Date: Sat, 30 Nov 1996 00:08:02 -0500 From: Riki Anne Wilchins Subject: TRANSGENDER IN THE (STRAIGHT) NEWS TRANSGENDER IN THE (STRAIGHT) NEWS =============================== SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE [San Francisco, November 25, 1996] THE SF CHRONICLE TODAY carried an op- ed piece on transgender civil rights by noted gender activists Susan Stryker and James Green. Entitled, "Recognizing Transgender Civil Rights," Green and Stryker details the recent protest by Hermaphrodites With Attitude (HWA) against Intersexed Genital Mutilation (IGM), the November 11th protest outside the national offices of the American Psychiatric Association against the mental "disease" of "Gender Identity Disorder," and the November 2nd formation of GenderPAC, a nationwide political advocacy coalition "dedicated to gender, affectional and racial equality." Stryker and Green discuss the enormous strides taking place in the burgeoning transgender movement, and close noting: "Transgender people, like all other members of society, deserve to be treated with respect. Media coverage and public sentiment should reflect the fact that the transgender civil rights movement embodies many of the same noble aspirations that have helped the African American, women's and gay liberation movements to reshape the face of our nation for the better." Copyright (c) 1996 San Francisco Chronicle LOS ANGELES [Los Angeles - November 20, 1996] THE LA TIMES Metro Section today carried an article titled, "Suit Over Gender Confusion Settled." Penned by staff writer Josh Meyer, it detailed the settlement of a particularly noxious case in which an apparently intersexed woman was arrested, mishandled and abused by transphobic officials. Candice Sue Penn was allegedly "forced to remove all of her clothing in front of numerous sheriff's deputies and inmates,. ridiculed, threatened, embarrassed, humiliated, [and then] forcibly incarcerated at the Men's Central Jail in March 1995 -- even though `it was clear and apparent' that she was a woman." The County Sheriff's Dept. agreed to pay Penn $30,000 in an out-of-court settlement for "emotional distress," after Penn filed suit in federal court. County documents concluded that Penn was found to have "abnormalities" in her genital area, but she was "otherwise a normal female." Penn had originally been sent to a women's facility, where inmates complained that she was a man; she was then examined and transferred to the men's facility, re-examined, and then transferred back to the women's the following day. While at the men's jail, Penn alleged she was "attacked, threatened and subjected to abuse" by other inmates. Copyright (c) 1996 Times Mirror Company ### (c) 1996 InYourFace An on-line, news-only service for gender activism from GenderPAC. When re-posting, please credit InYourFace. DISCLAIMER: InYourFace is intended as a public service and not an official publication; opinions expressed in press releases do *not* necessarily reflect those of any GenderPAC officials or member organizations.