But guess what was missing? As usual, any photos from — or any mention of — the annual Trans March and celebration on Friday.

Now I realize the Trans March only draws thousands, not the tens of thousands that the Dyke March does, nor the hundreds of thousands that the parade does; and I realize that in San Francisco there’s somebody marching about something pretty much every other day. But you’d think a crowd like this marching down Market Street might attract a bit of attention.

It just would be nice that in one of the most trans-friendly cities on earth, the local paper of record would see fit to mention that there’s a T part to LGBT Pride. Especially this year, when the Pride organizers specifically invited several trans contingents to lead off the parade (after the Dykes on Bikes and the “official” floats). Especially when one of the contingents — the Sacramento Gems — were decked out in Southern Belle hoop-skirts that proved to be irresistible photo-bait to the folks I saw cramming the sidewalks.

But we did get a crumb. The Chron did focus on a trans couple in a regular Sunday article where couples get to tell the story of their relationship.

Lose some, win some…

The Employment Non-Discrimination Act, first introduced in 1994, would prohibit job discrimination against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people. But LGBT people have never been able to achieve the enactment of the bill, known by the acronym of “ENDA”.Last year, the Administration’s highest ranking gay official, Office of Personnel Management Director John Berry, indicated that ENDA was highest priority on the LGBT civil rights agenda.

“If we can get ENDA enacted and signed into law, it is only a matter of time before all the rest happens,” he said. “It is the keystone that holds up the whole bunch, and so we need to focus our energies and attention there.”

Hearings were held last Fall in the House and in the Senate to demonstrate the need for the bill, and testimony was heard on the severe unemployment, underemployment and harassment experienced by LGBT workers. Witnesses testified to the scientific studies demonstrating this. But nothing has happened. Click here to find out why and join us in swarming Speaker Pelosi’s office.

Please call Speaker Pelosi at 202-225-4965. Ask that the Employment Non-Discrimination Act, HR 3017, move to a vote. Please be polite, but firm. After you call, please tell us how the call went in the comments. If you get a busy signal or hang up, let us know that too. Let’s work together to let Speaker Pelosi know that we want action now!

Liss at Shakeville has some good words and a summary list of the more than 100 trans people (that we know of) who died violently during the last year for being who they were. That’s nearly 1 person every three days. Each individual and their story has also been memorialized at the TDOR site.

It’s a list that’s far too long — as is the equivalent list at Rainbow Memorial — and it elicited tears and expressions of sympathy from a number of the cisgendered Shakers. Which is appreciated.

But more than tears and hugs, what we need some ass-kicking anger channeled into changing things.

For example, the Employment Non-Discrimination Act — which would ban job discrimination due to sexual orientation and gender identity — has gotten held up in the House, with no word on when it will get back on track — and passage is still uncertain in the Senate.

In 29 states, it is still legal to fire someone because they’re gay; and in 38 states, it is legal to fire someone because they are transgender. The wingnuts have been reportedly been flooding Congress with calls arguing that it’s a “special right” not to be fired for who you are. Your Congress critter needs to hear that there’s a lot of their constituents who feel it’s time to overturn the “special right” of being able to fire someone out of bigotry.

(Yes, it’s perfectly legal in 29 states for someone to fire you for your sexual orientation and in 38 states for your gender identity or expression — and yes that includes straight people too. Appellate courts have ruled it’s legal to fire a woman for not wearing make-up at work.)

We are coming into the second week of August, and support for ENDA among legislators is slowly inching up. Here’s the status as of today.

In the House, where we need 218 yes votes, there are 172 confirmed yes, and another 35 who will probably vote yes, though they have not yet confirmed this, making a total of 207 likely yes votes. Not enough. 76 Representatives are unconfirmed either way, and these need to be persuaded by you. Here’s a spreadsheet with the latest updates about where people stand.

In the Senate, where we need 60 yes votes because of the likely Republic filibuster that requires 60 votes to stop, there are 47 confirmed yes votes, and another 11 likely yes votes, making a total of 57 likely yes votes. Not enough. 52 Senators are unconfirmed either way, and these need to be persuaded by you. This spreadsheet shows who’s wavering.

What you can do:
The key fight is going to be in the Senate. Please take whatever time you can to call the Senate swing votes, which you can find here.

• Sign up to meet with your legislator in your district in August. You will need your Representative’s name, which you can find at http://votesmart.org.
• Call your Senators and Representative to request their support of an inclusive ENDA that protects sexual orientation and gender identity from job discrimination. Contact your legislators by giving your zip code to the U.S. Capitol operator at 202-224-3121.
• Contact other unconfirmed Senators and Representatives by email, telephone or fax. Contact links for the Senate and for the House.

Useful Links:

• NCTE’s toolkit for talking to legislators (PDF).
• PFLAG has a tidy letter to send to your legislators — although I’d suggest updating it to point out that ENDA protects all Americans.
• Inclusive ENDA Facebook group, which has updates on how things are going.

This is important folks. PLEASE DO THIS.

Why a kiss-in?

After incidents in San Antonio, TX, El Paso, TX and Salt Lake City, UT – where different gay and lesbian couples were harassed or detained by law enforcement or other people for the simple act of kissing in a public place – we need to make a strong statement to everyone everywhere: kissing is not a bad thing, nor has it ever been. It’s not vulgar or inappropriate. It’s a sign of affection that is as old as time itself. And it’s a beautiful thing that we share with our loved ones every single day.

Not gay, but like kissing? Perfect. Straight allies, never fear! Come support your commitment to equality and public displays of affection, and smile at your neighbor to let them know its 2009 and that you’re happy we’re able to live our lives.

More info and locations at http://www.GreatNationwideKissIn.com

Given that country music isn’t known as a bastion of social progressivism it was a pleasant surprise, with a bit of tongue-in-cheek humor (one reason Bobbi gets respect is because “he’s been known to knock a few teeth out if you ask him for a beauty tip”) that doesn’t make Bobbi the butt of a joke. It seemed like Vassar either knew someone who crossdressed, or at least had run across crossdressers hanging out at a bar somewhere.

Vassar just released a music video for the song and it’s got some, ah, interesting differences.

The video adds a prequel where Bobby is invited out by his friends, but demurs because he’s broke. But his eyes light up when his friend mentions “it’s Ladies Night, free drinks for the girls!” Did someone say: free drinks? Cue the music. Bobbi enters the bar, a cigar-chomping burly “man in a dress” (in fact he’s wearing sunglasses to conceal the fact that he’s not wearing any make-up). And in interviews and his “behind-the-scenes” video, Vassar says: “Bobbi is actually a guy I knew—this outrageous guy who showed up at a club one night dressed as a girl. It was just a funny way to pick up chicks.” In other words—it’s all just good fun, it’s a one-time thing, and Bobbi doesn’t really want to be seen as a woman.

I’ll take Vassar at his word, he seems like a decent guy—but also a guy who comes across as savvy enough to know how far he can push things with his fans. Not that that might be a reason the video is at odds with the actual lyrics. (And don’t think too hard about how Bobbi, who’s flat broke, manages on short notice to get decked out in a cocktail dress, high heels, earings, platinum wig, fashionable women’s sunglasses and a black sequin purse, or why he’s got seemingly hairless legs.)

But even if the video undercuts the lyrics, Bobbi’s having a great time, his friends are having a great time, in fact everyone’s having a great time except an eye-rolling old man, who’s presented as a curmudgeonly killjoy. The “big-boned girl with a platinum curl” is the life of the party. As Vassar sings: “That’s how it is, nobody gives a second thought these days.”

Would I have preferred that the video stayed true to its roots and cast someone like Victoria “Porkchop” Parker* as Bobbi? Hell ya. But if the “lite” version ends up making life a little easier for some trans person in some shitkicker bar somewhere, I’m not gonna complain too much.

* Before anyone kvetches, yes I know Porkchop is a gay man who’s a professional female impersonator. But she’s burly enough as a guy to be a convincing Bobby and femme enough to be a Bobbi who would’ve left viewers stunned and amazed.

Helen Boyd, author of “My Husband Betty,” will be the keynote speaker and there are more than 25 workshops and presentations, focusing on:

• Health & Safety
• Legal & Employment Issues
• Partners, Spouses and Family
• Religion and Spirituality
• Youth & Students
• Arts, Culture and Media

All for the low, low price of $10-30. ($50 at the door.) Check it out.

For those of you who don’t follow LGBT issues, the short version is that two weeks ago the Justice Department issued a brief defending the Defense of Marriage Act, which is the law that protects the right of states to not recognize same-sex marriages and denies same-sex married couples federal benefits. Now maybe the Obama administration is obligated, as it argued, to defend the law — although critics quickly found examples of other instances where the Obama administration (like numerous previous administrations) is choosing not to defend or enforce laws they dislike. But they didn’t have to go out of their way to parrot incorporate numerous right-wing talking points including, arguing that same-sex marriages are no more legally valid than than incestuous ones between an uncle and neice. Oh, and Teh Gays aren’t really discriminated against because they can marry any person of the opposite sex they want. onus points for doing so on the anniversary of the Loving vs. Virginia Supreme Court decision — you know the one that allowed Obama parents to get married.

For many LGBT people, it was the last straw in a series of disses from the Obama administration, which — despite promises to be a fierce advocate on our behalf — has clearly been wishing we’d just go away. I’m not a big fan of AmericaBlog, but one of their writers astutely diagnosed the problem: political homophobia.

Political homophobes aren’t gay-hating in the traditional sense. In fact, publicly, most are strong supporters of LGBT equality. But, behind closed doors, many Democratic leaders, consultants, Hill staffers and the rest will vociferously argue that there is no political benefit to actually supporting LGBT rights. Political homophobia is rampant among some Democrats. In some ways, it’s worse than blatant homophobia, since we think most Democrats are on our side. And outwardly, they are.

Political homophobia dictates policy in DC more than we’d like to think. I believe it’s happening in the West Wing right now. I’ve been told by several people that while the president’s chief of staff, Rahm Emmanuel, isn’t a homophobe in the traditional way (he always voted the right way when he was in the House), he is always the first person to suggest that his colleagues (and now boss) avoid gay issues. He’d rather not deal with them because he thinks they’re bad politics.

Now, maybe in 1993 that was true. But Rahm, if he truly is the problem behind the throne, doesn’t grasp the change in society over the past two decades. He also doesn’t understand that the American people think Obama is a different kind of politician — one who will do what he says because it’s the right thing to do.

Predictably, Obama defenders came out of the woodwork to tell LGBT people to STFU because “there’s more important things to get done first” — privilege anyone? Or to argue that it’s all part of Obama’s 11th dimensional chess strategy and not to worry our pretty little heads.

On the LGBT side there was definitely some over-the-top vitriolic rhetoric, but people are pissed. Myself, as Jere says, I’m angry, but I’m not burning an effigy (yet).

The thing is… Yes it has only been five months since Obama took office, but it’s been 40 years since Stonewall, 35 years since the first queer non-discrimination bill was introduced in Congress, 16 years since Don’t Ask Don’t Tell was enacted as a “compromise,” 14 years since the Employment Non-Discrimination Act was introduced in Congress (yes folks it’s perfectly legal in 38 states to fire someone for being LGBT), 12 years since marriage discrimination was enshined in federal law, and 7 years since the Matthew Shepard Act to extend federal hate crime protections to LGBT people was introduced in Congress (yes folks, in 18 states there’s no penalty for beating the shit out of targeting someone because they’re gay or bi, and in 39 states there’s no penalty because they’re trans or gender variant).

When a number of bloggers organized a campaign to cut off the gAyTM for DNC fundraising — and resulted in the boycott of a major LGBT DNC fundraiser that reportedly caused a major drop-off in money raised — that the Obama administration hastily started throwing us crumbs: moving expenses for the partners of federal workers, woohoo! As usual Stephen Colbert said it far better than I can. Money quote: “See, he’s giving you things, just not your rights.”

Since then there’s been more crumb-tossing. Such as not appealing the $500,000 judgement in a job discrimination case filed by a trans woman, whose Library of Congress offer job was withdrawn the day after her interviewer found out that she was transitioning. Oh, and a bunch of A-list gays were invited to the White House for a 40th anniversary of Stonewall cocktail party (but no politics please… and no trans peeps of color.) All well and good.

But Mr. Obama the ATM is closed until we see some results. Promises to keep promises aren’t enough.

If you’re an ally, as Jere says, it’s time to step up to the plate.

[D]on’t tell me to calm down. Don’t tell me to be patient. Don’t tell me to trust that the Democrats will get around to my issues. Instead, listen to what we, the actual victims of legal inequality, are concerned about and help us.

And sometimes being an ally means more than just expressing a general belief in equality. Sometimes it requires you joining us in contacting lawmakers, writing blogs, writing letters to the editor, withholding your donations and volunteer hours for politicians and parties who stall on LGBT equality, speaking out, and telling your stories. We need you to make an effort for LGBT equality. The time is now. No more excuses, no more delays, no more empty promises.

–

Postscript: my irony-meter broke watching the very same white, well-to-do, well-connected (often conservative) big-name gay bloggers — who told trans people to STFU and sit on their hands quietly when we were dropped from ENDA two years ago — be so full of righteous outrage when they were told the same thing by Obama apologists supporters.

Last Wednesday was a bit of an emotional roller coaster for me.

I took grim satisfaction that the Library of Congress was ordered to pay Diane Schroer nearly $500,000 in what is the largest award in transgender job discrimination case. (Short version: Schroer, a former Army Special Forces commander, was widely agreed to be the most qualified applicant for a job as a terrorism analyst, but when the woman who offered the job found out that Schroer was transitioning from David to Diane, she had a blatantly transphobic freak-out and yanked the job offer the next day. We’re still waiting to see if the Obama administration will appeal the decision.)

I was pleased to see the U.S. House of Representative once again passed a bill expanding anti-hate crimes laws to include both sexual orientation and gender identity/expression. (The real test will be when the Senate votes on it.)

I was ecstatic when the New Hampshire Senate unexpectedly passed a marriage equality bill, making that state poised to become the fifth one to allow same-sex marriages.

But there was also some news you probably didn’t hear about. That same morning, the New Hampshire senators unanimously — let me repeat that, unanimously — voted to kill a bill that would have extended housing and employment anti-discrimination protections to trans people.

This came after the fundamentalist haters used a campaign of bearing false witness lies to portray it as a “bathroom bill” — a nickname picked up and used by the local media — that would allow male sexual predators in dresses into women’s bathrooms. (Never mind that there’s been no bathroom incidents in the 13 states that have similar laws. Or that trans people are already in bathrooms, because you know… sometimes we have to pee too.) Now evidently there was some sort of political maneuvering behind the vote, since even the sponsors voted against their own bill. One of the sponsors said that passing it now would only worsen the situation for trans people because of the way the bill was portrayed. (I guess they had to destroy the village to save it….) But whatever the good intentions, the 24-0 vote wound up sending the message: You don’t deserve the same rights as everybody else. You don’t even deserve a valient-but-losing effort. You just don’t matter.

It was yet another Prop. 8-like moment for trans issues, particularly given the contrast to the same-day marriage equality vote. I feel the same sort of bitter aftertaste to sweet success that I felt on Election Night. I’m beginning to feel like we trans people are human shields, taking the brunt of the anti-LGBT hatred out there while marriage equality is becoming mainstreamed. We’re “those people,” the ones who can be demonized, the ones who by comparison make the shiny, happy sex-same couples waiting to walk down the aisle looking ever so “normal.” Because after all, they’re the ones who matter.

You probably didn’t hear about the vote, not even in the LGBT media/blogosphere. I guess having a ghost at the banquet is a bit of a downer. (FYI, I know a number of these sites knew about the story because I personally alerted them to it.) The thing is, it’s just latest incident in their all-too-frequent deafening silence when it comes to trans-related issues and news. Schroer’s victory was also MIA today. A week ago, a jury in rural Colorado took less than two hours to convict the killer of Angie Zapata of first degree murder and committing a hate crime — the first U.S. hate crime conviction ever in the murder of a trans person. It was the trans communities’ equivalent of the Matthew Shepard murder and attracted hordes of attention from the mainstream media. The gay and lesbian media… not so much (with a few notable exceptions) — even on the eve of the federal hate crimes bill going to a vote. Because apparently the T in LGBT doesn’t seem to matter.

But I wouldn’t give the MSM a cookie either. All too often their coverage began: “A man who claimed he snapped after discovering a transgender woman was actually male…” — repeating as fact the exact same self-serving “trans panic” defense, the same “deceptive tranny” victim blaming, that the jury specifically rejected. Nor did they bother to mention that the evidence showed Zapata’s killer knew she was trans 36 hours before she died, that there was no evidence that Zapata had sex with him that night she died, that he returned to finish her off when he realized she wasn’t dead yet. Because we don’t matter enough to get the story right.

I’ll admit it, my nerves are a bit raw about this. In the past few weeks, we’ve seen a feminist blogger crack a tranny “joke” and then tell people who objected to lighten up (and STFU). Because after all, it was about “Mann Coulter” so it was OK. We’ve seen similar “you’re just being too sensitive” comments posted over at Bitch Magazine directed toward those who thought a cartoon about lesbians who fetishize trans men was embodying the very attitudes it supposedly was critiquing. We’ve seen a series of problems with trans people being silenced in the comments discussions at Feministing and Feministe. (Though to their credit both sites are trying to address the problems.) These problems ranged from plain old privileged cluelessness — “stop the discussion until someone explains what ‘cisgender’ means because I can’t be bothered to figure it out for myself,” to “I want to talk about how I deserve a cookie for being so enlightened about those exotic trans people,” to “I know the post was about trans rights, but I want to talk about how I don’t like sharing bathrooms with men” — to insisting that people’s lives conform to someone’s pet ideology, to outright transphobic attacks. When men engage in this sort of silencing behaviors, especially in feminist spaces, many feminist women are quick to anger and quick to call them on their shit. But when some of these very same women do the exact same thing to trans people… well, not so much. Because we don’t matter.

Except, we do.