Stunning LGBT campaign ads from Argentina

A year ago, Argentina became the first country in Latin America to grant same-sex couples full marriage rights. Before this year is over, the Argentinean congress might very well pass a groundbreaking transgender-rights law extending health care protections to transgender individuals and making it easier for trans folk to change their ID's to better reflect their gender identity without requiring proof of gender reassignment surgery.

Getting to this point has certainly taken years of work by Argentinean LGBT organizations, activists, advocates and allies.  It has also inspired some pretty amazing television and online video ads.

The following two ads come from the Observatory for the Promotion of Sexual Diversity Rights in Salta or Obs.Salta for short and were made possible through grants from the United Nations (turn "annotations" on for my on-screen translation).

The second ad takes a similar take in a different setting...

The ads have actually been out for more than a year but somehow I missed them. You might also have missed a couple of really amazing ads I featured earlier.

The first one came as the ultimately successful marriage equality campaign was about to begin its final phase...

The most recent ad I featured is also a stunner and comes as advocates push for the transgender rights bill...

These are truly amazing ads.  When I try to think of any LGBT advocacy ads from the United States that are similar to these I am at a loss.  True, attitudes towards these issues might be different in Argentina than in the United States but does anyone know of any related ads produced in the U.S. that seem as immediate and vibrant as these ads?

Reaction:

• New gay TV ads (Wockner)
• Do Argentina's LGBT ads outshine the handful we've seen in the U.S.? (Instinct Magazine)
• Two great rights clips from Argentina (Joe.My.God.)
• Vidéo: Un couple hétéro viré d’un resto, vous y croiriez? (Tetu)
• Strålande kampanj från Argentina (Ottar)
• Wonderful LGBT Campaign from Argentina (Globewriter) 
• Stunning LGBT campaign ads from Argentina: Can you believe this? (Accidental Bear)
• Argentina produces more amazing LGBT advocacy vids (Bilerico) 
• Watch LGBT campaign ads from Argentina (Queer Me Up)

U.S. Embassy in Honduras expresses concern for recent killings of members of the LGBT community

 

Photo: LGBT rights advocates hold a press conference on the streets of Tegucigalpa on January 13th, 2011. The banner reads "No to hate crimes" and it highlights the brutality used in the recent murders of transgender women and gay men who have been stabbed, shot, strangled and incinerated (Source: La Prensa)

• Previously: Honduras: Ask authorities to put an end to transgender murders (Jan. 11, 2011)
• Related: Gay murder rates soar in Brazil, Honduras (Gay City News, Jan. 19, 2011)

Earlier today The United States Embassy in Honduras released the following statement (Spanish version here):

United States Embassy Notes Concern for Recent Killings of Members of the LGBT Community
January 19, 2011

Tegucigalpa - The U.S. Embassy notes with concern the five killings that have been committed against members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community since December 18, with the latest being in San Pedro Sula January 17.

The protection of Honduran law extends to all its citizens regardless of sexual orientation and the Lobo Administration has repeatedly expressed its commitment to defend the rights of all Honduran citizens.

It is in this regard that we call upon Honduran law enforcement authorities to vigorously investigate these crimes, bring to justice the perpetrators, and take all necessary steps to protect LGBT persons, who are among the most vulnerable to violence and abuse in Honduras.

It's the highest-profile official statement I have seen since Honduran media began profiling a series of gruesome murders, mostly against the transgender community, that have taken place since December 18th and since the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission launched an action alert demanding authorities investigate these crimes (Warning: Graphic images).

On Monday, the Geneva-based UNAIDS also released a statement condemning the murders:

UNAIDS condemns killings of transgender people in Honduras

17 January 2011

GENEVA, 17 January 2011—UNAIDS is concerned by the recent reported killings of transgender people in Honduras. Since late November 2010, five individuals from the transgender community have been reportedly killed in separate incidents in the country. The motive for these killings has not been determined.

“UNAIDS urges the Government of Honduras to take every step to investigate these killings thoroughly,” said Mr Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “All forms of discrimination, including transphobia, block access to HIV prevention programmes and impact the quality of care for people living with HIV.”

Honduras has committed to protecting the human rights of all individuals in various international and regional resolutions. “I urge all states to provide adequate protection to transgender people,” said Mr Sidibé.

UNAIDS expresses its full support for the community of transgender people in Honduras and for the Latin American Network of Transgender People (REDLACTRANS) in their efforts to stop intimidation and violence against transgender individuals.

On January 13th, a number of LGBT rights advocates protested outside the national Public Prosecutor's office demanding action.  Holding banners that called for an end to hate crimes and graphic images of murdered transgender women that had been featured on the cover of several local tabloids, activists argued that the government-sponsored institution had done little to stem the violence.

According to La Prensa, activists called attention to the killing of of well-known and respected LGBT rights activist Walter Trochez on December 13th of 2009 and the fact that his murder was still unresolved a year after his murder.

José Zembrano, one of the protesters, said that there was hate in Honduran society towards sexual diversity.  "Just in the last 45 days we have learned of the killing of five of our [transgender] friends", he said.

The activists said they knew of 31 transgender women who had been murdered since June 28th of 2009.

Later, La Tribuna reported that Sandra Ponce, the Public Prosecutor herself, had stepped out of her office and expressed concern about these crimes:

The Prosecutor's Office is giving priority to every case, independently of whether it's our responsibility to pursue state officials who commit human rights violations while on duty; nevertheless, taking note that there might be an element of discrimination and homophobia in these killings, we have put them under investigation.

On January 17th, as today's U.S. Embassy statement mentions, La Prensa reported yet another murder of a transgender woman. The sixth transgender woman found murdered, according to the paper.

Marcia Alejandra, the first transsexual woman in Latin America, has died

[NOTE: The image used for this post is that of legendary queer poet and provocateur Pedro Lemebel, who alerted media to the news, not that of Marcia Alejandra]

Friends of Marcia Alejandra - the first woman in Latin America to undergo gender reassignment surgery to change her anatomical gender from male to female - say she has died from a stroke.

"With her departure, this country loses - perhaps - a part of its memory," said queer activist and friend Pedro Lemebel to Chilean newspaper La Nación,

"Marcia was never acknowledged as the great mold-breaker of her era", he added.

Marcia Alejandra, who made a living as a hairdresser, underwent gender-reassignment surgery in Chile back in March of 1973 (that's almost 40 years ago!).

A report published by Chilean newspaper La Cuarta in 2004 says that news of the historic surgery didn't reach the public until a year after it happened when some newspapers finally caught wind of it.

At the time, Marcia Alejandra bravely stood up to reporters and said she was "a man with the soul of a woman" (remember, this were the early 1970's in Latin America).

Dr. Antonio Salas Vieyra, who performed the surgery, went on to worldwide acclaim and I still see his name pop up from time to time in reference to Latin American LGBT history.  He is currently the president of the Chilean Sexuality and Sexual Education Association.

Marcia Alejandra's name, by all accounts, has been mostly relegated to the sands of time, at least until now.

La Nación says that when they reached out to the leading Chilean LGBT rights organization, MOVILH, they didn't even recognize her name.  Pablo Lemebel, speaking to the paper, blamed it on institutional transphobia on their part (Lemebel has been a long time critic of the organization).

Lemebel also penned an ode to Marcia Alejandra published by El Nortero on January 10th in which he tries to rescue her name for historical posterity and highlights what it might have meant for someone in the early 1970's to have the courage to go under gender-reassignment surgery.

Of course, to call someone the first person in Latin America to undergo gender-reassignment surgery is highly subjective. In the comments section of the La Nación article, someone argues that someone else in Chile might have been the first transsexual woman in the country.  And maybe that's correct but, if it is, it wasn't anyone who went public then nor now.

Marcia Alejandra did go public, though, and did so at a time when it was absolutely heroic.

In the United States, Puerto Rican-born transgender idol Sylvia Rivera has always been held high on a pedestal when it comes to te origins of the current LGBT-rights movement and her role in the Stonewall riots of the late 1960's.

Please help me welcome Marcia Alejandra to the same pantheon as that of Sylvia Rivera's.

Honduras: Ask authorities to put an end to transgender murders

UPDATE #2: U.S. Embassy in Honduras expresses concern for recent killings of members of the LGBT community

UPDATE #1: There have been three more murders, including that of another transgender woman, since IGLHRC sent their original alert.  IGLHRC also says that 1,000 people have added their name to a statement condemning the murders and asking authorities to take action. You can ad your name by filling out this form]

From the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC):

Over the past two weeks, three travestis have been murdered in separate incidents in Honduras. In two of the incidents, the victims were set on fire either before or after their deaths. This means that in the past year and a half, there has been a total of now 31 the murders of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) people in Honduras. Join the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) and the Honduran LGBTI organization Red Cattrachas in calling for immediate investigations and demanding state action to prevent future killings on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

IGLHRC is using the Spanish word travesti which is more commonly used than transgénero (transgender) throughout Latin America. The details:

On December 22, 2010 in Comayagüela, a 23-year-old travesti named Lorenza Alexis Alvarado Hernández was found dead, her body visibly beaten and burned. Bloody stones near her corpse indicate that the bruises covering her body were caused by stoning. Her body was set on fire. Used condoms found nearby have led to the suspicion that she may also have been raped. After her death, the assailants threw her body into a ditch. News reports indicate that severe injuries to her face rendered her corpse virtually unrecognizable.

The same day, another travesti, Lady Oscar Martinez Salgado, age 45, was found burned to death in her home in Barrio El Rincón of Tegucigalpa. Her body showed multiple stab wounds. Neighbors report witnessing two suspicious individuals running from her house as the fire ignited.

Less than two weeks later, on January 2, 2011, a young travesti known only as Cheo was found murdered on the main street of Colonia Alameda in Tegucigalpa. Her body was left without legal documentation. She appears to have died from a severe stab wound to her chest.

These killings are not isolated incidents. Since the 2009 coup d'état in Honduras, there have been 31 murders of LGBTI people documented by Red Cattrachas. More deaths of LGBT people have likely gone unreported. At least one of those killed, Walter Trochez, was a prominent human rights defender. In the majority of the cases, there have been no investigation or prosecution of the crimes. Since the coup, all Hondurans, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity, have been subjected to increased violence and have received little protection from authorities; however, LGBT people been particularly vulnerable to attack. Impunity nationwide has created this deadly spike in violence.

How to take action? Well, IGLHRC also has information on that as well.  Click here and, in a few seconds, you can ad your voice to those calling for justice in these killings:

In response to pressure from local human rights activists, the Honduran Minister of Human Rights and the Tegucigalpa Chief of Homicide have assigned two investigators to these murders. However, no one has yet been charged in the recent deaths, and there is little evidence that the investigations are underway.

Urge the Honduran authorities to conduct immediate investigations into each of the recent murders of travestis, to hold perpetrators accountable to the fullest extent of the law, and to prevent similar attacks in the future. Let officials know that the world mourns these tragic deaths and demands that LGBTI killings stop.

Those authorities include Honduran president Porfirio Lobo, from the center-right conservative political National Party, who has yet to say a word.

Sickening

Last week, some anonymous person sent me a number of low-quality clips from a television show called "José Luis Sin Censura".

The show, which thankfully I've never seen in my life, is apparently broadcast in some of the major US television Latino markets, including New York City, Los Angeles, Miami and Houston.

Think of a smuttier "The Jerry Springer Show" with no concern shown for FCC fines, particularly in their demeaning portrayal of gays, lesbians, women and transgender folk.

I have compiled the six or seven clips I was sent and uploaded them as a single clip on YouTube.  I believe the clips come from two separate shows...



Looking for additional info online, I was happy to see that the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) was already on the case.  An excerpt from their June 18th statement:

The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) asks you to join calls for the reality talk show José Luis Sin Censura to immediately stop using defamatory terms and apologize to viewers. The terms “maricón” and “puñal,” which in English translate to “fa**ot” were chanted by audience members on the June 8 segment of the program. The same pattern occurred on the June 10 segment of the show, when audience members chanted “puto,” a word that also means “fa**ot” in many Spanish-speaking countries.
GLAAD reached out to executives of the company that produces José Luis Sin Censura to express our concerns, but the company has not responded.  The show is produced and distributed by Burbank, CA-based LBI, Liberman Broadcasting Inc. José Luis Sin Censura airs daily on Estrella TV in Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Houston and other large Latino markets. By one estimate, Estrella TV reaches about 70% of the nation’s Latino households and millions of Latinos nationwide.
The show’s format pits guests against one another in combative situations. This often leads to violence, which audience members are encouraged to cheer and sends a message that violence against LGBT people is okay.

They urge people to take action NOW and express their outrage.

I was also glad and not surprised to see that the amazing Jeremy Hooper of Good As You was on the case as well. He's got additional damning footage of the show on his blog.

Peru: IGLHRC demands investigation into attack on trans woman; Peruvian TV runs longer report on incident

The International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission (IGLHRC) has sent out an alert asking people like you to send letters to the Peruvian government and demand an investigation into a brutal attack on a transgender woman in the town of Tarapoto (please visit this link and find out how you can help out).

Blabbeando reported on this story back on January 30th ("News cameras capture inhuman beating, undressing and humiliation of transgender woman") and posted the original video along with an onscreen English translation.

The case has garnered a lot of international attention to the reporting from Peru's America Television. Perhaps this is why the channel decided to produce a longer segment on the Tarapoto incident. Above, Blabbeando brings you the full 9-minute investigative piece also with an on-screen English translation. Any nudity has been obscured by the original producers and no one emerges physically harmed but be warned that it might be disturbing to some viewers. There is somewhat of a sensationalistic tone to the reporting, but it shows additional footage of what happened that night - and includes chilling commentary from an unidentified neighborhood watch group member who clearly states that these beatings are done with a level of increasing severity, force and enthusiasm. Another man is also heard off-camera telling Techi, the transgender woman, to leave Terepoto or else be killed.

"Never again do we want to see you in San Martin," the man says, "Do you understand? You will return to your place, damn it, because - on the contrary - if we catch you tomorrow or Saturday or any other day - BYE. Do you understand me?"

There is also a brief interview, days after the attack, with Techi herself, who is consistently referred to as a man by the reporter as well. To date, I am not aware that anyone has been brought to justice.

You might want to click on the 'Full Screen' YouTube tag to be able to read the translation.

Guatemala: Stunning charges against leading LGBT rights advocate

Details are sketchy and vary from one account to another but a Guatemalan government agency has brought 'attempted murder' charges against a leading LGBT rights advocate in a case that stems from an attack against a transgender woman last July.

The charges against Jorge López (right), director of the HIV prevention non-governmental agency OASIS, seem ludicrous considering his long-standing efforts as an advocate for transgender folk. At least one human rights organization is calling for an international response demanding an impartial review of the charges brought against him.

The charges: In a news brief, La Hora reports that the Guatemalan Public Ministry released an arrest warrant against López for "his alleged participation in the attack against a transgender on July 4th in Zone 1."

According to Telediaro 3, the Public Ministry alleges that López was among a group of people who beat up a transgender woman so badly that her arms almost had to be amputated.

Prensa Libre, on the other hand, seems to get the facts wrong in reporting that López was accused of murder against a transgender woman found dead on a public street in June of 2008.

López says it's a government vendetta: All three papers report that López surrendered yesterday and defended himself before the media as he made his way into the courthouse.

"As he indicated before entering the courthouse, [López said] he is being pressured by the National Civil Police (PNC) and the Public Ministry (MP), based on accusations he made last September that agents from both institutions attacked six homosexuals", says Telediario 3.

Prensa Libre says that he admitted that there had been a attack against transgender individuals on the date mentioned by the authorities but argues that he was among those who called the authorities to alert them to the attacks (he says he plans to use the phone records as roof of his innocence).

Reports said that he was joined by representatives from international human rights organizations and Guatemala's Human Rights Attorney's office at the court hearing.

International response: So far, the New York based Human Rights First is the first organization to demand a proper review of charges against López. From their statement:

López is the director of a prominent organization that works to protect the rights of transgendered sex workers in Guatemala and he has spent many years advocating for them. He worked closely with the victim and sought police protection for her shortly before the attack. He later submitted complaints about police misconduct against sex workers, shortly before the arrest warrant against him was issued.

They also urge folk to sign on to a statement asking the court to "begin an impartial review of the validity of the charges against him and to close the case against him if there is insufficient evidence."

Sign-on statement: I urge you to join Human Rights First! Click here and demand that justice be served. It certainly looks as if the Guatemalan government is trying to get rid of of a key human rights advocate by trumping up charges against him. The least you can do is to demand an independent review of the charges brought against him.

*** UPDATE! *** (posted Jan. 26th at 5:04PM): A source says that charges against López were lowered from attempted murder to harboring and hindering persecution. He was released by the court as the case proceeds through the legal system and put under house arrest. I'll post additional information as it becomes available.

Related:

• Guatemalan trans rights advocate faces arrest warrant (Pink News, Jan. 21, 2009)

Updates: Arrest in Angie Zapata murder, US HIV ban partially lifted

Arrest made in murder of Angie Zapata: Allen Ray Andrade (right) was arrested yesterday morning in Greely, Colorado, and charged with last week's brutal murder of transgender woman Angie Zapata.

In an affidavit obtained by The Denver Post of statements Andrade made to the police after being arrested, he says that he reacted violently after he realized Zapata was transgender after spending a night at her place, hitting her first with his fist and then with a fire estinguisher.

The arresting police officer quotes Andrade as saying that he thought he had "killed it" and then proceeded to wrap the body in a blanket. He then tried to clean up the mess but "after he noticed Zapata sitting up, he hit her again with the fire extinguisher."

He might claim temporary insanity once the trial comes but he seemed to recover his marbles pretty fast since he then systematically ran through the apartment and gathered some of Zapata's belongings including her purse, cellphone and car. Andrade has been charged with second-degree murder and aggravated motor-vehicle theft .

I had previously written about the case here and here. Monica Roberts has additional commentary here.

• Related: Colorado 'transgender panic' killing to be tried as a hate crime (Page One Q)

United States HIV ban partially lifted: It's been said that one of President George W. Bush's few semi-positive legacies will be the increase in funding that the United States contributes towards HIV prevention worldwide and, as part of a funding initiative that he signed into law yesterday, he also removed a federal ban on allowing HIV positive non-residents enter the country.

For those of us who have long advocated for a repeal of this discriminatory policy, it was a bitter-sweet but incredible moment. I have first-hand knowledge of the hell that so many go through when they have been eligible for immigration status but for their HIV status and this relic of the Jesse Helms anti-gay era is almost out of here.

Almost, because the removal from federal policy does not automatically remove the discriminatory language from the Department of Health and Human Services stipulations on who is allowed to enter the United States ("Ban on travelers with HIV to U.S. partially lifted", Los Angeles Times).

Immigration Equality, one of the leading organizations behind the repeal, have this to say about it. I previously wrote about the issue here.

Transgender Latina teen murdered in Colorado

History unfortunately keeps repeating itself. Word tonight that a 18 year-old transgender Latina woman has been murdered in Greely, Colorado.

NBC affiliate 9 News reports that close to 200 people gathered today at a Baptist church to mourn the passing of Angie Zapata (born Justin) who was found beaten to death in her apartment a week ago on Thursday.

Police indicate that they have information that might lead to an arrest and have not ruled out that this might be a hate crime but they have also indicated that the killer or killers might be acquaintances of the victim.

On a related matter, blogger TransGriot is taking the Associated Press to task for their common practice of calling trans people by their name of birth instead of their current adopted name ("Another transwoman murdered, another media diss").

AP reporter Mike Peters - who wrote the original story and made no mention of Zapata's gender identity ("Car still missing in homicide") - acknowledged his mistake in a follow up column posted today ("Homicide victim was living as a woman"). Unfortunately he takes a defensive attitude and name-tags the Greely police department, the Weld County's Coroner's Office, and the fact that Angie identified herself with the name of Justin in a couple appearances before a Colorado court for traffic-related violations as reason enough to have identified her as a male in his first report.

Both her parents, who mourn her passing at this time, accepted her fully as a woman and are said to have been greatly supportive of Angie. Let's hope they catch the perpetrators.

Trans panic in soccer, Part. 64: Ronaldo's big night out

Brazilian soccer superstar Ronaldo goes to bar in Rio, picks up three prostitutes and goes irate when he find out that they are transgender. As The Times Online says the story seems "like a plot-line from the infamous [UK] TV show Footballers’ Wives." Read full story here.

UPDATE: Brazilian soccer star Ronaldo says he is not gay (May 6, 2008)

This Saturday: A vigil in memory of Sanesha Stewart

Organizations such as FIERCE!, The Sylvia Rivera Law Project and the Audre Lorde Project have been sending alerts this week about a community vigil taking place this Saturday in memory and celebration of the life of Sanesha Stewart (left) who was stabbed to death in February at the age of 25.

Here are details about the vigil and, below, what other bloggers are saying about the life of Sanesha, the lack of awareness about her murder and the problematic initial coverage by the New York Daily News.

Sanesha Stewart Vigil: On February 10, Sanesha Stewart, a young trans woman of color, was murdered in her apartment in the Bronx. Please join Family, Friends and Community Members for a Community Vigil to Honor the Memory and Celebrate her life.
When: Saturday, April 5, 2008 - 1:00pm to 3:00pm
Where: Bronx Community Pride Center, 448 East 149th Street, Bronx, New York (2 train to 3rd ave./149th Street Station)

The Vigil will be followed by a reception at the Bronx Community Pride Center. For more information call: 718-292-4368 or 1-866-4GAYCARE

Donations: If you would like to make a financial contribution to the family of to help pay for funeral expenses please send a check or money order to: Evelyn Stewart, 3529 Tieman Ave. Apt 2, Bronx, NY 10469.

Other reactions:
Sanesha was a client at the Sylvia Rivera Law Project where Holly volunteers and, even though she never met Sanesha, she posted her thoughts at Feministe ("Sanesha Stewart is dead and I have only tears and frustration for her," Feb. 12, 2008). She links up to other reactions as well.

Cara, over at The Curvature, takes a look at the initial and problematic coverage of the murder by the New York Daily News ("On the Murder of Sanesha Stewart," Feb. 13, 2008).

Jack, at Angry Brown Butch, writes about the murder in the context of hate crime legislation that does not include transgender people ("Sanesha Stewart, Larry King and why hate crime legislation won't help," Feb. 20, 2008).

And, at The Washington Post's The Root blog, journalist Kai Wright ponders the reasons behind the wildly different reactions regarding the murder of queer folk ("Queer, Dead and Nobody Cares," Feb. 26, 2008).

Melania Marquez has the best mom ever (or how to navigate high-school as a Latina trans teen)

"Will you go to 80's Saddies?"
15 year old Melania Marquez writes a message on a balloon before inviting a boy to a school dance (photo by Matt McClain of The Rocky Mountain News).

Rocky Mountain News from Colorado has a profile of 15 year old Melania Marquez and the stuff that she has to face as a high-school student: The extra-curricular activities (she is on the girl's track team), the high-school gossip, the other girls ecouraging her to ask boys out and the awkwardness of rejection when a potential date wants to be a friend rather than a boyfriend.

Pretty regular stuff for a high-school teen. Pretty amazing that Melania happens to be a transgender teen.

I was struck by the fact that, being from a Latino household, Melania nevertheless has always been lovingly supported by her mother, Michelle, veven as the mom has struggled to understand her daughter's quick willingness to embrace her transgender self which she rightfully thinks might put Melania at a higher risk of being discriminated against than if she identified as a gay boy.

Read the full story here.

Sadly, what is unsurprising is the slight and not so slight rejection that Melania faces sometimes. In the article she describes taunts made by classmates as well as the difficulty that she has in finding a date that will want to continue dating her (a boy is taunted for agreeing to accompany Melania to a movie and others want to be 'friends' when Melania discloses the fact she is transgender).

Worse is the reaction from what I assume are adults in the online comments section below the story:

Gene writes: "Melaina is courageous, how so? . . , hopefully not contagious.." (later on he ads "Is this new intermediate sex, able to reproduce him/herself?").

And then there is forwhatitis who says "Hey, think of the possibilities..... A minority boy from a home without a father, grows up to identify as a female even though he has male genitalia. Perhaps we could encourage this so that instead of being gang-bangers, rapists, burglers (sic.), murderers and thugs, these boys will instead start baking each other cookies! I can already see the benefits of drive-by huggings already!"

Misogyny! Racism! Xenophobia! Homophobia! Transphobia! All rolled into a itsy bitsy online comment. Yikes! At the very least Melania seems to take most taunting in strides and hopefully will survive all the usual high-school gossip and drama - as well as the world beyond.

Kudos to her mom, though, Michelle Benzor-Marquez, for standing up for Melania and for going that extra mile and accepting her daughter when so many families disown their own when they come out as gay, never mind transgender.

Previously:

• Texas high-school opens doors to Latina trans teen after initial rejection (Aug. 31, 2007)
• Latina trans teen elected Prom Queen at California high school (May 14, 2007)
• Mexican-born trans man wants to be Prom King in Fresno (April 27, 2007)

Congresswoman Linda T. Sanchez wants trans inclusion in ENDA

So, here's the thing...

As you know, I haven't been blogging much and people "in the know" have probably also noticed that I've been staying away from the ENDA fight - as big as pissing match as it's become (if you have to ask, Google the words "transgender" and "ENDA" and hit the 'News' button or - better yet! - simply click here).

Well, staying away no longer! Since this whole shindig began I was a bit frustrated that the Latino LGBT leadership in the US didn't have a voice in this but, then again, I figured it was up to the younger generations to stand up if they wanted a say. Ultimately - as Al Pacino said in The Godfather, Part 3 - "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!"

Last week, in the wake of the fight that erupted after the Washington Blade revealed that Congressman Barney Frank (a personal hero) had introduced a transgender-less ENDA bill (arguing that there weren't enough votes for a trans-inclusive bill and that it was better to go with an allegedly winnable trans-less bill), my good friend Gloria Nieto from California (Miss Wild Thing, if you're nasty) reached out to me and asked if we should do something. I said yes but quickly became embroiled in work deadlines.

But yesterday came word that the bill would be marked up for a House vote today and - heck! - why not act?

So taking inspiration from another personal hero (Steven Goldstein from Garden State Equality in New Jersey and a letter he sent sent to NJ legislators) I quickly drafted a letter to California Congresswoman Linda T. Sanchez, at Gloria's suggestion, and within a couple of hours gathered an impressive list of co-signers. Here is the letter we sent last night:

AN URGENT LETTER TO CONGRESSWOMAN LINDA T. SANCHEZ

Wednesday, October 17, 2007

Dear Congresswoman Sanchez:

The U.S. House Education and Labor Committee, on which you serve, is scheduled to vote within the next two days on H.R. 3685, the version of the Employment Nondiscrimination Act (ENDA) that excludes gender identity protection.

As leaders of the Latino lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community throughout the United States we respectfully ask you to vote against approval and – instead - insist on a committee vote in favor of H.R. 2015, the version of the Employment Nondiscrimination Act ( of this version of ENDAENDA) that includes gender identity protections which would make employment discrimination against transgender people illegal.

You might be aware that these bills have drawn a tremendous response from various local and national LGBT organizations and leaders - as well as non-gay allies – who overwhelmingly recognize that stripping away gender identity language from ENDA would leave the transgender community without protections against discrimination.

And, as often is the case in the Latino community, the heated dialogue that has ensued might be considered by some as something that might pertain to the LGBT community but might not be of concern to Latinos living in the United States.

Those of us who have signed this letter, believe nothing could be further from the truth.

Over the last few decades, the LGBT movement in the United States certainly has made tremendous strides towards being recognized as equal citizens and yet, what is little known is that the Latino LGBT community and our Latino straight allies have been an integral part of this civil rights movement.

During the 1969 Stonewall Riots in New York City, seen now as the launch of the modern gay rights movement, Sylvia Rivera emerged as one of the key figures standing up to discrimination during those fateful nights, along with other Latina women who happened to be transgender.

And, while it is unarguable that the general environment for gays and lesbians has greatly improved since the Stonewall Riots, thanks in no small part to Sylvia and other Latino transgender heroes, the same cannot be said for transgender people who are probably almost as vulnerable today as they were then.

Some in the gay community have argued that the ‘T’ as in “transgender” is not part of the gay community but, if you really think about it, when people discriminate against a person based on their perceptions of who we are as gays and lesbians, their discrimination is often based on their perception of gender roles and not only sexual orientation.

This is particularly true of the Latino community which often confuses the issues of gender with sexual orientation as if they were interchangeable. Spanish language newspapers and television news often refer to transgender individuals as gays and gay Latinos are often asked what their gender role is in bed – whether a gay man is a “woman” in bed or a lesbian woman is “a man” – which speaks to how these issues are sometimes seen in the general Latino community.

Furthermore, for those of us who are transgender, have transgender friends and/or work with transgender communities, we are direct witnesses to how vulnerable the community is to being discriminated particularly in gaining employment.

For these and many other reasons, we know that it would be unconscionable to pass an ENDA bill that leaves the transgender community – and the Latino transgender community in particular – behind.

On behalf of the Latino LGBT leaders listed below in alphabetical order, we look forward to hearing from you. If you need additional information or would like to ask questions about this statement, please contact me at *****.

Sincerely, Gloria Nieto

Signees:

* Noel Alicea, Gay Men’s Health Crisis, New York, NY
* Marta Donayre, Love Sees No Borders, Sunnyvale, CA
* Andrés Duque, Mano a Mano, New York, NY
* Lorenzo Herrera y Lozano, ALLGO statewide people of color organization, Austin, TX
* Nila Marrone, LATINO PFLAG - NYC, PFLAG for Families of Color and Allies in NYC (PFLAG is an acronym for Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays)
* Lisbeth Melendez, political consultant, Washington, DC
* Gloria Nieto, former member of the Democratic National Committee, San Francisco, CA
* Pedro Julio Serrano, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, Washington, DC
* Herb Sosa, Unity Coalition/Coalicion Unida, Miami, FL

* NOTE: Affiliations appear for identification purposes only, signatures do not imply that those affiliations endorse this letter unless otherwise indicated.

So that was the letter. And, today, a committee vote did indeed come and I am happy to say that, while the trans-less bill was sent out of committee for a full House vote, Congresswoman Sanchez was one of four Democrat Congresspersons to state that they were against stripping trans protections from ENDA (a Latina woman at that!). Incidentally, Brooklyn representative Yvette Clarke, an African-American woman, was also one of those four.

Sanchez released the following press release this afternoon:

FROM THE OFFICE OF LINDA T. SÁNCHEZ
Representing California’s 39th District

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 18, 2007

LINDA SÁNCHEZ votes against narrow version of EMPLOYMENT NON-DISCRIMINATION ACT

Congresswoman calls for inclusion of gender identity protections

Washington, DC – Congresswoman Linda Sánchez (D-Lakewood) issued the following statement when casting her vote today in the House Committee on Education and Labor against H.R. 3685, a narrow version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) that excludes protections based on gender identity. Congresswoman Sánchez is an original cosponsor of H.R. 2015, the original version of ENDA that was introduced earlier this year and prohibits workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.

Congresswoman Sánchez joined three other Democrats in opposing H.R.3685 for similar reasons. The bill won approval by the Committee and is expected on the House floor next week. Congresswoman Sánchez is actively working to rally support for an anticipated amendment by Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisconsin) to add gender identity protections into the legislation.

“I am pleased that last month, the Subcommittee on Health, Employment, Labor and Pensions held a hearing on H.R. 2015, the original version of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act that was introduced earlier this year. I am a proud original cosponsor of that bill, which would prohibit workplace discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity.

“I am disappointed that we're not marking up that bill today. Instead, we have a narrower, less inclusive version of the bill, which does not include gender identity.

“In the opening statement I submitted at last month's hearing, I said I was proud that as a member of this Committee, I was able to help make our employment laws consistent with our values.

“Unfortunately, this bill does not go far enough to enshrine American values into law because it fails to include protections to those who arguably need it most: transgender people, as well as those who don't conform to gender stereotypes. These are the most vulnerable people we sought to protect in H.R. 2015, the fully inclusive ENDA.

“I believe I am correct to say that it is an American value that it is unacceptable to deny someone a job, a raise, or a promotion for arbitrary factors beyond their job performance. And that is a value that holds true regardless of the worker’s real or perceived gender identity."

Still, the transgender-less bill now moves ahead to a House vote. Representative Tammy Baldwin says that she will introduce and amendment that would restore the gender identity provision that was removed a couple of weeks ago but it's unclear if this will be successful.

Oscar De La Hoya in fishnet stockings and high heels

[UPDATE: De La Hoya has admitted the photos were real in an interview with "Aqui y Ahora" which aired on September 1, 2011]

Considering a whole day has gone by since these images surfaced all over the (gossipier) side of the blogosphere, this probably already is old news.

Still, in light of the recent attempt by a Spanish journalist to question Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez' virility by asking him if he was gay, these images of boxer Oscar De La Hoya wearing make-up, a wig, a full-body fishnet mesh getup and high heels struck a nerve.

The X17 site "exclusive" introduces the images as "Presenting Miss Oscar De La Hoya" and claims "These images will send Oscar De La Hoya's career to the canvas!"

Several people have responded on the X17 page with the usual snickering jokes and outright disgust that is so representative of a culture that is still so uncomfortable with seeing a man dressed as a woman. Others have said that the images are obviously fake and just an instance where De La Hoya's head has been Photoshopped into another man's body.

By this morning the images had made it to national media with the New York Daily News not only reporting on the photos but printing yet another depiction - or, as they call it, "artist's rendering" - of De La Hoya in drag, and, in doing so, fully engaging in the not so hidden homophobic / transphobic subtext of the online dialogue.

In the article Debbie Caplan, a representative from the De La Hoya camp says that the photos are indeed fake: The photos "are Photoshopped. They're not real. His head's too small and it doesn't even look like his body."

Towleroad has additional links to a statement from De La Hoya's lawyer who also says the images are fake and that they are considering legal action against X17.

The Daily News article, on the other hand, says that the photos come from a woman who had a "kinky" relationship with the boxer, who happens to be married (Update: She has changed her story).

As I wrote in March of 2006, De La Hoya is no stranger to attacks on his masculinity in the form of homophobic taunts or allegations from former contenders he has gone on to defeat. And, unlike many in the sport, De La Hoya has always risen above the fray and responded with dignity and honor without resorting to throwing back homophobic taunts of his own.

Whether the photos turn out to be fake or not, at most they show De La Hoya likes to ad spice to his sex life - as so many other people in the United States do (he might also have been dressing up for sport and not necessarily for kinks); he also might have been unfaithful, as so many other people also have as well. Allegedly, the sexual partner in question is a woman which still would make De La Hoya, hm, straight? The reaction actually speaks less about De La Hoya than about those who gleefully think that his career is done with the publication of these possibly fake images (and Latino gossip sites are just as complicit in rejoicing).

The De La Hoya camp certainly seems threatened - if their swift reaction and denials are any indication - and I guess that in boxing this sort of thing can indeed affect someone's career. If I were them, though, I'd look at how De La Hoya has handled himself in the past when he's been called a fag and learn from the way that he has addressed those attacks with humor and honesty.

Updates:

• Mario Lopez says De La Hoya is getting a kick out of the scandal (EXtra clip here)
• Model changes story: Says that the camera that was supposedly used to take the shots was hers but that she wasn't in control of the camera when the photos were "taken" (New York Daily News, Mon., Sept. 24, 2007)

Related:

• Soccer player "outed" in Perú as Argentina hosts gay soccer tournament (Sept. 26, 2007)
• Sports Illustrated Latino is gay-inclusive (July 11, 2007)
• Twenty years later, Don McPherson in Harlem (March 23, 2007)

Previously:

• Homophobic boxers KO'd (May 7, 2006)
• Latino boxers and gay paranoia (March 1, 2006)

Texas high school opens doors for Latina trans teen after initial rejection

A Latina transgender teen from Oak Cliff, Texas, was sent home by school officials on Monday when she showed up to register at Sunset High School wearing "a skirt, tight white shirt and ballet flats," according to a local Fox News Channel affiliate.

The teen, identified by Fox News with her birth name, Luis Valderrama, thought she had been sent home because her skirt was too short. But the school later apologized and invited her back to register for the school term on Wednesday.

Regarding the length of the skirt, Valderrama told Fox News "I'll compromise with them. I'll wear capris."

The school seems attended predominately by Latinos. A sign visible as a background to the online Fox News video report reads "La escuela comienza 8:45 am 8/7/07 Bienvenido al Mejor Ano df tu vida" - quirky grammar kept intact - which means "School starts 8:45am 8/7/07 Welcome to the best anus of your life" - I guess there was no plastic ñ letters to change "ano" to "año").

Chile: Transgender character erased from Chilean version of Argentinian soap opera

You might remember something I wrote a while back about the Colombian television soap opera "Los Reyes" and how shocked I was to see a real transgender woman, Endry Cardeño, play the lead role of, well, a transgender woman - and steal the show.

Not that it was a first for a trans woman to have one of the leading roles in a television soap opera. Turns out that "Los Reyes" was the Colombian version of a soap opera from Argentina called "Los Roldan" in which Florencia de La V, a well-known cabaret performer, was the first to fill Laisa's shoes.

Taking a successful television soap from one country and re-making it to fit local customs and parlance is nothing new (the most obvious example in the United States is ABC's adaptation of "Ugly Betty" which was originally a Colombian television show).

So it's no surprise that Chile is set to launch their own version of "Los Roldan," renamed "Fortunato," which promises to follow the original story-arc - with one key difference.

Clarin reports that while the character of Laisa will survive under a different name (Judy), the part will no longer be that of a transgender woman or even be played by a woman.

Instead, actor Luciano Cruz Coke will interpret a straight man who dresses up as a woman in order to find work as a television host (think Dustin Hoffman in "Tootsie"). Hilarity ensues.

GayMagazine editor Roberto Gaete calls it censorship.

I tried to get into the webpage of the leading LGBT rights organization in Chile - Movement for Integration and Liberation of Homosexuals (MOVILH) - for their comments but had no luck getting access.

In their article Clarin does point out that, even if Chile might have a more conservative society, Canal 13, the same channel that is running the series, has addressed issues related to homosexuality in the past in successful soaps such as "Machos."

Thanks to the great Lake y su bizzarre streaming - blogging from Buenos Aires - for bringing it to our attention.

Bay Area Reporter: Disrespectful burial, gay radio jock, GLAAD goes to Mexico

Today's Bay Area Reporter has a number of stories that may be of interest to Blabbeando readers, some on which we have commented before. Among them:

Disrespectful burial: Mourners who went to pay their respects to murdered Latina transgender woman Ruby Rodriguez (also known as Ruby Ordeñana) in San Francisco were not happy to find that she had been dressed as a man for the viewing. Apparently the Nicaraguan Consulate had called the funeral home where the viewing took place to say that Ordeñana's father had requested that she be buried in men's clothing. Close friends expressed surprise at finding out that Ms. Ordeñana had any relatives living in the Bay Area.

Outed ex-Univision Radio employee now a radio show host: The Reporter also profiles 46 year old radio broadcaster Roberto Hernández (pictured), host of a weekly radio show targetting the Spanish language LGBT community in San Francisco (Roberto Al Medio Dia! on KIKI 1010AM).

In 2002, Mr. Hernández sued Univision Radio when, as an employee, he was outed as a gay man in a live prank call he received from two radio shock jocks that also worked for the radio network. He tells the Reporter that the case was settled for $270,000 which he has used to launch his own show and to launch a non-profit group somewhat awkwardly called Gay y Lesbianas Unidos Contra la Homophobia or GLUCH.

GLAAD crosses the border: Little noticed when it happened a few weeks ago, there was history of sorts made by the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. On April 2nd Monica Taher, GLAAD's people of color strategy director, and Luis Perelman, President of the Mexican Federation of Sexual Education and Sexology met with producers and hosts of the Azteca America Network's "Ventaneando" gossip television show. At issue was homophobic language expressed by one of the hosts during one of the tapings which was later broadcast in the United States. The Reporter takes a look at the outcomes and has some local reaction.

Now, for some of us with an eye on Latino media, it seems more than appropriate that GLAAD target Spanish-language television production networks and production houses such as Azteca, Univision, Telemundo and others but the truth is that a great deal of their content is produced outside the United States. So it's worth noting that this particular meeting took place in Mexico City (full disclosure: Monica is one of my bestest friends in the world, but still pretty groovy). I might be wrong, but I believe it is the first time that GLAAD has targetted conglomerates airing programming in the United States even if they are based outside the United States.

Update: Ruby Rodriguez is mourned in San Francisco

Above: San Francisco Chronicle photo by Mike Keane

Happening Here has images from last night's SF vigil in memory of slain trans woman Ruby Rodriguez - including the one on the left. More here.

Good to see the presence of some public officials such as Assemblyman Mark Leno and Police Commissioner Theresa Sparks.

Ruby's murder has drawn a couple of responses that are shocking in their nastiness:

The infamously homophobic Michael Savage called Ruby a "psychopath" and a "freak" in his national syndicated radio show (Media Matters has the details) and an anonymous caller to the San Francisco Chronicle questioned the paper's political correctness in calling Ruby a "she" instead of "he" and chided the paper for not disclosing Ruby's immigration status.

As Don McPherson would say, the comments mostly reflect both men's insecurities. But part of me wonders why they haven't drawn the ire of the mainstream gay community in ways that other homophobic expressions have recently drawn wide condemnation.