How to Do Effective Gender Communication
Gender Education and Advocacy is a new national non-profit organization with twin missions of education and nonpolitical advocacy in the areas of health and media. By focusing on these areas, GEA seeks to improve the lives of all gender-variant people, regardless of their sexual orientation or individual identities.
Read MoreGender Education Training for the New Millennium (2001)
As a movement, the time has come for us to prioritize our public gender education efforts in order to remove this stigmatization and restore our basic human dignity.
Read MoreIn the Beginning: How My Photos of 1950s Crossdressers Inspired a Hit Show on Broadway (2014)
In 2013 Andrea was visiting our own Miqqi Gilbert at Miqqi’ s home in Toronto and Miqqi showed her Hurst and Swope’s book. Andrea immediately realized she had taken and developed most of the photos in the book.
Read MoreCreating Community: A History of Early Transgender Support in Atlanta (2015)
In which I provide an illustrated and incomplete history of transpeople in Atlanta, ending around 1994.
Read MoreBeing Virtually Virtual (2011)
Letting people into our real lives can be dangerous. Even if the window into our lives is a narrow one, we must be concerned with issues of privacy, safety, and security.
Read MoreDangerous Curves: The Trouble with Injectable Silicone (2014)
Today silicone injections are occurring in epidemic proportions. Typically, large amounts (liters, sometimes) are administered by non-licensed and usually non-medically trained “practitioners” who use big-bore needles to pump large quantities of non-medical grade silicone into virtually every part of the body.
Read MoreAll We Were Allowed to Write (2014)
Before 1994 or so, transpeople were excluded from our own literature. We authored no textbooks and had no book chapters or articles in professional journals. What we could get published, at least from the 1950s onward through 1990 or so, were autobiographies.
Read MoreGender Reassignment Surgeries in the XXth Century (2015)
The techniques used in modern plastic surgery—including GRS—were developed almost exclusively by this man, who is considered the father of plastic surgery. His name was Harold Gillies.
Read MoreDismantling the Gender Binary (2015)
This are the notes for my keynote delivered at Transgender Lives: The Intersection of Health and Law, Farmington, CT, 25 April, 2015
Read MoreAll We Were Allowed to Write (2014)
There are hundreds and hundreds of trans bios. In this presentation I describe and discuss some of them.
Read MoreTrans Bodies, Trans Selves (2014)
Jamison Green and I prepared a 30,000-word chapter on trans representations in the media. As things sometimes go in the book publishing business, it morphed into a series of media spotlights. Anyone interested in a great chapter on trans people in the media?
Read MoreThe Language of Gender Variance (2014)
In 1998 Jamison Green, Jason Cromwell, and I distributed a questionnaire asking transgendered and transsexual people their reactions to selected terms and asking them what they did and did not wish to be called. One hundred thirty-seven questionnaires were returned, of which 134 were usable responses. We also conducted focus groups in September and October 2001 at the Southern Comfort and Fantasia Fair conferences to discuss our project and ask what message(s) about language usage participants would like professionals to hear. Ten years later we again distributed the survey and received 2651 responses. In our paper, we present our findings.
Read MoreThe Language of Gender Variance (2001)
This paper presents data from a national survey of attitudes of transpeople about various and assorted terms which had been used to describe them. The survey was done in 1998. Ten years later we again surveyed transpeople about their preference for terminology. The resulting paper is now under review for consideration for publication in the International Journal of Transgenderism.
Read MorePreserving Trans History: A Short History and Suggestions for the Future (2014)
Clearly the mere establishment of a trans archive at the University of Michigan has resulted in donations in the form of money and materials—and clearly the university itself is proud of the collection and is motivated to grow it. And clearly, the collection has grown since 2000.
Read MoreNot Screwed Up Enough (2013)
I was honored to be asked by The Triangle Coalition to present this keynote. I was treated like royalty while at the University of Missouri at Columbia.
Read MoreThe Campaigns Against Transsexuals: Part I (2013)
Today I’m talking about a remarkable—and successful—plot to end sex reassignment in the United States. Yes, right here in River City! The year was 1979.
Read MoreFirst Contact: Transgender Community Educational Efforts in the Late Twentieth Century (Keynote, 2009)
Why is trans education important? Well, ask yourself if there was ever a time in your life when you badly needed information about who you were, what you could do about it, who you could be, and how you could plan your life. If you’re like me, you were at one time or another, and maybe even for half your life, desperate for such information.
Read MoreWhere We’ve Been and Where We’re Going (2011)
When a keynote presenter bailed at Fantasia Fair, Dainna Cicotello and I were asked to do this presentation on short notice—24 hours. This is my portion of the presentation. I was asked to give it again at the TransEvent Conference in Albany—and did.
Read MoreYour Virtual Life is Waiting (2007)
What would you do if you could build a world—and a perfect body—from scratch? What would it mean if you could fly? If you were fabulously wealthy? What happens to our consciousness when we can simultaneously control multiple or inhuman bodies, each with its own personality? Computers make possible the creation of complex virtual worlds which can enrich, extend, and redefine the human experience. Linden Lab’s Second Life is such a world, a three-dimensional space created entirely by its inhabitants.
Read MoreOne Hundred Years in the Spotlight (2011)
I take a look at how transpeople have been portrayed in the movies and talk about new opportunities for self-expression provided by emerging categories of media.
Read MoreThe WPATH Standards of Care (2005)
My readers, please note—much changed with the introduction of Version 7 of the Standards of Care. This presentation, and any criticisms I may have had in the past, are obsolete.
Read MoreCounseling Transgender Youth Workshop, Southern Comfort Conference (1999)
As information and support have become more widely available, young people with transgender issues, both male-to-female and female-to-male, have begun to come forth in increasing numbers. The concerns of transgender youth are in some ways similar and in some ways strikingly different from those of adults. In this, the third year of the Counseling Professionals’ Workshops, we examine the difficult issues faced by transgender youth and their families.
Read MoreSpeech at Kappa Beta’s Magnolia Ball (1999)
Transgender is an all-encompassing term which is understood by many people, including academics, the Gay and Lesbian Community, and we ourselves. To us it means there are no failures because of not following “traditional” paths. Transgendered people are those who express gender differently from the traditional two roles.
Read MoreNTL&A Dedication Ceremony Program Book (2004)
In 2004 the University of Michigan held a dedication ceremony for the National Transgender Library & Archive.
Read MoreKeynote at Tennessee Vals Christmas Banquet (1998)
In 1998 I was asked to give a keynote at the Christmas Banquet of the Tennessee Vals Transgender Support Group.
Read MoreReading at Outwrite Bookstore (1997)
I did several readings by invitation at Philip Rafshoon’s Outwrite bookstore in Midtown Atlanta. HOn 27 April, 1997, I read Chapter 3 from my novel The Problem.
Read MoreGender Education Training for the New Millennium (2000-2001)
On January 1, 2000 Gender Education & Advocacy, Inc. launched as the successor organization to The American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc. Founding board members were myself, Jamison Green, Jessica Xavier, Penni Ashe Matz, Gwendolyn Smith, and Sandra Cole. We made three presentations to familiarize the community with the new organization. This is the outline from our talk at the IFGE convention. The other talks were similar.
Read MoreTransgender: The Issues (Presentation at Outgiving Conference) (1999)
Outgiving is an annual conference for large donors to LGBT causes. I appeared because Jessica Xavier, who had been invited to attend, was unable to go. I don’t remember how much we collaborated on the presentation, but I suspect many of the ideas are hers.
Read MoreUsing the TRS‑80 Model 100 Portable Computer as a Data Collection Device (1985)
BOSCO, The Behavioral Observation System— COmputerized, allows the TRS-8O Model 100 portable computer to be used as a relatively inexpensive data collection device instead of more expensive dedicated devices such as ElectroGeneral’s DATAMYTE and Observational Systems’ OS-3. BOSCO, a program written in BASIC for the Model 100 with expanded memory, has been used to collect real-time behavioral data in field research studies.
Read MoreSplendor of Gender Workshop (1994)
The Splendor of Gender was a two-day workshop planned and hosted by the Tampa Stress Center and The American Educational Gender Information Service, Inc. We worked together to develop the program and used our contacts to build a powerful team of presenters which included Kimberly Westwood and Carl Bushong, Ph.D. of the Tampa Stress Center; myself, Barbara Warren, Psy. D.; Eugene Schrang, M.D., and Pascual Bidot, M.D.
Read MoreNeeded: A New Literature for a New Century (1997)
Much of the existing literature addresses in detail questions which no longer seem relevant. For instance, many studies have been designed to determine the ways in which transseuals vary from controls (i.e., “normal” individuals), and a great deal of effort has been expended in attempts to “manage” transsexualism and transsexuals themselves. Meanwhile, other, more important, questions remain unaddressed.
Read MoreMoving Prey Attracts Snakes (1977)
Chemical cues are of great importance-in the food-finding behavior of snakes. However, visual cues may direct the attacks of foraging snakes, especially if the snakes have been alerted by olfactory cues. In the present experiments, testing chambers were saturated with prey odor, after which movement of prey objects of a constant size was varied quantitatively across a wide range of speeds.
Read MoreThe HBIGDA Standards of Care: Results of a Survey of Consumers (1994)
We present a preliminary analysis of the data for approximately 300 questionnaires. The find the majority of respondents believe there should be Standards of Care and support the various safeguards (like the real-life test) of the HBIGDA Standards.
Read MoreAre Sex People the Best People to Work With Gender People? (1997)
This paper was read for me by Dr. Sandra Cole at the joint meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality and the American Association of Sex Educators, Counselors, and Sex Therapists, Arlington VA, November, 1997.
Read MoreThe Use of Microcomputers as Augmentative Communication Devices (1984)
For persons with severe motor impairments which limit their ability to move as well as to speak, computers are of importance as communication aids. However, computer-based communication devices have heretofore been expensive and often crude. The proliferation of reliable, low-cost personal computers has solved the hardware problem, but communication ware is frequently inadequate or inefficient.
Read MoreUsing a Bar Code Reader to Enter Behavioral Observations (1988)
Our impression is that use of a computer-based bar code readeris a suitable method for collecting some types of behavioral data. The necessity of looking away from the keyboard suggests the BCR may be more practical for collection of interval rather than continuous data. The provision of mechanical guides would provide tactile cues for positioning the BCR and might reduce the need to look at the scanning sheet.
Read MoreUsing a Microcomputer to Collect Behavioral Data on an Augumentative Communication Program (1989)
We added automatic data collection routines to a microcomputer-based augmentatative device which has been used for more than five years by an adult male nonretarded resident of Greene Valley Developmental Center. The data were collected by the computer, without the necessity of a human observer. Data are presented for frequency and length of use, number of switch closures, and accesses of output devices.
Read MoreThe Ability of Mentally Retarded Adults to Judge Facial Expressions From Photographs (1983)
The ability of mentally retarded persons to recognize facial expressions is not well known. In the present study, Carroll Izard’s photo recognition technique was applied to a sample of institutionalized mentally retarded adults, with their responses compared to those of nonretarded adults to determine: 1) if retarded adults can identity emotive facial expressions, and, 2) which expressions they can best recognize.
Read MoreCounseling Professionals Workshop, Southern Comfort Conference (1998)
In 1997 and 1998 several Atlanta-based mental health professionals, including myself, formed an organization called the American Gender Institute. We produced this workshop in 1998 and another at SCC the following year.
Read MoreCounseling Needs of Transgendered Persons (1993)
In the course of their careers, mental health professionals are likely to encounter a number of clients with gender identity disorders. Although some therapists understandably choose not to deal with issues of gender and sexuality, it is nevertheless important all caregivers be sensitive to the needs of transgendered persons, so they can be given appropriate referrals. It is important to realize many of the issues which confront such persons are only peripherally related to their gender conflict, and many of their counseling needs are essentially the same as those of other clients, and so they can be helped by almost any therapist. The client with gender dysphoria should be considered as a whole person, with needs in areas which often do not require a sex or gender specialist, and offered services, if the therapist specializes in the areas of need.
Read MoreYou Make Me Sick! (2004)
The existing medical and psychological literature of transsexualism has many problems. Its themes, its assumptions, and its language make it nearly impossible to discuss transsexuals or transsexualism in a healthy way. It is on the whole profoundly disrespectful of transsexual people, who are portrayed as sexual stereotypes, ridiculed for their manner of dress, and insulted in a variety of other ways both overt and covert. It actively promotes a model disempowering to transsexuals, who have been expected to surrender their autonomy to mental health professionals and then disavow their transsexualism by disappearing into the woodwork and passing as nontranssexuals after their gender transitions.
Read MoreTransgender Education Through the Decades (2010)
The Empire Conference is a transgender event held every spring in Albany, NY. Event organizers Kristine James and Alison Laing invited me to present this keynote, and someone– I think Jean Lewis– recorded it.
Read MoreThe Mother of All Transgender Events (2010)
Fantasia Fair, a week-long annual transgender event held in Provincetown, MA, has been called The Mother of All Transgender Events. It has been running since 1975.
Read MoreThe Well-Groomed Fly (1977)
Jed was primarily interested in the sequencing of the grooming movements, but I found myself wondering if the purpose was to keep the body clean. To that end I put a fly in a petri dish, covered it with a dollop of flour I had brought from home, waited a couple of days, and looked at them under a microscope.
Read MorePioneer Award Acceptance Speech (2009)
The Pioneer Award is an honor bestowed upon lifelong leaders of the transgender community by the board of directors of Real Life Experiences, Inc., the nonprofit that oversees the annual transgender event Fantasia Fair. It’s an award I in fact proposed to the board back in 2001. The first award was given in 2002. I was honored to receive it seven years later.
Read MoreResponse Deprivation, Reinforcement, and Punishment (1978)
Dr. Malone was brilliant and a bit of a rascal. Once I let him know I would be late for class on the history of psychology. He okayed it, but when I tiptoed into the the back of the huge classroom he called me out. “Dallas! How nice of you to come!”
Read MoreInvited Speech at Atlanta Pride (1994)
We have come out of that dark and shameful place, the closet, and begun to own who we are and to claim our place in the world. Like Joan of Arc, we are warriors, and we have begun to fight for our right to be ourselves. We are here, and we are queer too, and we are not going to go away.
Read MoreBeyond Our Slave Names (1999)
You know what a slave name is, don’t you? That’s the name given to you because your master can’t be bothered to learn your real name. Transsexual is my slave name. It was given to me by doctors. It’s not the name I might have chosen for myself, but I’m stuck with it.
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