not, overtly, eliminate them (young people, women, indigenous communities, elders, poor people, etc.) and 2) To denounce systematic human rights violations comitted against transvestites in Argentina and the absolute indiference/ complicity shown by the “democratic” powers (Justice system, Internal Affairs Ministry, etc.)

Both objectives were more than satisfactorily achieved. The demostration was thrilling, moving and challenging. The Palace’s main entrance was blocked by big sized dolls carrying the names of some of the 64 transvestites murdered by the police in the last years. A dozen LGTB activists and Laura Bonaparte chained themselves to the stairs. Almost 4,000 leaflets (the text is enclosed bellow) were distributed among passers-by. The city’s most relevant media were present as was a large police “custody”, that fortunately remained idle.

The public’s response was highly positive: nobody was agressive and, on the contrary, several people showed their agreement whener corruption and police brutality were mentioned. Almost nobody rejected the leaflets and that is a very good sign: it is probably that, upon reading them, those people will start questioning if it is legitimate and human to force every human being to choose among pink and blue once and forever, under threats of exclusion and death.

Please allow me to say that our creativity and enthusiasm played a big role in the demonstration’s success. Transvestites and lesbians make the absolute majority in the crowd. The favorite slogan was: “Ms., Mr. / don’t be indifferent / transvestites are being killed / right in your face”, sometimes turned into “Judge, judge …”. A group of people from a shanty town called Villa 21 was also demonstrating nearby against the death of several young men in the hands of the police. Following our invitation, the group’s spokewoman took our megaphone and told the public: “we can not be indifferent to any of our people’s struggles because in the face of this system that kills some of us by hunger, that kills women through abortion [illegal in Argentina], that kills young people and transvestites through the police, the only thing that can give us the victory is unity, the unity of we all”.

Lately, Laura Bonaparte mentioned the outrage that the generous budget assigned to the police for killing and stealing unpunished means in a country that is currently devastated by unemployment and hunger. Lohanna Berkins, from ALIT (Fight for Transvestite Identity Association) denounced that “those policemen who kills us are not the only ones to blame; it is also the legal system that does not listen to our claims, the authorities sending the police to annihilate us and society as a whole, for being silent and so issuing a licence to kill”

We activists also had a chance to show our sense of humour. Lohanna and other transvestites offered the public small street pieces like the following: – You are a degenerate, you can not exist, you are corrupting society’s morals and good ways, you are a threat to the family. – Hey, officer, I’ve got $ 50 for you. – Go along, don’t worry Ms, keep corrupting us and have a good day.

Meanwhile, the Young Gays and Lesbians Group devised slogans like this one: “What will happen, what will happen, the day Mr. Corach [ Internal Affairs Ministry, directly responsible for the police forces] dresses like his mother”.

Another moving time came when the media photographers arrived. Like they are doing in every event since his fellow co-worker Jose Luis Cabezas was murdered (almost surely by the police), they distributed leaflets with Cabezas’ picture on it and the legend “Do not forget him”. Transvestite, gay, lesbian and bisexual activists raised our chained arms holding the leaflets very high. The public spontaneously applauded.

We know “nothing is changed” by a single demonstration. Like Lohanna Berkins said, many of the transvestites who were there this morning will probably be arrested and beaten this very same night at different police stations. And tomorrow, without our noisy presence at the door, the judges will keep ignoring our habeas corpus and pending claims. We will keep calling the police stations where whe know our friends have been arrested so those murderers payed by the system will not dare to have them “dissappeared”. We will keep asking for international help and solidarity. We will keep approaching Human Right organizations to make them join us in our fight, like the SERPAJ – Peace and Justive Service- and Amnesty International did, by sending representatives to today’s demonstration. But this type of actions are instrumental for our long-term goal: we want every citizen to understand that transvestites are human beings too – even if it sounds obvious to us-, that their rights are ! human rights and so, any day, whenever they watch how a policeman brutalizes a transvestite, they stand up to stop it.

Alejandra Sarda Avda. San Martin 2704 – 4to. C (1416) Buenos Aires, Argentina Telefono: (54 1) 581 01 79 E.mail: ales@wamani.apc.org

(*) Note: In Argentine “transvestites” are people who live full time according to their chosen sex/gender. I know they would be called “pre-op transsexuals” in North America and Europe, but I prefer to keep the term chosen by the local community to identify with.

LEAFLET DISTRIBUTED DURING THE DEMONSTRATION

This might be your own’s story:

“Then, four of them came and took me to the patio. Another one came and grabbed me by the hair and neck, while the rest took both my legs, opened them strongly and push my tights against the floor with their knees. Meanwhile, one of them was twisting my right hands’ fingers and another my arm. I shouted desesperately, mostly because I was scared and furious. Then, they made me laid against the floor, hands to the back, put a straight jacket on me, beat me on the stomach, and I do not know what else happened. Among insults and threats I managed to listen several neighbors were shouting; they had came to the police station alarmed by the noise”

This is the testimony of Nadia, a transvestite rights’ activist, about the facts occured on January 11, 1997.

Democracy did not mean the end of repression and torture. Several assaults and deaths occured since then are proof of it. Argentinean society has many dead, and a lot of pain and anger caused by impunity; all of them are ours, and we -those who disagree with this system that brings hunger and poverty, that represses, tortures and kills people- are all of them. The police is the same like in dictatorship times; it disciplines bodies, punishes and beats them -when it does not kill them- to make us remember the place we are suposse to keep. Whoever moves, get a stick; whoever changes places, gets shot. Among those bodies and those dead people there are many who should be in our list but are disspeared because they are transvestites. At least 64 transvestites have been murdered by the police in Buenos Aires and Greater Buenos Aires during the last 10 years; none of their cases was solved up to now. Every day most transvestites are arrested, like Nadia was.

ALIT – Asociacion Lucha por la Identidad de las Travestis (Fight for Transvestite Identity Association) ATA – Asociacion Travestis Argentinas (Argentinean Transvestite Association) OTTRA – Organizacion de Travestis y Transexuales de Argentina (Argentinean Transvestite and Transsexual Organization) ACT UP Buenos Aires Amenaza Lesbica (Lesbian Menace) Biblioteca GLTT (GLTT Library) Escrita en el Cuerpo – Archivo y Biblioteca Lesbica y de Mujeres Diferentes (Written on the Body – Lesbian and Different Women’s Archives and Library) Gays por los Derechos Civiles (Gays for Civil Rights) Grupo de Jovenes Gays y Lesbianas, Construyendo Nuestra Sexualidad (Young Gays and Lesbians Group “Building Our Sexuality”) Lesbianas a la Vista (Lesbians on Sight)

Buenos Aires, January 10 1997

PLEASE: JOIN ILGA AND IGLHRC ACTION ALERT TO STOP TRANSVESTITE GENOCIDE IN ARGENTINA!

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1997, 19 February

Posted around 19 February, 1997

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AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

=============================================================================

>From listserv@xconn.com Wed 19 Feb 1997 17:55:50 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E30BH; Wed 19 Feb 1997 17:55:50 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: VIGIL AT CHANELLE PICKETT MURDER TRIAL Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 17:55:50 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702191755.E30BH@xconn.com>

MEDIA ADVISORY – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Nancy Nangeroni Transexual Menace/Boston nrn@gendertalk.com (617)497-6928

VIGIL AT CHANELLE PICKETT MURDER TRIAL ======================================

[Cambridge, MA – February 14, 1997] ON THURSDAY morning, February 27, the Middlesex Superior Courthouse in Cambridge will be the scene of another murder trial by transgender and queer activists. Activists from around the Boston area will stage a quite demonstration in support of murder victim Chanelle Pickett, found dead of strangulation in Watertown onNovember 20, 1995. The victim was found in the apartment of defendant William Palmer.

The vigil is being organized by the Remember Chanelle Committee, a group of local activists united by their outrage over the murder and biased press coverage. Working closely with the will be the local chapter of The Transexual Menace.

The planned action follows the vigil held in December 1995 at the Arlington Street Church in Boston, which was attended by 250 people, and culminated in a candlelight march to the State House.

Defendent William Palmer, at last report, continues to deny that he is an “admirer” of pre-op transsexuals, despite the promised testimony of several persons who know him as a frequenter of Boston’s TS pick-up spots.

Says Transexual Menace spokesperson andGenderTalk radio (WMBR-FM) host Nancy Nangeroni “Though we look forward to seeing justice done,” continueds Nancy Nangeroni, “we’re not there to vilify the murderer. Rather, we want to highlight the social conditions that foster such crimes against those who transgress the unwritten rules of gender.”

WHERE: Middlesex Superior Courthouse Thorndyke Street at Third street Cambridge, MA

WHEN: Vigil begins at 8:30 AM.

ADDITIONAL CONTACT: Robb Johnson, Victim Advocate Fenway Comm Ctr Victim Recovery Program RJohnson@fchc.org (617)267-0900 x308

###

“A HOMOSEXUAL IS MURDERED EVERY 3 DAYS…” ==========================================

[Brazil – February 11, 1997] THE INTERNATIONAL Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) and Grupo Gay de Bahia (GGB) released a report today detailing the ongoing persecution of Gays, Lesbians, and Transvestites in Brazil. In 1996, the report documents 126 murders of gay, lesbians, and transvestites due to their sexual orientation. In much of South America, the term “transvestite” includes transexuals.

Said Luiz Mott, author of the report, “Behind its international reputation for welcoming sexual diversity, Brazil hides a shocking secret: a homosexual is murdered every 3 days.”

###

“TODAY WE ARE ALL TRANSVESTITES” ================================

[Buenos Aires, Arg – Febrruary 11, 1997] TRANSGENDER ACTIVISTS demonstrated today at the Buenos Aires Justice Palace, denouncing the systematic human rights violations against transvestites by the government. 30 transvestite, lesbian, gay and bisexual activists called for an anti-transphobia campaign aimed at the general public, to involve all citizens in the defense of freedom to choose one1s sexual/gender expression.

The Palace’s main door was blocked by life- sized dolls carrying the names of some of the 64 transvestites murdered by police in the last year.

Said Luciana Kerner, of the Young Gay and Lesbians’ Group, “When the Israeli Embassy… was bombed, we all became Jews… in the same way, today gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and heterosexuals, we are all transvestites.”

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>From listserv@xconn.com Wed 19 Feb 1997 18:50:40 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E02OH; Wed 19 Feb 1997 18:50:40 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Drag Teens on Jerry Springer (Action Alert) Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 18:50:40 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702191850.E02OH@xconn.com>

This from Al Kielwasser

— Dallas

—————————————————————————— —— INDEX: “MEDIAlert!” for 15 FEB 97 [Part A]

Teens” [Jerry Springer; TCF Newsletter; TransFagRag]. —————————————————————————— ——

M E D I A l e r t ! _________________________

D R A G T E E N S

On the “Jerry Springer” show, a recent topic of conversation was “Teenage Drag Queens.” The February 13 broadcast pitted two young gays against the rancor of family and audience members. Though both “drag teens” offered a powerful and eloquent self-defense, the show ultimately privileged their attacker’s talk.

Alan (aka Alana) was confronted by his sister, who declared: “He is not old enough to make a decision that is going to affect the rest of his life… He does not know himself… I am not going to allow [this] destructive behavior!” The sister’s fiancee, Scott, was also brought onto the panel, and asked for his opinion of Alan — even though he had NEVER met the boy. Equating cross-dressing with drug abuse, Scott declared: “I won’t have it in my house!”

The other teen — 15-year-old Matthew (aka Laqueeda) — had to face an angry quartet; his mother, sister, aunt, and a “friend” all spouted their resentment. Articulate and proud, Matthew somehow stood his ground. “You can call me a faggot, a drag queen,” he said. “I know who I am!”

After his aunt had fretted about his “condition,” Matthew reminded his less-than-perfect relative that he had always stood by her — with unconditional love — for better or worse. “And now you’re going to make a big obstacle [out of the fact] that I have on a dress?,” he exclaimed.

Matthew’s family also blasted him with accusations of hanging out at bars, in the company of older men. Though he never drank, Matthew said, he did occasionally go to bars — where he could be with other drag queens of all ages. A shocked and accusatory Springer asked : “What are you doing going to a bar at 15?… As a 15-year-old kid, you certainly don’t need to be hanging around these places!”

Apparently, a more-appropriate question never occurred to the host. Springer should have asked: “What is our society doing… when gay and transgender teens are given nowhere to go (but a bar) for the support, community and affirmation they need?”

Instead, empathy was encouraged for the “concerned,” “distraught” and “put upon” families of queer youth. Concern was directed toward the “poor,” “suffering” parents who could “really love” their transgender teens… if only they wouldn’t “shove it in my face.” It is worth asking if similar sympathy would be afforded to other bigoted relations (say, a Baptist uncle, who moaned: “Jerry, I love my nephew… but does he have to act like a Jew in front of me?”).

Throughout Springer’s show, the transphobic family members would essentially demand: “I just want you to be my BROTHER (nephew, son) — not my SISTER (niece, daughter).” Comments from the gallery were much the same; not one member of the audience offered any support for drag teens. Typical of the reaction was an individual who opined: “If god intended you to be a woman, you would have been born one!”

Yet Springer never asked his guests or audience why they — or society — should be suffer so desperately from such chronic gender-rigidity. In fact, the host’s whole approach was decidedly uninformed.

Where he might have asked intelligent questions, based on current issues and expertise, Springer seemed to have done no reading or other preparation for this show. While shows addressing other “children’s issues” have included at least one expert (a psychologist or social service representative, for example), this program invited no such guests.

Outnumbered 2 to 1, the transgender teens were left to fend solely for themselves, and the audience was left with an absurd context for debate (This is not the first time Springer allowed panelists and members of the studio audience to viciously attack a transgender guest; in 1994, much the same thing happened during a show titled “My Boy Friend Turned Out to be A Woman”). As if everything about homosexual or transgender youth were a matter of opinion — and nothing is a matter of fact — the very EXISTENCE of queers becomes a refutable proposition.

At the conclusion of every show, Springer offers his Final Thought” on the subject at hand. Usually, he manages to strike a liberal note. This time, he was consistently off-key.

Though Springer’s “Thought” began with promise (“This probably would be a better planet if we accepted people for who they are…”), he ultimately offered some dubious advice. Parents should “apply discipline,” Springer said, and seek counseling for their children at the first signs of “gender confusion.”

The real problem is not a child’s “gender confusion,” but the society’s confused ideas about gender. Always, it is the oppressed — and never the oppressors — who are told to “get help.”

* * * ACTION ALERT! Send critical feedback to: Jerry Springer, “The Jerry Springer Show,” 454 N. Columbus Drive, Chicago, IL 60611, tel. 1-800-96-JERRY.

Related resources: For on-line activists, the “TCF Newsletter” is a valuable, monthly publication — posted through AOL’s Transgender Community Forum (e-mail onqpepsi@aol.com). Issue One of “TransFagRag” — “the first and only international newsletter for gay and bi transmen” — has just been published; for information, contact C. Julian Leonard, Elessar Press, 1259 El Camino Real, Suite 151, Menlo Park, CA 94025, e-mail julian7@hooked.net.

[End part “A”; part “B” posted separately]

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AUTHOR NOTES

Al Kielwasser is the editor of “Gay People, Sex and the Media” (New York: Haworth Press). His media criticism and research have appeared widely, in both mainstream and academic publications (including the “Journal of American Culture,” “Journal of Homosexuality,” “Journal of Popular Culture,” and “Critical Studies in Mass Communication”); he was twice elected Chair of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation/San Francisco Bay Area.

—————————————————————————— —-

ABOUT MEDIALERTS

Distributed as a community press service since 1992, “MEDIAlert!” [TM] is a biweekly, advocacy-oriented column of media criticism, primarily focused on lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender issues. Recipients may print, publish or post this material, in whole or part, under this or any title, without prior permission. When appropriate, attribution can be made to “Al Kielwasser” and/or “MEDIAlert!” File copies of publications using all or part of any “MEDIAlert!” are always appreciated (and can be sent to the address below).

Next “MEDIAlert!”: February 28, 1997. Contact: A. P. Kielwasser, MEDIAction, 163 Park Street, San Francisco, CA 94110-5835, voice-mail 415-826-5203, fax 415-826-5203, e-mail mediaction@aol.com.

___________________________________________

Shape the forces that shape our society . . . Challenge homophobia in and through the media! ____________________________________________

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>From listserv@xconn.com Wed 19 Feb 1997 20:38:40 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E96eO; Wed 19 Feb 1997 20:38:40 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: HERMAPHRODITES TO SWEEP PSYCHIATRY CONVENTION Date: Wed, 19 Feb 1997 20:38:40 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702192038.E96eO@xconn.com>

MEDIA ADVISORY—for Immediate Release

Contact— Cheryl Chase cchase@isna.org

HERMAPHRODITES TO SWEEP PSYCHIATRY CONVENTION

WHAT (short version)

Representatives from the group Intersex Society of North America (ISNA) and professional supporters will hold a hospitality suite, sponsored by the Association of Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists. ISNA activists will appeal to psychiatrists to help stop the harmful, medically unnecessary practice of genital surgery on intersex infants.

This event follows a clinical case conference by Dr. Howard Devore, which will introduce psychiatrists to harm produced by 1950s surgical model of treatment for this psycho-social problem.

WHO

Representatives of Intersex Society of North America (ISNA) and professional supporters

WHERE

Association of Gay and Lesbian Psychiatrists Hospitality Suite (Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Association May 17-22) St. James Hotel 830 6th Avenue (by F Street, walking distance to Convention Center) San Diego California (619) 531-8877

WHEN 21 May, 1997 4:00 to 5:30 PM

WHAT (long version, from Assoc G/L Psychiatrists newsletter)

Meet the Intersex Society of North America http://www.isna.org

*Hermaphrodites.* *Pseudohermaphrodites.* Who are they really, and what becomes of them? For forty years, treatment of intersexuality (mixed sexual anatomy, frequently with ambiguous genitalia) has been the province of pediatric surgeons and endocrinologists. A vibrant new movement has arisen over the past three years to oppose this treatment. We want to tell you how psychiatry can help.

Come meet with us and some of our professional supporters–therapists Howard Devore and Marty Malin, psychiatrist Bill Byne, urologist Justine Schober, and historian Alice Dreger. A video tape in which several of us describe our experiences will also be made available.

The current model of management, developed in the 1950s, demands that intersexuality be erased as quickly and completely as possible, with surgery and secrecy. This has led to profoundly harmful sorts of intervention, which push intersexuality out of the view of parents and care providers. This “conspiracy of silence”–the policy of pretending that our intersexuality has been medically eliminated–in fact simply exacerbates the predicament of the intersexed adolescent or young adult who knows that s/he is different, whose genitals have been mutilated by “reconstructive” surgery, whose sexual functioning has been severely impaired, and whose treatment history has made clear that acknowledgement or discussion of our intersexuality violates a cultural and a family taboo.

“Anatomy as Destiny? Psychotherapy of a Woman with Ambiguous Genitalia” Clinical Case Conference #3 Wednesday 21 May 9-10:30 AM

Dr. Howard Devore will use this case to demonstrate a healthy and adaptive adjustment to an intersexed identity after a childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood of reclusive and depressed reaction to childhood surgery and genital trauma as well as stigmatization both within family and community. Important therapeutic accomplishments are: 1) abandoning the futile struggle against, and shame over, intersexed history and identity, 2) finally embracing and affirming an intersexed identity, and 3) adjustment to anorgasmia and sexual dysfunction consequent to genital surgery in conjunction with female sex assignment.

Literature References:

Fausto-Sterling, Anne. 1993. The Five Sexes: Why Male and Female are not Enough. The Sciences, March/April 1993, 20-25.

Kessler, Suzanne. 1990. The medical construction of gender: case management of intersexual infants. Signs: Journal of Woman in Culture and Society, 16 (1):3-26.

###

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1997, 21 February

Posted around 21 February, 1997

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AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

=============================================================================

>From listserv@xconn.com Fri 21 Feb 1997 08:53:05 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E33aH; Fri 21 Feb 1997 08:53:05 From: OnQGwen@aol.com Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: AP – From Thursday’s Latin American Briefs Date: Fri, 21 Feb 1997 08:53:05 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702210853.E33aH@xconn.com>

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) – Sometimes it’s hard to be a woman, sang country star Tammy Wynette. Roberta Close knows the feeling.

Ms. Close, a famous transsexual model and magazine pinup, has appealed to Brazil’s Supreme Court for the right to use the name “Roberta” and the sex “female” on her identity card.

But if the court accepts the recommendation of the Federal Attorney General’s office, Close will officially remain Luis Roberto Gambine Moreira, who is male.

Deputy Attorney General Flavio Giron said Wednesday in Brasilia that denying the change did not violate Close’s constitutional right to human dignity.

Close, 32, underwent a sex-change operation in 1989. A Rio court then granted her the right to change the name and sex on her documents, but the Attorney General’s office blocked the ruling.

The sultry, dark-eyed Close is a familiar figure in newspaper society columns. She was the subject of a hit song by pop singer Erasmo Carlos and recently posed nude for a Brazilian magazine.

AP-NY-02-20-97 2030EST

Copyright 1997 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Fri 21 Feb 1997 19:48:52 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E39xh; Fri 21 Feb 1997 19:48:52 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: DR LAURA ADVISES CD TO GET HELP WITH PSYCHIATRIC DISORDER Date: Fri, 21 Feb 1997 19:48:52 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702211948.E39xh@xconn.com>

Dear Dallas,

I sent this out on a couple of lists hoping to get more perspective on exactly what was said. This was an event of great distribution, I suspect, impacting on many individual and family situations:

Did any of you hear talk-show host Dr. Laura give advise today today to a TV listener who called in (as huge numbers of radio listeners were tuned in, I suppose)? The listener asked for advice, I think, about telling his spouse.

I heard this interview while driving and couldn’t make notes. She stressed that crossdressing was a psychiatric disorder (more than once) and that the listener needed psychiatric help to deal with the problem. It seemed to me that the implication was that the problem could be cured, although she didn’t explicitly state that. I hope others on this list heard the broadcast.

The major point she made seemed to be that, once having made the commitment to marriage, the listener should not ever let the crossdressing impact the marriage (in which there were young children).

Dr. Laura indicated that she had taught human sexuality courses for a long time and was well informed about such issues.

Looking forward to hearing.

Best wishes,

Valerie

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Valerie J. Harvey “For it is surely a lifetime work, this learning to be a woman” (May Sarton) Email: hval@usaor.net; the other mail: PO Box 901, Pittsburgh, PA 15230-0901

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1997, 23 February

Posted around 23 February, 1997

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AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

=============================================================================

>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 23 Feb 1997 07:03:56 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E37Sp; Sun 23 Feb 1997 07:03:56 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: No Legal Sex Changes In Brazil Date: Sun, 23 Feb 1997 07:03:56 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702230703.E37Sp@xconn.com>

The following Associated Press article was forwarded to us by Callan Williams.

— Dallas

RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil (AP) – Sometimes it’s hard to be a woman, sang country star Tammy Wynette. Roberta Close knows the feeling. Ms. Close, a famous transsexual model and magazine pinup, has appealed to Brazil’s Supreme Court for the right to use the name “Roberta” and the sex “female” on her identity card. But if the court accepts the recommendation of the Federal Attorney General’s office, Close will officially remain Luis Roberto Gambine Moreira, who is male. Deputy Attorney General Flavio Giron said Wednesday in Brasilia that denying the change did not violate Close’s constitutional right to human dignity. Close, 32, underwent a sex-change operation in 1989. A Rio court then granted her the right to change the name and sex on her documents, but the Attorney General’s office blocked the ruling. The sultry, dark-eyed Close is a familiar figure in newspaper society columns. She was the subject of a hit song by pop singer Erasmo Carlos and recently posed nude for a Brazilian magazine. AP-NY-02-20-97 2030EST

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 23 Feb 1997 07:03:56 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E55zn; Sun 23 Feb 1997 07:03:56 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: URL for Mammograms Date: Sun, 23 Feb 1997 07:03:56 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702230703.E55zn@xconn.com>

A state by state listing of FDA-certified mammography facilities is available on the FDA home page (http://www.fda.gov/cdth/faclist.html or by calling 1-800-40 CANCER. Women can be assured of getting safe, reliable mammograms at any of the facilities listed.

If you are feeling anxious, out of control, panic-sticken, or obsessively worried, you may have an anxiety disorder. You can get information by calling the National Institute of Mental Health’s Anxiety Disorders Education Program (888-8-ANXIETY) toll-free for information on recognizing and treatment of anxiety disorders.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Sun 23 Feb 1997 07:03:56 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E66RM; Sun 23 Feb 1997 07:03:56 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: GENDHELP Date: Sun, 23 Feb 1997 07:03:56 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702230703.E66RM@xconn.com>

Our gender help mailing list is up and running. GENDHELP is a forum for discussion of self-help, growth, and transition-related issues. Sign up instructions are below.

GENDHELP is hosted by the good grace and kindness of Kymberleigh Richards of XCONN.

Dallas Denny, M.A., Executive Director

Our website is http://www.ren.org/rafil/aegis.html Visit the AEGIS FTP Site: ftp://ftp.mindspring.com/users/aegis/ User ID: anonymous Password: (your email address)

If you’re on AOL, try the keyword AEGIS

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1997, 25 February

Posted around 25 February, 1997

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AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

=============================================================================

>From listserv@xconn.com Tue 25 Feb 1997 17:22:33 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E34gJ; Tue 25 Feb 1997 17:22:33 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Explosion Rocks Gay Bar; NGLTF calls on Clinton and Reno Date: Tue, 25 Feb 1997 17:22:33 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702251722.E34gJ@xconn.com>

***************************************************** NATIONAL GAY AND LESBIAN TASK FORCE PRESS RELEASE

Contact: Kerry Lobel 202/332-6484 x3307 Betsy Gressler pager 1-800-757-6476

2320 17th Street NW Washington, DC 20009 ngltf@ngltf.org http://www.ngltf.org *****************************************************

EXPLOSION ROCKS GAY BAR IN ATLANTA

Washington, DC., February 22, 1997. A pipe bomb covered withnails exploded in a crowded Atlanta gay bar Friday night, injuring several people. A second pipe bomb was found outside the establishment and was later detonated by police.

The attack comes at a time of increasing anti-gay rhetoric. At least one anti-gay bill has been introduced each day in state legislatures thus far in 1997, according to a report recently released by NGLTF.

“As the extremist Right steps up its verbal and legislative assault, violence against gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people is on the rise,” said Kerry Lobel executive director of NGLTF. “What begins as rhetoric, can often have tragic consequences.”

Atlanta police said this bombing, the fourth to strike the city in seven months, has similarities to a January double-bombing at an Atlanta abortion clinic and the deadly July attack at the Olympic Games. All are thus far unsolved.

“We encourage FBI and local law enforcement officials to do everything in their power to solve these bombings,” Lobel continued. “They are acts of cowardice, that strike out against innocent bystanders. ”

NGLTF has written to President Clinton, Attorney General Reno and FBI Director Freeh, to alert them of the incident and call for their action.

“My purpose in writing you, Mr. President, is to echo concerns we have voiced to you earlier about the rising rhetoric of hate in this country and its devastating results,” wrote executive director Kerry Lobel in a letter to the President dated February 22. We ask you to speak out loudly against this crime, as you did in double-bombing of the women’s health clinic, deadly attacks at the Olympic Games, and burnings of black and multi-racial churches. The time has come for people of good will from all across America to speak out against hate in our country.”

In another letter to Attorney General Janet Reno, NGLTF’s Lobel asked the Department of Justice to closely monitor the situation, and, if necessary, lend assistance to local law enforcement authorities “to ensure the collection of all needed information to determine whether or not this was a hate crime.”

Georgia civil rights and hate crimes laws do not include sexual orientation. The state also has a same-gender sodomy law. According to executive director Lobel, “Today we stand with Georgians who are working every day to fight against discrimination and for their civil rights. Like them, we will not rest until this bomber is brought to justice.”

NGLTF urges anyone with information to call FBI and Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms hotline at 1-888-ATF-BOMB.

### The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force is the oldest national gay and lesbian group and is a progressive organization that has supported grassroots organizing and pioneered in national advocacy since 1973. Since its inception, NGLTF has been at the forefront of virtually every major initiative for lesbian and gay rights. In all its efforts, NGLTF helps to strengthen the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender movement at the state level while connecting these activities to a national vision for change.

###

_________________________________________

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If you wish to UNSUBSCRIBE from this list, please send an email with “UNSUBSCRIBE PRESSLIST” in the subject and body of your email message to <listserv@list.ngltf.org>.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Tue 25 Feb 1997 21:51:11 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E50HS; Tue 25 Feb 1997 21:51:11 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Penile enlargement surgery, anyone? Date: Tue, 25 Feb 1997 21:51:11 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702252151.E50HS@xconn.com>

Here are some results from a recent study of 58 men who had penile enlargement surgery. I think that the poor outcomes of these surgeries, which are so much simpler than the sort of genital surgery that is regularly practiced, w/o follow-up, on intersexed children, can serve as an indication of the likelihood of poor outcome for pediatric genital surgery as well.

Cheryl Chase Intersex Society of North America http://www.isna.org

Penile Augmentation Surgery Klein, Randy S., PhD thesis, Institute for Advanced Study of Human Sexuality. Sept 96.

Some of Klein’s results, from a questionnaire study of 58 men who returned a questionnaire mailed to them at Klein’s request by the penile enlargement surgeon:

Surgery has the potential to increase flaccid length; erect length cannot be changed. Sometimes, the healing occurs in a way that decreases flaccid length.

Surgery has the potential to increase penile circumference; indeed, the surgery basically does two things; it moves fat from elsewhere on the body (generally belly or buttocks) into the penis, and in some cases cuts the suspensory ligament. The fat is gradually re-absorbed, often unevenly, and replaced with scar tissue, leaving little hard knots. Fat is soft, and doesn’t get hard with erection. The post-surgical penis in erection feels like an erect penis with fat around it.

Respondents were asked what their “ideal” penis length was; the average answer was 7.9 inches. Average penis length in the US is 5 to 7 inches (depending upon who measures, and how).

30% found that surgery had decreased sensitivity 25% had pain during masturbation after surgery 25% had pain during sexual intercourse after surgery Frequency of sex acts, and of masturbation, decreased following surgery 45% experienced infection or other complication after surgery 50% would not have the surgery if they “had life to live over again” 57% would not recommend the surgery to a friend.

48% were not satisfied with surgical results in terms of aesthetics; complaints included scarring, curvature, angle, hair growth, and lumpiness.

The thesis contains some real horror photos of men who had reconstructive surgery to try to repair damage caused by previous penile enlargement surgery.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Tue 25 Feb 1997 21:51:11 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E07ju; Tue 25 Feb 1997 21:51:11 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: ISNA in Chicago Tribune article on gender Date: Tue, 25 Feb 1997 21:51:11 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702252151.E07ju@xconn.com>

DOC’S QUICK LOOK AT BABY DETERMINES PATH THROUGH LIFE Chicago Tribune Front page of Sunday WomaNews section in print edition

By Delia M. Rios, Newhouse News Service Web-posted Sunday, February 23, 1997; 6:25 a.m. CST

http://www.chicago.tribune.com/print/womanews/9702/23/womanews/9702230128.html

Delia Rios, who covers gender as a beat for Newhouse News Service, discusses sex differentiation, gender variance, management of same. The Tribune’s placement of this article (which discusses ways in which sex/gender fail to fit the ideal of dimorphism) on the front page of the “WomaNews” section (which slices every issue it touches by gender) is quite ironic.

Rios spoke with researchers toward both poles of the biological determinism tussle (LeVay, Fausto-Sterling), clinicians who manage gender (Zucker) and others who manage intersex (Berkovitz, Grumbach), with anthropologists (Williams) and with intersex activists struggling against surgical solutions to psychosocial problems (Chase). The article ends with Chase replying to a question about why intersex people develop a particular gender identity or sexual orientation.

“I don’t care to have intersex people used as pawns,” Chase says. “To be used as experiments of nature to see how ‘real men and women’ develop.”

Her words echo the American Indians who value such a dichotomy of spirit. “A different sense of gender is not an illness,” Chase says. “It’s who I am.”

###

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>From listserv@xconn.com Tue 25 Feb 1997 21:51:12 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E77Cr; Tue 25 Feb 1997 21:51:12 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: NGLTF on Clinton’s Bombing Statement Date: Tue, 25 Feb 1997 21:51:11 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702252151.E77Cr@xconn.com>

———- Forwarded message ———- Date: Tue, 25 Feb 97 18:39:58 EST From:ngltf@ngltf.org Subject: NGLTF on Clinton’s Bombing Statement

********************************************************************* NATIONAL GAY AND LESBIAN TASK FORCE PRESS RELEASE

Contact: Tracey Conaty 202/332-6483 x3303 tconaty@ngltf.org Pager 1-800/757-6476

Kerry Lobel 202/332-6483 x3307 klobel@ngltf.org Pager 1-800/723-0987

2320 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 http://www.ngltf.org *********************************************************************

TASK FORCE APPLAUDS STATEMENT BY CLINTON ON ATLANTA BOMBING;

BOMBING UNDERSCORES IMPORTANCE OF STATE AND FEDERAL HATE CRIMES LAWS

Washington, DC., February 25, 1997… Shaken by the bombing of a lesbian bar in Atlanta last Friday, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people nationwide were eager for Presidential response. Last night, in a speech before the Democratic Business Council, the President condemned the bombing of the nightclub as wrong. The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NGLTF) wrote the President immediately after the incident voicing its concern over the extreme prevalence of anti-gay hate crimes and requesting the President speak out against this latest terrorist incident in Atlanta.

The following is an excerpt from the President’s speech: I think we did the right thing to try to combat in a very aggressive way these church burnings. And I might say, the recent bombing of the gay nightclub in Atlanta reminds us that this work is not over. That was wrong, and we have to stand against those things. We have to go forward together. We don’t have anybody to waste.

Today Attorney General Janet Reno also issued a statement condemning the bombing. The Attorney General stated the FBI and ATF are “pursuing all motives, including the possibility that the crime was motivated by the sexual orientation of the patrons at the club.”

“The Task Force applauds the President and the Attorney General’s statements condemning the bombing of the Otherside Lounge, a bar patronized by lesbians, gay men, bisexuals and transgenders,” stated NGLTF executive director Kerry Lobel. “Let this violent and despicable act serve as a reminder that more leadership and action is needed in ensuring the safety and equality of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender Americans,” added Lobel.

Friday’s bombing highlights the lack of civil rights laws in Georgia for its gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender citizens. According to NGLTF, Georgia’s civil rights and hate crimes laws do not include sexual orientation. The state also has a same-gender sodomy law. “This bombing underscores the vital importance of hate crime laws in every state, including Georgia, and the absolute necessity that crimes based on sexual orientation be included in those laws,” stated Lobel, According to NGLTF 19 states and the District of Columbia have hate crimes laws that include sexual orientation, while 19 states have hate crime laws that do not include sexual orientation. Georgia is one of 12 states with no hate crimes law.

NGLTF urges anyone with information about the Atlanta bombings to call FBI and Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms hotline at 1-888-ATF-BOMB.

—–

The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force is a progressive organization that has supported grassroots organizing and pioneered in national advocacy since 1973. Since its inception, NGLTF has been at the forefront of virtually every major initiative for lesbian and gay rights. In all its efforts, NGLTF helps to strengthen the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender movement at the state level while connecting these activities to a national vision for change.

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1997, 27 February

Posted around 27 February, 1997 =============================================================================

AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Thu 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E67fQ; Thu 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: True Spirit Conference Press Release Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702271855.E67fQ@xconn.com>

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

February 26, 1997 (Laurel, MD)

PRESS RELEASE TRUE SPIRIT CONFERENCE A SUCCESS!

The True Spirit Conference was an outstanding success. The Laurel, Maryland conference drew over three hundred people over two days this past weekend. True Spirit was the first transgendered conference to be held in the Washington-Baltimore area and the third national F2M conference ever. The conference featured speeches, presentations, workshops, panels, informal caucuses, a dance with live music by transgendered musicians, and an exhibit hall with vendors and educational exhibits. The conference’s Native American theme addresses the Spirit which moves within each of us, granting us visions of who we are and describing our complete essence.

Leslie Feinberg, author of Transgender Warriors and Stone Butch Blues, keynoted the conference Saturday night in a speech rich with detailed analysis and passionate conviction. Feinberg’s address connected the transgendered movement not merely to the larger gay, lesbian and bisexual movement but to other struggles for civil and human rights. Feinberg urged hir listeners to understand the deep connections between all oppressed peoples, and she pointed out the synergy possible when such groups unite for joint action, such as the upcoming protest against the President’s Summit Meeting planned for April 27 in Philadelphia. Feinberg’s speech was attended by over 250 people, and was followed by musical performances featuring transgendered musicians.

On Sunday, Leslie Feinberg and Minnie Bruce Pratt both did readings of their work, along with Conference Chair Gary Bowen; Cecilia Tan, editor of Genderflex; Jay Allen Sennett; Laura Antoniou, editor of Leatherwomen; while the cast of ‘The Berdache’ did a live reading of the play by Cheryl Costa; and others. Sunday workshop presenters and panelists included Leslie Feinberg; Mary Boenke of PFLAG’s Transgender Special Outreach Network (TG-SON); Gary Bowen, Kitt Kling, Jon Banks and Adam Parascandola of the American Boyz; Marcelle Cook-Daniels; Loree Cook-Daniels; Reverend Judy Maynard of M.C.C.; Angela Brightfeather Sheedy; Cheryl Costa; Kira Triea of the Intersex Society of North America; C. Michael Munson of FORGE; Jay Allen Sennett; Lissa Freed; Dragon Xcalibur, Seattle Leather Ambassador; Dr. Kathryn Thomas, Associate Director of the National Institute for the Study, Prevention, and Treatment of Sexual Trauma; Jess Marlowe, spokesperson for the Deaf Transgender Alliance (DTA); Ben Singer from the Trangender Health Action Coalition (THAC); Phyllis Frye, Dee McKeller, and Joanna McNamara of the International Committee on Transgender Law and Employment Policy (ICTLEP); Jessica Xavier of It’s Time America (ITA); and many others.

Gary Bowen, Conference Chair, stated that:

“It was a tremendous outpouring of support, affection, and information. Everyone came away revitalized and prepared to take the next steps in community development and obtaining our civil rights. The courage of the attendees was amazing.”

The conference organizers plan to make True Spirit an annual event, to be held in the same hotel the third weekend in February. Information on advance conference registrations will be made available shortly. For more information or interviews, contact True Spirit Conference, c/o The American Boyz, P.O. Box 1118, Elkton, MD, 21922-1118.

— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — The American Boyz is an Atlantic region support and social group for people born female who feel that is not an adequate or accurate description of who they are, including but not limited to: tomboys, butches, f2ms, transmen, drag kings, female crossdressers, intersexuals, and others, with our SOs, friends, family, and allies. For more info send email to <majordomo@netgsi.com> with ‘info amboyz’ embedded in the message.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

transman@netgsi.com

“Those who say something cannot be done should not interupt those who are doing it.”–Chinese proverb

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>From listserv@xconn.com Thu 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E20bb; Thu 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Singer talk at CUNY Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702271855.E20bb@xconn.com>

For those who are around the NYC area, Ben Singer is going to be giving a talk on March 5th at the CUNY Grad Center (33 W. 42nd), titled “Velveteen Realness: Transsexual Autobiography, Transsexual Politics” According to Ben, he’s going to be talking about the whole debate of transsexual (conservative) vs. transgender (radical) politics, and trying to connect to a politics which validate our own ideal of realness regardless of how each person identifies.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Thu 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E30WA; Thu 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Trans Video Arrest Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702271855.E30WA@xconn.com>

We got this, relayed by Charlotte Henry:

Thought you would like to see this Content-ID: <0_8935_856632418@emout04.mail.aol.com.145485> Content-type: text/plain; name=”VIDEO”

Subj: Obsenity Ruling on Video Rental Date: 94-10-01 08:52:13 EST From: Starlyter

Today the St. Petersburg Times reported that a jury convicted a video store clerk on obsenity charges for renting Colossal Combos Vol. 12, “a video showing transsexual sex.” Interestingly, this conviction came after several acquittals for het and gay video rentals.

The arrest was past of a (still active) undercover operation within the sheriff’s department. The state attorneys office has said it will “continue to presecute video store clerks.accused of selling or renting obscene material.” Since het and gay videos have now been found within “communty standards,” does this mean concentration on trans videos.

Is anyone familiar with this video? Is there a significant number of trans videos that could be targeted? Anyone have any reaction to the ruling? I am a reporter for a gay paper, so please let me know if your response can be quoted. Thanks.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Thu 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E38te; Thu 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: No Limits Conference Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 18:55:26 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702271855.E38te@xconn.com>

——————————-NO LIMITS—————————–

Transgenderism: Negotiating Gender Boundaries

March 14&15 1997

Fourth Annual Women’s Studies Conference Sponsored by the Women’s Studies Association University of Nebraska-Lincoln East Campus Union 37th & Holdrege Streets THE CONFERENCE: The NO LIMITS Interdisciplinary Conference on Women’s Studies began in 1994 with a group of dedicated students who wanted to sponsor a conference that adhered to the basic tenets of Women’s Studies. Each year, NO LIMITS, has hosted more than sixty presentations from students and community members involved in Women’s Studies in numerous academic departments and community groups. Topics range from women and art to analyses of violence against women. NO LIMITS also has accepted a number of creative readings, along with artistic displays and performances. In the spirit of openness, NO LIMITS does not charge a conference fee, although pre-registration is required. NO LIMITS is funded through donations from University departments. THE PRESENTORS: LOREN CAMERON,BERNICE JOHNSON REAGON,and JANE GILMORE NO LIMITS is pleased to announce three exceptional speakers. Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagon from the acclaimed Sweet Honey In The Rock, will begin our conference Friday morning. Jane Gilmore, a nationally recognized multimedia artist will speak at a special luncheon sponsored by the Women’s Center. She will give her talk on cultural myths about women through art. We invite all of you to attend the soup and salad buffet luncheon and enjoy Jane Gilmore’s presentation. Lunch will be from 11:45-1:45. Tickets are available for $7.50. You are welcome to bring a brown bag lunch to this event. Then Friday evening at 7:00pm, Loren Cameron, an FTM photographer and author, will give a talk entitled “Body Alchemy.” A booksigning will follow his very special presentation. We hope you enjoy these impressive presentations.

************************ Registration Form *************************** Please respond via e-mail for regristration purposes only. If attending the luncheon, or purchasing a conference t-shirt please copy this form and send it along with your payment. Thanks.

———————- NO LIMITS Conference March 14&15, 1997 ——-

Name___________________________________________

Address________________________________________

E-mail/phone___________________________________

CONFERENCE ASSISTANCE ________ I need child care. The age(s) of child(ren) needing care is/are:

_______ I request other special assistance such as an interpreter, etc. I need:

FRIDAY LUNCHEON _______*Yes, I would like a meal pass for the luncheon with artist, Jane Gilmore. I have enclosed $7.50 for the soup and salad buffet. Beverages will be provided.

_______ No, I do not want a meal pass, but please reserve a seat for me to attend the presentation.

______ I would be interested in chairing a session for a panel.

PARKING _______ Please send me a campus parking pass.

CONFERENCE T-SHIRT ______ *I would like a NO LIMITS ’97 Special Edition T-Shirt. I have enclosed $10.00. Circle size M L XL XXL

RETURN THIS FORM AS SOON AS POSSIBLE.

_________ Total Amount Enclosed. Please make checks out to NO LIMITS conference.

Return to NO LIMITS Conference c/o Women’s Studies Program University of Nebraska-Lincoln 337 Andrews Hall Lincoln, NE 68588-0303 phone(402) 472-9392 e-mail 00214358@bigred.unl.edu

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>From listserv@xconn.com Thu 27 Feb 1997 21:02:30 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E01Em; Thu 27 Feb 1997 21:02:30 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: IHOP details Date: Thu, 27 Feb 1997 21:02:30 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702272102.E01Em@xconn.com>

American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc. For Immediate Release

On Monday, Feb. 03, 1997, Charles Henry, a transgendered person who was born male and who was presenting as male, took his 10 year old daughter out to eat at the IHOP restaurant located on E Alabama Rd in Woodstock, Ga. While they were eating, Henry kept noticing 2 employees staring at him from the kitchen area. While it made him uncomfortable, he saw no reason to draw his daughter’s attention to it. The time was 6:50-7:40 pm, during the height of the rush hour.

As Henry and his daughter got up to leave, one of the men came out of the kitchen and followed them into the lobby wearing a T-shirt bearing the message >SILLY FAGGOT, DIX ARE FOR CHIX<. This was obviously an attempt to confront Henry, since the man was staring at him. Henry asked the shift manager, Mr. Scott Dukes, for the owner’s name and number, paid for his food, and left. As he left the building, he turned to see Mr. Dukes talking casually to the person wearing the t-shirt.

Upon returning home, Henry called the 800 number which was posted on the front door of the restaurant and reported the incident. The following morning, Henry called the owner, Mr. Joe Scripture, and informed him of the situation. Mr. Scripture, who also owns the IHOP in Buckhead, assured Henry that he would take care of the situation.

The next evening Henry called the restaurant and asked Dukes what had transpired as a result of his complaint. Dukes informed Henry that he had been questioned by the owner, but that he was unaware of any such T-shirt and offered that it could have been a customer wearing the shirt. Henry asked Dukes if he would allow a customer to wear such an obscenity in the restaurant and he said he would. Henry asked how he could allow that kind of message in the restaurant in the presence of children, and Dukes’ reply was that he would not ask a customer to leave because of the T-shirt.

To date, Henry says he has had no indication that IHOP has taken any action other than to inform their employees that the kitchen area is off limits to anyone who isn’t an employee.

Henry has also received a form letter that said “Thank you for your comments” and “We hope you like our restaurants.”

Dallas Denny, M.A., Executive Director

Our website is http://www.ren.org/rafil/aegis.html Visit the AEGIS FTP Site: ftp://ftp.mindspring.com/users/aegis/ User ID: anonymous Password: (your email address)

If you’re on AOL, try the keyword AEGIS

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1997, 28 February

Posted about 29 February, 1997

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AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

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>From listserv@xconn.com Fri 28 Feb 1997 20:33:30 Received: from xconn by xconn.com with uucp id E64OT; Fri 28 Feb 1997 20:33:30 From: Dallas Denny <aegis@gender.org> Reply-to: aegisnws@xconn.com Subject: Book on GLBT College Students Date: Fri, 28 Feb 1997 20:33:30 X-Sender: UUPlus Listserver 2.03 for DOS To: anechoxc Message-Id: <9702282033.E64OT@xconn.com>

Editors Kim Howard and Annie Stevens are compiling a book in which lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered college students share their experiences coming out, being out, or being closeted on their college campuses. If you are or were an undergrad in the ’90s, your contribution is invited. For guidelines, write to P.O. Box 5345, Takoma Park, MD 20913, e-mail to AS154@umail.umd.edu or go to the web page http://www.wam.und.edu/~StevensA/book.html. Confidentiality assured. Deadline June 30, 1997.

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1997, 29 February

Posted about 29 February, 1997

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AEGIS-NEWS DIGEST

A service of the American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc.

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