Trans News/ Issues

[blackboot]

Hawaii Legislature Passes Transgender Employment Protections
by Tony Wagner

"Yesterday, by a 45-4 vote, the Hawaii House concurred with the Senate on a HB 546 SD1, a bill codifying prohibitions against discrimination in employment on the basis of gender identity. The bill now heads to Governor Abercrombie, who has said he will sign it into law. Upon Governor’s signature, Hawaii will join 12 states and the District of Columbia in banning discrimination on the basis of gender identity in employment, housing and public accommodations.

HRC worked closely with Equality Hawaii to build both public and legislative support for this legislation. Through this joint effort, thousands of phone calls, emails and handwritten letters were sent to legislators urging them to approve this legislation."

[Thinker]

Originally Posted by blackboot

Hawaii Legislature Passes Transgender Employment Protections
by Tony Wagner

"Yesterday, by a 45-4 vote, the Hawaii House concurred with the Senate on a HB 546 SD1, a bill codifying prohibitions against discrimination in employment on the basis of gender identity. The bill now heads to Governor Abercrombie, who has said he will sign it into law. Upon Governor’s signature, Hawaii will join 12 states and the District of Columbia in banning discrimination on the basis of gender identity in employment, housing and public accommodations.

HRC worked closely with Equality Hawaii to build both public and legislative support for this legislation. Through this joint effort, thousands of phone calls, emails and handwritten letters were sent to legislators urging them to approve this legislation."

Outstanding!

The same bill passed Nevada's Assembly and is now going before the state Senate. The governor has also indicated he would sign it into law.

*fingers crossed*

[Soon]

Texas May Strip Away Transgender Marriage Rights

By JIM VERTUNO Associated Press
AUSTIN, Texas April 25, 2011 (AP)

Two years after Texas became one of the last states to allow transgendered people to use proof of their sex change to get a marriage license, Republican lawmakers are trying to roll back the clock.

Advocates for the transgendered say a proposal to bar transgendered people from getting married smacks of discrimination and would put their legally granted marriages in danger of being nullified if challenged in court.

One of the Republican sponsors of the legislation said he's simply trying to clean up the 2009 law in a state that bans same-sex marriage under the constitution.

"The Texas Constitution," Sen. Tommy Williams said, "clearly defines marriage between one man and one woman."

The legislation by Williams, of Houston, and Rep. Lois Kolkhorst, of Brenham, would prohibit county and district clerks from using a court order recognizing a sex change as documentation to get married, effectively requiring the state to recognize a 1999 state appeals court decision that said in cases of marriage, gender is assigned at birth and sticks with a person throughout their life even if they have a sex change.

Most states allow transgendered people to get married using a court order that also allows them to change their driver's license, experts said. Some advocates for the transgendered say the Texas proposal would not only prevent future transgendered marriages but also open up the possibility that any current marriage could be nullified.


"It appears the goal is to try to enshrine a really horrifying ruling and making it law in the state of Texas," said John Nechman, a Houston attorney whose law firm does work for the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgendered community.

Gov. Rick Perry's spokesman Mark Miner said the governor never intended to allow transgendered people to get married. He said the three-word sex change provision was sneaked through on a larger piece of legislation Perry signed two years ago regarding marriage licensing rules for county and district clerks. Perry, a Republican, supports efforts to "clarify the unintended consequences" of that law, Miner said.

"The governor has always believed and advocated that marriage is between a man and a woman," Miner said.

Williams said he understands that some people's gender cannot easily be determined when they are born and they later have an operation that could change the originally assigned gender.

"It is an emotional issue," Williams said. "I can appreciate that."

But when asked about claims of discrimination, Williams insisted his goal is to simplify marriage licensing for clerks who are trying to balance the 2009 law with the 1999 Texas appeals court ruling.

"They shouldn't have to resolve these issues," Williams said. "We have confused them."

Williams' legislation has cleared a committee vote and now awaits approval by the full Senate, which is predominantly Republican. The version in the GOP-dominated House has not yet been given a hearing.

Some advocates for the transgendered say that even if the legislation is passed, transgendered people could still get marriage licenses using other state and federally-issued documents such as a drivers' license or passport. But without the weight of a court order officially recognizing their gender reassignment, they worry any legal challenge, such as a divorce or estate dispute, would nullify the marriage.


"We want to be recognized as people. We want to have the same rights as all of you," Lisa Scheps of the Transgender Education Network of Texas said at a March hearing on Williams' bill. No one testified in favor of the legislation.

Kolkhorst, who authored the 2009 law that allowed the sex change documentation to be used in getting marriage licenses, did not respond to messages left at her office seeking comment on why she now wants to take it out.

The 2009 law originally was filed without the sex change document provision, but House records show Kolkhorst put it in as part of a lengthy amendment in the last month of the session. The changed legislation passed the House and Senate and Perry signed it into law a month later.


AP
In this April 20, 2011 photo, Nikki Araguz stands in front of a monument to fallen volunteer... View Full Caption

"It would be terrible for Texas, now that it finally caught up with the rest of the country, to take a step back," said Shannon Minter, an attorney for the national Transgender Law and Policy Institute. He said most states allow marriages for people who have undergone sex reassignment surgery.

Nikki Araguz was at the Capitol last week to lobby against the legislation. Her husband, a volunteer firefighter, was killed in the line of duty in July and she is being sued by her dead husband's family over control of his $600,000 estate.

Araguz had a final sex change operation in October 2008, two months after they were married, and says her husband knew and supported her. His family argues the marriage should be voided because Araguz was born a man and same-sex marriage is not legal in Texas. A hearing is scheduled for May 13.

"This is crazy. I feel like this is a personal attack on me," Araguz told The Associated Press. "If this bill is passed, it essentially means women like myself who have had reconstructive surgery will not be allowed to marry their heterosexual partner."

[EnderD_503]

This morning the Dallas County Commision voted 3-2 to include gender identity and expression to the existing non-discrimination policy. The vote was split down party lines with Democrats Judge Clay Jenkins, Commissioner Wiley Price, and Commissioner Dr. Elba Garcia voting for the measure.

This vote came just a month after sexual orientation was added to the non-discrimination policy by the commission unanimously on March 22nd, following a campaign promise by Judge Jenkins. Jenkins later stated that the commission had been under the false impression that adding sexual orientation would cover trans people as well.

Maurine Dickey, a Republican Commissioner whose district includes Oak Lawn a gay neighborhood, voted for adding sexual orientation but voted against trans rights. In the run up to the vote for adding trans people to the non-discrimination policy, Dickey was hoped to be the third vote while Price was undecided. However in an interview with the Dallas Voice Dickey compared the measure to giving protections to “overweight people” and “people with diabetes” raising controversy over her transphobia and questions as to why those people did not deserve protections too.

This bill’s passage comes as the Texas legislature is pushing for a bill to make it harder for trans people to marry within the state. Including trans people in existing non-discrimination policy at the city, county, state or federal level is still widely contested and, while progress is made in some places, there are places like Maine which are seeking to remove existing protections. Dallas County’s status as the ninth most populous county in the United States makes this a major victory for the trans community both at a local level and in the overall fight for trans rights.

http://lezgetreal.com/2011/04/dallas...-trans-rights/

[EnderD_503]

Despite the complete support of her colleagues and direct superiors within Southeastern Oklahoma State University's English, humanities and language department, Rachel Tudor, a professor of American and Native American literature, modernity and theory, humanities, composition and philosophy, has been denied tenure and informed that her employment will be terminated as of the end of this spring semester.

According to Claire Potter, a professor of American studies and history at Wesleyan University, Tudor has an amazing record as a scholar, teacher and colleague at the university and has been highly recommended by the tenure review committee. However, the dean and vice president of academic affairs deem Tudor's "lifestyle" inappropriate, so they have taken actions to make sure Tudor leaves.

Tudor is transgender.

After her complete transition, the human resources department told Tudor she could only use the single handicap bathroom located quite a distance from her office. As a result, she could only assume that Douglas McMillan, the vice president of academic affairs, made such an outrageous request.

In the past, for instance, he had openly asserted that Tudor's lifestyle "offends his Baptist beliefs." Discrimination in the workplace is illegal, but when officials hide their true intentions in rewritten policies and administrative bullshit, such cases are hard to prove. Unfortunately, this is where Tudor finds herself.

To my dismay, this situation is not surprising, especially considering Oklahoma does not have a transgender anti-discrimination law. The Human Rights Campaign states that Oklahoma's anti-discrimination law covers race, creed, gender, color or national origin, but not gender identity or sexual orientation.

Furthermore, Oklahoma does not have any hate crime laws that include crimes committed based on sexual orientation or gender identity. As asserted by Jim Burroway, editor of the blog Box Turtle Bulletin, even though Congress requires the FBI to track hate crimes, including those based on sexual orientation and gender identity, Oklahoma does not provide the necessary data to the FBI. Oklahoma law does not require local law enforcement to submit these details to the FBI or work with the FBI on crimes labeled as hates crimes based on sexual orientation or gender identity.

In the end, transgendered people have very little working in their favor in Oklahoma, as we can see with Tudor. However, Oklahoma is a place that needs people who care about other people. So instead of giving up and leaving Oklahoma to the haters, lets make our voices heard.

To support Tudor's cause, please write a letter to the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education requesting SEOSU renew Tudor's contract and give her a fair tenure hearing based on her qualifications as a scholar, teacher and colleague.

http://www.ocolly.com/opinion/transg...ated-1.2208077

[Soon]

Originally Posted by EnderD_503

http://www.ocolly.com/opinion/transg...ated-1.2208077

How horrible. Thanks for posting this story.

[Soon]

News release from U.S, Department of Labor:

US Department of Labor announces renewed commitment to fair treatment and equal opportunity for all of its employees
New policy statements prohibit discrimination based on gender identity and pregnancy


WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Labor today announced its full commitment to implementing equal employment opportunity policies for all department employees and applicants. The policies ensure equal protections for all employees and applicants regardless of race; color; religion; national origin; sex, including pregnancy and gender identity; age; disability, whether physical or mental; genetic information; status as a parent; sexual orientation; or other non-merit factor. New, robust statements signed by Secretary Solis include updated policies on prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex, including gender identity and pregnancy.

Secretary Solis strongly supports fair equal employment opportunity policies, and creating diversity and fairness in the workplace.

“I am expressing my personal commitment to ensure that the U.S. Department of Labor is a model workplace, free from unlawful discrimination and harassment, which fosters a work environment that fully utilizes the capabilities of every employee,” said Secretary Solis. “It is my goal that we achieve and maintain a high-quality, diverse workforce at all organizational levels throughout the department.”

The Labor Department is required to issue annual written policy statements expressing the secretary’s commitment to equal employment opportunity and a workplace free of discriminatory harassment, pursuant to 29 Code of Federal Regulations Part 1614, Federal Sector Equal Employment Opportunity, and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s Management Directive 715. The EEOC’s directive identifies minimum requirements for the policy statements.

The statements issued by Secretary Solis articulate stronger protections and establish responsibilities to ensure meaningful adherence to equal employment opportunity throughout the department. They have been disseminated to all current employees and will be disseminated to new employees during orientation as well as to employees who are promoted into supervisory ranks.

The department’s policies on equal employment opportunity and harassing conduct in the workplace can be viewed at http://www.dol.gov/oasam/programs/cr...ternal/eeo.htm and http://www.dol.gov/oasam/programs/cr...-Workplace.htm.



Read more: http://miamiherald.typepad.com/gayso...#ixzz1KsCBTWpO

[Thinker]

Originally Posted by Thinker

Outstanding!

The same bill passed Nevada's Assembly and is now going before the state Senate. The governor has also indicated he would sign it into law.

*fingers crossed*

It took a while, but it passed the state Senate with an 11-10 vote; however, they added an amendment that employers could require appropriate workplace clothing and grooming.

Now it has to go back to the state Assembly because of the amendment.

Way to go, Nevada!

http://www.lvrj.com/news/senate-narr...8.html?ref=208

[Camo Eagle]

Maybe the heat of Nevada is preferable to the heat in Texas.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/04/2...rriage-rights/

[Thinker]

Originally Posted by Camo Eagle

Maybe the heat of Nevada is preferable to the heat in Texas.

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2011/04/2...rriage-rights/

I was born and raised in Houston and spent a number of years in San Antonio too. I can ASSURE you the heat of Nevada is preferable to the heat in Texas...especially northern Nevada.

Saw that story... *shaking head*