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Indi waving the trans flag from Australia |
Transgender woman Indiana (Indi) Kelly Edwards has asked that a group of Australian drag queens change "Tranny Bingo" to a name that is not a defamatory slur. It seems like a reasonable enough request but one we know is difficult to accomplish. Planetransgender has been
"taking on tranny" for years. Even though there has never been a moment when we could declare victory, in the process we have changed the way we and others think about the trans community. We have gained respect not just from the gay community but from society as a whole in the UK and the USA. A fact not missed by the drag and gay community in Australia.
The conflagration came to notice when the Herald Sun published a 'news' article
"Sydney drag queens fight trans-gender warrior Indiana Kelly Edwards over right to use the word tranny". It wasn't a news article in the sense that it only projected one side of the story spun in a way that made transgender people's objections insignificant and inconsequential.
I will now deconstruct Penny Tration Trans misogynistic excuses he used in the Sun article
“In Australia there are few negative connotations attached to the word ‘tranny’, unlike in America,” he says.
“I think the campaign is being waged by people who are trying to involve American activists in an Australian debate.
“We have events in the gay community called Poof Doof and Fag Tag."
Mr. Tration does not get to nationalize slurs, not in this day and age. He acknowledged that
America has come to understand that 'tranny' is defamation but he failed to note
the same is true for the UK . Australian gay men have the same obligation to do no harm the same as the rest of the world's gay population.
And apparently a
Poof Doof is a
gay dance rave and
Fag Tag is when a group of gay men take over a normally hetero venue for a night, which has absolutly nothing to do with trans defamation.
Mr Tration continues:
Claims the campaign is being led by a “small group of people who are making a lot of noise. But if you do the research there’s not a lot of support behind it”.
He says the activists argue that when drag queens remove their costumes, they can easily blend into society.
“Well, guess what, when we remove our wigs we become gay boys who have faced homophobia our whole lives,” insists Penny Tration.
Number one, it is a small group of people making noise. In fact we are less than 1% of the worlds population and to the best of my estimate only a 10th of those individuals are in a place or have a will to confront the seemingly endless onslaught by gay and straight people.
Yes the violence and suicides experienced by transgender people is that extreme so our voice might sound weak to you Tration.
But we are so sick of gay people cavalierly using defamation that offends us we're forced to speak up. It's not a popularity contest where the one with most votes wins and its not a freedom of speech issue as the tranny bingo
">petition would lead one to believe. Why oh why don't you call it "Faggot bingo"? Why? Because it wouldn't be amusing for you personally Mr Tration. You self identify as a gay cisgender male and it wouldn't be 'sexy' for you to use defamation that you hear before someone beats the shit out of you.We will not accept this.
As far as taking off your wigs goes. Using the homophobia that you have encountered does not give you license to use defamation that hurts another minority. Not all gay Australian men are endeared by as
'faggot'
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This drag queen didn't change before leaving the bar
and was called a "Dirty Tranny" as he was being beaten in a McDonald's.
Welcome to our world Alexei Paige. |
Indi appeared on the Australian morning show Tenlive Tuesday. After the hosts warmly welcomed Penny Tration to the show and talked about how fun tranny bingo is they looked over to Indi as if to say, well I guess we have to hear from her for it to be story and allowed her a moment to speak.
Indi told planetransgender ""firstly for the record I never claimed it (the moniker 'transgender warrior'). [It] was imposed on my by the Herald Sun who interviewed Verushka Darling."
Saying that she felt she was up against a seasoned performer she wanted to explain that "Privilege in context of this interview I was actually referring to cis gender privilege. it seems we are being dictated to by people who have cis gendered privilege on what is or isn't offensive or harmful to us. As key stake holders I feel we should at the very least have a say in this. What I am hearing from gay men and /or the drag community is that we don't and we need to shut up. IMO its not their call to make. I would in this case and all things considered err on the side of safety."
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So one of the largest Australian gay media sites is hosting a conversation about the word 'tranny'. Reportedly, some trans people aren't allowed to speak. Guidetogay.com denies these accusations saying the comments might appear to disappear after they are indexed by Facebook. |
The Charing Cross is delighting in defaming transgender people. Here's what you can do about it. Write a review on the facebook pages of the establishments that are hosting 'tranny bingo' and ask your friends not to patronize them.
Coopers Hotel Facebook
The Town Hall Hotel Facebook
The Charing Cross Waverley Facebook
The Sugar Mill Sydney facebook
Please sign the
Petition asking that "tranny" not be used for commercial gain