Parents Isolate Friend for Being a Lesbian

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When I was in middle school, on April 19, 2011, I asked my best friend if she wanted to date me. She said yes, but she knew if her parents found out everything would go wrong. Two weeks later, her parents found out. They said that I was going to Hell for making their daughter gay and that I was an ugly, terrible person. They took all contact I had with her away. Her cell phone, her laptop, the only contact I had with her was school… And they eventually took that away too. They put her in a Christian school to convert her to being straight. Once the summer came, I never heard from her again, and she was my best friend. It still hurts today, almost 4 years later, that there could be someone so intolerant of their children. Both of us were on the verge of suicide. I know it’s not a transgender story, but it does involve conversion… And I want to put an end to it because it’s just not right!

Leelah is Missed

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I am 19. Female to male. Pre everything. I connected to this is so many ways, her suicide letter looked like many of mine. I have not told my parents I’m transgender cause of the fear of the outrage of my farther, and the disowning of my mother. Their both hard core religious. They think LGBT is all a choice we make. Everywhere I am out.. Everywhere but family. I know they will not support me, and I know I will get disowned. I want to start my transition, and I will soon. But it needs to end, this violence, and not being accepted in society. We need to teach that it is not bad to be who you are. Don’t let Fucking society rule us. It killed me to read that a sister died for this all to start going down. She is missed. I understand the pain of religious parents. And not being accepted.

United Nations Reports: Reparative “Therapy” is Torture

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Major Points: Every reputable mental health or medical association in the US denounces conversion or reparative “therapy” as harmful to its victims.

  • The United Nations defines reparative “therapy” of transgender people as torture.
  • The UN calls for national laws prohibiting conversion and reparative “therapy” and calls for prosecution of those who violate those laws.
  • Americans, particularly “Christian counselors” continue to engage in this practice, even though it is based on pseudoscience and its practice denounced by every reputable medical organization.
  • “Leelah’s Law” is being proposed to stop reparative “therapy” in the US on a national level, both in the interest of stopping the torture of children and in helping prevent more needless suicides.

big-blue-divider-hi (1) [Read more…]

Jennell Jaquays – Creative Director, Transgender Human Rights Institute

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The Transgender Human Rights Institute’s (THRI) Creative Director, Jennell Jaquays professional background involves an extensive career making art and writing content for games of all sorts. In 2003 she co-founded a graduate level program to train students to make digital games. She became involved in advocacy in through PressXY.com a speakers group that explores the relationship between gaming and transgender issues. In 2012, the Huffington Post included her in their list of 50 Transgender Icons. She began working with THRI as a supporter and eventually steering committee member of the Transgender Violence Tracking Portal. She currently splits her time between her “day job” as Chief Creative Officer for Olde Sküül, in Seattle, Washington, and her efforts on the board of trustees for THRI.

No Moobs

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I live in Riverside, RI. I have Medicare and NHP and the day of my surgery in August 2014 my insurance called and decided they weren’t going to pay for it. Even though for a full year my doctors, surgeons and I were told by my insurance was covered. I lost all my money, and I just stopped trying. Maybe that’s what insurance companies want us trans people to do. Give us false hope, tell us they will cover it 100%, feeling relief so we then spend the money we saved originally on our own, then tell us oops we won’t cover it, and then we never ask insurance for surgery again. It took me so long to raise money and now it’s gone. The same exact thing happened to a woman from Providence named Althea Shaheen who had an article about it in The Daily Beast recently. Yet I get no recognition for it, when it happened to me first. Though I do take comfort in the fact that it happened to someone else. All hope is gone. And all thanks to RI NHP, Obama care and Medicare. [Read more…]

So… I’m Jake.

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Hi…I’m Jake, and I’m super bad at these things haha. I’m transgender, ftm, 17, and I live in Nebraska so that’s great (not).
…I miss Leelah, like, a lot. I have no idea what she was like. Like she could’ve been the worst person in the world. All I know is she should still be alive.
It feels like the only way we can change things is to kill ourselves. Why does change only come when we die?
Stand up for us now. This can’t continue. I dont want to have to die and watch my friends die so I can see things are moving.
Stop this battle between religion and sexuality/gender. Let’s just live OK? together<3

Introducing myself to the world.

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When I was born my parents were told that I was a girl, this is back in 1996 when homosexual love had been accepted but were still obviously having troubles with equality. I came from an upper middle class background and family and abuse for some reason was riddled in my family from before I was born to only five years ago when I was thirteen.

I’m not going to lie, when I first found my sexuality I didn’t know what to think of it and thought that it was a disgusting thing but I was at a very young age when I realised that I was sexually attracted to women and even the thought of boys freaked me out. Then as I got older I obviously understood sexuality more and grew to accept it with in myself. I told every at school first and they were completely happy with it though just because I was attracted to girls tried to get me to go out with the only other bisexual girl in the class. But obviously we’re not attracted to everyone that’s the same sexuality as us even straight people. [Read more…]

The Gay Transgender

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I didn’t know what LGBTQ+ meant until the 7th grade when I was enrolled in a homophobic boarding school for 1 year at this point. I jumped around a lot exploring my sexuality. Then in the 9th grade I really figured out who I was. But by the 10th grade I hid being transgender out of fear. I started dating this guy who is 100% straight. But 5 months into our relationship I told him I am a guy and I like guys. At first he seemed hurt and was obviously in shock. After a few weeks we continued to talk and he then realized he loved me all the same no matter what because I’m still me. Many people get confused that I’m FtM and I like guys. They tell me to just be a straight female but that’s not who I feel I am. Other people say I’m just sick in the head or still confused. Well to those people I say I’ve never been more certain on something in my entire life!!! I’m proud to be transgender and gay and go to a private Christian homophobic boarding school, because I’m defeating the odds!!!

-M.R.S

Natalie Wants To Be Buffy

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It appeared to me that I was transgender roughly five months ago. I literally woke up with it, having recently been curious of what I’d look like as a girl. The first week was filled with so much joy. Pure. Like Leelah, I had discovered my true identity. It gave me the defining motivation to quit the unhealthy lifestyle that my depression and unrest had led me to. I realized these psychological problems were caused by my gender dysphoria, and know this because they subsided significantly once I figured out. It felt more like a secret every day I didn’t tell my family. There’s a lot of fear involved. But any doubt I’ve had comes right back to my destructive tendency to take the easy way out. Cisgender people don’t usually ask this question of themselves. If I hate my own sex, well then, I am transgender indeed. Gradually my past made all the sense in the world. I remembered having a strong desire to become a girl in the previous three years, but recalled waving it away as wishful thinking. Even though I was aware that I would’ve been better off as one, my mind wouldn’t let me go beyond that. Can’t erase the pain inside without a storm within.[1] I turned 23 a few months ago and I’m determined to face my 24th birthday as myself. In Norway the waiting period for hormones is torturous and pretty much the basis for my first suicidal ideation. I can’t wait to start HRT so I can become the one I’ve locked away for years.[2] So I’m not restrained, hiding in the body I’m supposed to live in.[3] Whatever the consequences, there’s no way I’m not doing this. I just wanna be a girl already. Like Buffy ._.

1. From Machinae Supremacy’s song “Skin”, which gave way to immense relief in troubled times. It’s about transformation and stuff! <3 <3 <3
2. From Circus Maximus’ song “Reach Within”. The sheer tonnage of emotion this song brought me allowed me mental support.
3. “Skin” again ≧◡≦ #MaSuLove

From the LGBT youth

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Oh boy this is long aren’t you excited?

I’m 15 and me and most of my friends at school are queer. A lot of my friends are bi/pan, nonbinary and/or asexual and I have one friend who is a trans boy. I’m sort of at a questioning phase with my gender and sexuality. For now, I identify as genderfluid and gyneromantic asexual, but things could change because its still hard for me to understand my feelings for girls, whether they are platonic, romantic or sexual. My gender is always a pain too. For a while I considered I could be a boy, for a while I felt I was agender, etc and it changes a lot so thats why I just identify as genderfluid.

I’ve come out as far as sexuality goes to my mom. It was hard because even though she is and always has been accepting of gays, she still just wrote it off as a phase, or said “Ok but wait until you are older you might change your mind.” And as for asexuality she thought that was totally impossible. She even at first said “I know you like boys,” which made me incredibly angry. What would she know of who I like? I have never liked boys, I only forced myself to because I thought I had to, and because my mom would never stop asking who I liked. [Read more…]