Hockey Player Suspended For Hurling Gay Slur At Official

“NHL players can no longer use ignorance as an excuse for not understanding the power of their words.”

The post Hockey Player Suspended For Hurling Gay Slur At Official appeared first on ThinkProgress.

thinkprogress.org/sports/2016/04/20/3771518/nhl-suspends-andrew-shaw-gay-slur/

GLAAD trans intern Summer Luk releases new music video

www.glaad.org/blog/glaad-trans-intern-summer-luk-releases-new-music-video

Target Affirms Trans-Inclusive Policies, Makes Powerful Statement During Surge of Anti-LGBT Bills

Yesterday, in response to the wave of anti-LGBT legislation sweeping our country — including discriminatory bills aimed at barring transgender people from using restrooms and other facilities consistent with their gender identity — Target reiterated its inclusive restroom and fitting room policy for its employees and customers.

At Target, which was recognized as an HRC “Best Places to Work for LGBT Inclusion,” employees and guests are welcome to use restrooms and fitting rooms that correspond with their gender identity. Not only is this policy in keeping with the best practices recommended by the Occupational Safety and Health  Administration, it also aligns with the latest U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) guidance on preventing discrimination on the basis of gender identity. Target’s announcement, however, takes a decisive step beyond on-paper policies, serving to publicly affirm transgender people at a time when our dignity and safety are under daily attack.

When I use the restroom as a transgender man today, no one challenges whether I belong there because most people assume I was assigned male at birth. But that wasn’t always the case for me. For decades I walked the earth as a visibly gender non-conforming person, and the question of which restroom or fitting room or locker room to use was a constant source of anxiety and pressure and not without good cause: I faced discrimination and verbal and physical abuse more than once while using sex-segregated facilities. An act as simple as using the restroom or trying on a new pair of jeans was often demoralizing at best, and dangerous at worst.

I wonder what it must be like to be a young transgender person today? I can’t be easy to be bombarded with messages undermining your humanity and dignity. It must be awful to know that elected officials — like those who passed North Carolina’s terrible HB2 — fixate on restricting safe access to facilities, including restrooms in public buildings including schools, airports and convention facilities. These discriminatory bills increase stigma for transgender and gender-nonconforming youth and health experts, such as the American Academy of Pediatrics, have condemned these pieces of legislation as harmful to LGBTQ youth.

Target’s public affirmation of its existing transgender-inclusive policies for employees and guests is an important voice in countering the current misunderstanding and fear mongering surrounding these anti-transgender bills. More than just a statement on policy, it also affirms the dignity of transgender people. This message is a welcome reminder that transgender people, like everyone else, deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.

Target received a 100 on HRC Foundation’s Corporate Equality Index (CEI), the national benchmarking tool on corporate policies and practices pertinent to LGBT employees. Target is also a National Corporate Partner at the Platinum level. Learn more about the CEI here.

www.hrc.org/blog/target-affirms-trans-inclusive-policies-makes-powerful-statement-during-sur?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

How Does Curt Schilling Still Have A Job With ESPN?

The ESPN analyst posted an anti-trans meme on social media on Tuesday.

The post How Does Curt Schilling Still Have A Job With ESPN? appeared first on ThinkProgress.

thinkprogress.org/sports/2016/04/20/3771127/curt-schilling-anti-trans-espn/

Target Shows How Simple It Is To Be Welcoming Of Transgender People

Target wants to make clear that respecting transgender people’s identities is both easy and the right thing to do.

The post Target Shows How Simple It Is To Be Welcoming Of Transgender People appeared first on ThinkProgress.

thinkprogress.org/lgbt/2016/04/20/3771147/target-transgender-bathrooms/

Call It Out: Baseball’s Curt Schilling Posts Troubling Transphobic Post on Facebook

This week, ESPN baseball analyst Curt Shilling posted a disturbing and transphobic image and comment on his Facebook page, remarking on the recent legislation across the nation limiting transgender people’s access to bathrooms consistent with their gender identity.

Schilling’s comment read:

“A man is a man no matter what they call themselves. I don’t care what they are, who they sleep with, men’s room was designed for the penis, women’s not so much,” he wrote. “Now you need laws telling us differently? Pathetic.”

He posted the comment along a horrific anti-transgender meme, which was later removed from his Facebook page. 

“Curt Schilling’s public and derogatory attack on transgender people was extremely troubling. Transgender people aren’t mean-spirited memes. We are your neighbors, co-workers, your family — and yes, even baseball fans,” said Jay Brown, Director of Research and Public Education, HRC Foundation. “And particularly when transgender women are the target of such high levels of physical violence simply because of who they are, this kind of ugly propaganda is not just wrong, it’s dangerous.”

Schilling’s comments are directly related to the onslaught of legislation nationwide targeting transgender people, and particularly children. These bills, such as the one South Dakota Governor Dennis Daugaard vetoed, the one North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory signed into law and the discriminatory bill in Tennessee that was pulled from consideration in the Tennessee House yesterday, compromise the physical and emotional safety of transgender people and put them at increased risk of attack and abuse.

“We are taking this matter very seriously and are in the process of reviewing it,” an ESPN spokesperson told Big League Stew.

An unprecedented 44 anti transgender bills are being considered in 17 states.  Some bills undercut the ability of transgender people to access gender-affirming health care, create state-sanctioned avenues of anti-transgender discrimination and, last but not least, deny transgender people access to bathrooms, locker rooms and athletic teams consistent with their gender identity. Learn more about the legislation here.

www.hrc.org/blog/call-it-out-baseballs-curt-schilling-posts-troubling-transphobic-post-on-fa?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

Laverne Cox to host #glaadawards in NYC

www.glaad.org/blog/laverne-cox-host-glaadawards-nyc