The LGBT South is a weekly email newsletter, compiling national, regional, and local news important to LGBT Southerners. Subscribe to get the latest edition to your inbox every Friday morning and keep up with what the Campaign for Southern Equality is up to!
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QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Looking at a lady version of myself is unsettling, even heartbreaking. Actually, I’m not totally sure what I felt or why. In trying to describe that moment, I can only come up with this: I feel for female me the same pang that I feel when looking at age-progressed photos of missing kids who will almost certainly never be found.”
–Miz Cracker, a drag queen and writer, discussing the complexities of FaceApp’s gender-altering photo effects
Here’s your breakdown of what’s happening this week in the #LGBTsouth:
BAD BILL SEASON
While the legislative sessions for many states have ended, meaning no more bills will be proposed, some are still in session, and others are now voting on bills that made the cutoff. Last week, Alabama Governor Kay Ivey passed a bill allowing discrimination against LGBTQ parents looking to adopt. A similar bill passed a House vote in Texas this week, and now faces a vote in the state Senate. It is one of over 20 anti-LGBTQ bills proposed in Texas this session and comes on the heels of a Williams Institute report about the effects of stigma and discrimination on the Texas LGBTQ community.
On Friday, Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam passed a bill that could also affect LGBTQ parents and couples. The bill requires words in state laws to be interpreted by their “natural and ordinary meaning”. It is a vague law that critics say could be used to discriminate against LGBTQ couples through the “natural” interpretation of words such as “mother”, “father”, “husband” or “wife”, though Gov. Haslam insists the precedent set by Obergefell will continue to be followed.
Keeping with its reputation as one of the most LGBTQ-friendly Southern states, Louisiana Senator Troy Carter has filed a bill to pass workplace protections for sexual and gender identity. There is public support in Louisiana for workplace protections, but the bill seems unlikely to pass. Still, Carter filed a similar bill in 1993 and continues in the 24-year struggle to end this discrimination.
Our legal team was in Richmond, Va. this week at an appeal hearing to contest North Carolina’s SB 2, a law passed back in 2015 that allows county magistrates to recuse themselves and not perform same-sex marriages. The attorneys argued that taxpayer money should not be used to uphold religious beliefs by paying to have outside officials travel to counties where all of the magistrates have recused themselves. The panel of three judges seemed sympathetic to concerns about the law, but the issue of standing – whether the plaintiffs have to legal right to bring the lawsuit – has been a question throughout the case. A ruling is expected in the next few months.
BUILDING A BETTER SOUTH
As LGBTQ Southerners, we know the complicated history of our region, the beautiful legacies of resilience, and the unique, multi-faceted culture we pride ourselves on. But in many ways we continue to grapple with the effects of that troubled past.
In New Orleans, opinions over the removal of several Confederate monuments have led to clashes amongst those who see them as a glorifying symbol of white supremacy, those who see them as an important reminder of the ugly history they represent, and perhaps those who would like Confederate history to be upheld for more menacing reasons. Mayor Mitch Landrieu signed an ordinance ordering the removal of the monuments in the aftermath of the Emmanuel A.M.E. Church Massacre in Charleston, in which the shooter was influenced by Confederate symbols and history.
Inspired by the question “What is a Southern image?” as well as the Charleston massacre, photographer Johnathon Kelso reckons with the persistent legacy of the Confederacy in his photo series “As God Is My Witness”. Kelso says, “As I photographed Confederate memorials and rallies across the Bible Belt, I realized I was witnessing a dying culture. “As God Is My Witness” is an attempt to document what remains of this version of the South today, not some glorified Old South of the past.”
The news and analysis site FiveThirtyEight has also investigated the close relationship of past and present in the South, finding that health and mortality trends today track closely along lines of slavery within the Black Belt region. In areas that had higher percentages of enslaved people, rates of infant mortality, HIV/AIDS, diabetes, and certain cancers are much higher than in the rest of the country today. The historical lack of resources, generational stress, and racism and poverty – especially in rural areas –creates a vicious cycle, one that will only be accelerated by rollbacks in affordable health care.
WHAT ELSE?
Georgia state Representative Stacey Abrams, is seeking to become the first African-American woman elected governor in the U.S.
Mark Green, the former nominee for Army secretary, withdrew his nomination last week in the face of criticism over his anti-LGBTQ statements.
Leader of the Moral Monday Movement Rev. Dr. William Barber will step down as president of the N.C. NAACP.
A popular new app called FaceApp allows users to alter their photos to appear as another gender, sparking conversation for folks questioning their gender identity or expression.
In Kenya, where the birth of an intersex child is seen as a bad omen by some, one midwife is working to change this taboo and save children’s lives.
STAFF READ OF THE WEEK
By Ivy Gibson-Hill, LGBTQ Rights Toolkit Coordinator
Last Friday night I was in Charlotte setting up for a Protect Yourself 
clinic in a big open room when in walked the most adorable chocolate lab named John Chandler. He was helping a woman named Franchaska (pictured) get to her seat like he always does, because she is visually impaired. Led by and for transgender folks, our Protect Yourself clinics feature a self-defense class, personal safety planning, training in using pepper spray and safety apps, and HIV testing and counseling. These clinics respond to the daily reality trans people face – of harassment, threats and, too often, physical violence. So far this year, at least nine transgender women of color have been murdered in the United States, four of whom lived in the South.
A week before the Charlotte clinic, Franchaska had called to ask whether the clinic was a fit for her. She described how, every night when she walked John Chandler in her neighborhood, she was getting cat called and strangers were yelling at her. It left her scared and looking for resources to feel safer in her neighborhood. My co-worker Fletcher talked to her about the schedule of the clinic, and answered her questions. Franchaska said this was exactly what she needed and thanked us for putting it together. We’re doing these clinics all across the South right now and when people ask why, Franchaska and her dog stand out to me the most.
As a transgender woman who is visually impaired, Franchaska faces really specific safety situations. We talked through them and strategized about how she could feel and stay safe. As Fletcher and Lara Americo from the Freedom Center for Social Justice led the self-defense class, Fletcher worked one-on-one with Franchaska, placing his hands on top of hers so she could experience what it felt like to break loose from someone grabbing her wrist, or how to defend herself if someone was trying to choke her. I helped Franchaska with the pepper spray training – she familiarized her fingers with depressing the trigger, practiced using it in short bursts, and learned to aim high for the potential attackers eyes and forehead if they’re wearing glasses
“I appreciated this clinic so much,” Franchaska said afterwards. “Since the clinic, I have felt safer walking out of my house at night. It gave me a wealth of knowledge and the confidence in knowing that I am capable of protecting myself.”
Knowing how to get out of a grab, and having pepper spray on hand with training in how to use it could be the difference between life and death. Having resources on hand, and a plan of action in place in the event of an attack also supports physical and emotional well being. That’s exactly why we’re doing this – so Franchaska, and trans people across the South are equipped with tools for staying safe.
WHAT THE CAMPAIGN FOR SOUTHERN EQUALITY IS UP TO
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CSE is thrilled to announce that we’ll be hosting the upcoming webinar “LGBTQ in the South – Telling Your Story with Data,” in partnership with Christy Mallory of the Williams Institute. The Williams Institute is a think tank at UCLA Law that generates independent and relevant research on sexual orientation and gender identity.This free webinar will take place Thursday, May 18, 2017, 6:00-7:30 PM Eastern Time. Click here to reserve your spot today!
The webinar will provide grassroots leaders with an overview of who LGBTQ Southerners are, the issues they face, and how to find specific data about their local communities using the Williams Institute online resources. CSE’s Communications Director, Aaron Sarver, will also present on how to effectively use data in your communications strategy, and Ivy Gibson-Hill and Fletcher Page with the GenderBenders in Greenville, SC will share new ways they are using data to tell the story of their work to funders and supporters.
We are excited to host a series of FREE “Protect Yourself” Clinic that centers the trans experience.
Led by and for trans folks, these clinics will cover a range of safety issues including: trainings in self defense and pepper spray, writing a safety plan, and using safety apps on your phone. Free and confidential HIV testing and counseling will also be available.
Clinics are coming up in Nashville, TN on May 24; Memphis, TN on May 25; and Charleston, SC on June 4. Thanks to The Change Project, OUT Memphis, and We Are Family for co-hosting!
