Watch the video, and listen to the singer's beautiful voice as she reveals a secret. It will give you some insight into the rest of this post.
I am very interested in human sexuality. When I was young, gay jokes were more common than they are now. The idea of homosexuality made most people nervous, and it was to be condemned, or laughed at. Over the years, I find myself becoming much more accepting of people whose gender identity or sexual orientation is different from what Society considers "normal". I actually started becoming more understanding when I heard of crimes against people simply because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Those who commit such acts are evil beyond words.
It takes a certain strength to be true to who you are, in spite of others' condemnation, and to help people understand that you deserve respect and love as a human being, regardless of what others may think of your lifestyle. I find Thailand's "ladyboys", as they call them, fascinating and beautiful. I also find it fascinating when a person undergoes a complete sex reassignment. I have been intending to blog about this for a while now. Individuals who have undergone Male--to-female sex reassignment have been assaulted and even killed more than once after a male sex partner was told after the sex act that their partner was born male. If a lady and I were becoming intimate, I would prefer to know beforehand if she was transgender, and make that decision. That said, if I found out after we had been intimate, even though it might bother me somewhat, I am sure it would not cause me to hurt them. It's not like having had sex with them would mean I am gay. After all, no matter what sex they were born as, they were an attractive woman when I was with them.
Some places, including some very conservative countries are starting to take steps to improve life for the transgendered, as seen in the link below, which AncoraImparo shared with me:
Disgusting and hateful no matter who does it, but I cringe in especial disappointment when I hear about someone who claims to be a Christian being hateful in anyway to anyone, including to those other than heterosexuals. I was born heterosexual and have never questioned it. I'm thankful that homosexuality is not something I have had to deal with at all in my own life; but how can I ever judge someone about something I really, truly know so little about! The Lord I serve loves every human being! He offers every human being eternal life by His substitutionary death on the cross. And He commands me to love (sacrificially) my neighbor -- including my neighbor who is different -- as I would want my neighbor to love me! http://www.godmademegay.com/Letter.htm
@lonelywanderer2 - The video doesn't play for me. What is the link?
the end of that video made me cry. I don't understand why or how people couldn't or wouldn't accept their child. I don't understand why some people are so intolerant.
Not okay. Absolutely not, that's digusting, completely tragic, do these people have no soul?
Man is the cruelest beast on the planet as he proves this time and time again. Over the centuries we have seen this truth in people like Vlad Dracul (the real dracula) Hitler,Baby Doc Duvalier, the KKK, the list is endless and sadly will continue to grow until we all take some action against prejudice and violence. Remember the OAK was first and acorn!
BY THE WAY..is that a chupacabra???? I want one! :)
That video was amazing, the ending made me tear up. Wonderful post.
Wow. What a vocal range. Ignorance makes small people do terrible things. Inexcusable.
@VioletEnigma - I just watched it for about the 6th time, and I still tear up. Amazing indeed.
Well said. I looked up your links too and they were very informative...I didn't remember the Teena incident but I remembered, too well, Matthew Shepherd. I had never heard of anything so viscious. The reinacted pictures were from what horror films are made. I must admit that I am curious why Matthew's parents brokered a deal that made less the punishment phase of the trial.
@mommachatter - Not totally sure, but I seem to recall that they said Matthew Shepard would not want anyone put to death, or possibly the parents themselves did not want to be responsible for him being put to death.
people make me really sad =/ the matthew shepard story was the motivation behind my old school's participation in the day of silence (we had one of the nation's first gay straight alliances and marched in the parade every year! <3) she was an amazinggg singer <3 some of the comments kind of bothered me, though like "too bad she's trangender" as though it's some affliction. or "she, or should i say he" like, no, she is female, calls herself female, why would you do otherwise? although that may not have been mocking but confused.
if i were to have sex with someone who was trans, i really wouldn't be bothered by it. if they WERE female and are now male, they have no obligation to tell me that immediately, and why should it matter if they're male now? (that works both ways, and people think i wouldn't care because i'm bisexual anyway)
Thank you so much for posting this, the topics are very near and dear to me. I highly recommend "Boys Don't Cry" if you have not yet seen it. It is the story of Brandon Teena - Hillary Swank won an Academy Award for her moving performance.
My ex was (well, turned out to be) trans, I'm pansexual, so it matters not to me. I wrote a xanga entry on what it was like watching my best friend make the transition from female to male. Have not yet published it. Perhaps I should....
Big props, big rec.
The links lead me to some interesting information that I hadn't heard of before (gay panic defense and homosexual panic disorder.) Seems so foreign to me.
@AncoraImparo - HUGS. It's been so long, but I think I saw "Boys Don't Cry". I had seen coverage of the story before the movie ever came out, though, and after the movie. Teena Brandon/Brandon Teena was certainly a flawed human being, but was still a human being, deserving of love and respect, not the treatment she got. I was horrified and angry about the treatment she got, especially by COPS, who are supposed to protect the victims, and hold criminals accountable.
@lonelywanderer2 - Hugs to you too! :) I hope you do not mind me correcting you, though. When referring to Brandon, it is only right to use "he", as he was a trans man, identified as a man, and was very much a man - inside.
@AncoraImparo - Yeah; I thought of that. My reference to Teena Brandon as "she" wasn't out of being inconsiderate, really it wasn't. Maybe just 'cause I'm a guy, I think of her more as a troubled girl than I do as a transgender man, and my instinct is to wish people would have protected her, as she deserved. That might be wrong, but it's how I feel.
Comments (39)
Tragic.
thats horrible..
they really need respect too.
@WhenHateIsTheOnlyOption - @thesexydevilgirl - @worstenemy - @livexlovexlaughter - Added: Watch the video, and listen to the singer's beautiful voice as she
reveals a secret. It will give you some insight into the rest of this
post.
Disgusting and hateful no matter who does it, but I cringe in especial disappointment when I hear about someone who claims to be a Christian being hateful in anyway to anyone, including to those other than heterosexuals. I was born heterosexual and have never questioned it. I'm thankful that homosexuality is not something I have had to deal with at all in my own life; but how can I ever judge someone about something I really, truly know so little about!
The Lord I serve loves every human being! He offers every human being eternal life by His substitutionary death on the cross. And He commands me to love (sacrificially) my neighbor -- including my neighbor who is different -- as I would want my neighbor to love me!
http://www.godmademegay.com/Letter.htm
@livexlovexlaughter - http://youtu.be/YccsNO1FV64
@livexlovexlaughter - Link added to post, above video.
the end of that video made me cry. I don't understand why or how people couldn't or wouldn't accept their child. I don't understand why some people are so intolerant.
Not okay. Absolutely not, that's digusting, completely tragic, do these people have no soul?
Man is the cruelest beast on the planet as he proves this time and time again. Over the centuries we have seen this truth in people like Vlad Dracul (the real dracula) Hitler,Baby Doc Duvalier, the KKK, the list is endless and sadly will continue to grow until we all take some action against prejudice and violence. Remember the OAK was first and acorn!
BY THE WAY..is that a chupacabra???? I want one! :)
That video was amazing, the ending made me tear up. Wonderful post.
Wow. What a vocal range. Ignorance makes small people do terrible things. Inexcusable.
@VioletEnigma - I just watched it for about the 6th time, and I still tear up. Amazing indeed.
Well said. I looked up your links too and they were very informative...I didn't remember the Teena incident but I remembered, too well, Matthew Shepherd. I had never heard of anything so viscious. The reinacted pictures were from what horror films are made. I must admit that I am curious why Matthew's parents brokered a deal that made less the punishment phase of the trial.
@mommachatter - Not totally sure, but I seem to recall that they said Matthew Shepard would not want anyone put to death, or possibly the parents themselves did not want to be responsible for him being put to death.
people make me really sad =/
the matthew shepard story was the motivation behind my old school's participation in the day of silence (we had one of the nation's first gay straight alliances and marched in the parade every year! <3)
she was an amazinggg singer <3
some of the comments kind of bothered me, though like "too bad she's trangender" as though it's some affliction. or "she, or should i say he" like, no, she is female, calls herself female, why would you do otherwise? although that may not have been mocking but confused.
if i were to have sex with someone who was trans, i really wouldn't be bothered by it. if they WERE female and are now male, they have no obligation to tell me that immediately, and why should it matter if they're male now? (that works both ways, and people think i wouldn't care because i'm bisexual anyway)
Thank you so much for posting this, the topics are very near and dear to me. I highly recommend "Boys Don't Cry" if you have not yet seen it. It is the story of Brandon Teena - Hillary Swank won an Academy Award for her moving performance.
My ex was (well, turned out to be) trans, I'm pansexual, so it matters not to me. I wrote a xanga entry on what it was like watching my best friend make the transition from female to male. Have not yet published it. Perhaps I should....
Big props, big rec.
The links lead me to some interesting information that I hadn't heard of before (gay panic defense and homosexual panic disorder.) Seems so foreign to me.
@AncoraImparo - HUGS. It's been so long, but I think I saw "Boys Don't Cry". I had seen coverage of the story before the movie ever came out, though, and after the movie. Teena Brandon/Brandon Teena was certainly a flawed human being, but was still a human being, deserving of love and respect, not the treatment she got. I was horrified and angry about the treatment she got, especially by COPS, who are supposed to protect the victims, and hold criminals accountable.
@lonelywanderer2 - Hugs to you too! :) I hope you do not mind me correcting you, though. When referring to Brandon, it is only right to use "he", as he was a trans man, identified as a man, and was very much a man - inside.
@AncoraImparo - Yeah; I thought of that. My reference to Teena Brandon as "she" wasn't out of being inconsiderate, really it wasn't. Maybe just 'cause I'm a guy, I think of her more as a troubled girl than I do as a transgender man, and my instinct is to wish people would have protected her, as she deserved. That might be wrong, but it's how I feel.