The Younger Generation Is Braver than Us? Really?

At the last CAISO meeting  the youth group said they are braver than previous generations. Really?  I think not.  Brave is resisting arrest in New York, Toronto ( my home at the time) and lots of other places.

 

This Last Week and Month have Been Interesting.

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What a ride it has been these last few weeks.  I work for a very small TV company so when I returned from Canada  another manager decided she had to go on vacation which resulted in me working for 39 days non-stop.   That sucks so much I can’t describe  and add writing for Fodor’s when I got home at night and you see what a hell my life has been. On the wonderfully happy side, I also sent my first article to Gaylaxy Magazine ( India) and  my first article on ACTUP.org both of which made me incredibly proud.

On Thursday my 39 days of working producing the news,interviews and my  call-in show came to an end  so yesterday the ‘gay agenda’ dictated that I had to clean. Thankfully my wonderful Ex  came and helped enormously – with the blessing of his current.

This evening I was wandering on the internet and discovered an article by an amazing young gay person called Troy Roness and I noticed that Randy R Potts also posted him on Facebook.  To make a long story short the article is the grittiest article I have ever read – the title alone says it all : “It’s time: Yes,  I’m gay, and I’m unapologetic”

Staring at myself in a mirror, I internalized my shame, guilt, and insecurities. I believed my appearance defined my existence. The perfect grades, the perfect body, and appearing flawless would somehow make me complete. I’ve learned, though, that we aren’t mean to be “perfect”; we’re meant to be whole.

Read the Huffington Post article here.

Bobbi Campbell

As I learned from Box Turtle Bulletin today is the birthday of  the late Bobbi Campbell. I remember that time all too well.

Serious Stuff. Swedish Trans People Forced to Undergo Sterilization

I was following this for a few days if I’m honest and didn’t post anything.  My reason? I assumed it was an archaic law that Sweden  would correct pronto. Apparently it still stands.   This is a revolting law that the Swedish Government should be ashamed to leave on the books and especially so because they are pandering to a fringe party.

We are all human and entitled to the same rights regardless of our race, gender identity, orientation, religious views or lack of them, appearance etc.  How does the Swedish government justify sterilization as a reasonable criterion for officially changing gender?  I don’t know but I am as sure as fuck they need to change that ridiculous law or else they will look as awful as nations that allow female genital circumcision.

Here is the face of what you are doing Sweden – and thanks to All Out for the link.

I signed the petition and you should too.

OMG, looking at a video from Sweden  from someone who got off  because he is a US  citizen. Proud of him for  making the video.

I love my Trans sisters and brothers. We all need to embrace the  ’T’ in ‘LGBT”.

History of ACT UP

In a previous blog post I noted that I will be working with ACTUP.org  starting this year. Here is a  nice short introduction to the history of ACT UP that had been making the rounds – I first saw it posted by Randy Roberts Potts on Facebook.

In other developments….

Those of you who follow my serial postings might have noticed a wee gap for the last couple of days. This dry spell was occasioned by me being in the air en route to Toronto, sleep deprivation, my birthday and a few more martinis than might have been deemed absolutely necessary.  I am also working feverishly on Fodor’s  travel  chapters for my usual islands in a mad effort to finish them before Xmas. Those few things, however, pale in comparison to another development that has occurred recently – the folks at ACTUP.org have agreed to have me as part of their team which is dedicated to activism on a global scale in a variety of languages. I consider my inclusion to be a tremendous honor.

For those who don’t know the history of ACT UP (AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power) , it was founded in the 1980s in the midst of the AIDS crisis and became an hugely  influential force in moving the fight for LGBT rights forward .   Wikipedia has an extensive entry about the colorful history of ACT UP:

ACT UP was effectively formed in March 1987 at the Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center in New York. Larry Kramer was asked to speak as part of a rotating speaker series, and his well-attended speech focused on action to fight AIDS. Kramer spoke out against the Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC), which he perceived as politically impotent. Kramer had co-founded the GMHC but had resigned from its board of directors in 1983. According to Douglas Crimp, Kramer posed a question to the audience: “Do we want to start a new organization devoted to political action?” The answer was “a resounding yes.” Approximately 300 people met two days later to form ACT UP.^[2]

ACT UP was effectively formed in March 1987 at the Lesbian and Gay Community Services Center in New York. Larry Kramer was asked to speak as part of a rotating speaker series, and his well-attended speech focused on action to fight AIDS. Kramer spoke out against the Gay Men’s Health Crisis (GMHC), which he perceived as politically impotent. Kramer had co-founded the GMHC but had resigned from its board of directors in 1983. According to Douglas Crimp, Kramer posed a question to the audience: “Do we want to start a new organization devoted to political action?” The answer was “a resounding yes.” Approximately 300 people met two days later to form ACT UP.^[2]

Read the entry here.

This blog will, of course, continue with its heady mix of subjects but there will undoubtedly be an increased cross-posting of  links to articles and news on ACTUP.org.

Looking forward even more to 2012 now.