Issue Two, Post four

A Wild Elegance
contents:
resources
Letter from the Editor

RESOURCES
( Editors not: many GLBT groups add a T to their name, but do not really seek to actively represent the interests of transsexuals. Bear that in mind if you do not get a response from such a group.)

ACLU Lesbian & Gay Rights Project / Aids Project.
125 Broad Street., 18th Floor
New York NY 10004

Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders.
294 Washington Street
Suite 740
Boston MA 02108
(serves only the six states of New England area. Legal information and
Referrals for LGBT and HIV+ Prisoners.)

Lesbian & Gay Insurrection
Boston MA 02108
( serves only the six states of New England area. Legal information and
Referrals for LGBT and HIV+ Prisoners.)

Lesbian & Gay Insurrection
3543 18th Street #26
San Francisco CA 94110
( A grassroots organization doing direct action and education for radical
social change from a LGBT perspective and produces the bimonthly
newspaper ULTRAVIOLET. Free to prisoners)

Out Of Control Lesbian Committee To Support Women Political
Prisoners
3542 18th Street
San Francisco CA 94110
( Does education and advocacy work and publishes OUT OF TIME for
women prisoners, political prisoners, related issues. Free to all.)

SINISTER WISDOM, INC.
PO Box 3252
Berkeley CA 94703
( SW publishes work by lesbians only, prose, poetry, essays, graphics,
and book reviews. Free to Women.)

T. I. P. JOURNAL
3895 Upham Street
Suite 40
Wheat Ridge CO 80033
( A newsletter for TS prisoners, with its own agenda. Not anything like
AWE in that AWE is not afraid to be critical of prisons and prison
officials, whereas TIP often seems to be getting editorial input from
prison officials. Order it if you want to, if only to point those TS inmates
you meet through it to AWE.)

TRANS/GENDER VARIANT IN PRISON COMMITTEE
California Prison Focus
2940 16th Street #307
San Francisco CA 94103
(An advocacy group dedicated to ending the human rights abuses of
trans and gender variant prisoners in general and California in
particular.)

PRISON BOOK PROGRAM
C/O Lucy Parsons Bookstore
13 06 Hancock Street.
Suite 100
Quincy MA 02169
(617)423-3298
on the Net: info@prisonbookprogram.org
( Organization that provides books and other services to prisoners.
Generally free of charge, have your people check out their web site.)

ATTORNEY KRISTINA HOLT
1237Haddonfield- Berlin RD
Voorhees NJ
PH: (856) 719-0909
Alternate Address/Phone
1518 Walnut St
Suite 800
Philadelphia PA
PH: (215) 545-7789
( Sorry about the zip codes, you will have to check your library for them.
Kristine is a fully transitioned MTF attorney who has had SRS.)
Helen Hill, MA
PH: (215) 545-7789
( Sorry about the zip codes, you will have to check your library for them.
Kristine is a fully transitioned MTF attorney who has had SRS.)

Helen Hill, MA
2211 Corinth Ave
Suite 203
Los Angeles CA 90064
(Helen Is a Therapist experienced in GID issues. Who is also TS
herself.)

Daniel Zwitman PhD
11645 WilshireBlvd
suite 1080
Brentwood CA 90025
PH: (310) 208-6000
( Daniel is a Speech therapist who teaches MTF's to talk like women.)

OUT/WORD
C/O S. Berry
PO Box 20900
Tomkins Square Station
New York NY 10009-8974
( Resource guide for LGBT/TS/HIV affected prisoners. Free to all.
Donations appreciated)

NATIONAL CENTER FOR LESBIAN RIGHTS
SHANNON MINTER, LEGAL DIRECTOR ( Shannon is a man)
870 MARKET STREET
SUITE #370
SAN FRANCISCO CA 94102 Ph: (415) 392-6257

TGI JUSTICE PROJECT ATTENTION: ALEX LEE 1322 WEBSTER ST. SUITE #201 OAKLAND CA 94612
Ph: (510) 677-5500

PRISON LEGAL NEWS
2400 NW 80th STREET #148
SEATTLE WA 98117-4449
( monthly mag which covers prison legal issues/conditions of
confinement/prisoners rights cases. VERY instructive and worth every
Penny at 18$ a year)

ATTORNEY FRANKLIN ROMEO
LAMBDA LEGAL NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS
120 WALL STREET
SUITE 1500
NEW YORK NY 10005-3904 (212) 809-8585 Ext. # 288

AMERICAN FRIENDS SERVICE COMMITTEE
AFSC CRIMINAL JUSTICE PROGRAM
1611 TELEGRAPH AVE
SUITE 1501
OAKLAND CA 94612

JAMES ESSEX
AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION
LESBIAN & GAY RIGHTS PROJECT
125 BROAD ST
18TH FLOOR
NEW YORK NY 10004

JAMES ESSEX
AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES UNION
LESBIAN & GAY RIGHTS PROJECT
125BROADST
18TH FLOOR
NEW YORK NY 10004

MS. PUBLISHERS
1600 WILSON BLVD
SUITE 801
ARLINGTON VA 22209
( free subscription to female prisoners)

AMERICAN FRIENDS SERVICE COMMITTEE
APSC CRIMINAL JUSTICE PROGRAM
2161 MASSACHUSETTS AVE
CAMBRIDGE MA 02140

INTERFAITH ADVOCATES
111 MILBURN ST
ROCHESTER NY 14607-2918

GENDER THERAPISTS
Carl R. Viest Jr., Ph.D. 3720 Sunset Lane , Suite D
Antioch CA 94509
(510)778-1444

Lisette Lahana, LICSW
609 Kearney Street
EICerrito, CA 94530
800) 928-9085
( Lisette is bilingual in the Spanish language.)

Gordon 1. Ulrey, Ph.D.
433 F Street Davis CA 95616
530) 756-0276

Davis Flemming, MFCC
6010 Wilshire Blvd. Stc. 307
Los Angeles CA 9003 6
323)960-5257

Marie Keller, M.A., M.F.C.C
Los Angeles Gender Center
1923 1/2 Westwood Blvd.
Suite 2
Los Angeles CA 90025
310)4758880

Bonnie R. Saks, M.D.
Bonnie Saks & Associates
3333 West Kennedy Blvd
Tampa Fl 33609
813)354-9444

Diann B. Meek, LMFT
1021 Majestic Drive , Suite 100
Lexington KY 40513
859)278-1085

Alex Coleman, J.D., Ph.D.
246 Tappan Street
Brookline MA 02146
617)738-0463

Ellen Rottersmann, LICSW
1093 Beacon Street, Suite 401
Brookline MA 02446
617)730-9417

Randi Kaufman, PsyD
1218 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge MA 02138
617)441-2100

Arlene istar lev LCSW, CASAC
Choices counseling and consulting
321 Washington Ave
Albany NY 12206
518)463-9152

Shelly Juran, Ph.D
158 Montague St
Brooklynn Heights NY 11201
718)625-6526

Joanne Zager, Ph.D
118 Park Lane
Ithaca NY 14850
607) 272-6353

Marcia Schultz, Psy.D
3111 University Dr.
Suite 400
Coral Springs FL 33065
954)649-1957

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR
I haven't really picked a particular topic for this editorial. Its more a mishmash of thoughts I have on a variety of subjects.
The placement of transsexual prisoners is not the huge problem that corrections officials and politicians make it out to be. Solving the problems that plague TS prisoners is not a difficult task. Conquering the institutionalized hatred and bigotry that lives in the hearts of those who have power and authority over us and who work in the bitter arena of the American penal system is another matter entirely. It is a battle we have fought for many years now with very little success. It is not going to be won by creating a prison for gay, transvestite, intersexed or transsexual prisoners. All this does is further marginalize us and ignore the seriousness of gender identity disorder by relegating it to the level of a perversion or sexual fetish and necessitating that we be housed at a special prison to be shut away from others sight.
We are not gay, we are not transvestites, we are not intersexed. We are not queens. We are women who through no fault of our own have been born into this world with reproductive system birth defects. Parts that have absolutely no place on our body, but through a cruel trick of nature we are stuck with for a good portion of our lives. Some of us have the emotional and financial wherewithal to do something about this early on in our lives. Others among us struggle daily, many for their entire lives, until that spark that we all have within us is extinguished with finality.
Many of us struggle with our condition to such a degree that it has a negative effect not only on us, but also the lives of everyone we have contact with. We are often incarcerated because we are unable to sit down and honestly face our condition and learn to live with it. We engage in a wild reckless lifestyle, a dangerous lifestyle. For those of us who cannot afford such pursuits of a socially acceptable nature, criminal behavior is often likely in a deliberate in some, and an unconscious attempt in others, to show everyone how macho and badass we are so that others will hopefully see this as masculine. Maybe even ourselves. This is not an unrealistic goal, since our society had repeatedly drilled into us through the media in all its various forms, that certain types of behaviors are considered masculine, and others feminine. Certain acts of criminal behavior are typically committed by males, but generally not by females.
This country has one very ignorant approach to gender identity disorder, and not just in how it treats its prisoners. We all suffer. Even the best among us who through hard work and an iron determination have professional and very productive lives.
It is a sickness of the spirit which causes the hatred for us in this society that is largely responsible for the excessive number of incarcerated transsexuals in this country. Some estimates place the incarceration rate of transsexuals as high as 65%, while others place it at 30%. Even at 30%, that is three times the national average. We are the tiniest of all minority groups, yet we have the highest incarceration rate. It does not take a genius to figure out what is going on here and why.
Even the U.S. Government has codified bigotry. Within the Social Security Act exists language which specifically denies SSI benefits to people with gender identity disorder for gender identity disorder, claiming absurdly that having gender identity disorder is not a disability and not coverable under the social security act. This act exists to help people who are for the most part unemployable, or who find it very difficult to become employed or remain employed, due to disability of some type or another. If one makes such determinations using a common sense and reasonableness approach, then Gender identity disorder should be near the top of the list of disorders that are covered under this act. Instead, it is on the list which lists conditions that are specifically excluded from coverage. One of the most common complaints of transsexuals in this country is that they cannot obtain decent jobs, or any jobs, due to prejudice.
Violence will not end hatred. Violence is always a solution that only provides temporary results. Often very temporary. The damage violence does lasts forever though, and will fester in the hearts of people who are victim to it through their own ugliness, forever. It will breed within them and be passed on to their offspring; perpetuating the cycle. It is not the answer.
I am not a girly-girl pacifist. Don't get me wrong. But I know what works and does not work. You do not achieve long lasting results, or respect, through violence. It doesn't work. Violence only breeds hatred and fear. Not respect. It also poisons your soul.
Violence and injury enclose in their net all that do such things and generally return upon he who began. Think about that when these nazis bring ugliness into your lives. They'll reap what they sow, and you wont have to be any part of that. Show them how vastly superior you are by not responding to their ugliness with ugliness of your own. Remind yourself daily that you are superior to them.
Recently, two people who are really close to me, one of them my best friend, found love and commitment among one another. Because of some lousy attempts by the mainstream media to sensationalize this issue when they caught wind of it, I am not going to mention their names, but all of us in this small community of TS prisoners know of them, or likely will at some point. Ours is a small world and news travels fast.
Separate by many miles, they chose a time and day to read their vows to one another even though they could not be together physically, and in all likelihood never will be. They both have life prison terms. But they found love in each other even though they were separate by many many miles.
I am so happy for them. I look around me daily and see how terrible many MTF's are treated. In the TV Media, news, on the street by cops, in the grocery store. The conclusion that I have come to and I readily admit that it may not be an accurate one, is that those of us who are unable to function in stealth mode convincingly are likely to never find real love and happiness except in the arms of another MTF. Its my understanding that many MTF self identify as lesbian. Who can blame them, Its been said that people do not become lesbian, but I personally believe that to be untrue. I think that a trans woman can become so disgusted with men that she is willing to take love wherever she may find it, even if its in the arms of another trans woman. Thats not a bad thing, though there are so many of our sisters out there who are afraid that if they do not conform to some archaic standard of the ideal male/female relationship that they will not get the treatment they need for GID, or any surgery to obtain psychosexual congruency. Those days are past. We no longer have to live in fear of the charlatans who perpetuated this sick agenda for many years in this country. In closing, I want to remind you all of the words that I always end this newsletter with. And I want you to ponder them with seriousness and thoughtfulness. Until next time. I love you all. Donna Dawn Konitzer.
It is the soul of the true warrior to struggle so that others might claim the prize.
Love One Another

I can be contacted at : Donna Dawn Konitzer PO Box 220 Winnebago wi 54985-0220