Tag: trangender

Categories
Memphis Gaydar

Brooks’ First Transgender-Centered Exhibit to Open Saturday

Photo by Mark Seliger (Source: Brooks Museum)

The first trangender-focused exhibition at Brooks Museum of Art will open on Saturday. 

The exhibition, “On Christopher Street,” by New York-based photographer Mark Seliger, features portraits of transgender individuals in New York’s Greenwich Village. 

Greenwich Village is said to be the birthplace of the LGBTQ rights movement following the police raid on the historic gay bar The Stonewall Inn in 1969. That raid sparked protests on the street that would later be commemorated with Pride marches all over the world. 

Seliger began taking the portraits in 2014 and continued for about three years, capturing 60 subjects. He started with a small camera kit, taking pictures after work as a way to document the neighborhood. 

Christopher Street, a safe haven for many, began to change and Seliger wanted to capture the community before it completely transformed. 

“I’d stop people on the street and ask if I could take a quick portrait of them,” he said. “ I wasn’t sure where the project was going, but it evolved from there.” 

As Seliger continued snapping photos, he asked himself what was unique about his portraits. Then he realized he was beginning to tell a story about identity, focusing on transgender individuals. Seliger said he wanted to dig deeper and learn more about the subjects of his photos. 

His subjects told him stories of their successes and accomplishments, as well as the hurdles they had to overcome to become who they are today. 

“My subjects were being the truest to themselves as they had ever been, as if it was the first time they’d really been seen in this light,” Seliger said. “That was really kind of an amazing moment.” 

Taking the portraits, Seliger also said he began to learn more about the importance of identity.

“As I was learning about the idea of being comforted with who you are and how you identify while being the truest to who you are, I realized that’s important to your own personal worth and connection to others and yourself,” Seliger said. “That was very meaningful to me.”

At the end of the day, Seliger believes his portraits capture the human experience, which is “remarkable, profound, and terrifying.”

For those that view his photos, Seliger just wants them to gain a new sense of understanding and awareness for the human struggle. 

“Ultimately, it’s for the viewer to determine how they want to react to it,” Seliger said. “We give them as much information as we can in order to lead people to their own level of clarity. But I think the work is eye-opening and hopefully will start a conversation that we need to have about gender and inclusivity.” 

Brooks’ curator of European and decorative art, Rosamund Garrett, said Seliger’s photos not only showcase the trans community, but also tell the story of gentrification. 

“For years, Mark has witnessed the steady erosion of the rich cultural diversity of the area and its replacement with luxury boutiques,” Garrett said. “His striking portraits not only celebrate the trans community but also represent a cautionary tale about gentrification. This message is as resonant in Memphis in 2021 as it has been in New York City and other communities around the country for years.” 

The exhibition will run from Saturday, September 18th to January 9th. Seliger and four of his portrait subjects will be present at the hybrid virtual/in-person opening reception on Friday. The event will be live streamed here. 

Additionally, Brooks is hosting a panel discussion with Alex Hauptman from OUTMemphis and Kayla Gore from My Sistah’s House about Memphis’ LGTBQ community on Saturday.

. 

Categories
News Blog News Feature

Anti-Trans “Bathroom Bill” on the Way to Governor

Tennessee State Capitol/Facebook

State lawmakers finally got their transgender bathroom rule that could come with this statement: No trans people were contacted in the making of this bill. 

State senators passed a bill Wednesday, April 21st, that could give transgender students “reasonable accommodations” to separate facilities, instead of allowing them to use the bathroom that lines up with their gender identity.

Students must do this through a written request that says they are “unwilling or unable to use a multi-occupancy restroom or change in a facility within the school building designate for the person’s sex.” Senate Democrats have said the move would provide “separate but equal” facilities and further stigmatize transgender students in Tennessee. 

The bill lays out an appeal process if the request is denied. It also lays out the pathway for students, teachers, or employees to sue the school if they encounter “a person of the opposite sex in a multi-occupancy restroom or changing facility designated for the person’s sex and located in a public school building.” That is, schools can be sued if they allow a transgender student use a bathroom for a gender other than what is listed on their birth certificates.

Republican lawmakers have tried and failed to pass a “bathroom bill” for years. The refreshed language in this year’s version has many calling it “bathroom bill 2.0.” The bill is now headed for Tennessee Governor Bill Lee’s desk for a signature that would make it a law.   

It protects the wellbeing of children and removes the burden of stress of accommodations from teachers, schools, parents, and students.

Sen. Mike Bell (R-Riceville)

”It protects the wellbeing of children and removes the burden of stress of accommodations from teachers, schools, parents, and students, providing a clear path forward for the schools in Tennessee,” said the bill’s sponsor, Sen. Mike Bell (R-Riceville). 

Bell paused his prepared remarks on the Senate floor Wednesday to say that ”this is an issue our schools are dealing with.” Bell claimed that a K-8th grade school in his district was now “dealing with this issue.”

Sen. Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville) asked Bell if, in making the bill, he consulted with any transgender people of their families. 

“No, I did not, Senator Campbell,” Bell replied. 

Campbell said she has spoken with “dozens” of transgender families and transgender children during the course of this legislative session. She said she also spent time learning about the views of those who support the legislation. She said “this is a civil rights issue” and it’s “hurting our children.”

There are human beings on the other side of these votes who will have to live with the fallout.

Sen. Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville)

“We all know that a conservative group is running this package of anti-trans bills across the country and because they’ve polled this issue and it tests well and it keeps people energized and it feeds media ratings,” Campbell said. “It’s identity politics and we all know how that works, but there are human beings on the other side of these votes who will have to live with the fallout.” 

No GOP senator rose to speak for the bill’s merits Wednesday. One only questioned whether or not giving “reasonable accommodation” for transgender students would infringe on facilities now offered to handicapped students.

Sen. Jeff Yarbro (D-Nashville) said the legislation will open the state up to litigation from a variety of different laws including the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act. 

“We’re going to have lawsuits under the 14th Amendment, and we’re going to lose them,” Yarbro said. “It’s no wonder that we’re increasing the budget for settlements and litigators at the state level, and we’ll need to keep doing it because we are putting cities and our schools in a place where they’re going to be violating federal law.”

We are putting cities and our schools in a place where they’re going to be violating federal law.

Sen. Jeff Yarbro (D-Nashville)

The “bathroom bill” is but one of many bills targeting transgender people, especially students, before the Tennessee General Assembly this year. That group of bills has been dubbed the “Slate of Hate” by LGBTQ advocates. 

  “We cannot cancel our LGBT friends and family and our trans children out there,” Campbell said in her closing statement on the Senate floor Wednesday. “I just want to tell you, I’m sorry for the pain that this causes. We love you and we support you.”

The bill passed in a 21-7 vote along party lines. 

I’m sorry for the pain that this causes.

Sen. Heidi Campbell (D-Nashville)
Categories
Memphis Gaydar News

Pro Pronouns: Gender Identity In the Workplace

Bianca Phillips

A transgender flag flies over OUTMemphis.

Eagle-eyed emailers have noticed something new in some email signatures: pronouns.

Signatures are those few lines of information at the bottom of an email that tells the receiver basic information about the sender, details like their name, title, company, phone number, address, and more. Some senders’ signatures around Memphis now include their preferred gender pronouns, or personal gender pronouns, sometimes just called gender pronouns, or, more simply, just pronouns.

All of the words are ways to describe a person when you are talking about them. Typically, those identifying as male will use “he/him/his;” those identifying as female will use “she/her/hers;” and some transgender people, gender noncomforming people, and others use the gender-neutral “they/them/theirs.” However, there are more sets of pronouns out there.
Lambda Legal

Kayla Gore, of Memphis, speaks during a news conference Tuesday outside the federal courthouse in Nashville.

“Referring to people by the pronouns they determine for themselves is basic to human dignity,” reads an explanation from those behind International Pronouns Day, set this year for October 16th. “Being referred to by the wrong pronouns particularly affects transgender and gender nonconforming people.”
[pullquote-1] LGBTQ+ advocacy groups have popped up at some of Memphis’ largest organizations and corporations. Now, preferred personal pronouns (sometimes called PGPs), are popping up in work culture, including email signatures.

Mary Jo Karimnia is the residency manager at Crosstown Arts. She added “she/her/hers” to her signature over the summer but wished she’d done it sooner. She said preferred personal pronouns, “in reality are not ‘preferred’ pronouns, just pronouns.”

“As the residency manager for Crosstown Arts, part of my job is to welcome the entire community to the residency program,” Karimnia said. “Although my she/her pronouns are somewhat predictable, this signals that I am accepting of other people’s pronoun choices.”
Justin Fox Burks

Ellyahnna Hall

As gender issues and preference rise to the mainstream, discussing them and the pronouns that go along with them is becoming more common but maybe still tricky to those not accustomed to it.

That’s why the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual (LGBTQI) Resource Center at the University of California Davis devised a website to help. There, you can find a list of many of the lesser-known, gender-free pronouns like ”xie/hir/hir,” “ey/em/er,” “co/co/cos,” and more. You can also find some easy ways to talk about pronouns with others.

So, the site suggests you ask, “What pronouns do you use?” You could also share yours by saying, “I’m Jade and my pronouns are ze and hir.”
[pullquote-2] Pronouns in email signatures (and other spots in the workplace) caught on early among Memphis health care providers, said Molly Quinn, executive director of OUTMemphis. But they are now popping up in signatures of other businesses “that may or may not have anything to do with gender identity, or sexual orientation, or health.”

Justin Fox Burks

Cole Bradley

Quinn’s pronouns — “she/her/hers” — were displayed on her work name tag during an event recently. She said part of the work of OUTMemphis is to serves the transgender community here, “to make the entire world a comfortable place for people who are trans.” This includes her email signature, where she shares her pronouns.

“In the past five years, and certainly in the past 15 years, the visibility, the legal advocacy, the political narrative, and the services that are available to our trans community has expanded nationally in every way,” Quinn said. “Regardless of your gender expression, we really believe that gender expression and gender identity should be the choice of each individual. We believe that you should have the choice of the way you are referred to, what you’re called, and how you’re classified by the world.”

Back at Crosstown, Karimnia said being upfront about pronouns is “a good way to let people know in advance that we are a queer-friendly place.”

“We also ask for pronouns on our (residency) application,” Karimnia said. “We make a point of introducing ourselves at our first dinner meeting with residents using pronouns.

“This creates space for people who use pronouns besides she/her or he/him without singling them out. It can also be an educational tool for those who aren’t yet used to this convention.”