This comment has no place on a blog that claims to be inclusive of the trans community. This sort of discourse is precisely what causes trans people to become walking targets for violence. As long as people are allowed to continue circulating the view that we do not deserve to live, then our lives will not be valued. It's very presence makes me feel unsafe and should not be tolerated. I have neither the energy nor desire to try to refute these obviously essentialist, ignorant claims - justifying my existence and right to live isn't my responsibility, and I'm tired of doing it. But no one should have to read this kind of hateful bullshit on a website that is intended to be representative of our community.

This is hate speech. Please remove it.

I agree with Sadie. Take this down, or reveal the person who wrote it and hid behind a smirking pseudonym.

This IS a life or death issue. Do you have any idea how many trans people are assaulted, beaten and killed routinely? I live under the constant threat of violence. *You* are the one diminishing the reality of oppression and murder. The recognition that language can be, and is, an integral part of systems of violence and oppression does not minimize the reality of violence and oppression. Likewise, my pointing out the existence of trans people's oppression does not minimize the other forms of violence that you listed. They are all real and important and many forms of oppression coexist and strengthen each other.

This isn't a matter of tone, or choice of words or 'political correctness'. This person misgendered a victim of hate violence. What Honest Abe said to me was this: "You are not who you say you are. You are a liar. All people like you are liars. You have no right to define yourself because your identity, your very sense of self, is not authentic. It is a fiction." And if my identity, my ability to self-determine how I live my life, is not respected, than *I* am not respected. My *life* is not respected.

As long as trans people continue to be construed as inauthentic liars whose identities are just "made up", than the attitude that we "get what we deserve" will continue to justify further acts of violence against us.

If this were one isolated incident I would be less upset. But I have to listen to this (as well as apologists like you, Yasmin) EVERY SINGLE DAY. And no, I'm not exaggerating. This is part of a systemic devaluation of trans lives and a denial of the validity of our experiences.

Actually, it would still be an issue for me. The abuse of sex workers is unjust regardless of the gender of the people being attacked. I don't believe that anyone said that violence against "cross dressers" is *more* wrong; however, there are (at least) two or three factors going on here: One, this person was targeted for being a sex worker. She was also likely targeted for being travesti. And she was also likely targeted for being poor. This doesn't say any one thing is "worse" then the other; all violence is unacceptable and needs to challenged. But we can also try to understand why violence happens to certain people and, in some cases, their gender is clearly a factor that needs to be discussed if we can understand how violence and power work.

As for "community standards", I'm all for upholding and defending community standards - if they are based in respect, dignity and justice. I want no part of "community standards" which devalue human life and seek to humiliate and destroy people because of their class, occupation or gender (or race or religion or...)

That last comment of mine was directed at sadie, not KL, whose comment must have popped up while I finished my response.

Yasmin, I agree that the video remains problematic on many levels. For example, I agree that it is complicated for privileged North Americans to believe they have the 'moral authority' to judge other cultural forms using eurocentric standards. However, this isn't the particular issue which I was addressing. I would be glad to see such a meaningful discussion; however, it is a completely different conversation than the conversation about Abe's comments. I wasn't attempting to engage with your discussion about the complexity of the video, which I find is a valid and important conversation to have. But I was talking about something else entirely.

And let's be clear: This *is* a case involving "haters and victims," though I wouldn't necessarily choose those terms. There is clearly a dominant group who are privileged and a group who are victims of systemic oppression.

Dear Yasmin: I understand your desire for a more complex dialogue. But your points about "i have no idea" why you are upset, and excoriating the commenter for not engaging with your points, as well as the "you have the floor enjoy it" comment -- these struck me as a bit smug and self-righteous in the face of people who are frankly terrified at the violence directed against them, and have every right to be. And then your "I'll just go off an write a post of my own in an effort to get meaningful conversation," well, it was dismissive.

I am with you on making the dialogue more complex, but I'm not sure this is the best way to go about it.

As someone who is sitting at home feeling extremely upset about this video, and talking to my partner and friends about its meaning and impact on the lives of the people in video, as well as my own and my community's -- I must admit to being taken aback by your comments.

I know your intent must be good, so I'm looking forward to the meaningful dialogue you spoke about.

Jill

Thank you, Andrés, for your attention to this matter and for making it known to the wider world. We are all in your debt.

You state that you don't condone violence, and then go on to justify the use of violence to enforce the law. This is hypocritical. Whether these people were breaking the law is irrelevant - the law is often unjust. I don't care whether they're breaking the law or not, I don't care whether they had a license, I don't care what their gender is or how many people this happens to, no one deserves this treatment. And no one deserves to listen to people like you justify it.

You are making excuses in an attempt to justify horrendous evils. You also go out of your way to state that this person's identity is invalid. For those reasons, this is hate speech. I don't care to respect the "free speech rights" of those who proliferate hate.

If this blog wants to be a safe, inclusive space for trans people and for sex workers, it should not tolerate speech which marginalizes the systematic violence toward sex workers and trans people. Free speech doesn't matter to me nearly as much as living in a safer world where people aren't afraid to leave their homes, and I would gladly deny your "right to free speech" if it gets us closer to that world.

It's obvious, "Honest Abe", that you're a mean, angry person who takes pleasure in the distress of others. I'm sorry for your sad life.

Has it ever occurred to you that many people do not *choose* to be street sex workers? Given the extreme poverty that many communities face - especially marginalized communities who face profound discrimination and institutional oppression - many of us have no other way to survive. To further punish someone with violence, humiliation and the threat of death for being placed in an economic situation that results in our having to engage in unsafe work is ridiculous. The criminalization of sex work does not address people's needs; it does not make communities safer. If we want less people to engage in street sex work, how about we try to find ways to meet people's basic needs for food and shelter? How about we address why it's so hard for people, especially trans people in the colonized Global South, to get other kinds of work?

And Abe, I said "inclusive of trans people and sex workers." I'm not interested in being inclusive of hate mongers who seem to think it's okay to blame and punish victims.

Oh - this guy?

From: LaSalle Whittington [mailto:xxxxwhit@gmail.com]
Sent: Tuesday, April 29, 2008 1:54 PM
To: [Names Removed]
Subject: re: vote for Houlihan???

I don’t know about you others, but just as I wouldn’t vote for Hillary, I’m not about to vote for a Log Cabin Republican for County Council. If you do not know what a Log Cabin Republican is, go here http://online.logcabin.org/.

If you’re truly a conservative republican, why attempt to elect a homosexual?