Month: February 2017

Matthew Moore

Man sues doctor over diagnoses of chronic homosexuality

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A man is suing a doctor, after he was diagnosed with the “chronic condition” of homosexuality in a routine physical.

Los Angeles-based Michael Moore, 46, said he discovered the note on his medical records after he underwent a physical with Dr Elaine Jones of Torrance Health Association in April last year.

When he noticed the note, he confronted Dr Jones and asked her to remove it, but she defended her diagnosis, claiming the medical community goes “back and forth” on whether homosexuality is considered an illness.

Homosexuality was removed from the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders) in 1973.

Mr Moore claims he was at one point assured that the record had been deleted, to find out later that it was still present.

He said: “It was infuriating. It was painful.

“I gave them chance after chance and this time I’m not going to be silent. My silence would condone this activity.”

“I don’t want any gay, lesbian, transgender or bisexual ever to hear from a doctor that their normal and healthy sexuality is anything other than that.”

Homer's Phobia Episode

Simpsons Season 8 – Homer’s Phobia

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“Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! I danced with a gay! Marge, Lisa, promise me you won’t tell anyone. Promise me!”
―Homer Simpson, after discovering John‘s sexual orientation

“Homer’s Phobia” is the fifteenth episode of Season 8 which aired on February 16, 1997. The episode was written by Ron Hauge and directed by Mike B. Anderson. John Waters guest stars as John.

 

Read more about this episode at the Simpsons wiki page.

Transgender Ear Bender

Transgender Ear Bender – Meet Aidan!

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Hi everybody!

My name is Aidan Kircheim and besides the current president of PFLAG Long Island, I am also a transgender man.

I like comic books, video games, Dungeons and Dragons, and cute stuffed toys. If there’s a need to talk to someone about the recent Marvel Secret Wars event or the latest Virtual Reality technology, I can be that guy.

However, this ongoing segment is going to be about my realization and growth from a young woman into an adult man (and not at all about comic books… sadly).

Transgender Ear Bender

Some topics I’d like to discuss as these segments continue are: my family and their reactions, things that I look back on during my time as a female that make complete sense now, my transition not only from female to male in general but also from my initial struggle with identifying as a lesbian – to embracing the man I truly always was as well as travels and experiences, my sexuality, and anything else that comes up along the way!

I will also make myself available to have open communication with anyone who desires it, including issues or questions to address in my future contributions to TEB (Transgender Ear Bender) – feel free to email through the PFLAG Long island email address ([email protected]) and I’ll be happy to chat, listen, and anything in-between!

I suppose I should start at the beginning. I was born on a Friday evening at 5:25pm, at South Nassau Hospital in Oceanside, NY. My two brothers Matthew and Michael (who were ten and eight years old, respectively, at the time) were eagerly awaiting my arrival, as were my parents, but it was my grandmother who was the most excited about her next grandchild. The story goes – when she found out it was a girl, she disappeared on a shopping spree for two days and came back with toys and blankets and clothes and a crib. She was excited to finally have a baby girl in the family; they all were.

I learned from a very young age (as most children do) what a girl was supposed to be, and I was determined to fit the mold to make my parents happy. Much of my early life was lived for my parents, and trying to make up for how troublesome my brother Michael was. I wanted to make life easier for them and just be a good kid, even if it meant that I wasn’t emotionally stable all of the time. I learned that girls are supposed to like certain things, wear certain clothes, grow their hair long, and act a certain way. So I did what I felt like I had to, and became a fantastic actress.

I secretly wanted to act just like my brothers, and get away with things they got away with, instead of constantly being told to be more “ladylike”. I was a “tomboy”, and always had more friends who were boys. I got along better with boys, and I was happier with boys. Regardless, I played the part of a girl as best as I could, and apparently it was good enough that when I came out as transgender at the age of 22, no one had seen it coming!

I’m going to start the next segment elaborating on what it was like to be a child in my family, living in a small town on Long Island. Hope you join us for the next one, and feel free to let me know of anything specific you’d like me to cover – or just that you’d like to hear about.

Thanks and see you next time!

Indiana Birth certificate battle moves to 7th Circuit

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Indiana

Despite a change in state leadership, Indiana will continue fighting over birth certificates in a move that is being seen as part of a larger ongoing resistance to same-sex marriage.

Indiana has appealed the ruling in Henderson v. Adams, 17-1141, which allowed married non-birth mothers to be listed as a parent on the child’s birth certificate. The Pence administration refused to recognize these women as parents and twice tried to convince the district court to limit the scope of the state’s parenthood statutes.

Although a new governor has been installed, the state is turning to the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals but has not yet submitted a brief stating what issue it wants the appellate panel to address. Neither Gov. Eric Holcomb nor Indiana Attorney General Curtis Hill responded to phone and email messages seeking comment.gay parents adopting, same sex paretners

“I had been hopeful that with a new attorney general and a new governor we would see a change in the state’s handling of this matter,” said Karen Celestino-Horseman, one of attorneys representing the couples in Henderson.

The plaintiffs in Henderson, a group of married lesbian couples, challenged Indiana’s stance that non-birth mothers are not parents because they are not biologically related to the children. Their primary argument was that they were being treated differently from similarly situated heterosexual couples who had undergone artificial insemination. The men in those marriages were still listed as the father on the birth certificate even though they didn’t share a biological connection with the offspring.

Judge Tanya Walton Pratt of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana overturned the state’s parenthood statutes, finding they violate the Equal Protection and Due Process clauses of the 14th Amendment.

The state subsequently filed a motion asking the court to modify and clarify the ruling. Walton Pratt denied the motion to amend the judgment but granted the state’s request to clarify how the judgment should be applied, pointing out “the Order means what it says and says what it means.”

The IndianaLawyer.com, by Marilyn Odendahl, February 8, 2017

Click here to read the entire article.

The post Indiana Birth certificate battle moves to 7th Circuit appeared first on Time For Families.


Source: Time for Families

Boy Scouts, Reversing Century-Old Stance, Will Allow Transgender Boys

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boy scouts

Reversing its stance of more than a century, the Boy Scouts of America said on Monday that the group would begin accepting members based on the gender listed on their application, paving the way for transgender boys to join the organization.

“For more than 100 years, the Boy Scouts of America, along with schools, youth sports and other youth organizations, have ultimately deferred to the information on an individual’s birth certificate to determine eligibility for our single-gender programs,” the group said in a statement on its website. “However, that approach is no longer sufficient as communities and state laws are interpreting gender identity differently, and these laws vary widely from state to state.”

The announcement, reported on Monday night by The Associated Press, reverses a policy that drew controversy late last year when a transgender boy in New Jersey was kicked out of the organization about a month after joining.Boy Scouts

“After weeks of significant conversations at all levels of our organization, we realized that referring to birth certificates as the reference point is no longer sufficient,” Michael Surbaugh, the Scouts’ chief executive, said in a recorded statement on Monday.

The announcement came amid a national debate over transgender rights, with cities and states across the nation struggling with whether and how to regulate gender identity in the workplace, in restrooms and at schools.

In recent years, the Boy Scouts of America has expanded rights for gay people. In 2013, the group ended its ban on openly gay youths participating in its activities. Two years later, the organization ended its ban on openly gay adult leaders.

Advocates for gay and transgender people who had pushed for changes in Boy Scouts’ policy praised Monday’s announcement.

“From our perspective, they clearly did the right thing,” said Zach Wahls, who co-founded Scouts for Equality, a nonprofit group that advocates for stronger protections in the organization for gays and transgender people. “My team and I knew that they were considering a policy change, but we are both heartened and surprised by how quickly they moved to change the situation.”

New York Times, 

By NIRAJ CHOKSHIJAN. 30, 2017

Click here to read the entire article.

The post Boy Scouts, Reversing Century-Old Stance, Will Allow Transgender Boys appeared first on Time For Families.


Source: Time for Families