Congratulations to all that live in Minnesota. You’ve just become the 12th state in the US to offer Marriage Equality! 

Photograph series “Look at These Gay Faces” by photographer Ashley Kolodner was created to break down barriers that the LGBTQ community is living with. The project will hopefully give this community, “the voice it deserves and the power to speak their truth.”

To see the series click here.

To read more about the artist and this project click here.

Over 700,000 Americans identify as transgender, and often face discrimination battles with using public bathrooms. JustBathroomSigns.com has launched new gender-inclusive bathroom signs to provide equal access to people of all identities.

The new signs help alleviate the distress that transgender citizens may endure while choosing the public facility best for them.  Along with male and female symbols, the signs feature different symbolic representations to show variety and inclusivity. Inspired by a sign from the Parsons School of Designs, the sign’s language reads, “Anyone can use this restroom, regardless of your gender identity or expression.”

The issue of restroom access for transgender people is a hotly debated issue. In recent weeks, Arizona Representative John Kavanagh proposed a bill that prohibited people from entering public restrooms, showers, dressing rooms, or lockers if the designated sex of the facility did not match the biological gender on their birth certificate. The bill is still currently being contested. An Idaho transgender woman was cited for trespassing for using a female bathroom in a grocery store.

Psychotherapist Jean Malpas, the Director of the Gender and Family Project for the Ackerman Institute for the Family, gave insight into the public inclusion of gender-inclusive bathroom signs. “I noticed that the ‘The Modern,’ the restaurant attached to the Museum of Modern Art, had an all gender bathroom, and nobody, younger and older, male and female patrons, seemed to mind at all.”

In response to the signage, Malpas favors a gender-inclusive representation. “The point is that gender depends on one’s identity, and not on the sex they were born in or assigned at birth.”

To view the signs, visit http://www.justbathroomsigns.com/transgender-signs

“Not so long ago, Toni Bias dreamed of playing in the W.N.B.A. But after starring on the girls’ junior varsity basketball team as a high school freshman, Toni came out as transgender last summer, began going by the name Tony and started transitioning to male.”

This article by the New York Times, Changing Sexes, and Changing Teams, goes into the stories of folk who are athletes and transgender with a focus on the decision to begin transitioning and the impact that made on their athletic dreams. 

-Ryan

Smith College, an all-women’s college, was presented with petition signed by over 4,000 students last week in protests to the school’s current policy regarding transgender students and the denied admittance of an individual who was born assigned male but transitioned to female. 

From this student petition, and from a widely-attended rally, the administrators at Smith College have announced that they will have a committee review their current policy when they convene in September. 

I hope that this committee actually does review this policy and make changes where changes need to be made. Whatever the outcome is, as I have always said in the past, students’ voices will create change. Your voices matter. 

Read one of the articles covering this story here. 

My spring speaking tour is winding down. This Saturday I will be speaking at the University of Missouri-Columbia, Social Justice Symposium. Then on Monday I will be speaking from 6 -8 pm at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. 

I am starting to receive requests for the fall. If you attend a University or College seeking transgender speakers, you can submit inquiries to me at inquiry@ryansallans.com

-Ryan

This mountain in support of marriage equality is just going to keep growing. Read about this chart and senators support of marriage equality here.

Tomorrow night, April 9th, I will be speaking at the University of South Dakota from 7 to 9 pm at the Freedom Forum in the Neuharth Center.

On Saturday I will be speaking at the University of Missouri-Columbia and on Tuesday next week I will be speaking at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.

After next week I will have completed 30 University visits and plan on seeing that number continue to grow with each new year. 

The American Academy of Pediatrics declared its support for same-sex marriage for the first time on Thursday, saying that allowing gay and lesbian parents to marry if they so choose is in the best interests of their children.

Read the rest of the article here.

Westboro Equality House: Aaron Jackson Paints Rainbow Home Across From Anti-Gay Church

Aaron Jackson, one of the founders of Planting Peace, bought a house that sits directly across from the church’s compound six months ago. On Tuesday, March 19, he and a team of volunteers are painting it to match the gay pride flag.

The project — which the nonprofit is calling the “Equality House” — is the first in a new campaign Planting Peace plans to wage against the group. Westboro is known for its intimidating tactics of protesting (or threatening to protest) what they refer to as America’s pro-gay, anti-God agenda, in close proximity to pride parades, soldier funerals and other events like the Sandy Hook memorial services.

Fight hate with love.