"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
My deepest hope and my most sincere prayer is that before you rush to judge me, you will at the very least know where my words are coming from ... from my heart ... my heart that is so very burdened by the pain this issue is bringing upon others. My words come from a place filled with sorrow and compassion for those on both sides of the debate ... yes, I said on both sides. From the very depth of my soul, I so desperately long for a day when people can accept one another for who they are ... I long for a day when we see one another only through the eyes of our hearts ... hearts that are filled with spirits of understanding and acceptance and love.
I will openly confess that up until a couple of years ago, my knowledge regarding the transgender population was pretty much confined to knowing that the "T" in LGBT stood for transgender. But then one evening, I accompanied my son Brad when he went to film Nate Phelps as he delivered a keynote speech to a group of transgender men and women. I'm ashamed to say that was the first time I had ever had a one-on-one conversation with a transgender person. I learned a lot that evening, not the least of which is that transgender people are just that ... people. People who have carried a heavier burden for their entire lives than most of us could manage to carry for one day.
In recent days, as I'm sure you are aware, the news that two states have passed "freedom protection bills" regarding the use of public restrooms by transgender people has ignited a firestorm of debate. From what I understand, passage of the bills will make it a crime for a transgender person to enter a public restroom corresponding to their gender identity. I'm not sure how the states plan to enforce the new laws, though there's been a great deal of discussion about the use of public restrooms being based upon a person's chromosomes. Is it only a matter of time until there are armed guards at the entrances to all public restrooms demanding that people must undergo a blood test before they can enter? That's ridiculous, you say? People will never allow that sort of discrimination to occur, you say?
The truth, my friends, is that people already have allowed the same type of discrimination to occur time and time again ... history is filled with horrible acts of discrimination. Discrimination that, I might add, was rooted in hate and fueled by the fear that the political or religious powers of the time had for people they considered to be "different" from what they deemed to be "normal." Remember, there were people who supported Hitler in his despicable treatment of the Jewish people ... there were people who believed African Americans shouldn't be allowed to sit in the front seat on a public bus ... there were people who fought against women having the right to vote. People have been allowing and fostering discrimination against those whom they consider to be different from themselves for centuries, and, in my humble opinion, the push to disallow transgender men and women from using a public restroom which corresponds to their gender identity is discrimination in its truest form.
I cannot even begin to imagine the hurt and pain the transgender community is experiencing due to the recent "freedom protection bills" ... it seems to me that the particular bills have nothing to do with freedom and everything to do with fear. I don't pretend for one moment to comprehend what it is to be a transgender man or woman, but I do know what it is to be a gay woman with short, spiky hair who loves to wear ties and suspenders and wingtip shoes. I do know what it is to be a gay woman with short, spiky hair wearing a tie and suspenders and wingtip shoes and need to pee while I'm shopping at the mall. I do know how I feel when a mother and her young daughter enter the women's restroom and see me standing at the sink washing my hands and the young woman pulls her daughter close and tells me to get out because I'm in the wrong restroom. I do know how deeply it wounds me when straight women tell me they are uncomfortable when I am in "their" restroom.
I am not transgender, but I do know the deep hurt and the overwhelming pain that floods my heart and consumes my soul when someone says that all lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people are rapists or pedophiles. I am not transgender, but I know what discrimination feels like. I am not transgender, but my heart aches for the transgender men and women who are fighting for the right to the same freedoms unquestionably given to other people. My heart especially hurts for those of you who live in North Carolina and Mississippi ... please know that millions of people believe the actions taken by your state governments to be wrong and a violation of your basic human rights.
People seem to have forgotten that discrimination serves only one purpose and that's to bring hurt and pain to everyone involved ... on both sides. No one should ever have to fight for the right to honor their national heritage ... no one. No one should ever have to fight for the right to sit in a seat on a bus ... no one. No one should ever have to fight for the right to vote ... no one. No one should ever have to fight for the right to pee in a bathroom ... no one. It's way past time for people to understand that people are just that ... people. It's way past time for people to know that being different does not equal being evil. Those who are fighting to keep a transgender kid out of their son or daughter's restroom at school should worry a hell of a lot more about a straight adult abusing their kid. A person's gender identity or sexual orientation does not make them a child molester or a rapist, and the push to institute laws that indicate otherwise is discrimination in its truest and harshest form. It's way past time for all of us ... no matter whether we are heterosexual or lesbian or gay or bisexual or transgender ... no matter our race or nationality ... no matter our religious affiliation or lack thereof ... it's way past time for all of us to do nothing.
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
The truth, my friends, is that people already have allowed the same type of discrimination to occur time and time again ... history is filled with horrible acts of discrimination. Discrimination that, I might add, was rooted in hate and fueled by the fear that the political or religious powers of the time had for people they considered to be "different" from what they deemed to be "normal." Remember, there were people who supported Hitler in his despicable treatment of the Jewish people ... there were people who believed African Americans shouldn't be allowed to sit in the front seat on a public bus ... there were people who fought against women having the right to vote. People have been allowing and fostering discrimination against those whom they consider to be different from themselves for centuries, and, in my humble opinion, the push to disallow transgender men and women from using a public restroom which corresponds to their gender identity is discrimination in its truest form.
I cannot even begin to imagine the hurt and pain the transgender community is experiencing due to the recent "freedom protection bills" ... it seems to me that the particular bills have nothing to do with freedom and everything to do with fear. I don't pretend for one moment to comprehend what it is to be a transgender man or woman, but I do know what it is to be a gay woman with short, spiky hair who loves to wear ties and suspenders and wingtip shoes. I do know what it is to be a gay woman with short, spiky hair wearing a tie and suspenders and wingtip shoes and need to pee while I'm shopping at the mall. I do know how I feel when a mother and her young daughter enter the women's restroom and see me standing at the sink washing my hands and the young woman pulls her daughter close and tells me to get out because I'm in the wrong restroom. I do know how deeply it wounds me when straight women tell me they are uncomfortable when I am in "their" restroom.
I am not transgender, but I do know the deep hurt and the overwhelming pain that floods my heart and consumes my soul when someone says that all lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people are rapists or pedophiles. I am not transgender, but I know what discrimination feels like. I am not transgender, but my heart aches for the transgender men and women who are fighting for the right to the same freedoms unquestionably given to other people. My heart especially hurts for those of you who live in North Carolina and Mississippi ... please know that millions of people believe the actions taken by your state governments to be wrong and a violation of your basic human rights.
People seem to have forgotten that discrimination serves only one purpose and that's to bring hurt and pain to everyone involved ... on both sides. No one should ever have to fight for the right to honor their national heritage ... no one. No one should ever have to fight for the right to sit in a seat on a bus ... no one. No one should ever have to fight for the right to vote ... no one. No one should ever have to fight for the right to pee in a bathroom ... no one. It's way past time for people to understand that people are just that ... people. It's way past time for people to know that being different does not equal being evil. Those who are fighting to keep a transgender kid out of their son or daughter's restroom at school should worry a hell of a lot more about a straight adult abusing their kid. A person's gender identity or sexual orientation does not make them a child molester or a rapist, and the push to institute laws that indicate otherwise is discrimination in its truest and harshest form. It's way past time for all of us ... no matter whether we are heterosexual or lesbian or gay or bisexual or transgender ... no matter our race or nationality ... no matter our religious affiliation or lack thereof ... it's way past time for all of us to do nothing.
"All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing."
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