out in the mountains A gaiaaiaryr goes 3

 

Visibility Day Goes Trans

 

BY CHRISTOPHER KAUFMAN

Two national leaders working
for transgender civil rights
will be traveling to Vennont
at the end of January to advise local
organizers working to promote a
trinsgendcr non-discrimination act
during this year's legislative ses-
sion.

R.U.l .2? Queer
Community Center. Equality
Vemiont and the University of
Verrriont have invited Mara
Keisling. director of the National
Center for Transgender Equality.
and Lisa Mottet. legislative lawyer
for the Transgender Civil Rights
Project of the National Gay and
Lesbian Task Force to attend this
year's Queer Visibility Day at the
State House on January 28.
Keisling and Mottet will also spend
time meeting with students. faculty

and administrators at UVM and a
full day working with grassroots
organizers at the ninth Queer
Summit. scheduled at the State
House on January 29.

Queer Visibility Day
organizers have chosen to focus the
annual event on transgender rights
this year. The last legislative bien-
nium saw a transgender rights bill.
introduced by openly gay
Representative Bill Lippert, lan-
guish in committee. Organizers
hope the political make-up of the
new House, with a likely robust
majority of GLBT-friendly mem-
bers. represents a strong opportuni-
ty for the bill to be passed into law
this session. The legislation would
explicitly protect transgender peo-
ple from discrimination in housing,
public accommodations. credit,
employment and other areas.

Local organizers invited
Keisling and Mottet to Vennont in

order to share their experiences
working with other states and
municipalities that have passed
similar legislation. Minnesota,
Rhode Island, California and New
Mexico currently protect transgen-
der people from discrimination
under state law. Many municipali-
ties also include gender identity or
expression in their non-discririiina-
tion codes. “We’re excited about

sharing what we’ve learned in other ' "11 I E I“

parts of the country with ,,
Vermonters.” Mottet said. “We
want to be as helpful as we can so
that Vermont can continue to lead
the way on tiansgender and other
queer issues."

Visibility Day typically
offers grassroots LGBTQ organiz-
ers the opportunity to set up infor-
mation tables at the State House
and meet with legislators to explain
the important issues facing our
community. This year. organizers

 

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hope to set up a “shadowing” pro-
gram where local activists will be
able to spend a significant part of
theqday with their legislator, eating
a meal together, watching commit-
tee work in action and touring the
State House. Organizers will also
be able to join in an educational

  

, jointly»hostedrby[,l{;Ul.l;2‘.?_.- '7
Equality Vermont and the Vermont T

 

' Netwoil<Agains‘t'  and

Sexual Violence. The Network is
also welcoming their members’ to
the State House that day. »

Queer Visibility Day will

‘ begin at 8:00am oniFriday,‘ January v

2_8,~at the State House. To register

‘ in advance for; the shadowing pro- 7

gram, call Equality Vermont at 802-
310-6296. The Queer Summit is the
following day and will be an organ-
izing stiategy sessionfor the trans-
gender non‘-discrirnination act. "
Transgender people are especially
encouraged to attend. V

Christopher Kaufinan is the execu-

tive director of the R.U.1 .2? Queer

Community Center. For more infor-
mation onytlte Summit, contact him’

at R.U.1.2?, 802-860-7812. _

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('rrsrs ("enter has announced
that ll\ \\’cdrrcstl;ry night

strrfl tor the hotlrne for Hctrrns ol
scurzrl uolcricc will include mule
.l(l\()L’illC\, ('cntr:r Director (‘cliri
('udd_\‘ srrrd in an rnlcrvrcv. that the
number ol m;rlc czillcrs seeking sup-
pun lrzitl qinitlruplcd since Zllllll.
"Whirl \\L‘ hczrr so often l\
‘I don't know it I'm calling the right
plricc  ('udd_\’ srrid. The (‘enter
llih Ill the past run rr support group
lor lllillt‘ \lll’\'I\‘t)r\ oll scxtttrl \io-
lcncc. including childhood scxuzil
£ll‘lll\L' illld zidull scxuiil rrxsrrult. “For
rrrr argcrrcy that wants to be welcom-
ing to SI“ survivors. this is an impor-

Rape

tum step We wrrrrtcd to xrrrrt smzrll
illltl rnrrke surc than everyone calling
the lrollirrc lrrrs zr choice of spcarkirrg
to rr rnsrlc or lerrrrrlc aitlvoczrtc."
('iultly lrrrslctictl to ntltl

than the starll‘ did not ussurnc than it
mzrlc caller‘ would rrrtlicr‘ speak to it
rrrzrlc udvocgrlc. but that it wars
irnportarnl to rrrzrkc the option rrv:ril-
rrlilc, The argt-ncy's lllL'llll3t'l‘.\lllp.
('uddy srrltl. voted tlrrcc ycarrs argo to
wclcomc men for outrczrclr zrrrtl
l‘trrrdr';risirrg. lixpuntlirrg the lrotlirrc
slirll to include mzrlc artlvocrrlcs is

 

“Men have a stake in
challenging the dominant
paradigm where stereo-
typical masculinity is
equated with violence and
aggression to establish

power and control.”
WRCC outreach worker Jim Leahy

his witnessing of the pain that
women friends and female relatives
have gone through as sexual assault
victims. .

Leahy is part of helping to
create a Men Advocating Change
group at UVM. The group took part
in a candlelight vigil sponsored by
the Feminist Majority at UVM in
early December to draw attention to
assaults taking place on the path
through the Redstone section of
campus.

What’s important about
having men on the hotline, he said,
is that it “provides an opportunity
for men to identify as victims. but
also for the male partners, friends,

Ctr. Opens Hotline to Men

the next logical step.
The rncn who will be
.st;rl'firrg the lrotlinc on \VctlllC.\’tl:t_\‘.\
from 5 to 0 pm lurvc gone through
the ;rgcrrcy‘.\ rcccrrt joint volunteer
tnrirrirrg with Sarl‘cSprrcc. (lther
irgcncics m:ry not harvc cxpcricrrce in
dcrrling scrisitivcly with rnrrlc \‘lC-
tims. (‘trddy strggcstctl. "Mule sur-
vivors of rirpc nrrcly go to the hospi-
tal. so they mrry not have corrsitlcretl
how a rape kit protocol might need
to be zrdjtrstcd."
The lrotlinc hours with

male stalling started on December 2.

Asked whether the
incrczrsc in rnirle cnllcrs reprcserits
an rrbsolutc irrcrcrisc in &l.\‘.\".lllll.\‘ on
rnrrles. WRCC 0lllI‘L“.lCl’l worker Jim
l.c;ih_v stiggcsts othcrxrisc. “l think
that iricrcusc is it response to out-
rcrrch."

Learlry and Cuddy agree
that the vzrsr rrrnjoriry of the perpe-
trators of scxuarl zrssiitrlt reported by
their ;rgerrc_\"s clients are men.
wlrcthcr the victirns are men or
women. “Men have it stake in sup-

porting efforts to challenge the dom-
inant panidigm where stereotypical
nirisculinity is equated with violence
and aggression to establish power
and control." Leahy said.

Jim Leahy is the First male
sniff member of the Women's Rape
Crisis Center. The 2003 graduate of
Colgate University (he mzrjorcd in
rrrathernnticnl econoniics) said his
passion for working on sexual vio-
lence issues is based on two factors:
his in\'ol\'cment in ‘.1 campus group
called Men Advocating Change. and

and family members" of sexual
assault victims to get support and
understanding.
"It‘s time.“ WRCC

Director Cuddy said. “for us to be
having a statewide conversation. and
for men to have the opportunity to
not hold this [experience of victim-
ization] inside." V

WRC C ‘s 24-hour hotline number is
863-1236 or 1-800-489-7273. The
service is free and corrfidential.