The Florida elections have been interesting to say the least. I'm happy that Rudy Guiliani is out. I will comment about this and my thoughts in a future blog. I still believe it will be a dogfight between John McCain and Milt Romney for the Republicans and Hillary and Obama for the Democrats. In my opinion some more things about the candidates will come out that may influence some voters.

GENEVIEVE'S GEMS

It's time for transgender people to stand up and make our presence felt.

I'm following the debates as much as possible and I still am not sure who I will vote for. There are a number of issues that are of concern to me. Education, morality and family values, the economy to name of a few.

One of the dangers of selecting a candidate is to focus on only one issue. Yes, the candidate may be strong on one issue but weak on others. I have read where some folks are just focused on trans issues or the war or the economy. We need to remember is that the president has to deal with a number of issues. Our local politicians have more influence that the president does so maybe a little heat has to be put under their feet.

I also conclude that we have to become involved in the issues that concern us. We have to be willing to work, share with others, and voice our concerns. We must become so self absorbed that we don't see the needs of others. There's plenty to do. I'm sure there are those who would welcome our input and support.

GENEVIEVE'S GEMS

Life brings us that many forks in the road;
the difficult part is choosing which fork to take.

Yesterday, I watched the documentary 'Southern Comfort' on LOGO tv. It is about the journey of Robert Eads, a female to male transsexual who eventually dies of ovarian cancer. Twenty refused to treat Roberts Eads because there feared that it would upset their clients. Question: why are these people in the medical profession? As a African-American I'm not surprised by this lack of compassion. It was a short time ago in America that black people were not admitted into a white hospital or clinic. Charles Drew, the inventor of the modern day blood bank, died of injuries suffered in a car accident in the 1950 south because hospitals would not admit him. People of color, immigrants, and the poor still receive inferior medical treatment in some places.
Transgender people face the same daunting fears. The community center here held a Trans health fair this past June, the first of its kind. It is a positive step toward the medical establishment understanding what transgender face. Watching the documentary inspired me to write this blog because it reminds me that there is still so much to do. Fighting for equality takes courage, skill, and perserverance.

GENEVIEVE'S GEMS

For change to happen, we must first examine ourselves to see
what changes we need to make.

A belated Happy New Year to you. Last year was a very good one and I'm looking forward to what this year will bring. I'm still setting up the goals that I want to achieve. One of them is to be more involved with helping others. I don't know where or in what capacity yet but I want to make a difference. We really need it in the TG community, that's for sure.

GENEVIEVE'S GEMS

The time has come for transgender and gender variant people
to make ourselves visible and to be active.