Friday, February 4, 2011

PERVASIVE DISCRIMINATION - Trans People

I confess this is an area I rarely consider or run into. . . Having read this and others like it makes me stop and think . . . This is a fact of life I cannot quite get my mind around. . .Know what I mean? I do not identify with this. . ..but I do with the pain of these people. I guess that is a beginning. . . I need to do more on this issue, just in my own academic work. . ."for when I face the real world coming in off the streets. . ." if I am so fortunate as to be of service to Trans People.
      JustinO

GROUNDBREAKING STUDY FINDS PERVASIVE DISCRIMINATION AGAINST TRANSGENDER AMERICANS

February 4, 2011

MINNEAPOLIS, MN - February 4, 2011 - The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) today released a comprehensive new report, "Injustice at Every Turn," revealing the depth of discrimination against transgender and gender non-conforming people in a wide range of areas, including education, health care, employment, and housing. The study, based on the results from the National Transgender Discrimination Survey (NTDS), was based on responses from over 6,450 participants. The NTDS is the first large-scale national study of discrimination against transgender and gender non-conforming Americans, and paints a more complete picture than any prior research to date.

Among the key findings from "Injustice at Every Turn":

Respondents were nearly four times more likely to live in extreme poverty, with household income of less than $10,000.
•Respondents were twice as likely to be unemployed compared to the population as a whole. Half of those surveyed reported experiencing harassment or other mistreatment in the workplace, and one in four were fired because of their gender identity or expression.
•While discrimination was pervasive for the entire sample, it was particularly pronounced for people of color.African-American transgender respondents fared far worse than all others in many areas studied.
•Housing discrimination was also common. 19% reported being refused a home or apartment and 11% reported being evicted because of their gender identity or expression. One in five respondents experienced homelessness because of their gender identity or expression.
•An astonishing 41% of respondents reported attempting suicide, compared to only 1.6% of the general population.
•Discrimination in health care and poor health outcomes were frequently experienced by respondents. 19% reported being refused care due to bias against transgender or gender-nonconforming people, with this figure even higher for respondents of color. Respondents also had over four times the national average of HIV infection.
•Harassment by law enforcement was reported by 22% of respondents and nearly half were uncomfortable seeking police assistance.
•Despite the hardships they often face, transgender and gender non-conforming persons persevere. Over 78% reported feeling more comfortable at work and their performance improving after transitioning, despite the same levels of harassment in the workplace.
Said Rea Carey, Executive Director of the Task Force: "By shedding light on the discrimination that transgender Americans face, this study poses a challenge to us all. No one should be out of a job, living in poverty, or faced with sub-par health care simply because of their gender identity or expression. The scope of the problem is clear, and now we must come together to solve it."

Said Mara Keisling, Executive Director of NCTE: "Reading these results is heartbreaking on a personal level-each of these facts and figures represents pain and hardship endured by real people, every single day. This survey is a call to the conscience of every American who believes that everyone has the right to a fair chance to work hard, to have a roof overhead, and to support a family. Equality, not discrimination, is the ideal that Americans believe in, have fought for, and need to apply here."
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6 comments:

JustinO'Shea said...

RADICAL JOE edited his comment. . .

This is the edited version.
. . . .. .justin o'shea

Justin,
I finally went to _____ meeting this past Monday nite. What an education.
Our Leader had a son that was
killed or stabbed to death here
four years ago this month. Gay Bashing, the two guys
who did it got life. He was 25.
There was a Transgendered man in
his 40's, he had come out to his
son, only as gay, has not told
him yet that he is transgendered,
he is taking one step at a time.
Son is 20, and is very accepting
of him. I really have lots of
empathy for Transgendered. Never
met anyone before last Monday,
and they look more afraid of being
in public than any gay man I have
ever met. Thought it was hard
walking in my shoes. God More than
Bless them.

Gary Kelly said...

It's natural to be suspicious of anything we don't understand. That's how superstition starts. So the obvious answer is what Radical Joe has just demonstrated - education.

Gay bashing or any other kind of bashing is the result of ignorance.

J said...

Years ago I went into a transvestite show in New Orleans with a buddy (who's now a federal judge) and left feeling profoundly depressed. The club was seedy, as were the costumes, and the performers looked talentless, poor, used, resentful, defensive and defeated.
The moral to the story is that they should have undergone operations when they were young. They obviously didn't have the money to do it, nor were their families and society prepared to support them in this endeavor, so they were reduced to appearing in a freak show. We felt like 18th century voyeurs visiting an insane asylum or a leper colony.

JustinO'Shea said...

COOPSTA. . . I'd say "petty minds". With such crowded area in which to "live and work and have their being" they must suffer terribly from overcrowding ! And look at the results! Damn fools. . . ehyah

JustinO'Shea said...

?Publish or Perish. . ." College Guy.
;-)
mwaaaaahh

JCinmeforever said...

Coop said, "The important thing, Justino, is to treat transpeople with dignity because they are people after all."

I could not agree more! I would think of one other thing to add...Love. One has to express love for others, show respect and that dignity will shine through!

Good call, Coop!

Smiles, JCinmeforever