Greetings blenders from balmy Atlanta, where the 20th annual Southern Comfort Conference is about to get underway. There is something for everyone on the SCC. Whatever your connection to the transgender community – whether you are transsexual, a cross dresser or in between; a spouse, a partner or a family member; straight, gay, bi or [...]

“An Act Relative to Gender-Based Discrimination and Hate Crimes” (H. 1728/S. 1687) got a hearing last July in the Massachusetts Joint Committee on the Judiciary.  Then, nothing.  In light of the recent poll showing that 76% of Massachusetts voters, including 81% of women, support passing a law, isn’t it high time that the bill got [...]

This morning, Gov. Paterson signed “Executive Order No. 33 that will prohibit New York State agencies from discriminating against any individual on the basis of gender identity and expression in any matter pertaining to employment by the State.”  The EO is so new that it isn’t yet posted to the Governor’s Exec Orders page.  The [...]

Anyone have more info on this or planning to attend?  From an Empire State Pride Agenda email: This Wednesday, December 16 at the LGBT Center in New York City, Governor David Paterson will announce a major policy affecting transgender civil rights in New York. The Pride Agenda has been working on this issue since Governor [...]

A few days ago I received a link to a blog post called “Sara Buechner, Once David Buechner”, by Ira Rosenstein.  In the post, Rosenstein displays his ignorance of the difference between sex (“what’s between your legs”) and gender (“what’s between your ears”). While I was pondering how to approach my write-up about Rosenstein’s post, [...]

Chaz was on Good Morning America describing his life’s progression and how he came to be a public advocate for the LGB and now the T. A few days ago Blend reader Hector sent me a link to this wonderful New York Times article about the pianist Sara Davis Buechner.  Both of these stories, not [...]

Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition has the details, including links to the poll and Lake research Partners’ analysis of the poll.  But first, Bay Staters need to take action with the help of this email from MassEquality sent out Thursday.  Time is short. A poll just released by Lake Research Partners shows that 76% of likely [...]

Washington’s Governor Chris Gregoire has signed the transgender hate crimes bill, SB 5952, which had bipartisan support in the legislature.   Washington’s hate-crime law makes it a felony to threaten, damage the property of, or physically injure someone because of ethnicity, nationality, religion, gender, disability or sexual orientation.  The law Gov. Gregoire just signed will [...]