I received this from Mark  McLaurin this morning: "As an advocate and activist with a fifteen year history of working for equality in the LGBT community, I know that words not only matter, but they are powerful.  Last week, I carelessly used a pejorative phrase in an online argument that is insulting and hurtful.  While my intent was not to refer to Transgender people, as a community, that way, I now recognize that what I intended is not important- what matters is… Read more.

From SEIU Local 500 Executive Director David Rodich: "It has come to our attention that SEIU Local 500 Political Director Mark McLaurin made what we believe to be insensitive and inappropriate statements regarding members of the transgender community in a semipublic online forum recently. We wish to make clear that Mr. McLaurin was not speaking on behalf of SEIU Local 500 or its members. We do not support any statements that are meant either implicitly or explicitly to denigrate any… Read more.

When Mara Keisling of NCTE publically came out in support of Maryland's gender identity anti-discrimination bill, I wondered what her angle on it was. Bilerico recently posted "3 Ways to Improve ENDA Advocacy: Take the Fight to the States" written by civil rights attorney Tico Almeida. Almeida points to why there was such a push for HB235:"But the policy and legislative advocates at both NCTE and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force think it is plausible that we can… Read more.

I've seen vitriol spewed in my decade or so of transactivism, but it's usually spewed most venomously by the right wing. SEIU Political Director Mark McLaurin spewed this vitriolic chain of transphobic/mysogynistic/hateful comments on Dana Beyer's Facebook page concerning TransMaryland/TransUnited/Out of state supporters of fixing or killing HB235. "Ohhhhh so it wasn't spineless lawmakers who killed the bill but rather your uncannily strategic merry band of out of state circus freaks who, heretofore havent been able to organize anything more… Read more.

There's bickering over at Pam's House Blend about a statement made by Jenna Fischetti in her public testimony to the Senate in Maryland. She said "Never in the history of transgender-specific legislation has any state gone back and added a public accommodation only provision when there is already an existing law," in the argument over the truthfulness of Fischetti's statement, a very important point gets lost.  Sandeen states: "Well, I am sorry I got the facts wrong. And I do, without reservation,… Read more.

It would seem so.  Though they've been silent publicly, one only need look as far as NCTE Executive Director's Facebook wall: Now if the Executive Director of Maryland Equality (Morgan Meneses-Sheets) is thanking Keisling, I'd suggest that Keisling supports the bill. Or you could just look at this picture: Any questions? Read more.

As much as trans people seem to want to believe it, gay (GayINC) media is not their friend/advocate/ally. Tom Lang, of Know Thy Neighbor said: It seems that the hard work of transgender and transsexual activists inside and outside of Maryland are getting some movement regarding the discriminatory Maryland Bill HB235. But how are our friends over at the "lgbtq community news source", the Washington Blade, covering the story? They posted ‘Political reality’ forces changes to Md. trans bill.  They… Read more.