A Response to Bethany Black's "They call it climbing and we call it visibility"

My best friend is trans and without her my life would be resoundingly empty. She gave me a place to stay when I had nowhere else to go, helped me realize my support for anarchism, and understands me on a level that I know that no one else ever can or will. After 22 and a half years of beating myself up for being "weird" -- so far removed from society's definition of "acceptable" -- I can now say that I am proud to be gender nonconformist, pagan, bisexual, polyamorous, and biracial. I can say that because I have the support of some great people in my life, many of whom are trans, gay, lesbian, or poly. But what about those who have not found themselves so fortunate?

When I read about the death of Lucy, a trans school teacher from the U.K., I couldn't believe it. I knew that the "b" and "t" in LGBT receive far less acceptance than the "l" and "g". Let's face it, we still get a lot of shit from straight people and we even get crap from some members of the gay community. This tragedy highlights an issue that still remains underlooked. Sure, we've all read the stories about the devastating suicides of gay and lesbian teenagers who were bullied and abused simply for being the way that they are. But how often does one read about a trans person who commits suicide? And why is it okay for a national newspaper to invade Lucy's privacy during an incredibly tumultuous time with no regard for the consequences which ensued?

I am outraged at Richard Littlejohn's careless, insensitive, and irresponsible journalism practices which resulted in the death of an innocent trans woman -- a school teacher and a loved member of her community. I encourage my readers to email The Daily Mail to request the termination of Littlejohn's employment.

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Bethany Black: They call it climbing and we call it visibility: It's been a while, and I've been trying to think about starting to blog again.  I enjoy it and I find it really helpful, but every ...