'Jeopardy!' Star Amy Schneider Testifies Against Ohio Anti-Trans Bill by Nina Golgowski
November 16, 2022
Introduction:
(Huffpost) “Jeopardy!” champion Amy Schneider opened up about her personal journey and survival as a transgender woman while testifying Wednesday against a proposed bill in Ohio that would prohibit children from receiving gender-affirming care, which she said would boil down to life or death for some kids.
“I truly believe that all of us have the same goal: To keep Ohio’s children safe and healthy. This bill would put some of them in grave danger that not all of them would survive,” said the Ohio native, who has been using her newly found fame from the game show to speak out for trans rights. Her activism comes amid a rise in anti-transgender legislative bills across the country, like Ohio’s HB 454.
“I really believe that I’m telling you the simple truth,” she said. “The lives of children are on the line with the fate of this bill.”
Schneider, who capped a 40-game “Jeopardy!” winning streak in January, said that for as long as she can remember, she was tormented by what she described as a constant “alarm going off inside my head.” It didn’t stop until she came out as transgender and began receiving hormonal therapy five years ago.
“For the first time in my life, that alarm went silent, and I knew peace and quiet for the first time,” she said. “The only way I was able to live with it before was because I thought there was no other way to live. But to have gotten that peace, and to have that alarm turned on right now, would be so devastating.”
Russia’s parliament has passed the third and final reading of a law banning “LGBT propaganda” among all adults, as Moscow ramps up its conservative push at home amid the war in Ukraine that passed the nine-month mark on Thursday.
The bill criminalises any act regarded as an attempt to promote what Russia calls “non-traditional sexual relations” – in film, online, advertising or in public – and expands on a notorious 2013 law that banned “propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations” among minors and was used to detain gay rights activists.
Russia's State Duma approves bill to ban 'LGBT propaganda'
Source: CNN
Russia’s lower house of parliament passed in the third reading amendments to a law on so-called “LGBT propaganda” on Thursday, expanding liability to all ages.
The discriminatory law proposes to ban all Russians from promoting or “praising” homosexual relationships or publicly suggesting that they are “normal.”
The original version of the law adopted in 2013 banned “propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations” among minors. The new iteration would apply the law to adults as well.
Individuals who spread or attempt to distribute what the bill calls “LGBT propaganda” will be fined up to 400,000 rubles ($6,600). Legal entities can be fined up to 5 million rubles ($82,100). Foreigners can be arrested for up to 15 days or deported, according to the bill
'Love Wins Again': Senate Passes Bill to Protect Same-Sex and Interracial Marriage by Jessica Corbett
November 30, 2022
Introduction:
(Common Dreams) Rights groups and other supporters of marriage equality celebrated Tuesday after 12 Senate Republicans joined with all Democrats present to pass protections for same-sex and interracial partnerships.
The Respect for Marriage (RFM) Act does not confirm the right of same-sex couples to marry nationwide, as the U.S. Supreme Court did in Obergefell v. Hodges, but rather requires states to recognize their marriage licenses. It also does not block states from banning same-sex marriage if the high court's 2015 ruling is overturned—as Justice Clarence Thomas teased in his concurring opinion for the June decision that ended national abortion rights.
While some have criticized the legislation for falling short of what's needed and pandering to religious groups, the 61-36 Senate vote was still widely heralded as historic progress. The amended version is expected to again pass the Democrat-held House—which initially passed the bill in July—before reaching the desk of President Joe Biden, who reaffirmed that he "will promptly and proudly sign it into law."
Mothers of LGBTQ Children Join Forces in Latin America by Daniel Politi
November 21, 2022
Introduction:
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP via Latino Rebels) — Fabu Olmedo is so nervous about clubs and restaurants in Paraguay that before a night out she often contacts one to make sure that she’ll be let in and won’t be attacked or harassed.
Olmedo doesn’t know if she can go out in public safely because daily life is hard for transgender people in the capital, Asunción. Now, a new group of allies in Latin America is trying to make life better by changing minds in this socially conservative and often highly religious region.
Founded in 2017, the Latin American Movement of Mothers of LGTB+ Children lobbies governments to eliminate prejudicial laws and better enforce existing bans on violence and discrimination.
It’s a difficult fight that will require patience and years of effort, but the mothers are working together to help others in their position and function as a refuge for LGBTQ children whose families are not as supportive.
“It’s all about recognizing the strength and power that we have as mothers to accompany our kids and help other families,” said Alejandra Muñoz, 62, of Mexico City. Her son Manuel came out 11 years ago and suffered so much bullying at school that he spent recess with the teachers.
Traditional Buddhist Teachings Exclude LGBTQ People from Monastic Life, But Change Is Coming Slowly by Jue Liang
December 8, 2022
Introduction:
(The Conversation) The symbolic image of the silently meditating nun or chanting monk often embodies the Buddhist religion. Such representation may make it appear that Buddhist teachings and practices are grounded in heterosexual norms. However, there is also plenty of discussion on the various expressions of human sexuality and sexual orientations in pre-modern Buddhist literature.
In contemporary debates about gender, nonbinary definitions in particular, have reached many countries where this ancient religion is practiced.
Gender and sexuality in Buddhism are central to my scholarship. And my research demonstrates that queer life in the context of traditional Buddhist monastic ordination appears to be slowly changing.
Spiritual ethics
Monasticism, whereby individuals dissolve all secular ties and devote themselves to full-time study and religious practice, represents the highest ideal of a Buddhist community. By virtue of their dedication, nuns and monks become respected role models for the lay community and provide guidance in Buddhist practice. In return, the lay community offers material support to the monastic community.
The Buddhist ideal of enlightenment resists description in either language or logic, including its views on gender identities. The famous declaration in the first-century text “Vimalakīrti-nirdeśa Sutra,” “In enlightenment there is no male or female,” illustrates this point well.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday signed into law a bill that expands a ban on so-called LGBTQ “propaganda” in Russia, making it illegal for anyone to promote same-sex relationships or suggest that non-heterosexual orientations are “normal.”
The ban was rubber-stamped by Putin just days after a harsh new “foreign agents” law came into effect, as the Kremlin cracks down on free speech and human rights as its military operation in Ukraine falters.
The new laws significantly broaden the scope of a 2013 law which banned the dissemination of LGBTQ-related information to minors. The new iteration extends the ban on promoting such information to adults as well.
The new laws make it illegal to promote or “praise” LGBTQ relationships, publicly express non-heterosexual orientations or suggest that they are “normal.”
The package of amendments signed by Putin include heavier penalties for anyone promoting “non-traditional sexual relations and/or preferences,” as well as pedophilia and gender transition. Under the new law, it will be banned across the internet, media, books, audiovisual services, cinema, and advertising.
Barbados' top court repeals laws that criminalize gay sex
Source: AP
By DÁNICA COTO 2 hours ago
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A top court in Barbados has struck down colonial-era laws that criminalize gay sex, becoming the third nation in the conservative Caribbean region to do so this year.
The ruling issued Monday by the Barbados High Court is a pivotal moment for activists and nonprofit organizations who have long fought against such laws on the eastern Caribbean island, including one that demands up to a life sentence for gay men found guilty of having sex.
“It’s gone from a certain ripple effect to a tidal wave in the Caribbean, which is what everyone involved set out to achieve,” said Téa Braun, chief executive of the London-based Human Dignity Trust, a human rights organization.
While the laws were rarely invoked, they signal that LGBTQ people are criminal and lesser citizens, Braun said.
Texas attorney general's office sought state data on transgender Texans
Source: Washington Post
HOUSTON — Employees at the Texas Department of Public Safety in June received a sweeping request from Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office: to compile a list of individuals who had changed their gender on their Texas driver’s license and other department records during the past two years.
“Need total number of changes from male to female and female to male for the last 24 months, broken down by month,” the chief of the DPS’s driver license division emailed colleagues in the department on June 30, according to a copy of a message obtained by The Washington Post through a public records request. “We won’t need DL/ID numbers at first but may need to have them later if we are required to manually look up documents.”
After more than 16,000 such instances were identified, DPS officials determined that a manual search would be needed to determine the reason for the changes, DPS spokesman Travis Considine told The Post in response to questions.
“A verbal request was received,” he wrote in an email. “Ultimately, our team advised the AG’s office the data requested neither exists nor could be accurately produced. Thus, no data of any kind was provided.”
People aged 16 and 17 to be allowed to change gender
2 hours ago
Young people aged 16 and 17 will be allowed to change their legal gender after the Scottish government rejected moves to keep the minimum age at 18.
Some SNP MSPs were among those who argued that 16 is too young to make such a "profound change".
But the government said lowering the age was in keeping with other rights and responsibilities people gain at 16.
It came during a marathon debate on controversial plans to make it easier for trans people to change gender.
The Scottish Parliament was due to discuss and vote on more than 150 proposed amendments to reforms of the Gender Recognition Act on Tuesday ahead of the final vote on Wednesday.
Spain has approved a gender recognition bill which will make it easier for trans people to update their legal gender marker.
Approved by 188 votes to 150 with seven abstentions on Thursday (22 December), the bill will now move to the Senate, where, if unchanged as expected, it will become law within weeks.
The draft bill allows trans people in Spain over the age of 16 to update their gender maker and name on official documents based on a simple request.
It allows anyone from the age of 16 to apply, with those as young as 12 being able to do so under certain conditions.
The demand must be confirmed by the applicant three months after they submitted the request, for the change to become valid.
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‘Trans women are women’
wjfox wrote: ↑Wed Dec 21, 2022 9:59 amPeople aged 16 and 17 to be allowed to change gender
2 hours ago
Young people aged 16 and 17 will be allowed to change their legal gender after the Scottish government rejected moves to keep the minimum age at 18.
Some SNP MSPs were among those who argued that 16 is too young to make such a "profound change".
But the government said lowering the age was in keeping with other rights and responsibilities people gain at 16.
It came during a marathon debate on controversial plans to make it easier for trans people to change gender.
The Scottish Parliament was due to discuss and vote on more than 150 proposed amendments to reforms of the Gender Recognition Act on Tuesday ahead of the final vote on Wednesday.
A lot of good points, but I could have done without the heavy reliance on the f word. This can affect the family friendly rating of a site, as well as be a turn off to the older generation. A pity that it becomes a consideration in whether to cite the video in a community forum.
How a Single Oxygen Atom Can Change a Person’s Sex by Stephen Luntz
December 27, 2022
Introduction:
(IFL Science) The molecular basis for a mutation that causes some people with XY chromosomes to have wombs and vaginas has been identified, demonstrating how minor the differences can be that shape people’s sex.
Swyer Syndrome (also known as 46, XY gonadal dysgenesis with female somatic phenotype) occurs in people whose sex chromosomes match most biological males, but who not only appear female, but can often give birth using IVF and donated eggs. In at least one case, a woman with a form of Swyer Syndrome became pregnant naturally, and didn’t know there was anything unusual about her chromosomes until her daughter was diagnosed with the same condition.
The syndrome involves modification to one of several genes on the Y chromosome, frequently the Sex-determining Region Y protein (SRY), the gene that usually starts the process of an embryo becoming male. One cause of Swyer Syndrome can be the replacement of tyrosine with the similar molecule phenylalanine, best known as a component of the sugar substitute aspartame. Two new papers explore how the change between these molecules – so similar they are interchangeable for many biological functions - can have such big effects.
“Loss of a single atom in SRY, an oxygen atom in a critical tyrosine, impairs the robustness of male development,” Professor Michael Weiss of Indiana University School of Medicine said in a statement.
The authors call it a "humpty-dumpty" model, because a small change can cause everything to break apart in a way that is apparently impossible to reverse.
It more or less creates the brain up of the opposite sex and forces a person to need to be that. Of course, very few people have this in reality...Probably below .5% of the population but based on everything I've read over the years a test could be developed and made fairly accurate to test rather or not a person is or isn't.
Rebecca Blankenship says she noticed only two candidates filled for three seats on the Berea Independent School District board, with nobody else willing to be the third candidate. Before the race, Blankenship was thinking like any mom and wanted her children to have a great school board. Believe it or not, it’s something she says she never intended to run for, let alone be a historic win. But she knew she needed to when nobody else stepped up to the plate.
Rebecca Blankenship smiles with her children, family. (Rebecca Blankenship)
“I’m grateful for my community. I’ve always known that it was a great community, but to be embraced like this is more than I had any right to expect. I feel grateful,” said Blankenship.
