I suppose the headline of this article should actually read, “Will LOGO ban RuPauls drag race?” Then, all of those who truly understand the dynamics of the situation at hand could answer, “Probably not. But they most certainly should.” For some of us, the question is, “Why is it unlikely that LOGO will separate from him?” Let’s face it, money and power breeds privilege.
When segments within minority groups begin to gain privilege, the struggles of others might not seem very important. Those (now) privileged minorities, in a continuing cycle of oppression, may begin to oppress other minorities. Being aware of this tenancy, when I first heard that LOGO dropped the RuPaul’s “Shemale” game I clapped for joy. I thought that LOGO actually cared about trans people and wouldn’t stand for more callousness coming from RuPaul. Yet, it was only a matter of time before RuPaul took up the cross of being opposed by trans women:
RuPaul has given an interview about the use of “tranny” and its’ going to piss off a lot of advocates. She notes that it had a very different meaning in the past. She also says that it’s not the larger transgender community that has an issue with her use of the word. “It’s not the trans community. ‘Cause most people who are trans have been through hell and high water… But some people haven’t and they’ve used their victimhood to create a situation where, ‘No! You look at me! I want you to see me the way you’re supposed to see me!’ – LOGO’s blog
What gives with this? Why does RuPaul repeatedly get to come back again and again to support slur words used against trans women? Of course, trans women can guess at the answer. It’s the answer RuPaul has already acknowledged: money.
LOGO is a business and businesses are in the business of making money. While a businesses might sometimes issue a carefully vetted apology, a business will act to protect its bottom line and for now, that bottom line is RuPaul. Being in the absolutely untenable position of promoting a she-male or female segment, LOGO apologized and removed the segment. However, RuPaul has drawn a line and made it clear that he supports the continued use of tra**y. This means that RuPaul intends to promote the language cisgender people use when bashing trans women [TW: beating, public humiliation] to a largely cisgender audience.
One must wonder if LOGO would associate itself with a rap artist who openly call for the use of the word faot or if they would support that group if they called the gay men who objected to the use of faot “bitches” for complaining about it? How would LOGO react if the group told gay men that they just needed to get stronger? Because, let’s be clear about this; LOGO is supporting the leading proponent of pushing tr**y into the cisgender media.
It’s true that many gay people find the word faot offensive while some do not. Likewise, many trans people find trny offensive while some do not. I don’t have an issue with reclaiming what has historically been a tool of oppression. If someone wants to personally identify with those terms, I’m okay with that. However, that in no way changes the fact that for the rest of the wider culture, these terms represent the language of oppression, violence and death.
I am concerned when I hear icons of the gay community say that those who are fed up with the promotion of terms the wider culture knows to be slurs should simply suck it up. I am concerned when a gay icon who is not trans calls me, and everyone else who disagrees with the promotion of a slur word used against trans women a “bitch.” Moreover, it concerns me that he further tells me that I need to “get stronger” while insinuating that I’ve not paid my dues. It concerns me that such smug, privileged callousness continues to be supported by LOGO.
My concerns are both real and warranted and no, I’m not part of a fringe group as RuPaul suggested. I am no more part of a fringe group than individuals of other minorities are parts of ‘fringe groups’ when they are disgusted at the promotion of slur words that relate to them. Much of our trans community is saddened by so much of the GLB world dismissing our concerns.
Trans people have always had a lower social status then lesbian, gay, and bisexual people in this country. Years ago, before I stepped foot outside of my house to hit my first LGBT friendly space, I thought that it would be different. For the wider culture, we were all the same in their eyes; we were all faots and if we somehow violated gender norms, we were not only faots, but we were tr**nies too. I thought that we were in this together and that we had each other’s backs. I believed that we saw ourselves as a community but as more time passes and I become more aware of rifts like the ones that RuPaul promotes, the more I realize how naive I once was.
RuPaul is not immune from being insensitive to minorities with a lower social status than himself, and LOGO is not immune from caring more about potential profit than they are the “T” in LGBT. However, LOGO could change this and prove themselves better than those who have gone before.
They could do things the right way. If anyone could, LOGO might be able to help RuPaul become aware of the privilege he’s promoting. If anyone could, LOGO might have a change to help RuPaul become aware of the pain and enmity his callousness is causing. If anyone could, LOGO might be able to inspire RuPaul to be a force of healing within the LGBT community and if RuPaul wasn’t willing to step up, they could also choose to not work with him again until he cleans up his act.
Of course, they could also choose to become willfully blind to the behavior and divisiveness they’re supporting. At the moment, I don’t hold a lot of hope that RuPaul will back away from his condescension, dismissal and belittling of the pain he’s creating within the LGBT community anytime soon. However, I certainly do hold out hope that in the long-run RuPaul and LOGO will act as community leaders and abandon a media standard that not even Jerry Springer is willing to promote.
[…] what wreckage they may leave behind them. The charge levelled here by Halberstam—that trans women opposed to the slur are engaged in respectability politics and assimilationism—only has bite in […]
[…] Fallon Fox wrote: […]
What continues to disturb me is the moral purity angle these discussions take. It occasionally takes a nasty turn. I’ve been accused on another forum of not being ‘real’ because i have an opinion that is anti language control. I don’t care that someone would do that. My identity is not so strongly tied to someone else’s ethical pontifications. However, such attitudes are in line with right wing conservative attitudes that demand uniformity. When one segment claims to speak for all that same group may as well say they are declaring a religion.
By the way, the person who accused me of pretending to be transgender does now realize I’m quite real, but has not apologized. It leads me to wonder if in spite of transition she considers me not really transgender because I’m not on board with this issue. That says a real lot about a lot of things doesn’t it?
And your fellow pro-slur transwomen have cflaimed the only reason we oppose the promotion of transhobic slurs is because of our lingering maleness.
Your side shouldn’t throw mud and then whine about having it tossed back at you.
Sorry Cristan, for another Dee-straction
The redeemable value of a word will not and cannot ever exceed its most malevolent definition, and despite said word containing as one of its attributes a contextually subjective benevolent definition, long-established standards of broadcasting decency, far beyond credible debate, dictate that employing the use of said word in audiovisual or printed media is never optional; rather the inclusion of said word in any such media transmitted to and intended for reception by a homogeneous audience, more specifically, to an audience unschooled in the taxonomy of gender, shall be considered so repugnant an offense that without delay said word must be removed from public broadcast.
***************************************************************
What part of the fact that we, Trans Sisters United, supported by LOGO, GLAAD, HuffPo and others had no viable option but to demand that the above action be taken are many of you failing to understand?
Dee’s Encyclopedia of Infinte Wisdom 😉
(ya I don’t have a life or a wife, but I want one—or more)
I’m a transman and I’m not offended by RuPaul. I totally understand where he’s coming from.
I’m a trans man and I am offended, but as neither of us are trans women- the demographic at whom that slur is most frequently hurled- our opinions on the matter are 100% irrelevant.
I couldn’t disagree more about relevance. At the core of RuPaul’s now-obvious trans hostility and de-legitimization, resides an apparent disdain toward males who dared to discard masculinity for femininity—a typical example of male usurpation of power.
As we defend our honor and legitimacy, he ratchets up his expletive-showered stance, digs his heels in deeper, and not coincidentally, RPGs (Ru Paul Goons) engage in seek and destroy public missions per a HuffPo video and as “comedy”—against trans females merely for lifting a STOP sign relating to public use of trans female slurs. The very words he attempted to make ubiquitous use of described trans PERSONS as both male/female at once, completely mocking the transition process. This is why it is relevant toward ALL of us who are not male/female but either trans male or trans female.
There is a tremendous amount of diversion going on, never sidetracking me for in the military, we are taught to always be aware of diversionary tactics. Every single time focus is on us, or on what RuPaul has done for drag, it is entirely diversionary. Why admit to wrongdoing by staying on topic when a discussion of the rabbit population will do? RuPaul has refused to “go down in defeat” for having been ordered to censure trans slurs. This has been made very clear, via a video message intended as intimidation. While the conflict goes on, as revealed by a feigned as “comedy” vulgar Bianca (drag) attack on Carmen Carrera’s staunch Trans support, it accomplishes but one thing: absolutely nothing. More diversion.
The core issue remains: is it appropriate for a TV show to make use of trans-slurring speech or not? LOGO and GLAAD have used their veto power and agreed with us that the only possible answer is no–and yet RPaul begs to differ…to this day…and the only STOP to this conflict will happen when RuPaul himself is STOPPED, by making the RPDR go dark.
Carmen ~ That was not RIGHT : Here is my thought for today: Mz Madison: They, Transgender Activist, say that they represent the Transgender Women, but it is not the WHOLE. Most of them ~ when they transition ~ have faded into the world. Identities changed. They do not want the world to know who they are. They are living productive lives. They have spouses, and they stepped up.. A person will not know who they are. They are not offended by words, and have progressed in life. What is their SECRET? It remained ~~> their SECRET. They have learned to except, and live being who they have chosen to be ~ with pride. They have learned the art of getting around people ~ with the usage of COMMON SENSE. The entertainers ~ let others into their word, but with caution. Everybody is not your friend. One thing I know for sure ~ being a lady ~ has it’s down size. Carmen is even feeling the impact. Some gay men~ do not want to be with what looks like a woman. From reading one of the posting ~ Carmen partner left her. Some heterosexual men will retaliate ~ IF they find out ~ after sexual encounters ~ that they were actually with a biological man. That is where the homophobia steps in. Being a woman is a hard role to play ~ in LOVE. Men are the same ~ rather it is a heterosexual or homosexual relationship. Finding someone to love you for ~ YOU ~ is a rare diamond. Every day, women are competing for some man’s attention, and affection. Some men may want children, and if you cannot produce ~ there are issues. I feel compassion for transgender women and men ~ in the past battles. Yes ~ there are support groups, and lobbyers for the other issues that may plague the community, but people have to take a constructive ~ instead of destructive approaches to this situation. RuPaul ~ has been called a ” FAGGOT” on television while telling the history of his outfits, but Rupaul held his composure, and continued with the interview. He did not allow “WORDS” the opportunity to define him. I wish I could be that disciplined. I am working on it. There are ways to be Proactive, and accomplish your goals. There are too many within the LGBT ( Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) who are going through something ~ as I am typing this message. Someone do not have a home, food, … etc. Someone is trying to survive mentally ~ from the knowledge that HIV / Aids is plaguing the body. Someone is in need of information, and guidance on how to make it as a TRANSGENDER Woman / Man. If Carmen Carrera really want to make a difference in someone’s life ~ Beyond tearing apart words ~ then use her money wisely ~ DONATE to some of the various Organization that are supporting the LGBT Community. They need the MONEY, Talent, and TIME. Do benefit programs to raise the funds and awareness of the COMMUNITY NEEDS. Rupaul ~ through the YEARS ~ worked on bridging the gap between Heterosexuals, and Homosexuals. Now ~ with the division of the LGBT Community ~ there is a need to HEAL the WOUNDS. ~~ > Rupaul was at Washington D. C. Fighting for your CIVIL RIGHTS ~ See the following VIDEO ~ GREAT INFORMATION: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gZwEICiV6E&list=RDG2RHMYRB4YE&index=9
May 28, 2014
THERE IS NO ROOM FOR TRANS SLURS in BROADCASTING
Thank you, Chloe. Commentary, even lengthy, can be a tool of articulation to combat injustice, particularly when a broadcaster (RPDR) finds comfort in being a conduit for transphobic speech, intent notwithstanding. One would be excruciatingly strained to conjure up something more regressive to trans equality than postulating, to the gullible masses, that the only “real” female is the one christened as such at birth—in lucid contrast to medical and psychological empirically-derived conclusions, not to mention legal corroboration. This is precisely the message that the now-shelved “Female or She-m**e” RPDR segment was transmitting. When the dust finally becomes one with the ground, and time has recorded more than a few ticks that tock, sunshine will arise over the earthscape, and reveal that which is crowned as victor—the almighty $ in inflated glory, or will justice reign supreme?
Will the “land of the free” truly echo with Jefferson’s very words 213 years hence after they were uttered? …that the rights of the few must never be sacrificed for the gains of the many? Will LOGO objectively and fairly conclude that the RPDR is at the F stage of MTBF, or as technophobes put it “Mean Time between Failures”? Will LOGO truly issue RP a “get out of jail card for free” and be hood-winked into believing that commonly-used-as-transphobic speech is as safe as RP says it is? Will a gay icon who found his golden pot at the end of the LGBT rainbow by perfecting the art of female mimicry by day, while living out a true male identity by night, be constrained? Time is a healer, and not without a voice, that will tell…
NON-NEGOTIABLE MESSAGE
It was a message, cloaked as entertainment, that threatened to condemn trans females to a perpetual state of “in-between-ness”, neither male nor female, squarely within the definition of “drag” and the very theme of the RPDR show. It is a message that would have redefined “female” as one so crowned by birth, sans transition, with callous disregard for those females cursed by birth, relegated to a lifetime of perpetual moroseness, the result of an endocrine system gone awry. It is a message long delivered by both TERF and Religious anti-trans operatives, reflecting a “once male, always male” ideology, long ago debunked by medicine and law. It is a message that threatened to undo trans-inclusive protections and shift momentum in favor of those against trans equality; reinforcing a street-level mentality that assigns value to a transgender life only slightly above and often below domesticated pets. It is a message that RP still wishes to deliver, vehemently angry for having been muzzled, and why we, the trans community, must never be lulled back into slumber.
It is a plot straight out of history—reminiscent of an angry despot hell-bent on vengeance for having his devious plot thwarted. It is not a new message, for RP may have an abundance of talent, but in this debate, if one thing is clear, it’s his acute lack of original material. It further begs the question “who else behind the scenes sponsored this message”? Time does have a propensity to sprout leaks, and as such the truth does seep out. It was a message that belongs nowhere in broadcasting, for it’s not love that it bleeds, but the very blood of trans sisters who now find themselves looking up, whilst we look down, who hear the echoes of the very last words they probably heard—the very words RPaul sought to promote.
It was one that demonstrated an acute lack of judgment and utter and total disregard for the non-drag trans community. It was a message that would have spelled disaster for trans children, as their sex/gender transition, assuming discovery, would have been devalued to but a RPDR performance. It was one that proved once and for all that a drag performer and a trans female, despite the makeup and dress, are two diametrically opposed realities: one wants you to know that he is female, and the other wants you to know that she is female, not borne of deception, but of gender identity born. It is a message that spawned this debate, long overdue, settling the matter that drag is not transgender and transgender is not drag, TG umbrella or not. It was a message that led me to conclude that at the moment RP Andre Charles is the 2014 Trans Enemy #1. Engaged in defensive delusion, it is clear that RP has yet to receive the memo, or *toot toot*, the “Dee-cree”, courtesy of newly declared Trans Independence.
No greater trans cause exists than combating transphobia and its many derivatives, including speech. We must never forget that the blood of trans sisters struck down screams for justice, and cries for a world where individual character matters more than individual gender. Providence has entrusted us with a world as our domicile, a brain to form objective calculations, and a heart to search and find the good in all, not…to search and destroy all. All rights and privileges denied to trans persons stem from fear, fostered through criminal inference that forwards the false notion that a trans female is but a male predator seeking access to female inner sanctums. This notion is egregiously insulting even to real predators themselves, who think of themselves above the law and require no law to rationalize their violent and perverted sadistic intents. The statistical reality is that males are the architects of most violence, and transfemales, like all females, are targets of such male violence. Another statistical reality is gender angst in trans children today and we who transitioned late are proof of the very existence of trans children yesterday. This very truth begs for the exercise in kindness toward transgender adults suffering from visual gender confirmation, the result of a physically coerced puberty, never to be misconstrued as a mentally induced malady.
Trans nomenclature MUST NEVER devolve to the point where it includes the two absolute worst names in trans hate speech today. Many things are negotiable. Arguing for the right to promote publicly transphobic speech can never conclude in negotiation. Stating that transphobic speech is safe speech is false, not unlike telling me that salt is as sweet as sugar. Gay men can continue their tirade unabated, all the while shoving that size 12 boot so deep down the esophagus that it soon sees sunshine, but not from the point of entry. Ironically, what is lost on gay men is the reality that trans lives are not lost from transphobic loathing, but from homophobia—the killer, feeling deceived, panics as he realizes that he is about to have “gay” sex, in his mind. The trans killer explodes with rage, not knowing that in modern times, some of the most beautiful women in the world, have penises.
RPDR AUDIENCE IS KEY
We all develop intrinsic value from our experiences, and the brevity of life shows us that serving the greater good is not an option, but an obligation. Even if every gay male stood up in support of RuPaul, this fact remains: violence against trans females stems from homophobic minds, as stated above. The two transphobic words used in gay AND straight circles describe female-appearing men, dipped in foundation—human mannequins–always male, never female. In straight circles, much of the audience of the RPDR, trans females are accorded the exact same consideration, despite a medical regimen. If this were not true, why then is there a tremendous backlash against transgender rights, always centered on bathroom and locker room bills? If this were not true, why then is criminal inference part of the defense against transgender equality centered on child safety, completely disregarding that most of us are parents and no-less concerned on child safety? If this were not true, what then is the motivation behind lesbian-sponsored trans legislative exclusions?
TERMS AND QUESTIONS
In May 2014, like a blazing-hot brick that has struck us in the face, we awoke to the harsh reality that TERMS [Trans Exclusive Radical Males] exist—card-carrying gay men that subscribe to the medically-disproved fiction that “once male = always male”. This is something I always suspected, and now know to be true. These questions beg for an answer: why did LOGO, in an exercise of sound judgment, supported by GLAAD, have to intervene and remove transphobic speech from the RPDR? Why is LOGO putting airspace between LOGO and the RPDR? Why did the RPDR show choose to go with labels commonly used as trans slurs and not simply use drag-only terminology such as “drag queen female”? Had it done so, I and many others, the so-called “fringe”, would have remained wallowing in a state of trans serendipity. Why does RP exhibit such rancor and expletive-laden anger, given a simple solution?
Why does RP see a trans/LOGO/GLAAD victory as a RP Andre Charles defeat? Why does he view this as a battle against the RPDR show? Does he truly and honestly conflate gay female impersonating males with we who are transgender and yet without a gay or female-impersonating history? Is this the cause of extreme trans contempt–the product of “tra**y” familiarity? Who were the parties behind the now-pulled video depicting a mock trans execution centered around a protest against the RPDR use of transphobic speech? Why does RP exhibit such an elevated delusion of grandeur, so much so that his judgment appears severely impaired? Why does RP exhibit behavior I describe as Emperor Hirohito Disorder (EHD), one that can only be described as a state of denied accountability such that a fallible human truly believes a throne is his chair of divinity, and we the “fringe” are but his footstool?
Sadly, for RP, we are but a “fringe” element seeking to silence his voice. His equivocation of private speech freedoms with public speech, serves as Exhibit #RP, that a sound mind and talent can coexist. For RP Andre Charles, this is war, and in war there can be but one victor. No RP, you may not hear it but like a Choo-Choo train that has departed the station, and a train whistle rises to a crescendo….delivering a message that your show must go dark.
My message to RP Andre Charles is this: you, sir, are on the wrong side of an otherwise beautiful legacy, one tarnished with every succeeding public display of oral flatulence. Foot in mouth disease has a remedy. Not all wars end by vanquishing a foe. Some wars end in a whimper. I ask you that you and your senses become one again. Set aside your trans contempt, sir, and grasp a branch from an olive tree. Attach a small white flag, at the very top, and extend it outwards and upwards, and surrender.
CORRECTION: 2nd p/graph from bottom. (proving that I am not a bot)
*…that an [un]sound mind and talent can coexist.
Note: no thesaurus in my home 😉 true…
[…] effects on a recent Feast of Fun podcast. Other important commentary in support of Molloy include Fallon Fox, Carmen Carerra, and Zinnia Jones. It is also worth remembering that Logo TV — who pays Ru […]
#rupologists
just laying down a honey trail…
THE FRINGE
Merriam Webster includes one of several definitions for “fringe” as follows:
1. a group with marginal or extremist views
Marginal or extremist, history shows often means being on the moral and right side of history, usually posthumously. In a world gone mad from sexual and financial hedonism, one where most local governments are indistinguishable from corrupt mob bosses, and where obtaining a college education requires forfeiture of a 1st born child, every once, twice, maybe thrice in a while come along the few willing to risk all…even life for the greater good.
We know them as Dr. Martin Luther King, Anwar Sadat, Jesus Christ, Cesar Chavez…..the list goes on. These were men who walked out on a limb, pardon me, the “fringe”, realizing that not only the sport of baseball requires a sacrifice for victory, but so too does the self-actualization of the human species. The “fringe” is not a new abode for many of us, especially as veterans. The “fringe” continued to be a known hangout at 24—a freeway shoulder and continued on for years after, and same for many here.
We in the trans community soon realized that future trans civil success was contingent upon getting America & the world to “know us”, openly and without apology. This is not unlike the LGB who, once they became “known”, quickly actualized the reality of gay marriage. Sure there would be costs…job loss for me. This is where we find ourselves in now—-the “meet & greet” phase.
Just as occurred with America waking up to the reality that gay & lesbian persons were not after their children (unlike Russia), it too is realizing that we also are not deviants. Many wanted their MTV; we wanted our M or F…no more or less than that…oh the sex too but just like anyone else 😉 . Predictably, trans civil successes are occurring in undulating fashion. Some say we are a decade behind the LGB. I am doing all in my power to shorten that time. The period of stealth served its time and purpose but that time is long past.
We are in the next phase of trans civil rights…..reclaiming the balls we lost from anti-androgens and pressing on. This is no time for ego or to print out a “leader” name tag….far from it. Like a catastrophe, born leaders look around, assemble the pieces and produce results. True leaders sometimes lead from behind, quietly and effectively. This is the time for every trans person to utilize his or her talents for the greater good. Doing the right and necessary thing to move the ball or base runner forward is the domain of the few blessed with courage, with an extra limb for sacrifice to the civil rights “gods”, afraid of no homo sapien because fear is paralysis….in short stepping up to be counted, consequences be damned. It is time to do yeoman’s work.
How dare you RP, knowing that homo and transphobic speech has no place in broadcasting, not only deny culpability but transfer same onto the recipients of your rancor! How dare you play the victim for not being allowed to promote victimizing speech and now proceed to slander those of us by marginalizing us as extremists…in the “fringe”! If speaking against transphobic speech is equivalent to being “extremist”, then such an honor must be extended to gay brave pioneers, some deceased, who also spoke up against homophobic speech! Most ironic of all? If stepping out of the crowd in courage for the greater good earns us the right to be called “fringe” elements, then stepping out of the crowd to dare to promote transphobic speech, sir, means you were first to earn that name tag. Wear it, but not with pride.
I don’t know who you are but I sure do like what you have written here. Excellent!
I exist in a timeless domain, like all within infinity, and answer to no man. I was borne without fear, assigned as male—I protested as best an infant could, to no avail. I fear not even life’s final call, a date destined but for us all. I have challenged the grim reaper, up close and personal, but in the end it was not I who went down deeper. Doing so was critical to facing that final moment that we all must face…..when life flees from a dying carcass, with the hope that I can leave, without disgrace.
Now that I have dazzled you with brilliance, I have attempted to baffle you with bullshit (not really though), and extend an invite to read above, for I have once more labored for those I love. But truly if you must know, who Dee is, may you click on my pic you see, quite an honor that you bestow. Many hats I yet have worn, they tell my story much better you see, better than any words I choose to use….thanks for asking about Dee, may your honor I never lose. 😉
At 21, I gave a shout, to a creator I knew little about. He answered in the clouds above…and soon my days were cut quite short….burnout they say it’s called. I didn’t want to see an AF court…for in the Air Force…they hear no excuse…..for not making it to the very end…or else it was…a discharge with honor, for me to lose.
I know not all believe, as I once also felt so deceived, but with knowledge I walk my days…..despite never having completed college. You see, not all can traverse mere belief…..but when the creator doth my shoulder tap, and say look up, I answered you, without grief I must share all I know…..for my name is really Dee.
BREAKING NEWS: RuPaul come out against derogatory slurs!
But only when they’re directed at HIS self-identified community…..
https://twitter.com/RuPaul/statuses/341282173703290880
#RuPocrite
Fallon!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wow!!!! Fellow veteran!!! Thank you for all you have done and are doing!! Bravo! It would be uncharacteristic of me to…well…not contribute so her we go. Thank you Fallon, for this follow-up well-written piece. If Donald Sterling must forfeit a team for what he said during private conversation, having made discriminatory non-violent statements, then RuPaul MUST lose also be held accountable for making and supporting public use of transphobic speech commonly part of violent speech. Yes, the RPDR MUST go dark, if LOGO wishes to have a non-transphobic legacy. Promoting transphobic terminology is far, far different than asking trans females about privates or surgery “down there”. If the RPDR show stays on the air the LOGO message will be that $ are more important than the right of the trans community to be free from an ideology that not even government or the medical community support: the only persons deserving the right to be considered female are ONLY those actually born female. Everyone else claiming to be female is NOT female but a “tra**y or shem*le”. The next move is for LOGO to make. Sure, it can reintroduce another drag show later, even with RPaul directing (no transphobic speech though), but the next few days are *critical* for LOGO. Will it send a message that it authentically supports all in the LGBT by holding RPaul accountable as he keeps telling the world that transphobic speech is perfectly acceptable? Time must tell. LOGO is on notice from the trans community.
The Dog Bark, Bite, and a muzzle
Sometimes, we just have to put it in reverse. We all overreact when emotions are stimulated. This is why asking for forgiveness, an ability many never acquire, is a wonderful and positive thing.
I would like to thank RuPaul for all he has done for the trans community. He deserves commendation, not condemnation. Please extend my gratitude toward your wonderful staff, blessed with gender-expressive talent. You provide a stage for many gorgeous handsome men and women, of all colors—I love you for that.
As I take a chair at the peace table, and light up my E-pipe, let’s compare notes. Pardon me—-*puff puff*….you know…I was a’thinkin about how you and many other gay men are convicted beyond doubt that you are right. Well, of course so do “we”. Time to talk about unlocking horns.
NOT ABOUT SELF-SPEECH, SIR
I agree, RuPaul no one should tell you what you can or cannot say, and of course the feeling is mutual. We truly should never be afraid of the bark, but of the bite, and words in and of themselves don’t bite. This debate is truly about the muzzle, and as LGBT we are beyond blessed to live in America, because Russia, Nigeria and points beyond have very special accommodations for we in the LGBT. Some say there’s lots of sex, coerce—from staff. I am one generation removed from being an “import”, so se habla Espanol tambien….back to the muzzle bit. On my walk today, at the shadow of Michael Jackson’s resting place, I walked by a man and his dog, and a very loud bark. Having no Dee-gree, I must get my ideas at times from gutter level, hence my title.
To punctuate my thesis here, your position is that the trans community has been trying to muzzle you, and “we” apologize for this misunderstanding; to believe that one can muzzle another is to believe that reciprocation is permissible. We know that you have been speaking certain words practically all your life, words you never associated with malice. Please know sir, that our contention is not that the bark is intended to bite (words of course), or that our intention is to muzzle your voice, else as I have said we would need to muzzle ourselves also.
Now, let’s switch places at the table, and look into that TV screen. America, the world and her children are sittin’ on the sofa munching on yellow teeth—now white and crunchy—and suddenly the RPDR show comes on and…you know where I’m going…yes the bit about “female vs shem*le*” comes on (I know it’s been pulled but this is now about muzzling your voice *puff puff*) remember?
WATCHIN’ TV
Now this family and children have all heard homophobic and transphobic words, just like we did growing up. They don’t know anything about transgender—from girl to boy or boy to girl. They hear “shem*le and tr**y” and laugh, just like they laughed at me in the early stages of transition, and still do every once in a while. They don’t know the pain of a child just wanting to be a girl…right now and yesterday. They laugh more. They don’t know the pain of just wanting to be a boy…right now….and soon the parents join in on the laughter. No, this isn’t a pity party *puff*.
AT THE MALL
The show ends and the family heads out to the Galleria for a bite, maybe two. Dee walks by in androgynous mode but the estrogen has done its job but my not-petite body and skeletal structure will never change. “Oh look! There goes a Shem*le!” I find the nearest restroom, close the stall door, and cry…hard…very, very hard. You see, I don’t have toughness or courage—I am toughness and courage. I know but one posture: stand my ground and fight—from training, not from masculinity. If I must fight for my life, only one of us will have a story to tell. Yet, I will still cry, because you see, it’s not just the pain of words that hurts. It’s the fresh wound of a lost childhood where college books were my only companion…courtesy of a 5th grade teacher. Boys were mean and only girls could play with girls in school.
BROADcasting ETIQUETTE
No sir, it’s not about gettin’ or being tough or about puttin a muzzle on it. It’s not about censoring RuPaul or dictating permissible self-speech. It’s about that family and children, with no one present to educate them that it’s not ok to call a gay man a “fa**ot” or a transgender person a “shem*le or tra**y”. It’s not about a female needing to “toughen up” and accept sexually-harassing language, or a gay man needing to “toughen up” on Santa Monica Blvd as a car load of homophobic males drive by screaming `homo-expletives. It’s not about a scantily clad female needing to toughen up as Alpha Males verbally and visually undress her. It’s not about trans females with a female identity needing to “toughen up” as they are verbally harassed by homo and trans phobic packs of predatory males exercising a pack mentality. It is about NOT educating the public that it’s ok to willy-nilly spout words that resurrect a painful childhood lived through homophobia or a childhood never lived, courtesy of gender angst. If it’s not OK for CNN, NBC, CBS or other audiovisual or print media to say or print, then it’s not OK for the RPDR to say or show.
Wow!!!! Autumn also….another trans hero veteran..who certainly has paid a heavy price….thank you Autumn!!!!!! Didn’t know World of Wonder was the production company. I mean RP must be held to the same standard as other broadcasters…who made adjustments. Had he simply made necessary adjustments and apologies—end of story. LOGO would not be in the situation where its reputation and legacy are on the line—because of one incorrigible man who places himself far above due accountability!
RP is the DR and the DR is RP and both are LOGO! While our contention is B (public transphobic speech via broadcasting), RP’s contention is A (private speech)! Sorry, RP but bait and switch diversionary tactics aren’t working. We will NOT stand for your personal belief that you can issue yourself a license to be immune from accountability!!!! How could we? Worse than not accepting personal responsibility, RP shifts responsibility away from him to the trans community!!!—-the very ones directly impacted from the very speech he wishes to have free license to say IN PUBLIC!
LOGO, RPDR must go! This isn’t vengeance…but about removing the pulpit and microphone from a bully…..who insists on bullying trans females to accept what he, RuPaul says we must accept. Wrong, a 1,000 times.
We need to deal with bullies true. The question is are some of us turning into bullies in the guise of righteous indignation? I have felt considerable pressure to ‘conform’ and when i don’t some react in rather disappointing ways. I am not very proud of us when that happens.
We should also hold the production company, World of Wonder, responsible for having a show host that uses the language and distain for trans women that he does.