Friday, September 26, 2008

SO FUCKING COOL

The first performance of the Laramie Project was tonight. It went rather well. We had a really good turnout. And despite us having only rehearsed for two and a half weeks, we managed to put on a show. It was bumpy at times..but hey..it worked.

The Tectonic Theater Project went back to Laramie this year..ten years after Matt was murdered. And they have a blog.

http://laramieblog.blogspot.com/

SO fucking cool. But weird. I just feel like I know all of them so well now...It's so weird to think that they're real people...they're still going on. They've moved on, but we're just a still frame of where they once were. I can't believe Greg wrote that .. you know? I feel like I know Greg. I am Greg.

Crazy. They're probably thinking the same thing about us.

Monday, September 22, 2008

Victories and Losses


I have so much to write about.

First of all, can we discuss how Ellen is the new face of Covergirl? When I first found out, I was pretty excited. Choosing an out lesbian, not to mention not stereotypically beautiful, fifty year old woman as a spokesperson for a makeup company is a pretty big deal. But as someone who has a problem with the makeup industry in general (that women have to look a certain way in order to be considered beautiful...take the WNBA makeovers or Rachel Maddow's recent makeover, for example), this whole thing seems kind of twisted.

I just hope that they don't make her over too much. I know that she wears makeup on her show because you have to wear makeup on television and whatnot... so I'm hoping they play from that angle. It is still great for her though. Hopefully the ads can work with her to reform traditional beauty ideals for women.

Next, according to feministing.com, "For the first time in the history of Title VII, the federal law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex, a federal trial court has ruled that a woman-born-man, Diane Schroer, can recover for discrimination, because discrimination against a man transitioning to being a woman is discrimination "based on . . . sex."

Ummmmmmmmmmmm AWESOME. I am seriously very surprised and excited. When I first heard about the case I didn't think there would be this drastic of a response. Extending the definition of what gender-based discrimination is ... just amazing. Because women aren't the only gender-minorities anymore.

Of course, you have some good news, and you have some bad news. In our own Philadelphia, a transwoman is having problems using SEPTA because there is a required "M or F" sticker for a bus pass. She has been using an "F" sticker, but recently has been told she cannot ride the bus without an "M" sticker because she was born a man. Ridiculous.

Read more about it here

Thursday, September 18, 2008

GLBTQ-Related Hate Crimes on the Rise in DC

Tony Randolph Hunter was beaten outside of a gay bar in DC last week. He died today.

It just fucking sucks.

I guess it's just getting to me because I'm really stressed out and I'm in the middle of rehearsing for the Laramie Project...and it's just like sometimes to get through it you have to think that it's all getting better, you know? And it's like here's a guy who was walking out of a bar and now he's dead and for no reason...and it's not getting better.

I'm just sick of it. I'm sick of being in my own bubble and forgetting what it's like out there for me because every time I get pulled back into it it just makes it harder.

Every GLBTQ person who I hear about is another Matthew to me now. A person with a soul and a family and friends and people who love them. They were all a part of my community...

And I want to feel something...I want to feel this. I don't want their deaths to be meaningless. I want people to feel sad. I want people to feel responsible. I want people to feel things so that they want to change things.

ugh I don't know what else to say.

I'm disgusted with the world.

To:

Tony Randolph Hunter
Ebony Whitaker
Saneshia Stewart
Simmie Williams

others who I am forgetting who have been killed this year

rest in peace