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Gender Centre >> News >> World News
Gender Variance: Towards a New Model of Gender Identity Development
Spain Liberalises Definition of Transgender
Hitachi Executive Sues For half A Million
Boy In Dress Refused Entry To Prom
New Penis Grown In Laboratory
Vatican Attacks Tuscany For Allowing Free Sex Changes
Spanish TG Gaol Inmates To Choose F or M Gaol to Serve Sentences
Anti-LGBT Bias in US Schools to be Addressed
Three Million Dollars Awarded to American GLBT Foundation
FTM Conference to be held in Seattle, 1 - 4 September
Stanley Biber Dies, Aged 82
NYC's Department of Homeless Services Issues a Trans-Affirmative Housing Policy
Sex Change Teacher Gets Job Back
Gender Variance: Towards a New Model of Gender Identity Development
Tamara Pardo of the Cornell University in New York, USA is conducting an online survey with the above title as part of a predoctoral project in
Human Development. Tamara has contacted the Gender Centre and requested an explanation of the survey and a link be provided on our website. The
survey is for Transmen or gender questioning individuals who were assigned
"female" at birth. People following this link and completing the online
survey are reminded to observe the Gender Centre's Privacy Policy with regard to outbound links and are advised that the Gender Centre takes no
responsibility for the privacy practices or the content of such sites, and once you leave our site you will no longer be covered by our Privacy
Policy.
If you have any questions, comments, or concerns regarding this study or your participation in this study, you may contact the principal
investigator conducting this study, Tamara Pardo, by email at
TBP3@cornell.edu . Please ask any questions you have prior to your entering into the
study. If you have questions later, you may contact either Tamara Pardo by email or by regular mail at Cornell University, Martha Van Rensselaer
Hall, Ithaca, NY 14853. The faculty supervisor on this project is Dr. Ritch Savin-Williams. You may also contact him for further information
about the study at rcs15@cornell.edu . If you have any questions about your rights as a research participant, please contact the University
Committee on Human Subjects (UCHS) at
uchs-mailbox@cornell.edu or by phone at 607-255-5138, or access their website at:
http://www.osp.cornell.edu/Compliance/UCHS/homepageUCHS.htm .
The online survey can be completed by following this link:
http://atcdb.cit.cornell.edu/survey//wsb.dll/tbp3/naming-summer2006b.htm
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Spain Liberalises Definition of Transgender
Spain, which was the third European country after the Netherlands and Belgium to legalise same-sex marriage, has
now made it easier for the transgendered to transition legally and completely to their preferred gender. A new law,
intended for enactment in the Northern Hemisphere summer of 2006 will make it possible for transgenders to obtain
legal identity documents in their new gender if they live in that gender role for eighteen months and gain the
approval of a psychiatrist. Gender reassignment or affirmation surgery will not be a requirement, putting Spain
ahead of most nations which permit legal gender reassignment.
Spain is to be commended for making a clear (and rare) distinction between sex and gender.
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Hitachi Executive Sues For Half A Million
Jessica Bussert, a data analyst, with Hitachi, claims that following her gender affirmation surgery she was
given demeaning tasks such as booking hotel rooms and organising meals rather than working on multimillion dollar
contracts. Her business trips overseas ceased. She says she seriously considered suicide.
She joined Hitachi in the United States but moved to Britain where she thought there would be more tolerance but
her expectations were dashed.
She is looking for a new job and suing Hitachi for £500,000 in Britain and has a £1.93m claim against Hitachi in
the United States.
Hitachi is refusing to comment as the matter is before an employment tribunal.
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Boy In Dress Refused Entry To Prom
Kevin Logan, who self-identifies as gay and a drag queen and has been wearing female clothing to school for a year
was refused admittance to the high school prom. dance because he arrived in a fuschia prom dress and high-heeled
sandals. The school principal refused Kevin entrance and police were called after which Kevin left. He says he had
been looking forward to the prom as the most important night of his life and had spent more than $200.00 on a
manicure, pedicure and hairstyle.
Kevin’s situation has created a lot of sympathy and his parents are considering legal action. A lesbian who
attended the prom. in male clothing was not prevented from entering and proposed to her partner in the course of the
evening.
A similar case in 1999 resulted in a court ruling that boys can wear dresses to high school proms if they want to,
as a First Amendment right.
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New Penis Grown In Laboratory
Scientists at the Institute for Regenerative Medicine have reported success in growing a replacement penis in a
rabbit.
First the penis was completely removed then replaced in a penis-shaped matrix seeded with cells from the rabbit’s
body.
The new penises have blood vessels and nerves and will be fully functional. The rabbits treated were able to have
erections, mate with female rabbits and impregnate them, with normal healthy baby rabbits resulting.
Human trials will not be attempted in the near future but the goal is to treat infants and adult with birth
defects, damaged penises or penis cancer. The research team is led by Anthony Atala.
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Vatican Attacks Tuscany For Allowing Free Sex Changes
Tuscany has passed laws providing for free hormone therapy for the transgendered and this has created a strong
reaction from the Vatican. The Catholic newspaper L’Osservatore Romano has attacked the policy. Earlier in the week
the Vatican condemned abortion, artificial insemination, same-sex marriage and contraception, stating that they all
threatened society.
Simon Aronoff, of the National Center for Transgender Equality, responded by condemning the Vatican for ignorance
of the health needs of transgenders and said medical decisions should be made by doctors, not theologians.
"Hormone treatment is a medical necessity and is a key part of maintaining our health and well being," he said.
"When it comes to medicine, no one should condemn another person’s access to health care based on politics, prejudice
and religious belief."
The National Center for Transgender Equality is an American social justice organisation devoted to ending
discrimination and violence against transgender people through education and advocacy on national issues of importance
to transgender people.
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Spanish TG Gaol Inmates to Choose F or M Gaol to Serve Sentences
Transgendered convicts in Spain will soon be able to serve sentences in male or female gaols, according to their
innate identity, provided they have transitioned and undergone affirmation surgery. The reassignment process will need
to have started at least a year before the jail sentence starts. There are about 40 male-to-female prisoners in Spanish
prisons but, as far as prison authorities are aware, there are no female-to-male prisoners currently in their prison
system.
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Anti-LGBT Bias in US Schools to be Addressed
The Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN) is to combine with the Metropolitan Community Churches (MCC)
to bring GLSEN’s Training of Trainers programme to more cities in the United States. The programme gives hands-on
training for educators and their allies. “Sometimes educators simply do not know what to do when incidents occur of
anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender name-calling occur,” said MCC’s Executive Director, Dr Cindi Love.
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Three Million Dollars Awarded to American GLBT Foundation
The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Foundation announced in January 2006 that it has been awarded $3 million
over three years from the Arcus Foundation to support its campaign on behalf of advocacy, public education to advance
equal Stanley Biber rights and respect for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people. The award is timely at
a period in history where the LGBT movement is facing constitutional amendments and State and local ballots designed to
deny basic rights in areas such as job discrimination, domestic partnership, civil union and marriage, adoption and
family recognition. The award is the largest ever given to support advocacy and movement building in the fifty-plus
years of the modern LGBT movement.
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FTM Conference to be held in Seattle 1 - 4 September
A Gender Odyssey will be a national conference for F2Ms offering workshops, discussions, panels, hucksters, an art
exhibit, cabaret, dance etc. Gender Odyssey is in its fourth year and will be held at the Washington State Convention
and Trade Center. It is open to anyone interested and much of the programme has been chosen from submissions by
attendees at last year’s conference. Submissions are invited on all topics. Early bird registration finishes on 31
March.
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Stanley Biber Dies, Aged 82
Dr Stanley Biber, one of the earliest gender reassignment surgeons in the United States, died on 16 January at the
age of 82. He last performed reassignment surgery in 2003 and is said to have performed 5,800 such operations between
1969 and 2003. The town where he worked, Trinidad, Colorado, became known as the “sex change capital of the world”.
It‘s believed about 5,000 of the operations he performed were male to female. He also trained many surgeons in the
techniques he developed and he is succeeded by one of his pupils, herself a transgender.
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NYC's Department of Homeless Services Issues a Trans-Affirmative Housing Policy
Gender Identity Will Determine Shelter Placement for Transgender New Yorkers
The New York City Department of Homeless Services issued a policy change on January 31, 2006, to end discriminatory practices toward transgender
clients at its homeless shelters. Advocates from the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center (the Center), Queers for Economic Justice
(QEJ), and the Sylvia Rivera Law Project (SRLP) have worked for three years to adopt this change, which guides intake, assessment, and shelter staff
to ensure that gender identity is taken into consideration when making intake assignments.
New York City’s homeless shelter system is based on single-sex segregation. This segregation has proven unsafe for transgender New Yorkers who,
until now, have been classified based on their birth gender, rather than on their gender identity. Furthermore, New York City’s 2002 Human Rights
Law specifically prohibits discrimination in public accommodations and housing based on gender, including actual or perceived gender. The shelter
system’s violation of this law seriously endangers transgender people. According to Carrie Davis, coordinator of the Center’s Gender Identity Project,
“Contrary to New York City’s ’Guidelines Regarding Gender Identity Discrimination,’ many transgender women have been placed in men’s shelters,
creating highly dangerous situations sometimes resulting in harassment and sexual assault, and effectively excluding them from homeless services.”
The new policy requires shelter intake staff to determine a client’s gender by his or her gender identity. The new policy will be implemented in
phases and will include training for shelter staff on diversity and transgender issues.
“The Department of Homeless Services has worked diligently with trans-advocates over the past several years to solve this long-standing problem,”
says Jay Toole, QEJ Shelter Organizer. “Their efforts are to be applauded as this is the best policy of its kind in the nation and will serve as a
model for other shelter systems across the country.”
Dean Spade, SRLP Legal Fellow, commented, "This is an incredible victory, but the next step will be maintaining a relationship with DHS, ensuring
that proper training is in place, and making certain this policy becomes a lived reality for homeless trans-New Yorkers."
Special thanks to the people and organizations who have helped make this new policy a reality including Franklin Romeo, Lambda Legal Defense and
Education Fund; Paisley Currah, Transgender Law and Policy Institute (TLPI); Ivan Dominguez, Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender
Issues at the New York County Lawyers' Association; Diana Olaizola and Patrick Markee, Coalition for the Homeless (CFTH); Joann Prinzivalli, New York
Transgender Rights Organization (NYTRO); and the members of the QEJ-hosted working group who helped bring this issue to the Mayor’s office.
Source: The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Community Centre, New York USA.
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Sex Change Teacher Gets Job Back!
To students at a US primary school, she was Mr McBeth. Now, after undergoing a sex change, 71-year-old Lily McBeth will return to the classroom as
Miss McBeth.
Despite criticism from parents, the board of Eagleswood Elementary School in New Jersey is standing by its decision to allow McBeth to resume
working as a substitute teacher.
After two hours of public debate and a private meeting with McBeth and her lawyer, the board took no action on calls by several parents to bar her
from returning to the school where she taught for five years before becoming a woman.
"It was magnificent," McBeth said afterward.
"You saw democracy in action."
McBeth, a retired sales executive who was married for 33 years and had three children, underwent gender re-assignment surgery last year and
re-applied for her job under her new name.
McBeth yesterday told the school board and the crowd she loves teaching and children, and looks forward to returning to the classroom.
"This is not something I got into just as a whim," she said.
Several parents said children in the school - which consists of kindergarten through sixth grade - were not old enough to understand the concept
of changing one's gender.
"I, as a parent, am appalled to have this issue brought into my child's psychology," Steve Bond said.
Vincent Mustacchio predicted "chaos" at the school when the students learned of McBeth's surgery.
Young children will be confused by the conflicting appearance of McBeth, who has a deep voice and masculine features but otherwise looks like a
woman, other parents said.
"I will not allow you to put my kids in a petri dish and hope it all turns out fine," said Mark Schnepp, who had taken out an ad in a local
newspaper urging parents to turn out for the meeting.
Several people spoke in support of McBeth, including three transgender people, two former students of McBeth's and a handful of others, saying the
fact she is a good teacher was more important than whether she appears as a man or a woman in class.
"There's really nothing to fear because a person is transgender," said Karina Mari, a mother of three school-age children who said she has
transgender relatives.
School board lawyer Paul Carr said McBeth was a good teacher who had received favourable reviews during her tenure as a substitute.
Earlier this month, the board voted 4-1 to accept her application to return to the classroom.
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