Transgender Discrimination at the Highest Levels of Government

I find myself baffled at the just plain old meanness and nastiness of the Trump Administration. Trump himself seems to delight in being mean to others. He has clearly shown himself to be what he has been all along: a bully, an insecure man who demands loyalty and cannot cope with those who do not hand over their loyalty to him. Perhaps someone should remind him that loyalty per his own oath of office and that of every federal employee is to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States of America. It is not to pledge loyalty to any single individual or group….just to the Constitution.

His stance against transgender men and women serving in the United States military is not justifiable by any logical measure. But then again, we are not dealing with logic here. Any person who wants to serve or is serving in the military should be judged by only one standard: Does she or he meet the mental and physical requirements to serve. Those are essentially the same for cisgender men and women. Why should there be a different standard for transgender men and women? There should not be. Anything else is purely and blatantly discrimination based on gender expression and gender identity. Such discrimination is wrong and unjustifiable.

Trump’s position, regardless of what his military “experts” tell him is at odds with the policies of our major allies. Canada, Australia and Israel, to name only three, all allow transgender women and men to serve in their military units. Are we really so arrogant that we think they are wrong and we are right here?

Integrity USA stands in support of transgender women and men serving in our military.

We do so with the full backing of The Episcopal Church. Canon law in The Episcopal Church prohibits discrimination against transgender women and men (as well as a host of other variations in the human expression of sexuality, ability, etc.). “The law,” so to speak is on the books and has been for several years now.

I urge everyone who reads this to do exactly what I have been imploring all to do for months now: call, email, write, visit your elected representatives in the House of Representatives and in the Senate. Make your opinions known. Cite the canon law that governs our church. Cite basic human dignity and decency. Cite the decisions rendered by a number of courts that prohibits such discrimination.

It is time to raise some hell, my kindred in Christ. It’s time we flipped the tables of the money changers in the Temple. Our transgender kinfolk need us now more than ever.

Remember that when the civil and human rights of any begin to be chipped away by prejudice, bigotry, meanness and nastiness, there is nothing to prevent those same bigots from going after the other civil and human rights we have. Speak out. Silence will still equal death.

Bruce Garner
President, Integrity USA

June 30 Friday Flash (reposted again)

Tuesday, July 4, 2017 Friday Flash June 30 (Reposting second attempt)


This is the URL to what appears below. I'm experimenting to see if what ultimately gets posted is the same as what appears on Walking With Integrity. Being mostly a luddite with this stuff, please bear with me as I learn the processes. Thanks, Bruce


http://cts.vresp.com/c/?IntegrityUSA/ab432d90a6/0f53c7189f/2fea4c2c1d


Today is the last day of June. This brings what is traditionally known as “Gay Pride Month” to a close. The “title” has been changed through the years so that it is actually “LGBTQ+ Pride Month now to reflect our intentional recognition that it includes others than those who identify as lesbian or gay. Celebrations, parades, demonstrations have been happening all around the country with most last weekend, the traditional anniversary of the Stonewall Riots that began the civil rights movement aimed at LGBTQ+ people.


Do we have a reason to celebrate? To be proud of who we are as LGBTQ+ people, and in our case LGBTQ+ people of faith?


The answer is complex and can be answered as yes and no. Yes, because we should be justifiably proud of the enormous accomplishments that have been made in the 48 years since Stonewall. Some would say that our movement has been on the “fast track” for what has been accomplished.


No because there remains much TO accomplish for us and for women, people of color, people of differing ethnicities, different faith expressions, and basically anyone who does not identify as essentially straight white and male in this country. The political climate right now and the continued actions of both Congress and the current administration are glowing illustrations of what is still to be done….for so many.


On a positive note, The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NLGTF) announced yesterday that pressure on the Administration for Community Living (an agency of the Department of Health and Human Services) had worked and they were restoring the questions directly related to LGBTQ senior citizens that they had planned to eliminate. See, calling, writing, contacting does work!


To reverse-paraphrase an Easter hymn: The strife is NOT over, the battles are NOT won, victory is not yet in hand.


On a more somber note, the Anglican Communion News Service reported that the former Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey, resigned from his last formal church role for his part in ignoring reports of sexual abuse by now disgraced and former bishop Peter Ball. It was, once again, a problem many knew about but did not address.


Peter Ball had a history of engaging in sexual abuse. Reports were ignored. While I certainly have no credentials related to psychotherapy, it has long been my personal contention that when we force someone into a box they were not intended to fit, there will eventually be an “explosion” and inappropriate actions and behavior will result.


How long have we, as a church and a society, forced women and men into the large box called the closet because of sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression? Did no one ever contemplate the consequences of forcing people to appear and act differently than their authentic selves? Did no one ever consider that the pressure of the box, the closet, would eventually result in an explosion?


Human beings are human beings. We can only cope with so much pressure for so long. Hopefully we are beginning to see less and less sexual abuse as we are being allowed to be our authentic selves. The remaining question is whether we will actually be our authentic selves. As you have read and heard from me countless times now, who have you written, called, texted, emailed, or contacted to express your views? If the answer is “none” then look at yourself and ask why you are so complacent. Ask why the work and sacrifices of so many to create a Pride Month has not moved you to act. At a recent exhibit and conversation about HIV/AIDS I was once again reminded that our silence really could mean our death.


Bruce Garner, President
Integrity USA


________________________________________ Celebrating Pride? If your organization is celebrating pride this month or this summer, post it on our Facebook Group page or share it with mel@integrityusa.org.


________________________________________ Once in a Lifetime Conference A first-ever major conference on LGBTQ Christian history is happening on October 31-November 2 in St. Louis. Rolling the Stone Away will bring together dozens of elders, saints and prophets of the past five decades to honor their deep impact on U.S. social and religious institutions and to reflect on how this history informs our movements for justice today. "This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience to interact in-person with most of the movers and shakers of LGBT Christian movements," notes Conference Coordinator Mark Bowman. "This is the kind of unique gathering that you will want to be able to say 'I was there!'" Click here to see the amazing diversity of early activists that you will see there. Watch the website for updates. Reserve your place there by registering now. Integrity USA has been on the planning team for this event and look forward to being with as many of you as possible who can join this gathering. We are considering a small “reunion” during the time of the conference for our family and friends.


________________________________________ We Are Orlando ________________________________________

Friday Flash June 30

This is the URL to what appears below. I'm experimenting to see if what ultimately gets posted is the same as what appears on Walking With Integrity. Being mostly a luddite with this stuff, please bear with me as I learn the processes. Thanks, Bruce http://cts.vresp.com/c/?IntegrityUSA/ab432d90a6/0f53c7189f/2fea4c2c1d Today is the last day of June. This brings what is traditionally known as “Gay Pride Month” to a close. The “title” has been changed through the years so that it is actually “LGBTQ+ Pride Month now to reflect our intentional recognition that it includes others than those who identify as lesbian or gay. Celebrations, parades, demonstrations have been happening all around the country with most last weekend, the traditional anniversary of the Stonewall Riots that began the civil rights movement aimed at LGBTQ+ people. Do we have a reason to celebrate? To be proud of who we are as LGBTQ+ people, and in our case LGBTQ+ people of faith? The answer is complex and can be answered as yes and no. Yes, because we should be justifiably proud of the enormous accomplishments that have been made in the 48 years since Stonewall. Some would say that our movement has been on the “fast track” for what has been accomplished. No because there remains much TO accomplish for us and for women, people of color, people of differing ethnicities, different faith expressions, and basically anyone who does not identify as essentially straight white and male in this country. The political climate right now and the continued actions of both Congress and the current administration are glowing illustrations of what is still to be done….for so many. On a positive note, The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (NLGTF) announced yesterday that pressure on the Administration for Community Living (an agency of the Department of Health and Human Services) had worked and they were restoring the questions directly related to LGBTQ senior citizens that they had planned to eliminate. See, calling, writing, contacting does work! To reverse-paraphrase an Easter hymn: The strife is NOT over, the battles are NOT won, victory is not yet in hand. On a more somber note, the Anglican Communion News Service reported that the former Archbishop of Canterbury, George Carey, resigned from his last formal church role for his part in ignoring reports of sexual abuse by now disgraced and former bishop Peter Ball. It was, once again, a problem many knew about but did not address. Peter Ball had a history of engaging in sexual abuse. Reports were ignored. While I certainly have no credentials related to psychotherapy, it has long been my personal contention that when we force someone into a box they were not intended to fit, there will eventually be an “explosion” and inappropriate actions and behavior will result. How long have we, as a church and a society, forced women and men into the large box called the closet because of sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression? Did no one ever contemplate the consequences of forcing people to appear and act differently than their authentic selves? Did no one ever consider that the pressure of the box, the closet, would eventually result in an explosion? Human beings are human beings. We can only cope with so much pressure for so long. Hopefully we are beginning to see less and less sexual abuse as we are being allowed to be our authentic selves. The remaining question is whether we will actually be our authentic selves. As you have read and heard from me countless times now, who have you written, called, texted, emailed, or contacted to express your views? If the answer is “none” then look at yourself and ask why you are so complacent. Ask why the work and sacrifices of so many to create a Pride Month has not moved you to act. At a recent exhibit and conversation about HIV/AIDS I was once again reminded that our silence really could mean our death. Bruce Garner, President Integrity USA ________________________________________ Celebrating Pride? If your organization is celebrating pride this month or this summer, post it on our Facebook Group page or share it with mel@integrityusa.org. ________________________________________ Once in a Lifetime Conference A first-ever major conference on LGBTQ Christian history is happening on October 31-November 2 in St. Louis. Rolling the Stone Away will bring together dozens of elders, saints and prophets of the past five decades to honor their deep impact on U.S. social and religious institutions and to reflect on how this history informs our movements for justice today. "This is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience to interact in-person with most of the movers and shakers of LGBT Christian movements," notes Conference Coordinator Mark Bowman. "This is the kind of unique gathering that you will want to be able to say 'I was there!'" Click here to see the amazing diversity of early activists that you will see there. Watch the website for updates. Reserve your place there by registering now. Integrity USA has been on the planning team for this event and look forward to being with as many of you as possible who can join this gathering. We are considering a small “reunion” during the time of the conference for our family and friends. ________________________________________ We Are Orlando ________________________________________