Street roots., June 06, 2014, Page 3, Image 3

street roots
P H O T O B Y P A T R IC IA D EA /IA SI
Mia Macy, a transgender woman and fought the federal government for the right to defend herself against discrimination.
BY CLAIRE VALENTINE-FOS5UM
• C O N T R IB U T IN G W R IT E R .\
M Te hold these truths to be self- . :
%/l / evident; that all men are created
V V equal; that they are endowed by
their Creator with certain inalienable rights;
that among these are life, liberty, and the
pursuit of happiness,” the Declaration of
Independence tells us. The United States
has overcome tumultuous challenges to this
truth as we have evolved as a nation, from
women’s suffrage to the civil rights
movement and beyond. Today a new wave of
equality is progressing, state by state, in the
abolition of laws banning same-sex marriage.
For Mia Macy, however, there’s still much
to be done. Macy is a transgender woman
who fought employment discrimination, a
fight that resulted in a groundbreaking
victory for transgender equality across the
country and a legacy she never expected to.
hold.
Now a Portland resident, Mia Macy was a
homicide detective for the Phoenix Police
Department in the early spring of 2011. She
was trained,in computer forensics and
ballistics software. Her team worked with
the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms
and Explosives, aiding them and in turn
were trained to use the highly technical
software to work on cases in Phoenix.
When Macy and her wife Trish were
debating on where to move after Arizona —,
to be with her family in San Francisco or
New York — part of her- decision came from
her high level of expertise.
Her boss recommended a lateral transfer
to the Walnut Creek police force near San
Francisco, It was a civilian position with the
ATF that used her technology training.
Macy was excited about the prospect and
later that afternoon conducted an interview
over the phone, Ron, the man who operated
the lab in California and a friend of Macy’s
boss, was impressed with her. “You come
highly recommended, Brandon knows you,
that’s really good. The job is yours if you
want it, the only thing is you got to pass the
background check,” he said.
Macy was thrilled. Little did she know it
wouldn’t be as simple as passing the
background check. For Macy, an
accomplished war veteran with no criminal
background, this was the beginning of a
long legal battle. It became a challenge to
the 1964 Civil Rights Act over employment
discrimination that Macy would soon face
because she was transgender.
Mia Macy: During that time period when
I leftthe Phoenix police department and
moved to San Francisco, I was doing the
background process because it takes
months? And during that time period I
started my transition (to being a woman). I
was1 transitioning. On March 29, 2011,1
contacted the contractor. (Macy would not
be paid by the ATF, but would be working
for a contractor with the ATF) and I wrote
her an e-mail about everything - including
transitioning. And she sent me back an
e-mail saying everything is great. “We’re
female-owned and operated. We’re totally
good with that.”
Claire Valentine-Fossum: Is this
contractor out of Walnut Creek?
M.M.: It’s actually out of D.C. My
position would be in Walnut Creek. My
paycheck and my benefits would be coming
frdm them, but I would be reporting to Ron
in the lab as one of his contracted
employees. ;
' She (the contractor) knew everything. I
asked if I needed to let the lab know or
everyone know. And she said, “No. You work
for me. That’s none of their business to .
know that. I need to know for your W-2s,
andyour paperwork, but we don’t have a
problem with it, its great,”
So we moved. We got to San Francisco on
Saturday. Monday morning I’m setting up
our box at the post office. My phone rings,
it’s my background investigator saying the e
background is «tone and I canlet them know
I’m ready to start. I got my clearance.
The next day she sends me an e-mail th at
says the point of contact for the lab needs
my new driver’s license and new Social
Security card to update for you. ?
They had already sent me my welcome .
packet, I had filled out my W-2, medical
paperwork — everything. I scanned my
documents and e-mailed them to her.
That’s on Tuesday’afternoon.
Friday (five days after she informed her
new employer that she was transitioning) I
get an e-mail from the contractor that says,
and it’s kinda vague, “All the positions are
gone because of the federal budget.” It was
the first time the federal budget was going
to be frozen under President Obama; he was
fighting with "the Republicans. At 5 p.m. her
time, she sent out this ermail that said, “The
positions are gone, I lost my contracts, I
don’t know what’s going to jgo 6n.” I see the
e-mail and call her immediately. She’s
frantic on the,phone., saying they’ve cut and
slashed her budget, and she didn’t know
what’s going on, and then click.
I’m watching CNN that night. Obama
See TRANSGENDER, p ag e 4