Germaine Greer's Feminine Mistake

There’s this feminist named Germaine Greer, who was invited to speak at Cardiff University in Wales. Greer is one of those TERFs, or trans-exclusionary radical feminists, who are strident “feminists” who hate trans women. Well, Greer has said some pretty crazy things in her time, though what brought her into the news recently is that the students at Cardiff tried to have her invitation revoked (she has said she will bow out).  I have my opinions on limiting free speech, and that’s an op-ed I’ve already written, but I just couldn’t let the issue of some of the things she said go. If I didn’t know better this was a case of Poe’s Law in effect.

In an interview with the BBC, Greer actually said that trans women do not “look like, sound like or behave like women.” Congratulations, Miss Greer, you just reinvented sexism in your own image. What the hell does a woman look like? Beause I have met some really interesting butch-lipstick couples that really screw with stereotypes. What even does a feminist look like? On one hand, you have Andrea Dworkin, and on the other, Jane Fonda. One looked like the stereotype of a feminist and the other looks like Jane Fonda. Seriously, people often talk to me about Carmen Carrera, Laverne Cox, and Bailey Jay and how beautiful and glamorous they are — then they ask what the hell happened with me because I look like I transitioned into their eighth-grade art teacher. This one trans woman I know transitioned from leather-wearing, Harley-riding biker into a leather-wearing, Harley-riding biker (she’s also gay, which makes her a trans dyke on a bike!). You can’t say it’s about body size or muscle tone; I know I’m not the only person who remembers the wrester Chyna. That woman both frightened and aroused me, which isn’t a bad thing.  

There’s a right way for women to behave? Well, I think that undoes about 200 years of Western feminist thought. When people ask how I can be a woman and still have The Godfather as my favorite movie, play war-themed video games, and work on my own car, I remind them that I transitioned into a woman — not a Barbie. The director Kathryn Bigelow has made some of the best war movies of the past 30 years. Ever seen a 5-foot 2-inch woman make a former college linebacker cry? I have. Drill Sergeant Garcia kept a jar of what she called “man tears” on her desk. I think she picked her teeth with the bones of “nice guys” she lured into dark alleys.

Greer also once said, “No so-called sex change has ever begged for a uterus-and-ovaries transplant.” Clearly this woman has never met a baby-crazy trans woman walking around the house with a pillow under her shirt, much less know how Lily Elbe died. Besides, the first successful womb transplant occurred this decade. And if uterus transplants were possible like that, I’m pretty sure there would be weekly exchanges between MTFs and FTMs at the local community center. The irony about Greer’s sex change statement is that she’s also said, “Human beings have an inalienable right to invent themselves.”

Another bit of hilarity from this woman was what she said about Caitlyn Jenner: “She wanted the limelight that the other, female, members of the family were enjoying.” Oh sure, because people totally transition to be on reality … wait. I’m gonna stop there. There probably is someone crazy enough to do that just to become famous. Still, Caitlyn was on the Wheaties box back in the 1970s and has been on TV regularly since the ’80s; she was famous before her kids first learned to Instagram. Please, Jenner was taking hormones in the ’90s before she even met Kardashian martriarch Kris Jenner. 

Look, maybe back in the 1970s, Germaine Greer was interesting, but in this day and age, she’s no longer relevant. Her attitudes match closer to those of fundamentalist Christians in that they think trans people need psychiatric repair. I don’t support having her thrown off campus because of her views, though. Instead, I think we need to let people hear Greer out so we can all collectively look at her and say, “Well, that was a bunch of crazy BS. Oh, isn’t I Am Cait on?”

AMANDA KERRI is an Oklahoma City–based comedian and a board member for OKC Pride. Follow her at Twitter.com/EternalKerri.
Amanda Kerri

www.advocate.com/commentary/2015/10/28/germaine-greers-feminine-mistake

7 Ways To Embrace Being On Your Own After Divorce

After splitting from a spouse, it can feel as if you’ve been stripped of your identity. So to help you adjust to being on your own again, we asked divorce coaches and divorcés to share their best advice for embracing the single life. 

1. Define who you are outside of marriage. 

For as long as you can remember, you’ve associated yourself with being part of a couple. “We can’t go to the party” or “We’re headed to a wedding this weekend.” One of the most powerful things you can do to embrace your identity outside marriage is to practice making “I” statements, said Laura Miolla, a professional divorce coach who finalized her divorce two years ago. 

“Shifting your perspective from ‘we to I’ after divorce is a challenging but necessary process for healing, growth and empowerment,” she explained. “Take this time to reconnect with the person you used to be before you were married. Who was that person? And who are you now? What’s different? What’s the same? What do you love about yourself? What gives you joy? Use that information to choose who you are now and what you want moving forward.” 

2. Get healthy. (And note that “healthy” doesn’t mean losing a ton of weight.) 

Now more than ever you need to prioritize your mental and physical well-being — but recognize that getting healthy doesn’t simply mean dropping a few dress sizes, said A.S. Chung, a writer who divorced in 2013.

“Don’t over do it. While I enjoyed being able to get into super skinny jeans and had enough confidence to finally get into that Herve Leger dress that had been staring at me from my wardrobe for quite some time, I looked unhealthy and gaunt,” said Chung, who was married for seven years. “It was due to my loss of appetite and sleep deprivation. Eventually, I decided that if there was anything I could control about myself it was my health. I began to box, I squeezed every ounce of unhappiness out onto unforgiving boot camps and calmed my busy mind at yoga.” 

3. Make a post-divorce bucket list. 

Maybe you’ve always wanted to zip line but your ex was afraid of heights. Maybe you’ve long harbored dreams of starting a YouTube cooking channel but never had the time or the confidence. Use your divorce as a catalyst to get it done, said Debbie Martinez, a mindful life coach who specializes in divorce.

“Start making plans for things you’ve always wanted to do and start checking some of those off,” she said. “Set completion dates, do research and get excited. And make sure the items on your list are all you-focused. Sure, you might have on there some fabulous trip you want to take with the kids but most of it should be about the new you.”   

4. Make like Stella and get your groove back. 

You don’t necessarily have to sign up for that pole dancing class at the gym or download Tinder with a quickness, but reconnecting with your sensual side can be a very good thing after divorce, said Martinez. 

“For all your married years, you’ve known yourself as a wife, mother, daughter, coworker, and friend but over time, you may have lost the sense of what it actually feels like to be a woman or a man,” said Martinez. “Reconnect with that part of yourself that’s been on hiatus: Change your wardrobe, do things that make you feel sexy (I personally signed up for a burlesque workshop), tap into the little child in you by doing fun things (adult kickball or horseback riding, for instance) because that gives you a freeing feeling and that feeling is sexy.” 

5. Take comfort in friends and family who really care about you. 

Divorce has a way of showing you who your true friends are — embrace those people and try not to worry about those who don’t show up, advised Miolla. 

“Divorce is a little like a death: The people around you will react in different ways,” Miolla said. “Your closest relationships will become closer as your best friends and family try to protect and help you — while others will distance themselves. You know who your champions are now. So focus your time and energy on them. Don’t invest in people that won’t invest in you. Be with the people who love and cherish you.” 

6. Take that old hobby you used to love off the back-burner. 

Remember all those old hobbies and interests you used to enjoy when you were single? Revisit them, said divorce coach Emma Heptonstall. 

“I’m not talking a night out with friends (although you might have given those up too!), I’m talking about a passion, a hobby that was all yours,” she said. “Look back at what you enjoyed and consider revisiting that passion. It will help you reconnect with the ‘you’ you were before your relationship.” 

7. Take a solo trip. 

Most of us don’t have the money (especially after divorce) to travel the world a la Eat, Pray, Love. But traveling and experiencing new things really doesn’t have to break the bank, Chung said. 

“Travel doesn’t necessarily have to involve long haul flights and expensive ventures,” she said. “It’s about exploring destinations you have never been before and opening up your senses to history, culture, people and languages — and it will take you away from an environment that is stale or is a constant a reminder of what it once was! Travel taught me to stop, observe, inhale the surroundings and slow down and those newfound ebbs and flows have transcended into my daily life.”

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Open Question: Straight vs Bisexual (LGBT)?
Do you think that being straight is better than being bisexual?

I am very interested in film and all the greatest actors are straight.

I mean Marlon Brando as an actor is way better than Angelina Jolie

answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20151028165035AAiiUy3

Spotted: Ben Carson’s PAC Joins Anti-LGBT World Congress of Families Conference

At a conference where speakers have compared LGBT rights to terrorism, called LGBT people pedophiles and warned that LGBT rights would lead to cyborgs taking over humanity, Ben Caron’s name has been spotted.
HRC.org

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Everything You Need To Know About The GOP Debate Without Actually Having To Watch

The 2016 Republican candidates are swarming the stage for the third presidential slugfest.

The last two GOP debates/circus act attracted more than 50 million combined viewers, and we’re sure tonight’s will no doubt be another dramatic ratings doozy.

Related: Clown Cars Pulls Up To Republican Debate And Presidential Candidates Get Out

But in case you’ve got better things to do than sit through two and a half hours of mean-spirited mudslinging, we’ve done a quick roundup of some of the leading candidates’ positions that are somewhat relevant to you. The Old Party has come up with some very easy solutions to some very difficult problems! No, you can’t make this shit up because they have done it for you!

Scroll down for 16 memes that capture the GOP’s ingeniously simple solutions…

 

Graham Gremore

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News: Sylvia Rivera, Jonathan Groff’s Walk, Officer Slam, DOMA, ‘Looking’

HISTORY: Stonewall icon Sylvia Rivera becomes first trans person to have portrait in the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery: “Rivera’s portrait was installed in the National Portrait Gallery’s “Struggle for Justice” exhibition at the beginning of October as part of the gallery’s paper rotation, according to a museum spokeswoman. In the portrait, which was captured by Puerto Rican photographer Luis Carle, Rivera is seen holding the hands of her partner Julia Murray and activist Christina Hayworth on the Saturday before New York City’s 2000 gay pride parade. At their feet is a hand-written poster that reads, ‘Respect trans people/men!’”

MUPPETS: Miss Piggy and Reese Witherspoon heal their bad blood over some rap music. 

HOUSTON: NYT Op-Ed comes for anti-LGBT bigots in Houston: “No one has ever documented a case of a young person being traumatized in a public bathroom in this way; and as for the second concern, rape is already against the law everywhere. But no one can say religious conservatives aren’t imaginative troubleshooters. … A weary city longs for relief, many agreeing with the burly, bearded transgender male cowboy who posted a sad selfie of himself trapped in a ladies’ restroom.”

SISSY THAT WALK: Beyoncé wants to steal Jonathan Groff’s walk: “1) Beyonce: Did you play the King? Groffsauce: Yes. Beyonce: I’m stealing your walk. I love your walk. Groffsauce: *inarticulate sounds*” Lin-Manuel Miranda tweeted. “2) Beyonce: When you turned away still facing the audience? *BEYONCE DEMONSTRATES FLAWLESSLY* Beyonce: You were your OWN turntable. Love it.”

POLICE STATE: Deputy Sheriff who violently assaulted a teenage student in South Carolina has been fired. Administrators at the school meanwhile continue to defend him: “‘The teacher and school administrator both support the actions of Ben Fields,’ [Sheriff] Lott said, adding that they stated ‘he did not use excessive force.’”

DOMA: U.S. Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) defends Hillary Clinton’s account of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act, namely that it was a defensive measure to fend off a constitutional amendment that would have banned same-sex marriage: “What I believe [is] it was an ugly time, we took an action that was limited and had a lot of problems with it, but it did stop a constitutional amendment,” Mikulski said. “Now, we’re in a new day, there’s a new energy, there’s new legislation and I think we’re moving to a very good place.”

MORE DOMA: The fact checkers at The Washington Post don’t agree: “Where Clinton’s statement becomes problematic is when she says ‘there was certainly evidence to support’ that ‘there was enough political momentum to amend the Constitution of the United States of America, and that there had to be some way to stop that.’ This broader characterization of events frames the political momentum toward a constitutional amendment as so prevalent that DOMA had to be enacted as a defensive measure to stop the bubbling movement. That’s absolutely wrong — and thus tipped us to Four Pinocchios.”

MUSIC: Taylor Swift brings out Ricky Martin on stage in Miami to perform “Livin La Vida Loca” with her: “I’m about to bring out somebody whose album I bought when I was 10. When he came out, he paved the way for so many incredible Latin artists to cross over to pop and become huge and make amazing music. He’s such an inspiring person, I’m so lucky to have him here tonight.

LEGISLATION: Gay Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO) introduced the Equality Act as an amendment in the House Education Committee to the Protecting Local Business Opportunity Act: “While the Equality Act is unrelated to that bill, Democrats insisted that the Committee should be more focused on legislation to achieve non-discrimination protections, labor rights, and paycheck fairness.  The amendment did not receive a vote.”

ONLINE HARASSMENT: Film, music and interactive media festival South by Southwest (SXSW) cancels panel on Gamersgate and online harassment. Chris Kluwe gives voice to the many disgruntled by this move.

INTERNATIONAL: Costa Rica’s same-sex domestic partner and civil union project remains stalled in the nation’s Legislative Assembly: “Around 600 of 1,300 proposed amendments, most from Christian assemblypersons, remain to be considered. Only 30 minutes a week is devoted to considering the amendments. Gay activists have officially complained about the roadblock to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.”

SPORTS: The World Series has already been won y’all.

LOOKING: Table read for the HBO movie that will wrap up the series took place in San Francisco yesterday.

The post News: Sylvia Rivera, Jonathan Groff’s Walk, Officer Slam, DOMA, ‘Looking’ appeared first on Towleroad.

Sean Mandell

News: Sylvia Rivera, Jonathan Groff’s Walk, Officer Slam, DOMA, ‘Looking’

Colombia Elects First Openly Gay, Right-Wing Mayor

This article was translated and reprinted with permission from Colombian LGBT publication EgoCity, written by Miguel Ángel López. Leerlo en Español aca.  

For the first time, Colombian voters have elected a mayor who campaigned as openly gay — proving the Latin American nation is ready to embrace candidates who are honest about themselves. 

Although the South American nation has long welcomed LGBT candidates, Julián Antonio Bedoya, the mayor-elect of Toro, in the western coastal state of Valle de Cauca, is the first mayor to win election after campaigning as an out gay man. Bedoya was elected with 3,746 votes, representing 52 percent of voters in the municipality. Bedoya’s candidacy was supported by the right-wing Democratic Center party, most notably associated with Colombia’s former president, Álvaro Uribe. 

Much time has passed since 1997, when Pedro Fayad became the first openly gay person to run for public office in Colombia, in the municipality of Barranquilla. Colombia already boasts several out national lawmakers, including lesbian senators Angelica Lozano and Claudia Lopez.

This year’s election included 72 LGBT candidates nationwide, including Ramón Rojas, a trans politician who was elected for his third consecutive term for the Council of Chaparral in Tolima.

A doctor by trade, Bedoya promised that as mayor, he would focus on health and the environment. Specifically, Bedoya plans to take care of the bodies of water that serve the municipality by seeking reforestation and conservation of wetlands in the area. Bedoya’s campaign also focused on bringing health care to the district’s growing elderly population. 

“The challenge is immense for Julián — he should be a very good mayor and represent the LGBTI community,” says Angelo Araujo, LGBT leader in the state.”This must be done with the best possible administration. There’s no point in having an openly gay candidate who has problems of corruption, and leaves things unfinished in their municipality. “

For his part, Wilson Castaneda of Caribbean Affirmative, the institution in charge of the Observatory of Political Participation of LGBTI People in Colombia, highlights that Bedoya’s election sends a “clear message to the political parties. He was going for right-wing party, and [his election] demonstrates that this is not a fight of the left, but rather of human rights and decent living.”

Advocate Contributors

www.advocate.com/world/2015/10/28/colombia-elects-first-openly-gay-right-wing-mayor

The Most Terrifying Latino Urban Legends, Illustrated

To many people, Halloween is all about black and orange themed decorations, pumpkin carvings and sure, a few favorite horror flicks.

But for those who want to be truly terrified, Latin American folklore has a much more sinister take on horror. There are some absolutely grotesque and horrifying stories to fill your celebrations (and nightmares) floating around. But these stories aren’t just about people’s active imaginations, some are actually known to make headlines as people continually find “evidence” of their existence.  

To really bring horror back this Halloween, we compiled 6 of the most terrifying tales in Latin American and Latino folklore. And in the dead spirit of bringing these characters to life, we also decided to illustrate them. Take a look below: 

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Open Question: Atheists, is what this street preacher say true that lgbt & Christianity are at war against each others?
www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaHFH6WXsX0

answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20151028144741AAvvnSr

Republican Rhetoric on LGBT Issues Since the Last Debate

When Republican candidates gather in Boulder, Colo. tonight for the third debate of the cycle, they will bring some new anti-equality baggage with them.
HRC.org

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