New PFLAG Chapter in North East Ohio

Our new chapter holds its meetings the third Monday of every month at Noble Road Presbyterian Church, 2780 Noble Road, Cleveland Hts, OH. To get more information, date, and time, please call 216-691-HELP (4357). Also, watch for an announcement in The Chronicle, in their Resource Directory.

We invite glbt folks to attend and bring their parents, family members, friends, and allies. The best way to help ourselves is to help others.

The next meeting will be held on May17^th. Please come and help show your support.

TRANSSEXUALS have a constitutional right to maintain medical confidentiality and they do not lose that right upon being jailed, a federal appeals court declared Friday for the first time in the Second Circuit.

In a groundbreaking ruling, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit found that a corrections officer who told others in a Buffalo-area prison that an inmate was an HIV-positive transsexual violated the inmate's right to privacy and subjected her to cruel and unusual punishment.

Although the panel broadened the rights of transsexuals, it only provided a mixed victory to the estate of the plaintiff inmate, who died in 1995. The panel reinstated the inmate's cruel and unusual punishment claim, but upheld the dismissal, on technical grounds, of her claim that her right to privacy was violated.

Noting that the Second Circuit has held that people infected with the HIV virus possess a constitutional right to privacy concerning their condition, the panel used the case to announce that the Circuit was now going to accord such protection to transsexuals.

"Like HIV status ... transsexualism is the unusual condition that is likely to provoke an intense desire to preserve one's medical confidentiality, as well as hostility and intolerance from others," said Circuit Judge Dennis Jacobs, writing for a unanimous court.

The "excruciatingly private and intimate nature" of transsexualism, for persons who wish to preserve privacy in the matter is "beyond debate," added the judge, citing rulings from the D.C. and Seventh Circuits.

Moreover, he added, a prison official's "gratuitous disclosure" of an inmate's transsexualism is not "reasonably related to legitimate penological interest, and it therefore violates the inmate's constitutional right to privacy."

Such a disclosure, he added, could place an inmate in "harm's way" and lead to "substantial risk that the inmate would suffer serious harm at the hands of other inmates." Circuit Judges James L. Oakes and Ralph K. Winter joined in the panel's opinion in Powell v. Schriver, 97-2851.

In 1974, long before her imprisonment, Dana Kimberly Devilla, began a series of operations to change her sex from male to female.

Seventeen years later, Ms. Devilla was imprisoned in the Albion Correctional Facility after being convicted of cashing bad checks. Shortly after she was incarcerated, a corrections officer, Jeffrey Lynch, disclosed to other inmates and staff members that Ms. Devilla was an HIV-positive transsexual.

Ms. Devilla claimed the disclosure created a circus-like atmosphere and caused her immediate physical, emotional and mental harm. She filed a federal civil rights suit against Officer Lynch and other prison officials, alleging that the disclosure had violated her constitutional rights.

Ms. Devilla died from complications of AIDS at age 36 in 1995 while the suit was pending. Her estate was substituted as plaintiff.

At the 1997 trial of the case before a Buffalo federal jury, a tape of Ms. Devilla's deposition testimony was played in court.

The jury returned a verdict in favor of Officer Lynch but found that the prison's former superintendent, Sunny Schriver, had failed to train her employees on the handling of inmates with HIV and awarded the estate $5,000 in compensatory damages and $25,000 in punitive damages.

Western District Magistrate Judge Leslie G. Foschio overturned the award in November 1997, finding that the jurors had reached an inconsistent verdict since there can be no finding of inadequate supervision without a determination that the person supervised violated a constitutional right. The judge also found that the doctrine of qualified immunity shielded Ms. Schriver from liability.

The panel, however, partially reversed the magistrate judge's decision and remanded the case for further proceedings.

Noting that a prisoner's right to maintain the privacy of medical information was not clearly established as of Dec. 31, 1991, the date of Officer Lynch's disclosure, the panel said that Ms. Schriver could not be held accountable for the officer's indiscretion.

But the panel found no such impediment regarding the cruel and unusual punishment claim, noting that under preexisting law a reasonable prison official would know in 1991 that such a disclosure could constitute "deliberate indifference" to an inmate's safety.

The disclosure of an inmate's transsexualism in the sexually charged atmosphere of most prison settings could lead to violence among inmates, explained Judge Jacobs in reinsating the estate's cruel and unusual punishment claim against both Officer Lynch and Ms. Schriver.

James Ostrowski and Salvatore P. Abbate of Buffalo represented the Estate of Ms. Devilla. Assistant Attorneys General Daniel Smirlock and Nancy A. Spiegel together with Deputy Solicitor General Peter H. Schiff represented the state.

A father of a gay son is a plaintiff in a new lawsuit filed today in Little Rock, AR, challenging a state policy that bans heterosexuals who live with gays and lesbians, as well as gays and lesbians themselves, from being foster parents.

Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG ) member Bill Wagner, would have to eject his 18-year-old son from their Fayetteville, AR, home if he or his wife wants to serve as a foster parent, according to the April 6 lawsuit.

It was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union on behalf of Wagner and five others against the state's Child Welfare Agency Review Board and its Dept. of Human Services. A full statement by Wagner, made at an April 6 news conference in Little Rock, is also available.

"As a father, I believe that every child has a right to a loving, supportive family," Wagner said. "This ban would deny that right to the children of Arkansas. And that is a tragedy. Many children in this state will suffer."

"Don't jeopardize the well-being of thousands of children in our state by denying them the opportunity to be cared for by responsible, loving parents who make wonderful mothers and fathers," said Wagner. He and his wife of 26 years have provided emergency shelter to gay teens, and hope to serve as foster parents in the near future.

The Arkansas ban puts a "significant burden" on Wagner's relationship with his son, the lawsuit charges. Because the ban forces Wagner to choose between his gay son and prospective foster children in need of a home, it "would substantially interfere with the parent-child relationship between Wagner and his son," according to the complaint.

PFLAG Executive Director Kirsten Kingdon stressed that adoptive and foster parents "should be selected on their proven ability to be good parents -- not on the basis of sexual orientation."

"The privilege to adopt or become a foster parent should be determined based on the best interests of the child by parents and professionals, on a case-by-case basis," Kingdon said.

"We don't need politicians nor their appointees to tell us what makes a good family," she said.

May

May 1 Human Rights Campaign Dinner in Cleveland. Renaissance Hotel Grand Ballroom. Keynote Speaker: The Honorable Willie Brown, Mayor of San Francisco. Tickets are $175 per person. For more information call 440-779-6444.

May 6 TransFamily of Cleveland, 6:30pm, call 216-691-HELP (4357) or e-mail to Kateygr@aol.com for directions.

May 17 Hillcrest/NE Ohio PFLAG, 7pm at the Noble Road Presbyterian Church, 2728 Noble Rd., Cleveland Heights, call 216-691-HELP (4357) or e-mail to Kateygr@aol.com.

June

June 2-6 "Be All" international transgender conference, seminars from serious to just fun at The Radisson Hotel in Cleveland. Karen and Bob Gross will be speaking Friday at the luncheon. For more info call 330-923-3413 or www.beall.net

June 3 TransFamily of Cleveland, 6:30pm, call 216-691-HELP (4357) or e-mail to Kateygr@aol.com for directions.

June 12 North Coast Men's Chorus Concert for more information all 440-473-8919.

June 12 Decked Out '99 dinner dance fundraiser on the Willis B. Boyer lake freighter museum moored on the Maumee River in Toledo 419-292-1524.

June 16 Join the Center for a theater production of "Victor/Victoria" at the Cleveland Playhouse with a private meet the cast reception after the performance at the Wynhdam Hotel. Performance is at 7:30pm. Tickets are $95 per person. Please call The Center for tickets 216-522-1999.

June 19 Join Frontrunners/Frontwalkers for their first annual Cleveland Frontrunners Pride 5k run and walk at Edgewater Park. For registration forms please call 440-979-0151.

June 19 "Peace, Love, Pride" Cleveland Pride march and festival. For more info call 216371-0214.

June 20 Gay Day at Cedar Point.

June 21 Hillcrest/NE Ohio PFLAG, 7pm at the Noble Road Presbyterian Church, 2728 Noble Rd., Cleveland Heights, call 216-691-HELP (4357) or e-mail to Kateygr@aol.com

Readers Speak

Thank you for putting me on your newsletter mailing list. Although I only get to Cleveland to attend the group meetings a couple times a year, I always consider them among the high points in my travels. April's issue was particularly interesting, from Joann's article on the truth to be found in mirrors to the other articles dealing with "passing," and it gave me a lot to think about.

It's always been difficult for me to be objective about how I move through the world. Often I'm oblivious to the reactions of others around me, and sometimes that's a real blessing. Do I "pass" well? I don't know, but I've recently discovered that I don't blend in as seamlessly as I once thought. And I've also discovered that it really doesn't matter as much as I once thought, either.

In the beginning of my transition I faced very few nasty comments from strangers. Of course, I had been crossdressing and going out in public since my early teens, so I had a lot of practice! In the seven years since I started this journey in earnest, I've come to expect being called "ma'am" and "she" by people I meet and moving through "women's spaces" unchallenged. I've had a lot of flattering and some not-so-flattering but obviously sexual remarks thrown my way, all of which caused me to believe that, except for those who knew me more than casually, nobody suspected I was ever anything other than the woman I appeared to be. Until, that is, the morning I stopped at the local convenience store to pick up some donuts for work. I was making small talk with the clerk I'd seen there often and he asked me if I knew "Andy -- he's a crossdresser who lives nearby." Alright; I knew where this was headed. Then came the inevitable question: "Do you do this all the time?" I was tempted to reply, "no -- only at work and at home and at play." But instead, I said, "yes -- this is who I am." Then he went on to tell about the different drag queens he knew in town.

This experience made me step back and think about how other people see me. True, it's generally been a gay person who's asked me about my gender. Is that because gay people are more apt to notice the subtly skewed cues? Or are they simply more apt to feel comfortable asking the question? In the end it doesn't matter, because the "clocking" and the questioning don't change who I am.

A post-op woman in one of the discussion groups I participated in is known for her wailing that she cannot "pass" well enough to "go stealth," and that she will never truly be happy until she can. The reality is, she's big, broad, tough and tall, and will unlikely ever "pass" consistently and unquestioningly as a natal female. That's not to say that she can't enjoy an evening out in peace, or develop close friendships with other women. It's just that, to those who know her beyond the surface, she will always be a woman who used to be a man. But she has found a way to justify being miserable for the rest of her life, and that suits her to a "T".

I once thought it would be grand if I could shuck all that went before in my life and quietly assume an identity as a woman, never looking back or being questioned as to "who I am." That would mean, of course, that I would have to turn my back on those who loved and nurtured me, and even harder, to turn my back on those I loved and nurtured. And it means I would have to create a "history" that was a lie, and present it to everybody I met as the experiences that "made me what I am today.". I can't help but think that a person in that situation would eventually lose the connection to the past that helps her define who she is -- warts and all. As I mellow and become more comfortable with who I am I also become more convinced that the benefit inherent in hiding it isn't worth the price.

In my mind, there has to be a healthier balance between the paranoia of passing and the drubbing that not passing often incurs. I've heard it said that passing is important because it keeps strangers from throwing rocks at you. I myself am not inclined to wave a flag or intentionally provoke questions. But beyond that? Well, honesty won't keep you from making friends or taking lovers. It won't keep you from finding the passion in your life and making it your living. It won't keep you from respecting yourself. And it won't let you forget where you came from and how far you've come. Or become.

What is sex? What is gender? For most people in the world, these questions are simple to answer; however, for a large number of us (those of us who belong to the TBLGI community), the answers are very complicated. No community brings these issues to the forefront of public attention than intersexed individuals (once called "hermaphroditic").

As a neurobiologist, I would argue that we of the TBLGI community are all "intersexed" in a broader sense. Strictly speaking, "intersexed" means being born with genitalia that are ambiguous or are in some way incongruous with one's genetics or physiology. However, in a broader sense, I would argue that there are many ways to be intersexed, including having a brain that is partially differentiated in a manner inconsistent with one's genetic codes, affecting which "sex" one finds attractive, one's interests, one's personality, and generally how one wishes to express one's self. However, one is only considered "intersexed" in the truest sense if one has ambiguous genitalia.

While the differences between "intersexed" people and TBLG people may be significant from a medical standpoint, I think we all have a lot to learn from intersexed people from a theoretical and behavioral standpoint. Towards that end, I would highly recommend to you an article that has appeared in Salon magazine. For something done in a popular venue, it's actually quite good. You may find the article, called "Sex Police," at the following address: http://www.salon.com/health/feature/1999/04/05/sex_police/index.html

I'm a year and a half into this now, and my company went real slow on the bathroom thing. I've described in lots of detail to Mary Ann Horton mah@gender.org what a mess it was and all my anguish while I couldn't use any bathrooms at all for 8 months, and had to drive to a nearby hotel. When they finally did take the first tiny step, after I wrote letters to managers, local HR, and Corporate HR, descibing my feelings of discrimination, they made me hang a sign on the door for 3 months, but it was so silly, because it might warn others walking up to enter that it was "Occupied", but it didn't stop me from just walking into the bathroom and anyone inside already was just dealing with it. Nobody had a problem, everything went smooth, we all thought it was an enormous waste of time. Sometimes when I'd leave and forget to turn the sign over, it would just remain until next time when I saw it, so nobody was paying any attention to it anyway.

The bottom line was explained to me by Corporate HR, EG&G Inc., Wellesley, MA, that they prefered to handle my case individually, and not establish policy, because they prefered to keep judgement to themselves of the depth and sincerity of the change in gender of any person that might come out at work. I think what they meant was that they were afraid that any description in writing would be difficult to get right, and open themselves to possible more litigation. I think they were figuring this was way too complicated and I'd probably give up and not go through with it, so they'd just wait and see if I actually did, or if "Real Life Test" would be too much and I'd stop.

The other problem I think they thought about was if they described anything in writing, someone might try and take advantage of it and use it as a way to get into the bathroom for their own purposes. They're afraid of Pandora's box, once opened, and out of control.

There's a good point to their logic. It's really difficult to describe a policy that works, and is fair to all, that has reasonable safeguards and a series of steps, at the right time intervals, in a black and white fixed written plan. The flexibility they want to have, to address each case on its own merits, is a valid point of consideration.

Good luck,

Roberta Jean Swafford

More

The God Almighty bathroom issue was a major sticking point in the Fairness legislation finally passed in Louisville. And the only reason we got it, with gender identity protected, was because we allowed a clause to be put into the original bill, giving employers the right "to designate gender appropriate restroom and shower facilities."

Now, of course, that language is problematic, since the bill defines "gender identity"...but not gender. Is "gender" to be construed as another word for "sex" as in one's biological sex...or gender as it really is...one's gender identity...I think we can safely assume the former. But it is problematic.

Angela F. Bridgman

More

It is my impression, based on personal experiences (admittedly none in the workplace) that very few people truly object to sharing a bathroom with a TG person. I think there's a strong possibility that the opposition we receive in the workplace is from a very small and very vocal minority of coworkers. While a few noisy coworkers can certainly bring about the end of reasonable bathroom privileges for a TG worker, it's completely reasonable in a democratic society to say that the discomfort of, say, 5% of the coworkers based on irrational fears is "tough" and that that 5% should just shut up and get over it.

Further playing with numbers, if only 5% of the people truly oppose such a thing, and if only, say 1/2 of that 5% is aware of the issue at election time, the political fallout from supporting our community in this issue would not likely be that significant, particularly if offset by increased support from the TBLG community.

Now, to take off my scientist hat for a moment and to put statistical ethics and propriety away in the closet, if we were to conduct such a workplace survey, it would be up to us how to use the results. If we like what they say, we can use them. If not, we can scrap them, and nobody will be the wiser. Even if these results were scrapped for the present, they would still be useful as a baseline for tracking public opinion. We could repeat the survey at various times in the future to see how much attitudes towards TG people are changing. Reports of *changing* attitudes might then be useful for lobbying. Dunno. We couldn't possibly know what we would have to work with unless we were to collect the data.

I suspect if the data were favorable somehow, we would pocket the results in preparation for meetings such as the one with Barney Frank. We would of course try to lump our issues together as much as possible with GLB issues, but what happens when we are asked about the almighty porcelain throne? Do we just go "duh" or do we have stats to back up a claim that it's really not a significant issue, contrary to the fears of some of the legislators and HRC lobbyists?

Sarah D. Fox

A collection of powerful, profound recountings of lives lived by straight spouses of both sexes with their gay married partners. Too much to handle in one single cover to cover reading.

This book also applies to trans people as accurately as it does to gay folks. Simply substitute "trans" wherever you find the work "gay". It fits us all very well. We’ve all been there, are there, or are on our way there.

Each chapter closes with professional observations and suggestions as to how those of us who are caught up in this life situation can ease the pain that inevitably accompanies our familial relationships.

Not a storybook, not for the faint hearted. We have invited Amity Buxton to our June 6^th meeting.

TransFamily of Cleveland was founded to provide support and education for transgender persons, their families, friends and significant others. We hope to form an outreach group to promote awareness of transgender persons and their issues through PFLAG and to bring awareness to our school systems, through their principals and counselors, by offering literature, speakers, consultation and support. We would like to publish a list of helpful resource people in the Cleveland area.

TransFamily is provided as a service of Pro-Motion Internet Design a division of Pro-Motion Video and Global Graphics Internet Design, . Website design ©® by Rick Cordaro for Global Graphics Internet Design. Original content and design © copyright TransFamily, all rights reserved.