Carnival of Bent Attractions: May(-ish) Edition

As some of you may have noticed, there was no Carnival of Bent Attractions (COBA) post last month. This was partially due to the move of COBA to Transadvocate.com. So without further ado, the May addition of the Carnival of Bent Attractions!

Romeo Vitelli’s April 1st post, “Becoming Lili” reflected on the life of transsexual trailblazer Einar Wegener.

“Born in Denmark in 1886, Einar Wegener must have seemed a typical male of his time. The role that he (or more appropriately, she) would play in medical and social history was something that can only be appreciated through the complex story that I am about to relate Despite a tendency towards female dress and a decidedly effeminate appearance, Einar did many of the typical things that males did, including getting married at the age of 22. Einar had met his wife Gerda while they were both art students and they both embraced the artistic life with enthusiasm Both Einar and Gerda were talented artists whose paintings continue to be shown in museums across Europe. Gerda in particular became well-known for her paintings of beautiful women dressed in glamorous styles (she is now considered to have been one of the great Art Deco artists of the period). It was not until much later that it was discovered that her chief model was none other than her husband Einar, who relished the lovely clothes that Gerda had him wear while posing.

Einar so relished the feeling of dressing as a woman that he invented a whole new identity, “Lili Elbe” (often introduced as Gerda’s sister) who was frequently seen during Carnival in Paris in the years that followed. It was even said that Lili turned down a marriage proposal from one of her many admirers (a nobleman no less). What only Einar’s closest friends knew was that it was not simply a pretense for him. Einar felt, deep down, that Lili was what he truly was inside.”

With the introduction of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act in the US House of Representatives, Dr. Jillian Weiss of Transgender Workplace Diversity discussed the first trans-inclusive version of the bill.

“The Employment Non-Discrimination Act (“ENDA”) would provide legal recourse to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people who are discriminated against by their employers based on their sexual orientation or gender identity. I understand from various sources that the bill contains exemptions for small businesses, religious organizations, the military and employer dress codes.”

Lately I’ve made a lot of fuss over GLAAD’s silence on Michael Savage’s rampage about transwomen. In that same vein, Jon Swift points out some inconsistencies in the suspension of Don Imus. He writes:

“What is happening to Imus is a little like what happened to Ann Coulter a few weeks ago. How could she possibly have know that it was now wrong to call someone a “faggot”? When did this word become an “f-word”? Is it tied somehow to the ratings for Will & Grace or the Oscar nomination for Brokeback Mountain, which Imus and his good friend Chris Matthews made fun of last year, referring to it as Fudgepack Mountain? Although I believe that making fun of gay people for being gay is still no problem in general, apparently Coulter, Isaiah Washington and Tim Hardaway didn’t get the memo and had no idea that the word “faggot” had suddenly become unacceptable. Someone should have told them about this so that they would have been more careful.”

Over at Queercents, I think April was Transgender Awareness Month. On April 6th they interviewed blogger, cartoonist, and author, Jay Sennett.

“In real time I don’t think I’m funny. But as long-post, uber theoretical blogger, I suck some serious wind. So I decided that if I couldn’t say what I needed to say in a business-card sized cartoon, I had no business saying it.”

Later in the month Nina interviewed actress Alexandra Billings. Of material wealth and acting Alexandra said:

“Acting has made me happy. My life has made me rich. I don’t know that buying things brings me any kind of real happiness or even the ability to buy things. I do know, that there have been times in my life when I couldn’t buy cigarettes and was still having a great time. So for me, it’s less about what I do, and more about who I am.”

Lastly, Mombian alerts us to the upcoming “Blogging for LGBT Families Day 2007.” Of last years event she said:

“over 130 bloggers participated, including lesbian moms, gay dads, adult children of LGBT parents, members of the transgender community, LGBT individuals without children, and straight allies. Countries represented included the United States as well as Australia, Canada, and the UK. Some bloggers told stories about their paths to parenthood, or tales about their children; some wrote about LGBT relatives or friends; others discussed current political events; and several spoke of why their faith obliges them to support LGBT rights. This year’s writings should be equally diverse and compelling.”

I can’t let a couple of last months COBA posts go without a quick mention.

Mombian tells of a good Transparenting book here.

Coaching for lesbians discusses The L Word Season Four Finale and being vulnerable.

Saving the best for last, my most FAVORITE Queercents “Ten Money Questions” interview ever, Nina talks with Erin Hamilton. Erin’s strength and wisdom really helped me at one point in my life, so I was giddy when I heard she was being interviewed.

If you are interested in hosting a Carnival of Bent Attractions, email me. If you would like to submit a post for the COBA, you can do that here.

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