Trans News Now 6/19/23
Links in Trans News Now will open in this window. To return to this page use the Back button on your browser. If the link opens in a new tab, close the tab to return to this page.
Jan Jonsson in drag.
Jan Jonsson, leader of the Liberal Party of Sweden, released a video of himself in drag. In the video, he discusses the desire for anti-drag laws, which he opposes. LGBTQ Nation has this story.
The American Medical Association increased its support for gender-affirming care. This comes in response to Republican politicians, who say that they can’t believe that doctors actually recommend gender-affirming care for transgender teens. The Advocate has this story.
In the same week that the A.M.A. strengthened its support for gender-affirming care, PinkNews reports that NHS in England will restrict puberty blockers to clinical trials.
Governor Joe Lombardo of Nevada signed a bill which requires health care insurance companies in the state to cover gender-affirming care. He also signed a bill which requires the state Department of Corrections to provide gender-affirming care, including mental health care, in prisons. Governor Lombardo is a Republican, but he is bucking his party on transgender rights. This story comes from Metro Weekly.
Governor Greg Abbott of Texas signed a bill which extends the state’s ban on transgender athletes to include college athletics. The Hill has this report.
Oh no you dint!
Transgender activist Rose Montoya apologized for posting a video of herself going topless at the White House Pride event. Despite the apology, she will not be on the guest list any time soon, according to HuffPost.
In Ohio, a bill which combines a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, a ban on transgender females in athletics, a requirement to tell parents when their child changes gender presentation at school, and notify all parents prior to any discussion of gender identity or sexual orientation in class. It is described as, “One big terrible mega-bill” in a report by ABC 6.
In Maine, a bill to fund “detransition” healthcare was defeated. MaineWire reports that state Representative Katrina Smith said, “I am very disappointed in the actions the Democrats took today to deny long-term care to the transgender community,” totally missing the fact that nearly no transgender people who start HRT regret it.
Julie J.
Two NYC drag performers and a trans activist recently appeared on MSNBC to let viewers know that all they want is “Basic respect.” Thanks to Shelley Anne Baker for steering us to this article on the NBC News website.
Cordell Howze is charged with first-degree murder of transgender woman Cashay Henderson pleaded not guilty by reason of mental disease or defect. This story comes from WISN-TV.
Matthew Lehigh punched a transgender employee at the Boise Library, then attempted to run over another library worker who defended the transgender worker. He has pleaded guilty to two hate crimes. Since the hate crimes are federal charges, he entered the guilty plea in federal court. Fox News has the Associated Press story.
A new study by the Born This Way Foundation found that LGBTQ+ young people are less likely than straight, cisgender youth to say they are in good mental and emotional health. They also are less likely to rate their community as “kind,” compared to straight, cisgender youth. This story comes from the Born This Way Foundation.
Alex Newell
Alex Newell and J. Harrison Ghee won Tony awards this past week. They are the first non-binary performers to win Tony awards. The Advocate has this story.
Elliot Page will return to the big screen for the first time in five years. The movie is titled Close To You, from writer/director Dominic Savage. This story comes from Them.
The Associated Press reports that Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse was abruptly pulled from cinemas in the Middle East, including the United Arab Emirates. In other countries, it was not approved to appear. No explanation was given, but many suspect that a “Protect Trans Kids” poster in the bedroom of Gwen Stacy caused the film to be pulled.
In Britain, Parliament started a debate on a new definition of “sex” in the Equalities Act. Unfortunately, many trans activists and charities have described the resulting debate as “distressing and infuriating,” according to PinkNews.
The Vivienne
The Vivienne, the drag queen who won the first season of RuPaul’s Drag Race U.K. in 2019, was a victim of a homophobic attack at a McDonald’s in the U.K. She was punched by a homophobe, who was escorted out of the restaurant by McDonald’s staff. The attacker was then arrested. Learn more from the Advocate.
A video story by France 24 discusses how transgender people in Pakistan have gone from a protected class to a persecuted group.
The AP style guide recommends against use of the term “TERF.” They say that the term is “Vague and politicized,” although the fault for that could be with the people who receive the label. They also recommend against “trans-exclusionary radical feminist” and “gender-critical,” for the same reasons. As you might expect, some people disagree with the AP. The Advocate has this story.
Indigo Leigh as Blanche.
A trans actress in Orlando, Florida was thrilled to get a call from a director offering her a part in a new production of A Streetcar Named Desire. Indigo Leigh will play Blanche DuBois at the Timucua Arts Foundation June 22-25. When asked about how her gender identity would be handled in the show Indigo said, “Me being trans is just a facet of myself, so it’s just a facet of Blanche,” Leigh said. “There’s no wink-wink-nudge-nudge to the audience.” For more info on the production visit the Orlando Sentinel.
A new study by the Williams Institute finds that most Americans oppose using religion to deny medical care, employment, and other services to LGBTQ people. The Advocate reports that this is the opposite of what Pew Polling found. Pew framed their poll to concentrate on the rights of a business or service-provider, while the Williams Institute poll focused on LGBTQ rights.
A week after the Texas legislature passed a ban on gender-affirming care for minors, public radio station KUT and PBS NewsHour both interviewed Texas teens who are directly affected by the ban.
KXAN‘s story about a realtor who is helping families with transgender children leave Texas is carried by The Hill.
Christine Penn
NJ.com has the story of what it’s like to be transgender when you’re six feet, five inches tall and have bright red hair. That’s the situation for Christine Penn.
The bans on gender-affirming medical care have given the U.S. an internal refugee crisis, according to Erin Reed.
At a time when legislators are aiming to put restrictions on trans rights, transgender people need to celebrate transgender joy. That is the opinion of PinkNews.
Trans News Now is assembled by Cecilia Barzyk with additional content and editing by Angela Gardner.
Category: Transgender Community News
