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About Just out. (Portland, OR) 1983-2013 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 4, 1996)
ju st o u t ▼ o c to b o r 4 , 1 0 9 0 ▼ 2 1 When Mirrors Lie Continued from page 19 Dean’s point is partially underscored by Dr. Green. In the Yale Law and Policy Review paper, Green describes the difference between transsexuals and transvestites: ‘Transvestites are anatomic males who have an episodic, com pelling desire to wear women’s clothes.... They are sexually attracted to persons of the other sex.... A transvestite is an individual who is content being the sex to which he was bom, [and] does not wish to undergo so-called sex- change surgery. It is an individual whose prima ry gratification from cross-dressing or dressing in women’s clothes is one of sexual arousal....” Sexual orientation varies among individual transsexuals. Sometimes treatment with hor mones results in a change of sexual attractions. Koteles self-identifies as unequivocally lesbian. Morris self-identifies as bisexual, but he feels his sexual orientation is in a state of flux. Some transsexuals are heterosexual. The experience of sexual orientation for transsexuals is in rela tion to the gender of their brains, not their pre operative physical bodies. For example, a trans sexual with the brain of a male and the body of a female who is attracted to other males is a gay man. hen this nontranssexual lesbian reporter shows up at a transsexual social gathering for a group inter view, she is greeted warmly. Asked how she is, the reporter responds that she is disappointed with that day’s losing Senate vote on the Em ployment Non-Discrimination Act. A lovely woman, who requests anonymity, leans over and gently reminds her, “You know, we lost out on ENDA a long time ago. We were never included.” According to David Smith, communications director for the Human Rights Campaign, the language for ENDA was drafted in 1993 by a coalition of groups including the HRC, Southern Leadership Conference, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, and the American Civil Liberties Union. When asked if transsexuals were included in that language, Smith replies, “No, they were not included. Transsexuals were never excluded, though. They were simply not included.” Asked why, Smith responds, “I don’t know why they weren’t included.” Smith explains that the bill was introduced in Congress in 1994 and 1995. “The coalition entered into discussions with some transsexual groups, It’s About Time, Transgender Menace [It’s Time America, Transsexual Menace], about including them, after the bill was introduced the second time,” he says. “We had some questions. We wondered if transsexuals weren’t already covered by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, based on gender.” According to Smith, the coalition deter mined that transsexuals were not being protect ed from discrimination by the Civil Rights Act. Ultimately, however, the coalition decided not to include transsexuals in ENDA. “It would have unraveled all of the hard work and buy-in of the people who supported it,” he says, “the members of the coalition and W Dean the cosponsors in the House and Senate. All of those people would have had to have been re contacted, and we would have had to renegoti ate. Including transsexuals was considered politically impossible.” He adds, “We also talked to transsexuals about including them in the Hate Crimes Statistics Act.” Asked if transsexuals were included in that Act, Smith replied, “No, but we are looking at amendment strategies to include them in both bills.” Asked if HRC includes transsexuals in its human rights work, Smith responded, “HRC considers transsexuals to be part of the gay and lesbian civil rights movement. We work hard to include everyone.” Asked to point to one specific gain for trans ften when we read the accounts o f the struggle for liber* ation o f other oppressed groups throughout history, we wonder, “If I had been there, what would I have done? How much would I have risked? My position? My home? My life? Surely I could have done something to help. I hope I would have done something to h elp ...” We are historically situated at the infancy o f the transsexual liberation movement. Few in number, systematically and thor oughly cast out, transsexuals struggle to be heard, to be seen and to be treated fairly. They deserve help. Here are som e suggestions, offered by transsexuals and their allies, o f things you can do to help: O ■.’.■.‘.V .V .V .'.'.' sexuals resulting from HRC’s efforts, Smith responded, “There have been no gains for trans sexuals, but HRC pushed the entire movement forward in this Congress, and that benefits us all.” eople just don’t give a shit, is what it comes down to,” says Dean, speaking of his experiences with discrimination in the workplace. “First off, it’s hard to even get a job when you have to act like you don’t have a past. Try telling the person who’s interviewing you for a job that you used to have a different name, that you used to be the other sex. See if you get the job. Or try telling them you want to transi tion on the job. That always goes over real well.” Dean works at a Portland shipyard. P * If you’re an employer, provide employment and a reasonably accommodating environment for transsexuals. Offer medical insurance coverage that includes treatment for transsexualism. * If you’re a doctor, pressure public and private insurers to cover treatment for transsexualism, and offer some o f your ser vices for free to impoverished transsexuals. • If you’re a legislator, change the laws to protect transsexu als from discrimination. • If you’re a lawyer, do some pro bo no work for transsexuals. Challenge the exclusion o f transsexuals from public and private medical coverage, and from the protections offered others through the Americans with Disabilities A ct, the National Rehabilitation Act, the Civil Rights Act and other federal laws. “1 got the job as a female, and 1 transitioned on the job,” he says. “They laid me off due to lack of work. That happens a lot at the ship yards. 1 looked for work, but I wasn’t getting a job or any call backs. After a couple of weeks 1 called back some of the people who had inter viewed me. I asked them why I didn’t get the job. I found out that the personnel people at the shipyards were telling them that I was fired and they would not rehire me.” Dean went to his old employer and asked to see his personnel file. “My lay-off notice was in there,” he says, “but there was also a termination notice that 1 had never seen. I didn’t know that I was fired. The reason for termination category listed: ‘Was female, changed to male. When?’ I got my job back, but only because I had union protec tion. They got my job back for me because 1 wasn’t properly notified, not because it was wrong to fire me for being transsexual.” Lori Buckwalter knew, as she contemplated transitioning on the job, that keeping her job was a long shot. A computer systems analyst for 15 years and employed for three years with her company, Buckwalter thought that if she explained her condition to her employers and worked with them constructively she might be able to complete her medical treatment and keep her job. “A year before 1 started my transition, I had a meeting with my supervisor and the human resources coordinator,” she says. “I told them that I needed a medical treatment that often causes controversy. I said I didn’t want my treatment to be disruptive in the workplace. I expressed my strong desire to work coopera tively with them to make this work well for everyone concerned. I explained my condition. I provided them with documentation about it. I even gave them a letter from my doctor. The let ter explained that as part of my treatment I had to live full time, including how I dress, as my target gender. My doctor’s letter said that I was mandated to do this, that if I was not able to live as a woman for one year, I could not complete my treatment. You know, the RLT [real-life test].” Despite all her efforts, Lori Buckwalter’s RLT did not go smoothly. “After a year of meetings, I was told that I could start my transition,” she relates. “I wore a skirt to work for one day, actually part of one day, and all hell broke loose. Some people were supportive, but there was gossip about my attire, even in offices in other states. The human resources coordinator sent me home early that day. He said he needed a couple of days to final ize policies.” Buckwalter nervously waited at home, with out pay, for 10 days before the courier finally showed up at her door with a letter from the human resources coordinator. "The letter said that I had to return to work the next day unambiguously dressed and groomed as a male,” she says. “It said that if I did not comply I would be disciplined, up to and including termination. There was no mention of our previous year’s conversations or any of the policies we had agreed to. I was devastated. I didn’t want to jeopardize my RLT, but I could n’t afford to give up my job, either. My partner Continued on page 23 Explore whether Oregon law allows more liberal protections, coverage and benefits than federal law. • If you’re a progressive activist or lobbyist, include trans sexuals in your thinking and decisions about ending oppression, and find ways to free others from discrimination without offer ing remedies that would harm transsexuals. • If you’re a diversity trainer, include anti-oppression think ing about transsexuals in your workshops. • If you’re a compassionate person, challenge bigotry against transsexuals, in yourself and from others, every time you encounter it. Ten Ventura
