David Tennant's British TV Debut as a Transsexual Barmaid

Here's David Tennant (The current "Doctor Who") in his first ever role on television, playing a pre-op transsexual bar maid called "Davina."

Trans Youth Advocates for His Peers

By Jacob Anderson-Minshall
Published: September 20, 2007


Shawn-Dedric Pearson


With a growing number of trans children vocalizing their gender identities, there’s a growing need for outreach to and services for trans youth and their families. Fortunately, efforts are afoot to do just that. GenderPAC hosted a youth summit this summer; earlier this month, Seattle’s Gender Odyssey premiered the first family-centered conference for people raising gender variant and trans youth; and Oct. 19-21, the Midwest Trans Youth Conference will descend on Ferndale, Michigan.

Increasingly, it’s the parents themselves who are making changes, as is the case with a new national education and activist organization, Trans Youth Family Advocates (TYFA), founded last year by several mothers to provide support for all transgender and gender variant youth.

One of those mothers is Kim Pearson, the group’s executive director, whose 15-year-old trans son Shawn-Dedric Pearson, also works with TYFA (imatyfa.org), as a youth advocate. Together the Pearsons have appeared on CNN and traveled the country speaking on behalf of transgender and gender variant youth.

“I answer questions about my personal experience and give information about how to be respectful of transgender [or] gender variant youth,” the teen says. “Usually people understand the topic better when I… describe my first-hand experiences with being trans. They seem to like meeting a transgender youth… it gives them something tangible.”

Pearson says he’s driven to do this advocacy because, “I know how supportive my family is, and I’m thankful for it everyday. I want all trans kids to be able to have a more positive experience… and the only way that’s ever going to change is if more transgender youth start speaking up and being public.”

TYFA believes that children have a right to be heard, especially when they address “something as core to their sense of self as gender identity.” The organization offers advice to parents and caregivers that includes, “respect your child’s feelings about their gender identity above all else.”

“The best advice I can give parents,” Pearson adds, “is to just let [their kids] be themselves, at their own pace and in their own comfort level. Don’t put your own expectations or dreams on their shoulders because it makes things all the more difficult. Specifically for parents of transgender or gender variant kids, I’d say let them set the pace and listen to what they are telling you.”

Recognizing that many adults, even within the LGBT community (especially those who experienced their own gender variance as youth), have serious concerns about children transitioning, Pearson explains that before puberty a trans child would only undergo a “social transition, which is completely reversible if the child later on decides to take a different path.”

Furthermore, he contends, “There’s a large difference between a trans child and a child that’s a little more feminine or masculine than society normally accepts. Chances are, the trans kid would feel things much more strongly and express their difference more prominently for a much longer time. What counts as a phase exactly? Trans kids tend to continue to speak out or act ‘differently’ for long periods of time unless someone pressures them to hide themselves. If the kid continually presses the issue for many years, then someone needs to consider the possibility that they are trans. It hasn’t gone away.”

Pearson identifies as a pansexual transman. “Gender, sex, body image, genitalia, whatever, don’t matter to me. It’s all about what’s in a person’s head and heart.” He says he feels like “just an average teenager,” and he plans to graduate from high school and college before going on to be a police officer, “and hopefully, I’ll eventually be a detective.”

“I also plan to continue to always be active in the LGBTQ community and keep doing this work. The path to acceptance can only be set when we stand up for ourselves and create a better environment through our own hard work.”

While the Pearsons hail from Arizona, there are also TYFA advocates in California, Colorado, Oregon, Washington, Indiana and Michigan.

Trans writer, Jacob Anderson-Minshall, co-authored Blind Leap, the second book in the Blind Eye Mystery series, available in October. Contact jake@trans-nation.org or visit Anderson-minshall.com for more information.

Berners-Lee challenges 'stupid' male geek culture

Tom Espiner ZDNet.co.uk

Published: 21 Sep 2007 15:47 BST

The inventor of the world wide web, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, has called for an end to the "stupid" male geek culture that disregards the work of capable female engineers, and puts others off entering the profession.

Berners-Lee said that a culture that avoided alienating women would attract more female programmers, which could lead to greater harmony of systems design. "If there were more women involved we could move towards interoperability. We have to change at every level," he said.

According to Berners-Lee, a culture exists where women can be put off a career in technology both by "stupid" behaviour by some male "geeks", and by the reactions of other women.

"It's a complex problem — we find bias against women by women. There are bits of male geek culture and engineer culture that are stupid. They should realise that they could be alienating people who are smarter and better engineers," said Berners-Lee. . . .

POV, Critique, Opinion: GIULIANI IS EVERYONE'S WORST NIGHTMARE

By Pastor Chuck Baldwin

September 21, 2007

NewsWithViews.com

Former New York City Mayor and Republican Presidential contender Rudy Giuliani said this week that he was "liberals' worst nightmare." However, the truth is, Rudy Giuliani is everyone's worst nightmare.

That Rudy Giuliani is currently trying to cast himself as a conservative is beyond laughable--it is hilarious. This is a man who is unabashedly pro-abortion. He has been seen walking down Fifth Avenue with thousands of homosexuals demanding "gay rights." He himself is a cross-dresser. He has had numerous marriages and only God knows how many sexual affairs. He has been one of the country's most radical proponents of gun control. He made New York a sanctuary city for illegal aliens and is a strong proponent of amnesty for illegal aliens. As a prosecutor, his abuse of power and disregard for law are legendary. [Read]

In addition, Rudy Giuliani is a senior partner in the law firm that "represents CITGO, the oil company controlled by Venezuela's anti-American and terrorist-supporting ruler Hugo Chavez." Giuliani's law firm also acts "as the exclusive legal counsel for Cintra, the Spanish firm that has been granted the right to operate a toll road in the Trans-Texas Corridor (TTC) project."

(Please read Cliff Kincaid's entire column for more on Giuliani's shady and untoward activities)

Yes, my friends, the umbilical cord connecting the SPP, NAFTA Superhighway and burgeoning North American Union is also connected to Rudy Giuliani.

Yet, Rudy Giuliani wants people to believe that he is "liberals' worst nightmare"? Who is he kidding? Giuliani is a liberal. Actually, Rudy Giuliani is worse than a liberal. He is a liberal that likes to hurt people. I tell you the truth, Rudy Giuliani scares me far more than Hillary Clinton does. Far more. I'll say it right here: if the 2008 Presidential election comes down to Hillary vs. Giuliani, Hillary is the "lesser of two evils." That's how bad Giuliani is. . . .

Euro court rules for Lithuanian transsexuals

The European Court of Human Rights issued a ruling Sept. 11 strengthening the rights of transsexuals in Lithuania.

Such individuals already had the right to officially change their gender but the nation has failed to pass enabling legislation necessary for them to gain access to full sex-reassignment surgery through the country's health care system.

In a 6-1 ruling in a case brought by a female-to-male transsexual, "Mr. L.," the court said the lack of access to full surgery violates the European Convention on Human Rights' guarantee of respect for one's private and family life.

"This is a very positive judgment [that] highlights a problem with some European countries which formally permit gender reassignment and amendment of identity documents but lack legal clarity and consistency, and available medical facilities," said the European branch of the International Lesbian and Gay Association.

The court gave Lithuania three months to fix the problems or face a 40,000 euro (US$55,612) payout to Mr. L., who was granted 5,000 euros in damages immediately.

Mr. L. was prescribed hormone therapy in 1998 but denied further therapy in 1999 because it was not clear he would have access to a sex-change operation. He continued the therapy on his own and, in 2000, had his female breasts removed.

In 2003, a new law granted transsexuals the right to gender-reassignment surgery when medically possible, but additional measures that were necessary to implement the law were never adopted, and medical facilities to carry out a full female-to-male sex-change operation apparently do not exist in Lithuania.

In court, the government suggested that individuals such as Mr. L. might be eligible to undergo surgery abroad at state expense.

But, for now, the court said, Mr. L. faces unacceptable and distressing uncertainty regarding his private life and recognition of his true identity.

Baldwin's Not Hiding This Candy

William Baldwin, Candis Cayne

Could Candis Cayne become the first transsexual Emmy winner?

Come Sept. 26, she’ll definitely have a shot at it. Cayne pops up in the new ABC prime-time drama Dirty Sexy Money playing Carmelita, the secret transsexual lover of a U.S. senator, played by William Baldwin.

“It’s kind of funny that I was here [in Los Angeles] last weekend for the Emmys, because I remember last year sitting and watching the Emmy Awards and I was almost a little depressed,” Cayne told me during a break from shooting the series yesterday. “Like, Wow, I’ve always wanted that since I was little, and I’ve always want to experience that. And so, maybe now that could happen one day.”

The series centers around the Darlings, a superwealthy New York family. In addition to Baldwin, it stars Peter Krause, Donald Sutherland, Jill Clayburgh and Samaire Armstrong.

Patricia Field, the iconic wardrobe stylist from Sex and the City, was working on Dirty’s pilot when she suggested producers consider Cayne for the part. After an audition and just one callback, Cayne was on board.

“I got to the first table reading, and it’s, like, Donald Sutherland, Jill Clayburgh, Peter Krause and Billy Baldwin sitting there,” Cayne says. “I walk in, and they all look up, and Craig [Wright, the show’s creator] is like, ‘Sit down, Candis!’ And I was like, ‘Oh, my holy God!’”

Cayne, who was born Brendan McDaniel, grew up in Hawaii. Even before she decided to transition from a man to a woman about 10 years ago, she was a local celeb in New York’s gay community for her drag act. (Back when I lived in NYC, I’d often catch her Saturday-night show at a restaurant on lower Sixth Avenue. Dressed in a Wonder Woman-inspired outfit, she would stop traffic—literally—by dancing into the middle of the busy street. At least once, Cayne even jumped into a cab and took off, leaving the audience wondering if she’d return. She did a few minutes later, stepping out of the cab—and without missing a beat—dancing right back into the restaurant.)

She says Baldwin couldn’t be nicer. “He is so amazing,” she says. “So sweet and generous and open to this whole new world. He’s just really giving and made me feel really comfortable.”

Well, they better be comfortable with each other, because Cayne and Baldwin do have some steamy moments together. “There are a lot of love scenes,” Cayne says with a laugh.

So, how does Baldwin rate as a kisser? “Well, it’s an acting kiss,” she says with another laugh. “For acting kisses, he’s great.”

How long will she be on the series? “I have no idea,” Cayne says. “I’m not on contract. I’m doing weekly. So, basically, I just wait and read the script and hope for the best and hope that there are no J.R. Ewing moments in there.” . . .