Mike Gravel: Don't Screw The Trannies!

Ok, Gravel didn't use those exact words, but he did say quite clearly that we as a community should stand together and not leave a part of our community behind just so we can win a few legislative protections.

By now most of you have heard that the house passed an ENDA bill that prohibits employment discrimination against gays and lesbians. You've also probably heard that high-profile gay legislator Barney Frank and Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi supported removing employment protections for Transsexuals out of concern that the bill would not otherwise survive the vote. Granted, the bill may not have passed if the transgender protections were included, but should the gay community have taken a principled "carry as you climb" stand and protested any legislation that excluded one part of our community?

I can understand the argument that political progress is slow and often done in piecemeal fashion, and that refusal to recognize this reflects a naive understanding of how things get done in Washington, but I also know that when you carve up your base you lose strength, both politically and in your shared community. It also tells the world (and specifically the trannies we are f****** over) that the gay community doesn't consider the whole community worth fighting for.

I've read some compelling arguments from proponents of the "we'll come back for you" strategy, but I find it curious that all of those arguments were from white collar gay men, those who have reaped the greatest benefit from the leadership, sacrifice, and passion of a transgender community that has historically been at the forefront of the gay rights movement. They were out, fighting, and fabulous when most of those upstanding guys were still hiding in the closet. I hear your arguments, fellas. I just can't look myself in the mirror and still agree with your support of this strategy. I'd much rather get my job cut than my soul.

This leads me to another problem I have with all this. I read in the paper that many legislators were confused about what "transgender" is, but were open to a dialogue that never seemed to materialize from the community. Where was the HRC lobby? I'm looking at my scorecard and I still don't see where all the money is going. Maybe you can explain it to me.