The Transgender Day of Remembrance was pure Culture War Propaganda

by Rod Williams, Dec. 16, 2023- Last month the Metro Council passed a resolution recognizing November 20th as Transgender Day of Remembrance. The resolution not only passed with all in favor except for one member not voting, 39 of the 40 members co-sponsored the resolution. 

Among the "whereas's" justifying the resolution are these:

 WHEREAS, the Metropolitan Council recognizes that transgender members of our society are disproportionately affected by hate crimes and violence, and experience myriad challenges in their daily lives, including discrimination, disproportionately high levels of unemployment, and limited access to health care; and

WHEREAS, in 2019 the American Medical Association declared violence against the transgender community to be an epidemic; and

WHEREAS, the Human Rights Campaign reports that in 2023, there have been at least 25 transgender or gender nonconforming people fatally shot or killed by other violent means in the United States; and

WHEREAS, at least 74% of known victims of anti-transgender violence in 2017-2018 were misgendered in initial police or media reports surrounding their deaths; and

National Review, Jan. 2024, p6

What about that violence against transgender people being "an epidemic" and trans people being "disproportionately affected by hate crimes and violence?"  National Review reports that 1.6 million people identify as trans. With 26 trans people killed last year, that is a rate of .9 per 100,000. That is unfortunate but hardly an epidemic.  I don't know how many homeless people met a violent death last year, but the rate was probably greater than .9 per 100,000.  The rate of left-handed people who met a violent death last year may have been greater than .9 per 100,000.

Also, not all of those trans people who met a violent death, were necessarily innocent victims. As an example, don't forget the Covenant School shooter was a trans person who met a violent death. Several may have been the aggressor not the victim in violent encounters. 

As to trans people being "misgendered," that is non-sense. Gender is determined by biological sex. Gender is what you are, not what you think you are. If gender and sex or not the same and if gender is all in your head and you are the gender you choose to be, after you are deceased you have no thought in your head. After you are dead the police cannot ask you your gender.  Police may have a hard time determining if someone is a cross-dressing male or a male-to-female trans. And what about the "gender fluid," the police may not know what gender the person was feeling like on that particular day. Transgender may be descriptive but is not a sex. Maybe the police report has a box for "sex," not a box for "gender."  To misgender would be to call a person with a penis a female. 

RS2023-99, was pure propaganda. Here is how the Council voted: 

The resolution was approved by the Rules, Confirmations, and Public Elections Committee. Council Member Hill moved to adopt the resolution and that all members voting in the affirmative be listed as a cosponsor, which motion was seconded and approved by the following vote: Yes (39): Suara, Porterfield, Evans-Segall, Allen, Hill, Kimbrough, Toombs, Gamble, Cortese, Parker, Capp, Benedict, Harrell, Hancock, Webb, Evans, Bradford, Huffman, Gregg, Welsch, Vo, Cash, Kupin, Horton, Taylor, Weiner, Druffel, Gadd, Preptit, Johnston, Nash, Benton, Ellis, Sepulveda, Rutherford, Styles, Lee, Ewing, and Spain; No (0); Abstain (0).

You will note that the only member not to be recorded as voting for and sponsoring the resolution is Jeff Eslick. I commend him.   It should be noted, however, that not voting is not the same as abstaining. Abstaining is a conscious decision not to vote on an item and being recorded as doing so.  Simply not voting may mean the council member was distracted, not present for the meeting or that part of the meeting, had gone to the bathroom, or was sitting on his hands.

I am disappointed in people that I think of as conservatives for voting for this piece of propaganda, people like Cortney Johnson and Thom Druffel, and I am not too surprised but disappointed in Sherri Weiner and a couple of others. It is time the few conservatives on the Council started voting like conservatives. 

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