Breaking News: NCTE Outraged by Discriminatory Firing of Largo, FL City Manager

Clear Example of Employment Discrimination

Late Tuesday, the Largo City Commission voted (5-2) to begin the dismissal process of City Manager Steve Stanton following his recent coming out as a transgender person. Stanton has served the Largo community for 14 years.

Read on

AP Photo shows supporters in Largo

Hot Off the Press: Special Edition of NCTE's Newsletter

NCTE has just posted a "Special Edition" of our monthly Newsletter. This month, we've focused on the federal legislation that will soon be introduced in Congress and the many ways that you can take action to pass these bill into law! To read it online, please click here.

Participants in NCTE's 2006 Lobby Day

Here are four important actions that you can do today:

• Sign our online petition to Congress urging passage of the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act. Click here to sign the petition now.

• Save the date! NCTE's Lobby Day is scheduled for May 15. It is your chance to educate our members of Congress in Washington, DC. Our goal is to make the largest gathering of trans people ever to speak out for our rights in our nation's capital. There will be training on May 14, time for meetings with members of Congress and a rally for Transgender Equality. We need your participation!

• Share your story . If you have a personal employment discrimination story, we can help get it heard on the Hill. NCTE, ACLU, and other organizations have just started collecting stories of employment discrimination online to present to Congress in support of ENDA. To share your employment discrimination story, please click here .

• Get 'em at home . Plan ahead to visit your member of Congress in your home state during the week of April 9-13. They'll be in their home district office for Spring recess. Why not write an email right now to several friends and invite them go with you to visit your representatives in April? Then call to schedule a visit. It's easy to do and it is very effective. If you need information about how to schedule a visit, check out NCTE's guide, Making Your Voice Heard: A Transgender Guide to Educating Congress.

Gender Identity Discrimination Surfaces in Florida

This just in from Equality Florida:

Tonight, City of Largo Commissioners will consider a resolution to fire their City Manager Steve Stanton, a 17-year veteran of the city. Last week, Steve--now Susan--announced that she is transgender and will be completing the gender reassignment process in the coming year.

Largo Mayor Pat Gerard, Police Chief Lester Aradi and other city administrators have been extremely supportive of the city manager and are doing an excellent job of educating the community.

Unfortunately, Commissioner Mary Black has decided to take the discriminatory and divisive step of proposing a resolution to fire Susan. This amounts to employment discrimination and must be stopped.

The proposed resolution to remove the city manager will be voted on TONIGHT. A local mega-church is organizing opposition to Largo's support for workplace diversity. They've sent hundreds of negative emails and we expect them to crowd city hall tonight. We must show Largo city leaders that fair-minded Floridians are willing to stand up for diversity in the workplace and will support them as they oppose employment discrimination.

Three Things You Can Do...

1. Email Largo Commissioners. We've prepared an editable email that you can personalize or send as is. Click here to send an email.
2. Call Largo City Hall (727-587-6700) and express your support for Susan and for workplace diversity. Encourage Largo leaders to continue their policy of education and tolerance.
3. Show Up. The City Commission meeting is open to the public and will be held at 6:00PM TONIGHT - February 27th at Largo City Hall - 201 Highland Ave. Largo, FL 33779.

Save the Date!

This is it. This year we have a very real chance to pass a transgender-inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA). NCTE is calling on transgender people and allies to come to Washington, DC, on May 14 -15, 2007, for what is shaping up to be the largest lobby day in trans history. Will you be there? Will your friends?

For decades advocates have fought hard to write federal anti-discrimination and hate crime legislation that includes transgender people. Now is our shot. Please try to be here. Your voice is vital.

Protections for transgender people—for all LGBT people—are so very close to becoming the law of the land. But it won’t happen without your voice. So save your pennies. Bank your gas money. Schedule your vacation days. Book your flight. This is the mother of all Transgender Lobby Days.

**SAVE THE DATE**

May 15, 2007
NCTE Lobby Day
Washington, DC

Of course, there is no cost to attend NCTE's training on the 14th and Lobby Day visits on the 15th. We'll be sending out information on local hotels and opportunities to take action before May. So watch your email.

If you’re not on our email list and would like to get updates, sign up by clicking here. See you in DC.

NCTE Wins Grant for New "Privacy and Documentation Project"

We received some wonderful news this week that we're so happy to share with you! NCTE has been awarded a significant two-year grant to start a much needed Privacy and Documentation Project. While NCTE will raise additional funds to fully resource the program, this grant will allow us to jump start the Project.

NCTE's Privacy and Documentation Project will expand upon the work we are already doing around the REAL ID Act, the new privacy rules of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), employment I-9 "no match" letters, and the tightening of identification document rules and the rapid loosening of privacy protections.

Today in America, it is very difficult to work, travel, open a bank account, or enter a club or gym without government issued identification that accurately matches one's identity. The importance of accurate ID is increased for transgender people who often face discrimination or violence when ID documents "out" us as trans.

Since NCTE's founding in 2003, the demand has been overwhelming for accurate information on obtaining state and federal identification documents in one's preferred name and gender (e.g., driver's licenses, birth certificates, passports, Social Security cards, military records, professional licenses, school transcripts, etc.). Because obtaining updated ID is often tied to presentation of some type of medical "proof" in order to revise ID documents, significant medical privacy concerns also surround these records' ability to disclose a person's transgender status and confidential medical information.

Growing NCTE's work on these issues is critical. Our new two-year grant will help us do just that. So more privacy and documentation news to come!

WWJD?

Rev. Dr. Julie Nemecek, 55, has taught at Christian-based Spring Arbor University in Michigan for 16 years. She is an ordained Baptist minister and served as associate dean of adult studies for the University. Despite an excellent work record, Julie’s contract was terminated after coming out as transgender. She is such a well-respected member of the Spring Arbor campus that over 145 students formed “We Support Julie Marie Nemecek.” The group rallied on Monday, February 12th on Julie’s behalf. Supportive students gathered on campus sidewalks and carried signs that asked, “What would Jesus do?”

“I have worked hard for this university, have been praised for my performance, and I have done nothing immoral or sinful,” said Nemecek.

NCTE anticipates that a transgender-inclusive Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA) will be introduced this year. If passed ENDA would protect thousands of trans people who experience employment discrimination every day.

For more information about Professor Nemecek’s story, click here to read Roselyn James' article “Christian College Fires Transgender Professor."

NCTE in the News: Gender and the Pulpit

Workplace difficulties can arise for transgender people in nearly all professions, but what about those who are called to work for God?

January 19 - 23, The National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) and the Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry (CLGS) hosted a cutting-edge conference on the intersection of denominational policy and transgender people at the Pacific School of Religion in Berkeley, CA. Sixty-five religious leaders attended, from Lutheran, Episcopalian, Presbyterian, Unitarian, Quaker, Jewish and Agnostic communities across the country. On the agenda: denominational policy and outreach to transgender communities.

Newsweek magazine reporter Lauren McCauley covered the summit in a wonderful story, "Gender and the Pulpit." To read the full article, please click here.

Description of Important NJ Victory

Below is a piece written by NCTE founding member Babs Casbar about the work she and the Gender Rights Advocacy Association of New Jersey (GRAANJ) did to pass the New Jersey gender identity anti-discrimination law this past December.





A TRANSGENDER VICTORY
By Barbra Casbar
Copyright 2007 all rights reserved

Lost in the publicity and hullabaloo of the historic Civil Unions legislation, on Dec 14th, 2006 the NJ Legislature passed an amendment to NJ’s Law Against Discrimination (LAD) to include “gender identity or expression” as a protected class in employment, housing, and public accommodations . When Governor Corzine signed S362 into law on December 19th privately, without ceremony, it anticlimactically signified the result of an intense effort by a few amateur activists with many dedicated friends and political allies to pass such legislation on a statewide basis in record time! New Jersey had become only the 9th state to pass protections for transgender people.

To put things in perspective, in 1999 the State of Vermont’s legislature had pending both a Civil Unions bill and a transgender equality bill. In 2000 Vermont had Civil Unions. In January of 2007, there are still no protections for transgender people in Vermont.

In 1992, the LAD was amended to include protections for gays, lesbians and bisexual New Jerseyans. Transgenders were not included. In 2001, an appellate court ruled that some transgender people were covered under the LAD. We celebrated this decision, but soon realized that it affected very few people, and did little to educate and change the societal bias and discrimination that most transgender and gender variant people bear.

In 2003, The Gender Rights Advocacy Association of NJ (GRAANJ) decided to pursue a legislative solution and enlisted the services of Lisa Mottet of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force to draft the necessary language. Director Frank Vespa-Papalao of the Division of Civil Rights, the NJ Government agency charged with enforcing the LAD, and his special assistant, Attorney Bear Atwood, also recognized the need for legislative clarification, and we encouraged their collaboration to draft the strongest protective language for our gender variant citizens.

Meanwhile, we went to work raising the profile of transgender people throughout New Jersey. Members of GRAANJ appeared at every Lambda Legal town meeting, networked with other member organizations of the Coalition, got the support of clergy and worked for marriage equality as part of the domestic partnership task force. We lobbied with the task force in solidarity and to raise our own profile as part of the LGBT community. I had a unique opportunity as a delegate to the 2004 Democratic National convention, to meet legislators and staffers and to explain the need for such legislation and to enlist their support in the near future for such legislation.

At the end of 2004 we had our legislation, A3678 in the Assembly, Asm. Reed Gusciora as a sponsor and by January of 2005, we had the wording we wanted and we were ready to lobby! We soon picked up several important sponsors in the Assembly, but getting a sponsor in the Senate was another story. We were told by progressive Senators that it was not necessary because we had a court decision that protected us. We heard that story often, but when the legal director of a respected progressive organization for whom we sought support refused because he feared that if the legislation failed we could lose what limited protections we had, the reality of the perceived societal bias and transphobia bit hard!

Failure was not an option! This legislation was about us, the transgender community, we be the gatekeepers of our lives. We were prepared to take the responsibility and risk of success or failure, since it is our lives! I was appalled that well meaning society regarded transgender people without respect to be able to make that decision!

Eventually, Senator Karcher took the lead in the Senate and we had some real momentum, and others soon followed, as we reached out and educated, the Coalition sent out action alert letters which kept that momentum going. When the Garden State Equality-Zogby poll showed that New Jerseyans supported a non discrimination law for transpeople by 70-19, we had something to crow about, some real facts with meat to talk about. We picked up moderate and conservative bipartisan sponsors in the Assembly and the support of the Assembly Majority Leader Roberts.

We thought we’d have success in the lame duck session, but it became apparent that all was not well when Senate President and Governor Codey refused to let it out of the Senate Judiciary Committee and his staffers would not talk to us. We had to wait for a new session and a new Governor.

What is important to note is that Transequality was one of many pieces of legislation that was generally supported, but was frozen in the Senate by Acting Governor Codey and his chief of staff, so we were not alone in our disappointment. It was clear that we needed to get more support in the Senate and educate and lobby the senior legislative staffers to make this work in the new session.

We quickly filled the gaps. Judiciary Chairman Senator Adler became pro-active. We met with Senator Codey’s new Chief of Staff, and added key sponsors in both houses. In June, GRAANJ and Garden State Equality (GSE) sponsored Equality Day in which legislators and their staffers and the Governors staff met face to face with the transgender community and our families and saw the solidarity that NJ gays and lesbians have with transgender people! Senate Majority Leader Kenny soon signed on as a co-sponsor.

When I met with Sen. Codey in the late summer, he was familiar with the legislation and indicated he was on board! At summer’s end “Cher-gate”, which GRAANJ sponsored with GSE and NJ Stonewall Democrats was icing on our “cake” and proved the need for our inclusion in the LAD. In the end, things went quickly and minor glitches were resolved, and S362/A930 passed overwhelmingly by a combined vote of 102 to 8. It was the widest margin of passage and was done in the shortest amount of time of any previous statewide transgender rights bill! We are now ready to pour the champagne! Cheers!

Amazing Progress

Reading the Transgendernews yahoogroup this weekend, made me happy. There were stories about progress in three different states: two of which are in the advance stages of progress. In Montana a trans-inclusive anti-discrmiination bill has been introduced. In both Massachusetts and Maryland, trans activists and allies are making a strong push this year to finally make progress in their famously progressive states. [Massachusetts is actually a Commonwealth, which is really only an important distinction if you are from one of the four Commonwealth states (KY, MA, PA, VA) as I am.]

In Massachusetts, the Mass Transgender Political Caucus (MTPC) is gearing up for thir effort. This means it's a done deal. Even if it doesn't get finalized and signed by Governor Patrick, this year, it is soon a done deal. MTPC is among the best organized, smart and most broad-based trans organizations in the country--I have no doubt they will get the job done. Here is an article about their effort from the Boston Bay Windows newspaper. I feel tremendous kinship with MTPC. I have had the honor to work with them multiple times over the past few years. Gunner Scott, one of MTPC's founders was the first paid member of NCTE and current MTPC co-president Diego Sanchez is a founding board member of NCTE. Additionally, last June a team of MTPC member (about six of them) attended our target states conference in Albany. [The target state conference was a joint training project of NCTE and the Task Force to provide training and networking to trans and allied advocates from the states with good prospects for passing anti-discimintion laws.]


In Maryland too, it smells like progress. NCTE Board member, Donna Cartwright, has begun work as a trans outreach consultant and they are making great progress. I ahve worked with both Donna and Equality Maryland for maybe 5-7 years and we can expect great things. And soon.

Including Mass. and Maryland there are nine states (CT, HI, MA MD, NV, NH, NY, VT, WI) that have job discriminatino protections based on sexual orientation, but not yet based on gender identity/expression. There is movement in a most of these states now to fix this. By early next year that number will be much lower thanks to folks like those at MTPC and Equality Maryland.

In Montana, according to the Helena Independent Record, Sen. Christine Kaufmann, D-Helena, is sponsoring a bill that would add "gender identity or expression" and "sexual orientation" as categories under the laws prohibiting discrimination. The wonderfulness of this is a) that it is happening and b) Montana was one of the few states left that had a sexual orientation-only bill. That number has dwindled to two (you know who you are).

NCTE in the News: Cartwright joins Equality Maryland Effort

NCTE founding board member Donna Cartwright has begun working as a trans outreach consultant for Equality Maryland as they gear up their efforts to pass a gender identity anti-discrimination bill this year.

The Washington Blade cover the story here.