Donna mentioned it a while back, and I have seen a variety of reports on TV and in print lately which mention the current pregnancy of Thomas Beattie. Yes, he's pregnant. There has been such a big deal made lately, but, in fact, he isn't the first. Around the turn of the century, an FTM named Matt had a child named Blake, both of which are in the Transfigurations series. If you look through the Transfiguration series here, you can read Matt's words concerning the issue of him being pregnant.
From what I remember of the situation (and reading over that older article) and the rumors that floated around for years after, the ones that had the biggest issue with Matt being pregnant were a number of FTM's that disagreed with a man having a baby. I guess you could sorta compare these biased FTM's to the MTF's that say women can't wear pants.
I wear pants...and cargo pants...and whatever I really want to wear, so if an FTM wants to become preggers, awesome for him. The same goes for MTF's who want to have kids. I have boys in the bank just in case I meet the right woman (or man, for that matter) that wants to have kids with me. And, yes, that includes an FTM. Wouldn't that be wild...a post-op MTF donating sperm to an FTM that carries the child. Mom would be dad, and dad would be mom....or, well, whatever. The main thing is for a child to have loving parents...that's all we can really ask for.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
TG Leadership Conference
The TG Leadership Conference is this weekend. Looking at the announcement on TLC's website, it looks like it has reached capacity...indicating that the place will be packed. A number of people are coming into town that I know, some being pretty high profile, so I'm not sure if they will have time to say hi.
The past two conferences have been in LA, so I never made the trip. This one is local, so I figured it was the best time to attend...and I really need to get more involved and stay up to date on the current work.
Here's the press release from TLC:
The past two conferences have been in LA, so I never made the trip. This one is local, so I figured it was the best time to attend...and I really need to get more involved and stay up to date on the current work.
Here's the press release from TLC:
March 11, 2008 CONTACT: Masen Davis, Transgender Law Center
PHONE: 415-738-6168 EMAIL: masen@transgenderla
CONTACT: Shumway Marshall, Equality California Institute
PHONE: (310) 933-7535 EMAIL: shumway@eqca.
Nearly 400 Activists Gather to Strengthen Transgender Civil Rights, Equality Movement in California
Third Annual California Transgender Leadership Summit Takes Place March 14-16 at UC-Berkeley
SAN FRANCISCO – About 400 transgender community leaders and activists from across the state will gather at UC-Berkeley this week to help strengthen efforts to secure equal civil rights for transgender Californians.
The 3rd Annual Transgender Leadership Summit, organized by the Transgender Law Center (TLC) and presented by Equality California Institute (EQCAI), takes place March 14-16 at the university’s Gender Equity Resource Center.
“This year’s event will be the largest ever, with about 400 participants, 26 workshops, and four plenary sessions,” said TLC Executive Director Masen Davis. “The Summit’s 2008 theme, ‘Trans Grows Up: Change from the Inside Out,’ reflects the steady progress and growth the statewide movement for transgender equality has experienced in the past few years,” Davis said. “Summit organizers chose this theme to reflect the increased visibility of transgender youth, the growing number of transgender elders, and the need to adopt multiple strategies – both inside and outside of the community – to ensure civil rights and equality for all transgender people.”
Nearly 30 presenters, including well-known leaders from the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community, will take part in the three-day summit. In focused plenary sessions, experts will evaluate the transgender civil rights movement’s successes, challenges and opportunities for future progress. The skills-building workshops are organized by themes, including personal and community empowerment, leadership development, policy building and advocacy, campaign organizing and media relations.
“The Summit gives seasoned activists, allies and new members of the transgender community the chance to elevate the movement, outline key issues and identify and train future leaders,” said EQCAI Executive Director Geoff Kors. “Now more than ever it is critical for the community to closely align its efforts and resources to end discrimination against transgender people. EQCAI is proud to be the presenting sponsor of this important summit.”
Sponsors of the 2008 California Transgender Leadership Summit include Presenting Sponsor EQCAI, Northrop Grumman, Asia SF, GLOSS, UC-Berkeley Gender Equity Resource Center, Asian and Pacific Islander Wellness Center, National Center for Lesbian Rights and San Francisco LGBT Community Center.
What:
2008 California Transgender Leadership Summit
“Trans Grown Up: Changes from the Inside Out”
When:
Friday, March 14 through Sunday, March 16
Where:
University of California, Berkeley
Gender Equity Resource Center
202 Cesar Chavez Student Center, MC 2440
Berkeley, CA 94720-2440
More Information:
http://transgenderl
Equality California Institute informs lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people and the public at large about issues impacting the LGBT community and our allies, and connects communities working for justice and civil rights. www.eqca.org
Transgender Law Center (TLC) is a civil rights organization advocating for transgender communities through direct legal services, education, community organizing, and policy and media advocacy. www.transgenderlawc
Monday, March 10, 2008
This buds for you
In October 2002, about a month after I started hormones, I started to feel small little buds in my breasts. They grew to about the size of a golf ball before finally softening into my very small breasts. They didn't grow much after about a year of hormones. In February 2005, I had SRS and hoped that the breast development would pick up again since the body no longer had to worry about testosterone. It didn't, so I bought a new pair of boobs in December 2005. I figured 3 years was long enough to wait to see if any significant development was going to happen.
It's now been over 5 years of hormones, and believe it or not, breast buds have popped up again. They started to grow about 2 months ago. I wasn't sure they were buds at first, or just sensitivity from the small amount of scar tissue. Dr. Gray goes in through the nipple to place the breast implants, so I just figured it was the scar tissue I was feeling at first, but over the past few weeks I've seen the buds grow larger...up to about the size of gumballs in both breasts. It's strange to get them again after over 5 years of hormones, but I guess that is what happens with development...it comes in stages. Also, I'm athletic, and from reading online, being active can possibly slow puberty, or in my case, my second puberty. I figure my age also plays a factor since my metabolism isn't what it used to be.
The breast buds are nice to see, I just hope they don't go bananas and give me a D combined with the implants. I'm hoping they mainly help the development of my undersized nipples, but hey, I'll be happy to get what I can.
It's now been over 5 years of hormones, and believe it or not, breast buds have popped up again. They started to grow about 2 months ago. I wasn't sure they were buds at first, or just sensitivity from the small amount of scar tissue. Dr. Gray goes in through the nipple to place the breast implants, so I just figured it was the scar tissue I was feeling at first, but over the past few weeks I've seen the buds grow larger...up to about the size of gumballs in both breasts. It's strange to get them again after over 5 years of hormones, but I guess that is what happens with development...it comes in stages. Also, I'm athletic, and from reading online, being active can possibly slow puberty, or in my case, my second puberty. I figure my age also plays a factor since my metabolism isn't what it used to be.
The breast buds are nice to see, I just hope they don't go bananas and give me a D combined with the implants. I'm hoping they mainly help the development of my undersized nipples, but hey, I'll be happy to get what I can.
Friday, March 07, 2008
Microsoft and the media
I was up a touch late last night and caught the ABC News article about a trans-woman working at Microsoft. I know a few T's at Microsoft, so I figured I'd check out their latest edition. (I swear...if a guy told me he was a software engineer at Microsoft, I'd likely ask how soon he planned on transitioning.)
Microsoft takes a beating for how bad their operating system can annoy the hell out of people, but I have to give them kudos for how they treat their employees. Like I said, I've known a number of transgender women that have worked for Microsoft, and they always seem to have a relatively easy transition at work.
In last night's piece, the reporter actually annoyed me more than anything else. His continual usage of "he" drove me bananas, and his intentional questioning to provoke people's emotions not only backfired, but showed just how out of touch he is with society. The people being interviewed gave the reporter this look that was like "Wow, why are you so concerned about it?" or "Are you really that stupid?"
Bravo to Megan for putting up with that reporter. I don't know if I could have gone through that.
Megan is still with her wife, although their relationship looks rocky. A lot of wives try to make it work through transitions, but so many of them just have to give up in the end. I think it usually ends up being a mutual separation. It's so unfair for both of them, too...as transitioning after being married is so hard. Two people fell in love, yet one feels hurt for not knowing the truth, and the other feels sorry for not having been their true self so long ago. As Megan mentioned in the piece, she didn't tell her wife before their marriage because she herself still hadn't accepted who she was. I wish the two of them the best of luck.
Microsoft takes a beating for how bad their operating system can annoy the hell out of people, but I have to give them kudos for how they treat their employees. Like I said, I've known a number of transgender women that have worked for Microsoft, and they always seem to have a relatively easy transition at work.
In last night's piece, the reporter actually annoyed me more than anything else. His continual usage of "he" drove me bananas, and his intentional questioning to provoke people's emotions not only backfired, but showed just how out of touch he is with society. The people being interviewed gave the reporter this look that was like "Wow, why are you so concerned about it?" or "Are you really that stupid?"
Bravo to Megan for putting up with that reporter. I don't know if I could have gone through that.
Megan is still with her wife, although their relationship looks rocky. A lot of wives try to make it work through transitions, but so many of them just have to give up in the end. I think it usually ends up being a mutual separation. It's so unfair for both of them, too...as transitioning after being married is so hard. Two people fell in love, yet one feels hurt for not knowing the truth, and the other feels sorry for not having been their true self so long ago. As Megan mentioned in the piece, she didn't tell her wife before their marriage because she herself still hadn't accepted who she was. I wish the two of them the best of luck.
Monday, March 03, 2008
Hanging Chads
Here's an interesting and caring article from the Sun-Sentinel concerning some thoughts about the recent anti-trans and anti-gay actions in Florida.
I think as more and more people see how wrong it is to kill or hurt someone just for being themselves, we'll see more legal actions being taken to make the penalties much stronger....well, at least I hope they do. Of course, awareness of LGBT issues is more of a proactive approach so that the hate doesn't show up in the first place.
I think as more and more people see how wrong it is to kill or hurt someone just for being themselves, we'll see more legal actions being taken to make the penalties much stronger....well, at least I hope they do. Of course, awareness of LGBT issues is more of a proactive approach so that the hate doesn't show up in the first place.
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