The International Foundation for Gender Education

by Monica Roberts

from the TransGriot Blog

http://transgriot.blogspot.com

"The Human Rights Campaign salutes the enduring legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. His courageous leadership continues to inspire us in our work to fully realize his vision of fairness and justice for all people.

This weekend, the GLBT community joins the rest of the world in remembering the great work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., whose life helped move our country closer to realizing the true meaning
of "equality for all".

As we remember Dr. King, let's reflect upon our solidarity with the continued fight for civil rights and equal opportunity for all Americans."

That was a statement from HRC's Joe Solmonese about King Day.

The last organization that needs to part their lips and try to lay claim to the MLK legacy is the Human Rights Campaign. When it comes to transgender Americans, their actions are more akin to segregationists such as George Wallace and Strom Thurmond than Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

You have tried for a decade to select our leaders and suppress voices
in our community critical of your political pollicies. You have
arrogantly tried to thwart transgender people's attempts to speak to
our federal legislators about the lack of civil rights coverage. You
have fostered the 'illusion of inclusion' in order to inject the
tranquilizing drug of incrementalism into a situation that requires
immediate and comprehensive legislative remedies.



And don't make me laugh when it comes to courageous leadership. While
300 other organizations encompassing a rainbow of diversity in the
GLBT community stood with their transgender brothers and sisters to
say that cutting us out of legislation we needed was wrong, HRC
waffled, dithered and then bucked the rest of the community to
support Barney's gay-only ENDA. You responded with silence when
Barney Frank attacked our community from the floor of the US House.



Fairness and justice for all people includes transgender Americans as
well. It's a lesson that you exclusionary peeps in HRC continuously
fail to not only learn, but practice as well.



So do me, other African-American transpeeps, and transpeople in
general a favor. Until you show us through your ACTIONS that you
truly understand the King legacy and start working to pass
legislation that will benefit people other than your narrow segment
of the population, please refrain from trying to lay any claim to the
legacy of the greatest American we African-Americans ever produced.