Haphazard

tybaar:

Hey folks!

Okay so I usually don’t do this kind of thing but we’re starting to get down to the deadline and I need all the help I can get.

Me and girlfriend Amber have had our housing situation change quite suddenly and we need to move to a new place for February!

We’re seeking a room to rent in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area that’s LGBT friendly (and preferably 420 friendly as well).   We’re a quiet, tidy, easy-going transgender couple - both employed full time and own our own vehicles.   We’re looking for a safe, welcoming environment.

Please send me or Amber an ask if you have any questions/concerns.  Even if you’re in the area and you can only ask around your friends, your help is greatly appreciated!

transhousingnetwork:

Hi, y’all. My name is Zara, I’m a femme trans boy, and I’ve been in transitional housing for about 8 months now. I am trying to start school at Seattle Central, and have finally secured rent/financial stability. I have been applying to apartments nonstop, but I cannot seem to find one that will accept my application! The people I currently live with are kicking me out at the end of the month, and I really need a place to stay while I continue apartment hunting. I am clean, quiet, a nonsmoker and like I said, will be attending school and can pay rent, as much rent as you want. Hopefully I will only need a place to stay for a few weeks to a month. If you can help me out, please send me a message on tumblr or an email to tehzsm@gmail.com. Please help, I have to be out of here in 10 days and school starts on the second!

http://sunbearsbask.tumblr.com/

transqueery:

Back in 1960, men keen to dress like the women of Mad Men didn’t have the Internet to curate their interests, secrets and problems. One of their only outlets was an underground magazine called Transvestia - no larger than the palm of their hands, with similarly tiny typeface.

The 57-page first issue, with a cover sketch depicting a man in boudoir attire, is now among the rarest items at the Transgender Archives at the University of Victoria - believed to be the world’s largest collection concerning people who live outside conventional male-female roles.

Transvestia was published by Virginia Prince, the late transgender activist famous for saying that “sex is between your legs and gender is between your ears,” said archivist Lara Wilson.

UVic owns a full run of the magazine - every issue from 1960 through 1986 - as part of a collection of thousands of items.

“Transgender means you believe that you are other than the sex organs you were assigned at birth,” Wilson said. Some people opt to have reassignment surgery, while others live and dress as the gender they feel suits them.

UVic’s impressive inventory of papers, plaques, photographs, newsletters, certificates, posters and tapes was the gift of Rikki Swin, a one-time Chicago manufacturer of plastic injection moulding who moved to Victoria in 2007.

She founded the Rikki Swin Institute for transgender research and education in 2001 and offered the institute’s contents to UVic. With that came the archives of other leading activists such as Ari Kane and Merissa Sherril Lynn.

“We’re pretty sure that we have the largest transgender collection of archival and published material in the world,” Wilson said.

There are plenty of lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans, or LGBT, collections in North America, but few that feature only trans. “So we’re putting the T in LGBT.”

Other rare items include brightly coloured 1970s booklets by Reed Erickson - who transitioned from woman to man and sought to explain everything from transsexuals and religion to counselling and family dynamics - and a copy of the Zenith Foundation’s 106-page manual, Transsexuals and their Caregivers.

Along with 600 books that deal with gender identity in the UVic library, the archives now boast an “incomparable collection of newsletters and publications from both large and small transgender organizations” that stretches to more than 1,000 individual titles.

The collection is still growing, Wilson said, adding that she hopes to hear from people who have items related to transgender activism and the betterment of transgender people.

“Now that there’s a website, we’re getting offers from all over North America,” she said.

At the moment, male-to-female material predominates, making up about 60 per cent of the archives.

About 25 per cent of the collection has been catalogued and is available to the public but only one per cent has undergone the expensive process of digitalization - but the goal is to increase that significantly.

On Nov. 21, there will be a screening of the documentary Trans to commemorate the Transgender Day of Remembrance and celebrate the archives. Regular ticket prices at Cinecenta will apply, with donations taken for the archives. A Q&A will follow the film. kdedyna@timescolonist.com

> For more information on the archives at the University of Victoria, go to transgenderarchives.uvic.ca.

Archivist Laura Wilson can be reached at ljwilson@uvic.ca.

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

Read more: http://www.timescolonist.com/UVic+largest+transgender+archive+world/7474909/story.html#ixzz2Ausmyj2c

tybaar:

How many times have you heard this?

If you haven’t, you’ve probably heard it about Lady GaGa.  Or, hell - a whole host of other female pop icons.

It’s a common recurring joke - and, one that is rehashed quite often for good reason: It gets laughs effectively and consistently.  It gets to the point that if someone even mentions Ann Coulter to me I can pretty much do a mental countdown on how long it takes them to make a “joke” accusing her of being trans.

People tell these jokes to me cheerfully, expecting I’ll get as big of a kick out of them as the rest of their friends.  And it utterly astounds me that no one else seems to completely miss why this is so disgusting.  “But, why Zoey?”  You might be asking.  “It’s just joking around!” or,  “You’re being too sensitive.”

Well, let’s pull back for a moment and deconstruct this:

The problem here is the joke in itself is literally, “this person is transgender”. That’s it. That’s the whole joke. That’s what’s supposed to be so funny. And it utterly amazes me that it still seems to constantly fly past everyone and, more to the point, is considered a completely acceptable way to “insult” someone.

Because it literally comes down to - and directly states - the fact that, by and large by society, us trans women are considered to be inherently shameful in our existence. So shameful in fact, that the complexity of a joke made about us needs to have no greater depth than simply mentioning the fact that we exist.

This - people, this is transphobia. This is transmisogyny. This is cissexism. When you encapsulate someone in their incidental minority status and then proclaim it to be so vile that it’s considered inhuman enough to be used as an insult to hurl at someone you decide is worse enough for it.

This is what needs to stop. It’s not an issue of being “too PC” or “just joking around” It’s an issue of the fact that the person who I happen to be - and can’t change - is still a completely acceptable vehicle of vilification, let alone ridicule.

Let me be clear here, Ann Coulter is an incredibly hateful person and she absolutely deserves your ire. But accusing her - or anyone you dislike - of being trans AS an insult is not only utterly disgusting but completely ludicrous.

Because - and I’m gonna introduce a radical concept here - There is nothing shameful about being trans.

Nothing.

velvet-areola:

Stumbled upon these water bottles from Spokane Trans* People and thought it was a really clever idea.

[etsy listing]

OH MY GOD GETTING ONE NOW

(via safespacenetwork)

genderedintelligence:

We’ve had a couple of drop outs, so we now have 3 FREE spaces for this event this Saturday 15th September. We’ll pay your travel to the event. Email us if you want to come! admin@genderedintelligence.co.uk.

Galop, an organisation that gives advice and support to people who have experienced biphobia, homophobia and transphobia, are hosting their annual Treasure Hunt fundraiser!

We want to take along 10 trans young people (under 25) to form two teams and take part in the fun.

GI will pay for your entry fee  (worth £10!), your lunch and your travel. Email us at admin@genderedintelligence.co.uk if you want to come!

We need to know if you’re coming in advance so we can make sure we have a team together. Details below.

When: Sat 15 September 2012, From 1pm (We’re meeting at 12.30)

Where: Soho, London (we’ll email you with our meeting point)

Grab your mates and maps and go buccaneering through the nooks and crannies of Soho and the West End solving clues, raising money for Galop, and having a rollicking good time!

Fastest team wins a goodly selection of prizes from Galop’s Treasure Chest*

*warning: some prizes may be better than others!

BOOK YOUR PLACE NOW!

(Source: genderedintelligence, via safespacenetwork)

therapsid:

Signal boost this, please. 500 notes isn’t enough.

(Source: vagina-pagina, via mocosyamores)

transhousingnetwork:

Hi, I just wanted to send this link this way for everyone that needs it: http://www.couchsurfing.org/ Its a large community of people offering their couches if people need them. You create a profile and then look for people in the area that you are staying or moving to. You can review their profiles and then send them a request to stay in their home. I thought it might help expand the opportunities for individuals who desperately need a place to stay.

“Renaming the Bathrooms: A Cruel Trick for Queer Ends”  - Raphael Carter

Have a look at the source page to read some examples of odd bathroom renaming they did.

(via paintwithwords)

(Source: practicalandrogyny.com, via neutrois)

ftmjourney:

ftmjourney:

Check out my spreadshirt shop, Trans*guy Swag!

Two new designs! The (TRANS) designs are no longer available.

You’ll find these designs on t-shirts, hoodies, bags, hats, and more! Be sure to check them all out here: http://ftmcam.spreadshirt.com 

And remember, all profits from the shop are going towards the cost of my transition from female-to-male! The profits primarily cover testosterone injections and hormone level tests, since I’m currently uninsured. If by any chance there is any “left over” profit, it will be put into a savings account to help fund my top surgery (keyhole incision to remove breast tissue). 

Thanks for looking!

---

Note: Legalize Trans* also has a “Someone I ♥ is Trans*” design. I had not seen this design before making mine, though their’s is about a year old. I want to clarify that I did not base my design off of the Legalize Trans* design in any way. The designs look similar because the font used is the “I ♥ NY” font (American Typewriter Medium) and the heart design is the default heart shape from Adobe Photoshop. It’s the internet, folks. People are going to have similar ideas!

Added some new designs to the store!

I just wanted to thank everyone who has bought a shirt from my spreadshirt store! So far, I’ve raised $58.30, which I’m using to help pay for testosterone and some cheap herbal skin treatments to help with male puberty! Thanks for helping me afford T and not turn into that awkward pizza-faced guy with the glasses!

I like the Human one

Maybe when I have money

(via thambos)