National NAAFA convention - today through Monday!

The national NAAFA convention starts today, and continues through Monday! (National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance.) I’m sad that I’m not going. But I’m happy that my partner -- Julia McCrossin, the Fat Studies scholar -- gets to see some of her favorite fat community members because they’ll be in Washington DC for the con.

http://www.naafaonline.com/convention2011//index.html

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Welcome to The NAAFA 2011 Convention Site!!

NAAFA is the world's oldest, largest civil rights organization working to improve the lives of people of size. We would love for you to come celebrate with us in the beautiful Washington DC Area at our annual fund-raising convention.
It will be held August 4 - August 8, 2011 at the The Westin Washington Dulles Airport

Quicklinks

• Buy Your Convention Package
• Book Your Room
• NAAFA Fashion Show
• Fashion Design Scholarship
• Frequently Asked Questions
• Join NAAFA

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• Contact Us
• Donate
• Join
• User Agreement

Copyright NAAFA Inc. 2011

Massachusetts anti-discrimination bill would add weight & height!

Here in Massachusetts, a weight and height anti-discrimination bill has been reintroduced! An Act Making Discrimination On The Basis Of Weight And Height Unlawful -- House Bill 539 (http://www.malegislature.gov/Bills/187/House/H00539). It would amend state laws prohibiting discrimination in the areas of employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of race, color, religious creed, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, or ancestry -- by adding height and weight to the unlawful forms of discrimination.

The bill is having a public hearing before the Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development TODAY! I can’t attend; I submitted my testimony in writing. Please call and write your legislators, and spread the word! Too many people are ignorant about the issues, especially the weight-based ones – or are supportive but assume weight and height are already included in MA law (as they should be). And there’s been too little local support since the death of the primary local anti-weight discrimination leader a few years ago. This bill is one of the projects my partner (Julia McCrossin, Fat Studies scholar) and I plan to work on after she moves here this fall.

Submit your supportive testimony as a letter to:

Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development

State House -- Room 39

Boston, MA 02133

And to:

Rep. Byron Rushing's (bill sponsor) Legislative Aide -- Tracy Choi

Tracy.Choi@state.ma.us | 617.722.2006

She is also the contact person for more information about the bill.

If you are a constituent of a committee member, call or email them -- tell them you support this bill and ask them to support it.

If you are a constituent of a sponsor of the bill, call or email them – thank them for sponsoring the bill.

Ask others to do all of the above – please feel free to use this post.

Here are my previous posts:

http://masadarts.blogspot.com/2010/01/massachusetts-height-weight-anti.html

http://masadarts.blogspot.com/2010/01/my-testimony-re-massachusetts-height.html

Here’s my testimony that I submitted today:

July 14, 2011

Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development

State House -- Room 39

Boston, MA 02133

Dear Committee,

My name is Mycroft Holmes, and I live and work in greater Boston, where I was born and have always lived. I love Boston and the rest of Massachusetts; this great city and state have always been my home and I hope they always will be.

I’m an interfaith leader, and have been for many years. I’m Chair of the Interfaith Coalition for Transgender Equality (ICTE), a member of the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition’s (MTPC) Steering Committee and Chair of MTPC’s Faith Committee, and the Emeritus Founding Chair of Keshet’s Transgender Working Group (TWiG); I’m also a board member of Congregation Am Tikva (Brookline).

I write to you in support of An Act Making Discrimination On The Basis Of Weight And Height Unlawful -- House Bill 539. I testified before you in person in support of this bill (then House Bill 1850) at its hearing during the last legislative session (last January 27th). I also read the testimony of attorney Sondra Solovay, who could not attend as she lives and works in California. I regret that I am unable to attend today’s hearing, largely due to the extremely short notice.

This bill would amend current state laws prohibiting discrimination in the areas of employment, housing, and public accommodations on the basis of race, color, religious creed, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, or ancestry -- by adding height and weight to the list of unlawful forms of discrimination. In all but one state and three cities in this country, weight is not included in anti-discrimination or hate crimes laws. How can Massachusetts still not be one of those states? How can we not change this during this legislative session?

My faiths teach that like Adam, the first human being, all people are made btzelem Elohim – in the image of God -- people of all sizes, shapes, weights and heights. Our infinite diversity of bodies and their changes over our lifetimes are gifts and blessings -- meant to be realized, expressed, and enjoyed. God created and loves us all. We are all created equal, and should be equally protected by the law.

In my personal and professional life, I have experienced, witnessed and researched a great deal of discrimination – especially in employment. Much of it has been based on physical appearance and information, particularly height and weight. This discrimination is wrong, terribly damaging to everyone involved, and occurs many times every day in every part of our state. It must be ended as soon as possible, and HB 539 will help end it. The bill is also an important educational tool – its implementation process will help dispel the overwhelming and growing ignorance and misinformation about height and weight. I won’t go into detail, as you will be given expert testimony about these issues from my colleagues – ample evidence of the significant and urgent need for this legislation.

My wonderful life partner and I are the same height, 5’7”, and she weighs more than twice what I do – I am 135, she more than 300; I have always been thin, she has always been fat. Despite a lifetime of discrimination and other mistreatment, much of it based on her weight, she remains happy and healthy, mentally and physically, and a good and productive citizen. She is a published academic who is very active in her field of English. She works as a entry associate at the National Cathedral and is a member of other faith communities, and gives time and money to social justice organizations. She has been and is a tremendous blessing to her family, friends, colleagues, teachers, students, and all those who have been fortunate enough to know her, or indeed know of her.

She is a native and lifelong resident of Maryland and Washington DC -- where height and weight are protected classes in the Human Rights Laws. She has been visiting me here in Massachusetts for two years; in May she graduated from George Washington University with her second Master’s degree, and plans to move to Boston this fall so that we can find our first home and begin the next part of our life together. We have much to offer my great state. But we are both challenged by employment discrimination, and we fear discrimination in credit, housing, public accommodations and public education. We need An Act Making Discrimination On The Basis Of Weight And Height Unlawful to pass into law.

I want my partner to have full civil rights whenever she’s here. I want her to be able to continue to live, work and play as well even better than she has done, contributing even more to my home state than to her own. I want this for all residents and visitors of Massachusetts. I don’t want anyone to experience discrimination – but I know that some will, and I want them to be able to take appropriate action. I urge you to do everything you can to pass this vital and long overdue legislation during this session.

Thank you,

Mycroft Holmes

{address and email}

"Fat Studies: A Journal Of Research" - call for papers

"Fat Studies: A Journal Of Research" is calling for papers! The deadline for the first issue was Friday, July 1st. The deadline for the second issue is Tuesday, November 1st. The first issue will be published next year, 2012. Pricing information for subscriptions is not available yet. There will be institutional pricing and pricing for individuals. My partner Julia McCrossin is on the editorial board, and we are so looking forward to the first issue.

Here's the flyer:

http://www.scribd.com/fullscreen/57308795?access_key=key-yvsfmmd25u56zmyb495

And here's the flyer's text:

CALL FOR PAPERS

FAT STUDIES

A Journal of Research

New for 2012

Editor: Esther Rothblum, PhD

Women’s Studies Department, MC 6030

San Diego State University

5500 Campanile Drive, San Diego, CA 92182

Email: erothblu@mail.sdsu.edu

Fat Studies: A Journal of Research is the first academic journal in the field of scholarship that critically examines theory, research, and societal attitudes about body weight and appearance, and that advocates equality for all people with respect to body size. The focus of the journal is on why fat people are oppressed and who benefits from that oppression. In that regard, the journal is similar to journals from other academic disciplines that focus on race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, or age.

Content will include original research and overviews exploring the intersection of gender, race/ethnicity, sexuality, age, ability, and socioeconomic status on nutrition and the Health at Every Size model, legal issues, the pharmaceutical industry, psychology, sociology, cultural studies, literature, pedagogy, art, theatre, popular culture, media studies and activism.

WHAT IS FAT STUDIES?

Fat Studies is a field of scholarship that critically examines societal attitudes about body weight and appearance, and that advocates equality for all people with respect to body size. Fat studies seeks to remove the negative associations that society has about fat and the fat body. It regards weight, like height, as a human characteristic that varies widely across any population. Fat studies is similar to academic disciplines that focus on race, ethnicity, gender, or age.

CALL FOR PAPERS

Volume 1, 2012, 2 Issues

Fat Studies: A Journal of Research is looking for manuscripts for its inaugural issue.

Manuscripts should be submitted to the Editor, Esther D. Rothblum, PhD at erothblu@mail.sdsu.edu.

All editorial inquiries should be directed to the Editor. Books and other materials for review purposes should be submitted to the Editor. Authors must complete a Manuscript Submission & Limited Copyright Transfer Form.

All parts of the manuscript should be typewritten, double-spaced, with margins of at least one inch on all sides. Number manuscript pages consecutively throughout the paper. Each article should be summarized in an abstract of not more than 100 words. Avoid abbreviations, diagrams, and reference to the text in the abstract.

EDITORIAL BOARD

Fat Studies: A Journal of Research seeks to be a truly multidisciplinary and international journal. The Editorial Board represents this goal and is comprised of a variety of experts in the field of fat studies.

Elena Andrea Escalera ~ William J. Fabrey ~ Fall Ferguson ~ Janna Fikkan ~ Jacqui Gingras ~ Joyce L. Huff ~ JuliaGrace Jester ~ Susan Koppelman ~ Kathleen LeBesco ~ Lucy Aphramor ~ Linda Bacon ~ Natalie Boero ~ Deb Burgard ~ Charlotte Cooper ~ Joan Chrisler ~ Sheana Director ~ Elana Dykewomon ~ Paul Ernsberger ~ Michael I. Loewy ~ Julia McCrossin ~ Samantha Murray ~ Lily O’Hara ~ Lesleigh Owen ~ Fatima Parker ~ Cat Pausé ~ Abigail Saguy ~ Friedrich Schorb ~ Stefanie Snider ~ Sondra Solovay ~ Lisa Tealer ~ Corinna Tomrley ~ Stephanie von Liebenstein ~ Marilyn Wann ~ Bianca Wilson

Routledge

Taylor & Francis Group

[Publisher]

"Trans Forming Faith" service - First Parish Milton (UU) - this Sunday

As seen in The List: Boston's Queer Agenda (http://www.queeragenda.org/). I met Jamez in April, when we were two of the panelists at Harvard Hillel's event "Transforming Faith: Experiencing Religion and Gender Identity" (http://interfaithcoalition.blogspot.com/2011/04/interfaith-transgender-panel-harvard.html). I've seen Johnny perform, and I know Melsen through his social justice and custom t-shirts (http://melsenink.com/).

Trans Forming Faith

[Sunday, July 17th, 2011]

10:30 am

First Parish Milton (Unitarian Universalist)

535 Canton Ave

Milton, MA

First Parish in Milton will host a special worship service that explores the intersections of transgender identity and religious faith. Worship will be led by Jamez Terry, founder and organizer of the nationally touring Tranny Roadshow, as well as a student at Harvard Divinity School. Guest musicians include Johnny Blazes and Melsen Carlsen.

The service begins at 10:30 am, and all are welcome.

TransFaith Peer Support Networks -- for seminarians & clergy

TransFaith

On-line

Chris Paige at TransFaith Online (http://www.transfaithonline.org/) is working on creating TransFaith Peer Support Networks for seminarians and clergy. Please fill out the needs assessments (anonymously if needed) and/or spread the word. Here's Chris' message:

Hello all,

In the last few weeks (esp at HRC Clergy Call and at the Philly Trans-Health Conference), we have launched initial conversations about starting a couple of TransFaith Support Networks. Specifically a TransFaith Seminarian Support Network and a TransFaith Clergy Support Network.

Could you spread the following two surveys around your networks so we can draw in input from a variety of perspectives?

Needs Assessment: TransFaith Seminarian Support Network
http://network.transfaithonline.org/more/surveys/seminarian_needs/

Needs Assessment: TransFaith Clergy Support Network
http://network.transfaithonline.org/more/surveys/clergy_needs/

The needs assessment surveys can be filled out anonymously, if desired. They are hosted on the TransFaith Network, but a log-in is not required.

Please spread the word among transgender folks in your network, as well as allies who might know people...

Thank you!

Chris Paige

Help the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition win $25,000!

The Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition could win $25,000 for our "I AM: Trans People Speak" project -- our public education campaign about transgender people! But we need your help -- please vote for us and spread the word! Here's how (http://community.icontact.com/p/masstpc/newsletters/mtpc/posts/help-mtpc-win-25k):

Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition

Did you know... MTPC has the chance to win $25,000 in the Pepsi Refresh Project and You Can Help!

This 25K would help us fund I AM: Trans People Speak with Bus and Subway Ads Across the State You can vote everyday from July 1 – July 31 at least 2x and we hope that you will Vote once a day everyday on the website:http://www.refresheverything.com/transpeoplespeak for our idea: Build support and acceptance of transgender people through education Also vote once a day via text message: Text* 107338 to Pepsi (73774) to vote from your mobile. *Standard text messaging rates apply. Help Us Spread the Word On Facebook Example posting: Let’s win $25,000 for trans rights & MTPC vote for Build support and acceptance of transgender people through education at Pepsi Refreshhttp://www.refresheverything.com/transpeoplespeak @Mass Trans Political Coalition On Twitter Example: Vote MTPC for 25K: build support & acceptance of transgender people through education http://pep.si/ivdaSo #MTPCPepsi #pepsirefresh E-Blasts Example: I am helping MTPC to win $25,000 in the Pepsi Refresh Contest. Join me in voting everyday for MTPC’s idea: Build support and acceptance of transgender people through education. This $25,000 would help us to fund the I AM: Trans People Speak Campaign and get our transgender participants onto subway and bus ads across the state, this would the be the first campaign of its kind in the country! You can vote everyday at least 2x and we hope that you will from July 1 – July 31. Vote once a day on the websitehttp://www.refresheverything.com/transpeoplespeak and also once a day via text message: Text* 107338 to Pepsi (73774) to vote from your mobile. *Standard text messaging rates apply. Look for specially marked pepsi products to get a code that equal 100 votes! Thanks and with your help we can win this! VOTE NOW

Spread the Word

MTPC is holding our own contest to help us get votes!

The person who facebook and tweets out to the most number of people and to get us votes will win an MTPC T-shirt and Gourmet Gift Basket
2 Runner ups will win an MTPC t-shirt each

LEARN MORE »

"Fat Shame (Stigma & the Fat Body in American Culture)" - Amy Farrell's new book

Amy Farrell is Professor of American Studies and Women’s and Gender Studies at Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA. She is also the author of Yours in Sisterhood: Ms. Magazine and the Promise of Popular Feminism. She lives in Carlisle with her husband and two children.

Her new book is "Fat Shame (Stigma and the Fat Body in American Culture)". My partner (Julia McCrossin, Fat Studies scholar) and I are looking forward to reading it.

Here's the book's publisher's (NYU Press) page:

http://nyupress.org/books/book-details.aspx?bookId=1613

Here's Amy on "The Colbert Report" (May 4th episode):

http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/383684/may-04-2011/amy-farrell

And here's the book's description:

"To be fat hasn’t always occasioned the level of hysteria that this condition receives today and indeed was once considered an admirable trait. Fat Shame: Stigma and the Fat Body in American Culture explores this arc, from veneration to shame, examining the historic roots of our contemporary anxiety about fatness. Tracing the cultural denigration of fatness to the mid 19th century, Amy Farrell argues that the stigma associated with a fat body preceded any health concerns about a large body size. Firmly in place by the time the diet industry began to flourish in the 1920s, the development of fat stigma was related not only to cultural anxieties that emerged during the modern period related to consumer excess, but, even more profoundly, to prevailing ideas about race, civilization and evolution. For 19th and early 20th century thinkers, fatness was a key marker of inferiority, of an uncivilized, barbaric, and primitive body. This idea—that fatness is a sign of a primitive person—endures today, fueling both our $60 billion “war on fat” and our cultural distress over the “obesity epidemic.”

Farrell draws on a wide array of sources, including political cartoons, popular literature, postcards, advertisements, and physicians’ manuals, to explore the link between our historic denigration of fatness and our contemporary concern over obesity. Her work sheds particular light on feminisms’ fraught relationship to fatness. From the white suffragists of the early 20th century to contemporary public figures like Oprah Winfrey, Monica Lewinsky, and even the Obama family, Farrell explores the ways that those who seek to shed stigmatized identities—whether of gender, race, ethnicity or class—often take part in weight reduction schemes and fat mockery in order to validate themselves as “civilized.” In sharp contrast to these narratives of fat shame are the ideas of contemporary fat activists, whose articulation of a new vision of the body Farrell explores in depth. This book is significant for anyone concerned about the contemporary “war on fat” and the ways that notions of the “civilized body” continue to legitimate discrimination and cultural oppression."

ASDAH -- the Association for Size Diversity And Health

Have you heard about ASDAH, the Association for Size Diversity And Health? Founded the year I finally came out as a Fat Admirer and fat ally. My partner -- Julia McCrossin, Fat Studies scholar -- is a member and I donate; they're one of the organizations she asked for donations to instead of other Winter holiday gifts.

ASDAH is an international professional organization started in 2003; an all-volunteer not-for-profit organization,whose members and leaders are committed to the principles of Health At Every Size (HAES). ASDAH's mission is to promote education, research, and the provision of services which enhance health and well-being, and which are free from weight-based assumptions and weight discrimination.

The HAES movement is a continuously evolving alternative to the weight-centered approach to treating clients and patients of all sizes. It is also a movement working to promote size acceptance, to end weight discrimination, and to lessen the cultural obsession with weight loss and thinness.

Website --

http://www.sizediversityandhealth.org/

Blog --

http://healthateverysizeblog.wordpress.com/

Facebook --

http://www.facebook.com/pages/ASDAH/111760986801

Twitter --

https://twitter.com/asdah

And ASDAH is having their next conference in August in San Francisco -- "No BODY Left Behind — The HAES(SM) Approach: Ensuring an Inclusive Approach to Health and Wellness"; the early registration deadline has been extended to next Saturday June 25th:

http://www.sizediversityandhealth.org/content.asp?id=148

Transgender Equal Rights Bill UPDATE

Good morning!

Thank you for your support of the Transgender Equal Rights Bill’s hearing last Wednesday, June 8th! Though shorter and sweeter than the bill's previous hearings, it was still a very challenging 8 ½ hours (1:00 – 9:30 p.m.!); but our community did an excellent job before, during and after hearing day -- especially in presenting a dozen or so themed panels of speakers.

As ICTE, we particularly want to appreciate the panel of clergy we helped organize – Rabbi Joseph Berman, Rev. Stephanie Spellers (Episcopal Church), and Rev. Sue Phillips (Unitarian Universalist Association). The faith community was also significantly represented in the 150 letters of supportive written testimony submitted to the Judiciary Committee, including Bishop M. Thomas Shaw (the diocesan bishop of the Episcopal Church). ICTE's Declaration of Religious and Faith-Based Support for the bill, with its hundreds of signatures, was also presented.

Here's MTPC’s post-hearing debrief – http://www.masstpc.org/?p=1390
And here’s the Statehouse’s video of the hearing (in two parts):
http://www.malegislature.gov/Events/EventDetail?eventId=779&eventDataSource=VideoService&videoSource=jnt
http://www.malegislature.gov/Events/EventDetail?eventId=780&eventDataSource=VideoService&videoSource=jnt

The next step is the bill’s lobby day – a week from yesterday!

Transgender Equal Rights Lobby Day

NEXT THURSDAY, June 23rd
1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
MA Statehouse ~ Grand Staircase

MTPC page:
http://www.masstpc.org/?page_id=1303
Facebook event:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=199424550095489

RSVP to Rachel@masstpc.org or 617.778.0519 -- include your name and mailing address and/or legislators’ names so we can check you in faster on Lobby Day. A limited number of transportation stipends (for no/low income) and ride shares are available – include this in your RSVP. Make appointments with your legislators for any time on June 23rd. Gather at the Grand Staircase at 1:00 for a short program of legislative supporters, policy makers, and community members – possibly including a clergy speaker. And check in to receive your Lobby Day packet.

Please attend and invite others! We need the Statehouse to see as many supporters as possible. We particularly need visible clergy, lay leaders and other people of faith – please come vested and/or otherwise “faith flared”. If you can’t RSVP, or meet with a legislator, your presence is still very helpful and much appreciated.

If you can’t attend, MassEquality has a summary of how you can help:
http://eepurl.com/eiHWA

Best wishes for your Summer,

Interfaith Coalition for Transgender Equality (ICTE)
http://www.interfaithcoalition.blogspot.com
ICTE FB group:
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=7923372429
Faith campaign FB event:
http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=188135257891766

Keshet has created Jewish LGBT Heroes Posters

Keshet has created Jewish LGBT Heroes Posters -- and one is of Kate Bornstein, the transgender leader. I'm on one of the posters in one of Keshet's previous collections -- click here to see the PDF as a Google Document.

This Sunday, May 22, is Harvey Milk's birthday. And in his honor, we are celebrating! We've created a series of posters - starting with Harvey - celebrating LGBT Jews who have given us hope, given us courage, and transformed our world in countless ways. Our series also honors the amazing Kate Bornstein, a writer, performer, and an unwavering voice for those who feel like they don't fit in, as well as Lesléa Newman, the wonderfully prolific author who brought us the groundbreaking book "Heather Has Two Mommies." Supporting LGBT youth means celebrating queer heroes. June is LGBT Pride and a perfect time for you to ask your synagogue, JCC, Hillel, youth group, camp, and any Jewish institution that works with young people to display these posters. Remember, as Harvey famously implored all of us, "And you, and you, and you... have got to give them hope." Learn more & order posters: http://lgbtjewishheroes.org/ Who else belongs on a poster? http://lgbtjewishheroes.org/share-your-heroes/ Read the press release and download web images: http://ge.tt/7up6qng?c Mazel Tov Rachel Isaacs! Today also marks another historic occasion - Rachel Isaacs will become the first openly gay rabbinical student to be ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary. Our list of LGBT Jewish Heroes continues!! BOSTON | DENVER | SAN FRANCISCO www.keshetonline.org | info@keshetonline.org

Village Voice article - "Guys Who Like Fat Chicks"

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