Australia Passes Worlds First LGBT Anti Discrimination Laws That Includes Intersex People

Gay star news: Australian lawmakers have voted to make discrimination against LGBT people illegal at a national level for the first time, although religious bodies will still be mostly exempt in line with state level legislation when it comes to LGBTs.

But for the first time aged care providers who are owned by religious groups will no longer be able to exclude people from aged care based on their LGBT or same-sex relationship status.

"For the first time in Australia, and for the first time internationally, intersex people are recognised fully and authentically in anti-discrimination legislation." ~ Organisation Intersex International Australia (OII).

Morgan Carpenter (OII Australia secretary) said:

"Intersex people face discrimination because we have queer bodies. We face discrimination in access to healthcare, employment, schooling and even in interpersonal relationships. Intersex men and women face disbelief in the reality of our gender identities, and those of us who are physically most different are often the most vulnerable.

In February, the Senate agreed with us that intersex is a biological reality, and that all of us should be protected, regardless of our gender identity and without religious exemptions. This is now law, and a huge step forward that will have many positive repercussions."

Colorado civil rights division rules that Coy Mathis' School Discriminated Against Her

First-of-Its-Kind Decision Mandates Equal Treatment for Transgender Students

Source Transgender Legal Defense Fund: June 23, 2013 - Happy LGBT Pride Month! We are thrilled to announce that the Colorado Civil Rights Division has ruled in favor of six-year-old Coy Mathis, whose school had barred her from using the girls’ bathroom at her elementary school because she is transgender. This is the first ruling in the nation holding that transgender students must be allowed to use bathrooms that match who they are, and the most comprehensive ruling ever supporting the rights of transgender people to access bathrooms without harassment or discrimination.

NY Times: In a sharply worded ruling, the division concluded that the Fountain-Fort Carson school district needlessly created a situation in which the student, Coy Mathis, would be subject to harassment when it barred her from the girls’ bathroom even though she clearly identified as female.

Telling Coy “that she must disregard her identity while performing one of the most essential human functions constitutes severe and pervasive treatment, and creates an environment that is objectively and subjectively hostile, intimidating or offensive,” Steven Chavez, the division director, wrote in the decision.

But the state’s ruling went even further, saying that evolving research on transgender development showed that “compartmentalizing a child as a boy or a girl solely based on their visible anatomy, is a simplistic approach to a difficult and complex issue.”

Michael D. Silverman, the executive director of the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund, which filed the complaint on the Mathises’ behalf, hailed the decision as a momentous victory and hoped it would sway how other school districts treated transgender students.

“This is the first ruling in the nation that holds that transgender students be allowed to use bathrooms that match who they are,” he said. “There are thousands of families like the Mathises who are feeling relieved and vindicated that the commission ruled that Coy is a girl just like any other girl.”

A lawyer for the school district did not return requests for comment. The school district had argued it acted reasonably in the dispute, saying Coy was permitted to wear girls’ clothing to school and was referred to as female.

“When Coy was told we won, she got this giant smile and her eyes bugged out. She said, ‘So I can go to school and make friends?’ ”

This win is important in the legal context, but its even more so to Coy and her wonderful family. I had the honor of getting to know this wonderful family and thank god things turned out as they have.~ kelli Busey

Some history of this case found on planetransgender:

TLDEF Files Complaint to Protect Transgender First Grader From School Discrimination

Colorado School District 8 Notches It Up saying Mathis Family Rejected Invitation To Talk

Pediatrician Dr. James Sears On CNN: Coy Mathis Will Walk Around The Girls Room With Her Penis Out, Like all Boys Do.

Dr. Jim Sear's Excuse is Not An Apology For Transphobic Bashing of Coy Mathis

Would You Sign Coy Mathis Parent's Petition?

Thousands march in today's Istanbul Trans Pride

Taksim square belonged to trans Pride Today! Thousands turned out for this celebration, although joyful there was a underpinning of discontent. Turkey is one of the most hostile of countries in the world to trans people but that didn't stop this from happening. Posted below are some of the Mobil uploads and photos posted on LGBT Istanbul facebook Enjoy!

Marchers were chanting Homofobik devlet, transfobik devlet or Homophobic state, transphobic state!

OutServe/SLDN Executive Director Allyson Robinson Fired By Board

Bilerico reports that Robinson was ousted in a suprise vote at Saterdays regular board meeting. Further updates indicate a third of the Board members and most of the senior staff have resigned in protest.

Visiting Allyson's facebook page just now she has not changed any of the information regarding her SLDN position.

My heartfelt condolences go out to Allyson with whom I finally had the pleasure of meeting in January.

Read the story as it breaks at The Bilerico project.

Ben Jealous @Netroots_Nation Voter ID Laws suppresses the Trans Vote

This is why we liberals win at the polls. We have an agenda the encompasses the vast majority of Americans and have become increasingly successful at meeting at the intersection of our communities concerns. But the most empowering element of our movement is we embrace the concept of freedom and democracy for everyone.

Jealous tells us that voting rights is the single thread that allow us to win "I'm a voting rights activist because I'm a senior citizen, I'm a voting rights activist because I'm a student rights activist, I'm a voting rights activist because I'm a marriage equality rights activist..." but all Fox heard was his comments starting at 1:19:32 about his transgender brother.

This rebroadcasting of a ultra right wings take on Ben Jealous' statement is a prime example of why the right wing is losing and will continue to lose. Their binding thread is hate.

(Red Alert Politics)Via Fox Nation Via Fox Nation

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP)President Benjamin Jealous threw out a bizarre, new reason Friday for Voter ID laws to be banned in the U.S. –transgenders.

“As many people know, I have an adopted brother who’s transgender and he typically doesn’t dress the way he does when he hangs out in the Tenderloin when he goes to a government office,” Jealous said, referencing a notorious LGBT community in San Francisco. “And so if you show his ID you know and he would hold it up to his face, it looks like two different people.”

Watch live streaming video from freespeechtv at livestream.com

Penny Arcade Creator Truly Sorry For TERF Tweets Donates 20G To Trevor Project

Not being a gamer this whole episode flew under my radar until I stumbled on a an apology by "Gabe" a Creator of Penny Arcade, apparently a highly successfully game dynasty. Gabe's apology to the trans community was so heartfelt I needed to find what happened.

Apparently he believed in the rigid gender binary construct, men have penis' and woman have a vagina. Period.

Gabe writes: "I was called a bigot and told that I was giving a stage to bigots. I had not even had breakfast yet. I said again that if they have a different opinion they are welcome to submit their own panel. I was then called “cis male garbage”. Someone then tweeted at me that I should die.

"I should have walked away from my computer at this point and played with my dog but instead I put on my asshole hat and went to work. I said if you use the word “cis” don’t bother tweeting me. This brought back another twitter argument from a week or so ago in which I defended a game about female masturbation. This game only included vaginas which I thought was reasonable given the point of the game was to teach women how to masturbate. It was pointed out to me that not all women have vaginas and I will admit right here in front of everyone that this came as a big shock to me."

"I don’t want to be the reason people don’t go to PAX or don’t support Child’s Play or don’t watch the shows on PATV. I hate the idea that because I can’t stop being an asshole I hurt all these other amazing things."

"I’m very sorry about yesterday. There are very few things that someone can say to me that will actually make me lose my temper. All my buttons got pushed yesterday though and I snapped. I doubt that will change anyone’s opinion but there you go. I’m not qualified to talk about the ambiguity of sexuality and frankly I don’t give a shit about it. I like drawing comics and playing video games. I’ll keep my mouth shut when it comes to all the other stuff."

What transgression caused Gabe to apologize so profusely?

I realized I wasn't that upset about Gabe's view about gender, then it hit me. I was giving him a pass when a few posts ago I took it to Brownworth for her TERF beliefs, essentially the same as Gabe's. Time for me to check my x-male privilege.

Anyways there's a couple more twists and turns and one admonishment. First a indie developer pulled out of a upcoming convention, Citing Penny Arcade Controversy. That was a blow to the industry but maybe not one of the magnitude that would have motivated Gabe to apologize as he did.

Turns out a close friend of his contacted him after his initial tweets and came out as transgender. . They had a heartfelt conversation, not something you can do in 140 letters.

But Gabe wasn't done making amends. He decided to donate $20,000 to the Trevor Project. That's what I call an sincere heartfelt apology.

Now apart for occasionally confronting BugBrennan in a unscripted response with a few doz other activists I have never been a participant in a twitter bomb and especially never one like the one that fell on Gabe. It was vicious and mean spirited.



I went all the way back and couldn't find one apology from a transgender person. There were many thank yous and tweets appreciating Gabe's apologia, but no apologies from the trans community I could find. (maybe there was one but I couldn't find it)

I would like to offer Gabe an apology on behalf of the trans community. I am sorry those mean things were said to you Gabe and in the spirit of good humor that has guided you through this mess I'd like to share a video I know you appreciate.