The Cutting Edge- July 2012

THE CUTTING EDGE

 Barbara F. Anderson, Ph.D., LCSW

An article in the LA Times dated April 15, 2012 carries the headline, LAPD plans separate jail for transgender suspects."  A 24-bed facility will be opened in an effort to avoid violence by the general population of inmates against transprisoners.  This unit will house "biologically male and female suspects who identify themselves as members of the opposite sex...."  Until the present time, these prisoners were housed with those of the same biological sex.

 

This has come about as part of a larger policy of concern about the welfare of trans inmates.  Officers are instructed to treat such individuals with respect and courtesy on the street and are prohibited from searching suspects for the sole purpose of determining their sex.

Chair of the Transgender Working Group, Karina Samala said, “This is a new LAPD.” The TWG was formed in 2007 to work with the police department on developing  TG-friendly policies.  Many meetings were held, a survey was developed and a report with recommendations for policy changes was issued.

In the same vein, the newest edition of the Standards of Care was published by the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) in Sept. 2011. According to Dr. George Brown, the  updated the section on “Institutionalized” persons was tested in court and the ruling was that a “real life experience” a prior condition for SRS, can occur in prisons.  More about the newest edition of the SOC in future columns.

The NY Times of April 27, 2012 featured Carletta Sue Kay, a k a Randy Walker, in their article, “His Wig May Be Askew, but This Singer Has Range.”  The article goes on to say, “When Carletta Sue Kay takes the stage, it can take the uninitiated by surprise.  The singer is over six feet tall, with a figure more like a wrestler’s  than an ingenue’s, and is typically a mess; wig askew, vintage dress often missing a sleeve or other home-made alterations, red lipstick unevenly applied.

“Is this a performance art piece?  An elaborate joke?  But then Carletta—also known as Randy Walker, 47, … veteran of the San Francisco music scene for the last 15 or so years—opens his mouth, and  all doubts fade.”  He is said to have a “dynamic range and sings with his whole body” and his “female alter ego has been enthusiastically received by local audiences since he started performing as Carletta around 2007.

“Mr. Walker said his fan base was largely straight and he did not consider himself a drag queen, per se or ‘a trannie.  I hate that people try to work that as a marketing stratagem,’ he said.”  Later in the article he “wonders if he has become a transvestite since he began performing as Carletta.”

Last month, in my brief section, I noted that Shaun Donovan of HUD, became the 1st sitting Cabinet Secretary to give a keynote address to a major trans organization.  To expand on that, he pointed out several advances made by the administration in the interest of transgender people.  Transwoman, Amanda Simpson, was appointed to the Office of Personnel Management which prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identity.  Most recently, the Office announced that federal departments must include gender identity among its protected classes of employees.  Metro Weekly on April 27, 2012 covered this story in detail.  78% of transgenders say they’ve experienced workplace discrimination.  However, this policy can be overturned by the Supreme Court.  For now, activists see this breakthrough as “one more locking piece in that puzzle.”  For more detail, www.metroweekly.com/news.

In brief: The Transgender Economic Empowerment Initiative (TEEI) is a collaborative program between the SF LGBT Community Center, the Transgender Law Center and JVS (?).  Their promotional material says they match dynamic people  with sustainable jobs in safe workplaces.  www.teeisf.org.

In the “rose by any other name” category, a plastic surgeon in Chicago objects to the terms, “sex change operation, gender reassignment surgery and genital reassignment.”  He sees these terms as suggestive of making a choice to switch genders and  thus, inappropriate.  Instead, he performs “gender confirmation surgery.  This is not about choice; it’s about using surgery as one of the therapeutic tools to enable people to be comfortable with their gendered self.”

I’ve listened in on some conversations about telemedicine and distance counseling with transclients.  Talk has been positive with regard to evaluating people in prison when highly skilled professionals are not available to assess applicants for hormones or surgery.  More controversial is on-going psychotherapy with transpeople who live in remote areas or who are too closeted to seek counseling locally.  I for one, have had positive outcomes with clients I have already known and counseled in a traditional setting.  The downside is that insurance will not reimburse for sessions that are not face-to-face in person.

Responses, reactions and corrections are welcome.
Dr. Anderson can be reached @ basu62@aol.com