Gender and Life's Paths: Aug 14, 2008

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Transsexual / Transgender Spouses - Embracing Hope, an interview

"If there is just one of these videos that you watch, it should be this one. I interview Randi and Shellie from Phoenix, Arizona. Randi just recently transitioned successfully from male to female while on the job, and her relationship with her spouse Shellie has withstood the test of time. Shellie and Randi explain some of those reasons, and they encourage anyone who is transgendered / transsexual, or is a friend, family member,or spouse of someone who is transgendered, that they can hold on to hope and overcome the trials that come your way." lorisrevival

Metamorphosis

by Mister Marcus 8.14.2008



	Yes, from Left to Right, that's Scott Brogan, Jay Harcourt and Ray MacKenzie performing at Marlena's last Saturday, Aug. 9th. Don't you just love those polka dot dresses?

The line outside of Marlena's bar stretched almost half a block last Saturday night, August 9, obviously because the word was out that several local leather titleholders would be performing in drag. A busload of tourists from Sacramento was lamenting the fact that the bar was filled to capacity and as one or two people left, only one or two people were admitted.

Now most of you who know me well are aware that I am not exactly a big fan of drag, but I can appreciate the expensive gowns, the outrageous hairdos, the dazzling jewelry, and the lip-synching expertise of most drag entertainers. . . .Read More

MARYLAND BRIEFING

August 13, 2008

MONTGOMERY COUNTY

Court to Weigh Transgender Law

Maryland's highest court has agreed to hear a case involving a referendum on Montgomery County's new transgender rights law.

The Court of Appeals will determine whether voters are asked in November to keep or throw out the law that provides protections for transgender individuals in housing, employment and public accommodations. . . .Read More

Transtheatre comes to Saint John

The Silicone Diaries hit the stage at Theatre on the Edge Festival

August 14, 2008

canadaeast.com

A famous transsexual is coming to town.

Wrapping up their Theatre on Edge Festival, the Saint John Theatre Company in partnership with Port City Rainbow Pride, is premiering The Silicone Diaries, a one-woman tour-de-force written and performed by well-known author, actress and transsexual Nina Arsenault.

"I first became aware of Nina through her media work," says the company's Artistic Director Stephen Tobias. "I read her series from Fab Magazine, and the articles are funny, sad, compelling, and intriguing. They offer insights into a world that few of us encounter or understand."

Arsenault's honesty and candidness is part of her charm. . . .Read More

Gender variance or nonconformity is found wherever one finds people.

A closer view reveals many variations in gender expression. Note “sex” refers to biology, genes, hormones, body development, whereas “gender” is social role, cultural expectations for appearance and behavior. Gender expression varies over time and throughout cultures and may vary in the lifetimes of individuals. We sometimes hear “male or female”, “masculine or feminine”, as defining “the binary”. Typically, many want males masculine and females feminine, in a world where being androgenous or a hybrid may actually work better. Yet many individuals, for example, parents, teachers, and friends, including some with gender issues, crave the binary. In the case of a significantly gender variant person, gender expression often does not match the social or binary gender role assigned at birth. Nevertheless, the person's expressed gender may feel correct or natural. Thus a gender nonconforming person, maybe someone who even sees themselves as “non-binary”, may feel very uncomfortable with the gender expression expected by parents and significant others. Fortunately, there are a growing number of resources to help those interested understand gender, development, change and adaptation. And there are creative paths one may explore to hopefully find comfort, experience a measure of peace and happiness, and in the process find the gender expression that works best. Here I offer some news, information, resources, opinions and POVs to help you learn more about gender expression and life situations. We now know there are a variety of paths individuals discover that may contribute to positive life changes.

Books you may find interesting:

Benjamin, Harry. (1966). The Transsexual Phenomenon. New York: The Julian Press, Inc. Full text and photographs available as an electronic book: http://www.symposium.com/ijt/benjamin/

Blanchard, Ray and Steiner, Betty W. (1990). Clinical Management of Gender Identity Disorders in Children and Adults. Washington, DC: American Psychiatric Press, Inc.

Bolin, Anne. (1988). In Search of Eve: Transsexual Rites of Passage. South Hadley, Massachusetts: Bergin and Garvey.

Boenke, Mary, (Ed). (2003). Trans Forming Families. Hardy, VA: Oak Knoll Press.

Bornstein, Kate. (1994). Gender Outlaw: On men, women and the rest of us. Routledge: New York & London.

Brill, Stephanie & Pepper, Rachel. (2008). The Transgender Child. San Francisco: Cleis Press.

Brown, Mildred L. & Rounsley, Chloe Ann. (1996). True Selves: Understanding Transsexualism. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

Brownmiller, Susan. (1984). Femininity. New York: Linden / Simon Schuster.

Buss, David M. (1994). The Evolution of Desire: Strategies of Human Mating. New York: Basic Books.

Califia, Pat. (1997). Sex Changes: The Politics of Transgenderism. San Francisco: Cleis Press.

Cameron, Loren. (1996). Body Alchemy: Transsexual Portraits. San Francisco: Cleis Press.

Colapinto, John. (2000). As Nature Made Him: The Boy Who Was Raised as a Girl. New York: HarperCollins.

Cromwell, Jason. (1999). Transmen and FTMs: Identities, Bodies, Genders and Sexualities. Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press.

Devor, Holly. (1989). Gender Blending: Confronting The Limits of Duality. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press.

Devor, Holly. (1997). Female to Male Transsexuals in Society. Bloomington and Indianapolis: Indiana University Press.

Docter, Richard F. (1988). Transvestites and Transsexuals: Toward a Theory of Cross-Gender Behavior. New York: Plenum Press.

Ehrensaft, Diane. (2011). Gender Born, Gender Made. New York: The Experiment, LLC.

Green, Jamison. (2004). Becoming a Visible Man. Nashville:Vanderbilt Univerrsity Press.

Griggs, Claudine. (1996). Passage through Trinidad: Journal of a Surgical Sex Change. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland and Co.

Griggs, Claudine. (1998). S/He: Changing Sex and Changing Clothes. Oxford: Berg.

HBIGDA, Standards of Care for Gender Identity Disorders, Sixth Version. (2001). http://www.hbigda.org/socv6.html#top

Kessler, Suzanne and McKenna, Wendy. (1978). Gender: An Ethnomethodological Approach. New York: John Wiley and Sons.

Serano, Julia. (2007). Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Women on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity. San Francisco: Seal Press.

Stuart, Kim Elizabeth. (1983). The Uninvited Dilemma: A Question of Gender. Portland, Oregon: Metamorphous Press, Inc.

Available from Metamorphous Press, Inc. P.O. Box 10616, Portland, Oregon 97210-0616. Fax (503) 223-9117 or Toll Free 1-800-937-7771

Sullivan, Lou. (1990). Information for the Female to Male Cross Dresser and Transsexual. Seattle, Washington: Ingersoll Gender Center.

Available from Ingersoll Gender Center. 1812 E. Madison Seattle, Washington 98122-2843. (206) 329-665

Williams, Walter L. (1986). The Spirit and The Flesh: Sexual Diversity in American Indian Culture. Boston: Beacon Press.

Zucker, Kenneth J. and Bradley, Susan J. (1995). Gender Identity Disorder and Psychosexual Problems in Children and Adolescents. New York: Guilford.

Gender and Life's Paths

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Transsexual / Transgender Spouses - Embracing Hope, an interview

Metamorphosis

MARYLAND BRIEFING

Transtheatre comes to Saint John

Gender variance or nonconformity is found wherever one finds people.

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