Crones Affirm Welcome for
“Womyn Born Womyn”

Burlington — The Crones, a social group in
northern and central Vermont for older
women, many of whom are lesbians, has
voted to welcome only “womyn born
womyn” to its membership and gatherings.
The vote was reported in a summary dis-
seminated to the group’s email list.

According to one long-time mem-
ber who asked that her name not be used,
“It’s a sore topic and a difficult issue. I’d
rather you not put it in the paper at all, or at
least let it rest a few months.”

This Crone, who did not want to
accept transwomen as members, said that
the meeting at which the issue was votedon
was surprisingly calm. But, she added, “I’ve
been called a bigot since the meeting” by
another Crone. “I spoke from my heart. I"
spoke the truth — for me.”

I The Crone and the communiqué
both reported that the group had hoped to
reach consensus, but agreed that a majority
vote would hold if consensus failed. “Four
or five women emailed their opinions and
they were read aloud at the meeting,” she

said. According to the email, those opinions
were given equal weight as votes by those
present.

According to the anonymous
Crone, the policy decision was not a
response to a specific request by a
transwoman to attend gatherings. That
assertion was challenged by former Crones
member Joan Knight and by Joanna Cole,
who had recently moved to Vermont with
her partner and begun to attend meetings.
Both women said that they thought the dis- _
cussion and vote were motivated by Cole’s
attendance and the possibility that Cole’s
partner, Sarah Flynn, a transwoman, would
attend gatherings with. her at a later date.

The group agreed after the meeting
that the discussion was confidential, includ-
ing the way that members voted. Crones on
various sides of the issue spoke with OITM
about the issue.

The Crones “is the only place I can
go and just be with and talk to old women, I
women with my experiences. [Transwomen]
say they’ve always felt like women, but

how the hell do they know? They’ve never
bled or had menstrual cramps,” said the
anonymous Crone. _

“I don’t feel uncomfortable about
my opinion or anything I said at the meet-
ing,_but I am uncomfortable with the flack
I’ve been getting [afterward]. I’ve been
accused of being unable to change, bigoted,
rigid  Including trans just seems to be the
PC thing right now.”

The issue, she worries, might split
the Crones. “Some women have decided to
drop out. They may start another old
women’s group that does welcome
transwomen.”

Flynn said “[The Crones] are a pri-
vate organization, they’re free to make
whatever decision they want.” Flynn said
she had no intention of joining the group.

Cole, F lynn’s partner, said she was

. “very upset that this group would discrimi-

nate against Sarah.” She said that as a rela-
tive newcomer to Vermont, she had looked
to the Crones as a way to‘ meet women
she’d like to socialize with. “But I wouldn’t

push the issue, I’ll just have to make a new
group of friends.” _ L.

“I hate it,” said Knight about the
group’s decision. “I probably won’t go
back. Anyone who considers herself a les-
bian should be able to come and get support
for dealing with the stress and stigma that
we have all lived with. I can’t imagine any-
one who has experienced mo_re of it than
transwomen.” '

She added, “If we can’t find it in
our hearts to included someone who is like =
us and yet not like us, it is tragic.”

The issue of whether to welcome
transwomen in the Crones has apparently
split the group, Cole said, “and I feel bad
for that. But then I think, ‘why should I feel
bad?’ This is an open group for women over
40. Sarah is a woman over 40. These are
people who’ve been terribly oppressed, and
here they are oppressing another group.”
Cole said she’d been told the meeting on the
issue was very painful and difficult and
called it “an educating moment.”

Cole, who said she came out as a

, lesbian three years ago after two straight

marriages, also said she might continue to
attend Crones gatherings — if others who _
favor inclusion would be there. “At some ~'
point Iwould want to bring up the issue . "
again. It discriminates against me, too,” she
declared, as the partner of a transwoman.  ,

~;.

given the

Trans Rights Recognized in Hardwick

, " ';5_r_ VContrib_utions‘irr e '
Shawn’.s memory; may be made" >
to the Humane Society of , ’ ‘,
Chittenden‘County, 142 Kindness-
Court, Burlington, VT 05401. vi ’

cont’d from p. 1 Same mining

and required equipment that other
officers were given. In addition, he
was knowingly “issued a faulty
radio and then chastised for not
responding to calls.” Other officers
gave Barreto-Neto the “silent treat-
ment,” and he was “written up” for
procedural violations he did not
comnrit.

The impact of the case
comes from the fact that the state
Attorney General’s office found
credible Barreto-Neto’s complaint
of discrimination because of his
transgender status. “The Attorney
General’s investigation found that
Tony was qualified for the job and
was given different treatment,”
Levi said, adding that there are no
prior cases in Vermont interpreting
the nondiscrimination law to cover
transgender individuals. The ruling
does not preclude the benefits of
having “gender identity” explicitly
named in the statute, as proposed in
H.366, now in the legislature but
not expected to see action.

Transgender individuals

are not explicitly named as a pro-
tected class in Vem1ont’s‘ anti-dis-
crimination law. However, attorney
Beth Robinson has argued that
trans gender individuals are covered
under provisions prohibiting dis-
crimination on the basis of sex and
sexual orientation. According to
Robinson, the Attorney General’s
ruling agrees that “nansgenderism
is at the intersection of those two
categories.”

Details of the Attorney
General’s November 4, 2003 ruling
— that existing Vermont law pro-

accept or reject the proposal on
Thursday, April 22. OITM had gone
to layout on that date.

The ruling by the Attorney
General’s office sets precedent,
Robinson said, because that office
is responsible for administering
Ver1nont’s nondiscrimination
statute. While no state court is
bound by the ruling, she added, a
court would give deference to the
ruling in considering any similar
case.

Barreto-Neto (born Sheila
Maycelle) came to Vermont from

profiled on ABC’s telemagazine
20/20. The move to Vermont was
motivated by harassmentyvhen
Barreto-Neto’s home was shot at,
endangering his wife and adopted
daughter. According to a story on
the GLAD website, Florida col-
leagues who had worked knowingly
with the officer as a lesbian became
hostile post-transition. V

“I can't say it was a picnic 

when I transitioned in Florida, but
it was so much better than in
Hardwick,” Barreto-Neto told
GLAD. “The treatment I faced at

“The treatment I faced at Hardwick made me

start to think that I was a bad cop, or worse yet, 

that I was a bad person.” Tony Barre-to-Neto

hibits discrimination against trans-
gender people in employment, pub-
lic accommodations, housing and
other areas — and the proposed set-
tlement were withheld from news-
media and the public until the
Hardwick Selectboard voted to

Florida, where he had garnered
awards for policework at the
Hillsboro County sheriff ’s office.
After histransition surgery, the offi-
cer forrned a national nonprofit
organization called Transgender
Officers Protect and Serve that was

Hardwick made me start to think
that I was a bad cop, or worse yet,
that I was a bad person.” V

 1

1