LGBT Response to manipulations by DART allowing Discrimination

”Time: 6:30 p.m.
Location: Board Room
DART Headquarters
1401 Pacific Ave. (Akard Station)
Dallas, TX 75202
MAP

The Dart Committee meeting of the whole proposed changes to be voted on June 22 have according to Ken Upton at Lambda Legal commented that,

“They just screwed you guys over royally,” Upton said. “By adding that word in there, they’ve said we can discriminate all we want. It’s exactly the opposite of what they promised they were doing."

DART board member transphobic Raymond Noah changed the wording of the proposed changes to it's nondiscrimination policy "hoodwinking" the good members of the DART board and is ruining the LGBT's faith in DART's promise it will become a entity that does not openly persecute it's transgender employees.~Kelli Busey

The North Texas LGBTQ community is encouraged to attend this meeting. You will be given three minutes to voice your opinions.

Changes proposed for the DART Nondiscrimination policy to be voted on June 22 2010,

• DART Board Supplemental Information PDF

Background informantion:
Word Switched by DART's Raymond Noah encourages discrimination| Judge Raymond Noah's Decade of Transphobic Courtroom Behavior EXPOSED!

Word Switched by DART's Raymond Noah encourages discrimination| Judge Raymond Noah's Decade of Transphobic Courtroom Behavior EXPOSED!

The closed door 'Executive' meeting DART conducted to discuss it's nondiscrimination policy was indicative of the systemic bigotry and duplicitous abuse of authority that pervades DART's management.

There was 'passionate' discussion about amending the nondiscrimination policy according to DART chairman William Velasco in a possibly illegal closed door meeting after receiving general counsel Hyattye Simmons explaination of 'gender'.

Was it decided by Simmons and forced on some members in this closed door meeting that sneaking a word in that expressly allows discrimination was in the best interests of DART?

The motion by Raymond Noah (pictured left) to change the wording to allow discrimination against gay and transgender people was passed without debate. Was part of that 'passionate' discussion about what defence the Board members should offer in case this sham was exposed?

A woman's life is at stake. Being simply ignorant about language changes to a human rights amendment to protect her reeks of collusion.

What was the DART Board's main concern? Protecting one of there employees from discrimination or protecting themselves from Council Simmons?

Who is DART's General Counsel Simmons to have influenced a FAMILY judge so that she reversed her findings that DART employee, Ms T Dart (Robin) was female?

Why was General Counsel Simmons given the responsibility of presenting a impartial and subjective definition of gender to the DART board?

We need more than DART's Human resource director Ben Gomez's word that they will rewrite there employees handbook to prohibit discrimination against gay and transgender people regardless if the amendment to there nondiscrimination policy clearly not only allows but encourages this discrimination to take place!

WE need full accountability and open management of DART if the re written employees handbook is to have ANY value.

We need to seriously consider if General Council Simmons is performing his duties in the best interest of DART or are the Board members simply pawns of the General Council's bigotry.

We need to attend Tuesdays meeting in support of board member William Tsao and other well intentioned board members in there effort to remove the extraneous and ambiguous wording DART has inserted in there Nondiscrimination policy proposed changes.

We need the addition of Gender Identity/Expression without ANY provisions to discriminate.

Kelli Anne Busey
June 19, 2010

DENNY'S Gender Grand Slam Ban's Transwoman from Ladies Room

As transfolk we understand our moral obligations to society and none more so than respecting others right to privacy. Accordingly, we often are perplexed when Cisgender people make a big deal about us using the restroom.

Brianna Freeman of Lewiston Maine was banned because of a alleged complaint from a anonymous source complaining about Brianna. No official complaints were lodged and police have none on file.

Denny's feels it is doing the right thing even though the state has legislation protecting the rights of transgender people to use the proper public accommodations. "The problem is that another individual with inappropriate motives could abuse the policy that permitted a male to use the woman's restroom." according to Denny's attorney, Patrick Mellor.


Maine Public Broadcasting Network interview with Brianna and Denny's.

Brianna feels her rights have been infringed on and Glad is representing her in a case that asks for no monetary restitution. She just wants to be free to pee.

DART Board Member Raymond Noah Gut's Gender Amendment Screws Gays: TAKE ACTION!

Dallas Area Rapid Transit's final draft gender inclusive nondiscrimination proposal had a word added in the last moments while the Committee had there Mic's turned down, effectively making it a regulation PERMITTING discrimination against GLBT people in the workplace not expressly forbade by state and national laws.

Another words? Sans ENDA, Texas being a "AT WILL" state this amendment allows DART to discriminate, officially and legally.



At the 35 second mark board member Raymond Noah, who has opposed this amendment asked that the word "and" be changed to "except" which was rubber stamped by committee. Ken Upton at Lambda Legal commented that,

“They just screwed you guys over royally,” Upton said. “By adding that word in there, they’ve said we can discriminate all we want. It’s exactly the opposite of what they promised they were doing.”

The DART nondiscrimination policy only needed the inclusion of the words "Gender Identity/Expression to make DART a organization that protects equally transgender people in the work place. Instead DART has manipulated the amendments language in a way that it ultimately denies transgender and gay people protection!

Please contact these Dallas City Council Members BEFORE the June 22 board meeting and ask they relay your concerns about the amendment to the DART Board.

Sample email

Dear Councilmember ,

Please pass my concerns to the DART board that the work that the GLBT community has done in good faith has been for naught.

The DART nondiscrimination policy only needed the inclusion of the words "Gender Identity/Expression to make DART a organization that protects equally transgender people in the work place. Instead DART has manipulated the amendments language in a way that it ultimately denies transgender and gay people protection.

Thank you
[your name]

Councilmember Pauline Medrano
Deputy Mayor Pro Tem
Email
Phone: 214-670-4048
Fax: 214-670-3409


David A. Neumann
Email
Phone: 214-670-0776
Fax: 214-670-5117

Delia Jasso
Email
Phone: 214-670-4052
Fax: 214-670-5117

Linda Koop
Email
Phone: 214-670-7817
Fax: 214-670-5117

Demand Accountability for Neda Agha-Soltan and Respect for Angie Zapata

Neda Agha-Soltan, aged 27, was shot to death on 20 June 2009 during a peaceful demonstration in Tehran, protesting the results of the 12 June 2009 presidential elections. She was apparently shot by a Basij (paramilitary) sniper. The video of her last minutes, as Dr. Arash Hejazi and other bystanders tried to save her while blood poured over her face, galvanized people around the world. Although the one-year anniversary of her death is approaching, the Iranian government has as yet not carried out an investigation into her death, or the dozens of other killings of peaceful post-election protesters. The following link takes you to Amnesty Internationals campaign demanding accountability for Neda.

No Iranian exploitation comedies have been made using Neda's legacy in a cheap advertising ploy.



Angie Zapata was a young transgender woman who was brutally murdered in 2008 for her gender expression and a American gay man used her legacy and the thousands of murdered transgender woman in a cheap advertising ploy.

Both murderers thought that by killing woman they could snuff out the same candle of hope and faith that we share. Both murderers had this in common, they were so very wrong!

The world united to condemn both these horrendous crimes, so why should Angie Zapata or any other of the thousands of murdered transwoman be of such less value that a American gay man felt entitled to use her name to advertise a comedy about murdering transgender woman, much to the much to the horror of her mother?

Because film director Israel Luna is a misogynist who would use his ability to kill the will of all transgender woman if able. Being a gay misogynist, Luna would not pick on Iranian cisgender woman to use in this fashion. But like the two murdering cowards the preceded him, Luna is finding universal condemnation.

Israel Luna picked on transgender womankind, often made fun of in drag by gay men because of all of woman we remain the least protected and most vulnerable.

Demand that Philly Q Fest artistic director Raymond Murray removes TO#WK for the same reason you demand accountability for Neda,every woman counts.

Philadelphia Cinema AllianceCineFest / QFest
234 Market St 4th floor Philadelphia, PA 19106
267-765-9800
Artistic Director: Raymond Murrayemail:
Raymond Murray

Houston Councilwoman Wanda Adams EPIC FAIL: Aids Housing and Transgender Youth Shelter Efforts Abandoned

Houston City Councilmember Wanda Adams Walks Out on LGBT Community… Again

In a move that has the Houston LGBT community asking “Where’s Wanda?” Houston City Councilmember Wanda Adams was absent Friday from a meeting to discuss housing for homeless transgender youth. The latest absence comes just over a week after Adams was publicly chastised by the chair of the Houston GLBT Political Caucus for walking out on a City Council vote to fund AIDS housing. Video right >

The meeting, which had been scheduled for over a week, had been set up between Transgender community leaders and Covenant House, a faith-based housing program for homeless youth in Adams’ city council district. Covenant House receives funds from the City of Houston. Their policy against allowing Transgender clients to dress as their identified gender has long been a frustration for Transgender advocates.

Adams mentioned the meeting during a radio interview with the program “Queer Voices” last Monday, in which she defended her record with the LGBT community and claimed to be surprised at the anger caused when she walked out of council chambers just before the vote to extend city funding for Marjo House, a facility offering housing for people with AIDS.

The Covenant House meeting was scheduled to start at eleven o’clock. A few minutes after eleven Adams (who was previously employed by Covenant House) called to say she would be running late. At about 12:30 a staffer for her office arrived and explained that she would not arrive.

The good news is that Covenant House has agreed to work with the Houston Transgender community to revise their policies. The bad news is that ‘Absentee Adams’ has missed another opportunity to represent her constituents.

By: Anonymous,
Houston Texas
June 14,2009