Transgender News

• Posted by Pauline Smith June 27, 2015 1,825 views
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  As a community we have been in the news a lot recently. As ever the Guardian is a really useful way of keeping up with news in our community, as is the BBC.

   

  It's easy for me to forget as well that living in Manchester gives me access to a more tolerant community than where many of you live, and  we also have access to mainstream media which is very supportive of the trans community. As an example Kellie Maloney was interviewed on BBC Radio Manchester in the early afternoon slot last week (I suspect she was on BBC Breakfast to promote her book and after that had a radio interview in the same BBC complex in Salford, but I don't watch breakfast tele). I would think we have about one interview a week on Radio Manchester, or an item in an early morning programme about trans events in Mancester. In addition there is a regular series of interviews on Radio Mancs with a transwoman who is going through transition, we are all following her journey and this is a mid morning slot. Other parts of the LGBT community get similar exposure.

   

  I have attached some transgender related articles about London Pride, Kellie and Orange is the New Black; all of these show how much progress we are making - in my opinion. If you read the London Pride article you will see how fragile the peace is between our community and Stonewall, who in the past were very antagonistic towards trans people. Let us hope that the olive branches work and that it doesn't go back to recrimination and cat calling. Our community is tiny and we are lucky to have the support of the Gay and Lesbian community in Manchester; the owner of Via, Tony, is one of our major supporters - I can remember him saying that we are about 10-15 years behind the gay community and that we need at some stage to get acceptance in the mainstream community. At that stage we will get more acceptance.

   

  It's never easy being trans as all of us know, but high profile people like Caitlyn Jenner, Laverne Cox, Kellie Maloney and Chaz Bono help all of us to be more accepted. I have included a couple of stories about people who are not stars and face the same every day problems as we all do. And I have also included a link to the Pride Power List of 2015, and if you read the commenst you will see that many ordinary peeps are pissed off with celebrity trans people - lots of negative comments about Kellie Maloney.

   

  I am not suggesting that everyone on here comes out, but when you are out and about take pride in who we are... and think about how tough it is for all of us being ordinary and trans. This year I lost a lot of my confidence about going out as Pauline, and I know that is common amongst us.

   

  ....and if you go to Sparkle, then have a great time (and don't forget all the hard work that has gone on before with Beckie and her team of helpers, which will continue throught the event to make it run smoothly).

   

  hugs

   

   

  Pauline xxx

   

  http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2015/jun/14/laverne-cox-orange-new-black-transgender

  http://www.theguardian.com/society/2015/jun/27/pride-london-2015-trans-community-stonewall-equality

  http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2015/jun/27/kellie-maloney-interview-transgender-woman-boxing

  http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-33189628

  http://news.yahoo.com/transgender-police-officer-says-becoming-woman-wasnt-even-084923756.html

   http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jun/25/pride-power-list-for-2015-focuses-on-lgbt-britons