Sunday, March 31, 2013

RJ's April Blog Tour for Autism Awareness & Giveaway






Autism Fact: There are over half a million people with autism in the UK.

Prejudice & Transgender


Webster's College Dictionary
Prejudice (noun)
1: injury or damage resulting from some judgment or action of another in disregard of one's rights; especially : detriment to one's legal rights or claims.

2: a (1) : preconceived judgment or opinion (2) : an adverse opinion or learning formed without just grounds or before sufficient knowledge

b : an instance of such judgment or opinion

c : an irrational attitude of hostility directed at an individual, a group, a race, or their supposed characteristics

~~~~~~~~~~

More and more lately I've been seeing news articles surrounding prejudice involving transgender people and in some instances, very young transgender children.

On March 1st, students protested their transgender classmate by breaking dress code at South Panola High School in Batesville, Mississippi. The student, Leah, was supported by the school but some students thought by allowing Leah to dress as a girl when she was technically a boy set a double standard.

Smith College, a prominent women's college, twice returned a transgender application without conducting an official admissions review.

How about the recent proposed legislation by Arizona state rep, John Kavanagh, where people would have to prove their gender before using a public restroom.

But the one that touched me the most was the 6 year-old transgender child. Her school had initially accepted her being transgender and allowed her to use the girls restrooms. Later they recanted and in December the family was notified she would have to use the boy's restroom.

Discussing this last one with family and friends, it became apparent that there were several different issues. Someone had commented that the child was only six, how did they know their own mind on a complex issue such as gender identity.

I took offense.


Children are smart, smarter than some give them credit for. They know their own mind. What they like and don't like. They express their opinions in various ways, and if they trust you, they will share it with you. It broke my heart to think about all the children who are told, "No, you are a boy/girl, you must dress like a boy/girl."

In a vast majority of cases, prejudice happens because there is lack of knowledge. Skewed opinions are passed around that disregard the facts. People want absolutes. This is right, that is wrong. You're a boy, I'm a girl. Things aren't that simple. For example: beautiful people are airheads, athletes aren't book smart, if you wear glasses you're intelligent, geeks are intellectual ego maniacs, people with high IQs are sociopaths, people with tattoos are unreliable--all of these are incorrect assumptions based on supposition and opinion.

...and I'm getting off tract. The point is keep an open mind. Respect others, even if you don't understand. Just because you don't understand doesn't mean something is wrong.

On a positive side:

Simmons College, a prominent women's college, sent an acceptance letter to a transgender woman with a four year Achievement Scholarship.

Grant High School in Portland Oregon open unisex bathrooms for their transgender students.

Colorado insurers offering individual insurance policies can no longer deny coverage to transgender people using the pre-existing condition clause.


Thank you guys for stopping by. Here's a cute little gingerbread man I found a while ago. It does a great job in explaining the different identifications by keeping it simple and easy.

Now for some fun...

Leave a comment to be entered into an e-book give away from my back-list or a $5 amazon gift certificate. Even if you're not interested in the giveaway, leave a comment. I would like to here your thoughts.  Cheers!

Dreams of the Forgotten is available HERE and HERE.

NSFW Excerpt:


Running fingertips over the swell of Ushna's chest, I rested my palm over his heart. Ushna moved under my hand, moaning deliciously. I studied his sun-bronzed features and his solid muscular planes shaped by hard work. There were moments when I was amazed this man loved me. Only me. The knowledge humbled me even as it strengthened me.

Turning his head, Ushna moaned again. I wondered what kind of dream he had to elicit such a response. A wicked smile on my lips, I slithered down his body under the covers. I was determined to make a few of his dreams come true as I licked his semi-hard erection before sucking it into my mouth. I rolled my tongue around the flared head, loving the sensation of his shaft growing in my mouth.

I suckled, tonguing the ridge just how I knew he liked it. His louder moan was music to my ears as I released him and licked my way down, gently taking one of his balls into my mouth. With my hand, I stroked his stomach and felt the muscles quiver under my touch.

Taste, sight, touch, and smell. I gorged all my senses on him, sliding my arms under his legs. I wrapped my hands around his thighs and made my way slowly back up his hard length, swallowing him down to the back of my throat. Ushna writhed under me. His fingers carded through my hair before gripping it in his strong hands. My name fell from his lips as he bucked up into my mouth. Goddess, I loved to hear him speak my name.

I sensed Ushna was striving to keep control but I wanted him to lose himself in me. I rose up, the sheet sliding off me, lips sealed tightly as I ran my tongue along the underside of his shaft, withdrawing with a hint of teeth on the way up. I pressed hard on the bundle of nerves right under the head of his erection right before I sealed my lips again giving it long, strong sucks. I pumped my hand up and down his spit-slick shaft in tandem, knowing it would drive him crazy. I reached past his perineum, pressing and massaging the rim of his entrance. Ushna finally let go of his control, growling into the predawn as he fisted my hair and thrust, quick and sharp, into my sealed lips before he came in my mouth.

I moaned, swallowing around him. I wasn't remotely finished tasting his release when Ushna pulled me up to rest on my side next to him. He gazed at me with his beautiful emerald-colored eyes that were ringed in golden brown, bright and awake. I opened my mouth to protest but instead received Ushna's urgent kiss. His tongue darted in, taking over, tasting his own seed. I groaned into his mouth and threw one of my legs over his hip doing my best to rub against him. It wasn't working because my stomach was too distended. Ushna moaned into my mouth, the rumble vibrating against me.

I loved the sounds he made for me.


Don't forget to check out the sites on the Autism Tour. Links are below!!

17 comments:

  1. I'm sorry to hear that, it's sad that while we made progress in Medicine and Electronics, some attitudes and believes are still stuck in the last century.

    moonsurfer123 at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree. In some areas we excell and others we are stuck. Thanks for stopping by.

      Delete
  2. This is an issue that sadly I don't think we'll be able to see through until the next century. People are stupid and contradictory the way they preach "we need to move forward and change" yet when it comes to things like someone's PERSONAL sexuality they're like, "This wasn't how it was then, so it shouldn't be now." I really just wanna go up to them and tell them to shut the fuck up and stop shoving their hate on other people and especially stop teaching it to their kids.. It's ridiculous and yeah, I agree, Kids/teens may not know exactly what they should and shouldn't do, but I most certainly trust that they KNOW themselves. I sure as heck did. Our futures, things like, what career's we'd like to take, are things we learn as we go through life, but the one thing that is Ever unchanging is A person's self. They shouldn't have someone tell them, "No you're wrong, you're this.." It doesn't work that way. We're not what someone tells us we are. We're not our parent's, we're not our family, we're ourselves.
    I just wish those that are so quickly to hate and judge and ridicule would and could see past their fear and hate.

    Judi
    arella3173_loveless@yahoo(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well said, Judi. Time and education are important tools in battling prejudice.

      Delete
  3. I'm a little confused as the title is a blog hop for Autism awareness and then the article is on gender issues...

    However, I love the genderbread info-graphic; it depicts the issues around gender and sexuality wonderfully! I would like to post it to facebook and tumblr - could I do that and who should I credit?

    And thank you for the book excerpt - so hot!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. :) I understand. When RJ set up the hop, she set the focus on *prejudice* but it didn't have to be just about autism, or even special needs. It could be GLBTQ prejudice, gender prejudice, political prejudice... anything...

      I have an autistic nephew and his mother teaches children with special needs. I had planned to interview her but she was two weeks away from getting remarried. This was my back up article. I hope it didn't offend. It wasn't meant to.

      The Genderbread diagram came from the group that has their web address listed on the picture. www.itspronouncedmetrosexual.com. Thank you for stopping by.

      Delete
  4. It was great to read some of the good news stories. It may be a small step but at least it is in the right direction. It's heart breaking to hear about the little kids. They need support and love in this stage of development in order to enter their teens years more confident in who they are.

    Please count me for the contest.

    Thanks Karl
    slats5663(at)shaw(dot)ca

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree Karl. It's so important for the children to have that steady support.

      Delete
  5. Thanks for the great post. Very interesting.

    gisu29(at)gmail(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  6. This was a great post! Remember, sex is between the legs, and gender is between the ears! That kinda works. I don't understand how someone can be offended by another persons sexual or gender identity. I used to live in a very diverse neighborhood. I got hit on by lesbians. I told then no, but some didn't believe me. I asked one, why do you keep trying.. She said because my " no" was friendly, polite, and devoid of anger. And I'd still talk to her as if it was no big deal that I wasn't interested in more. Why would it be a big deal? She lived on my block! Why would anyone care....
    Urb
    brendurbanist at gmail dot com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're right, it shouldn't matter. Instead to accepting the compliment some people overreact. It's heartbreaking about the polite "no" though.

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  7. Interesting post with some really good thoughts on the subject of gender. Personally my children were all brought up to respect a person no matter what their sexual orientation, skin colour or religion unless they were not worthy of respect because of bullying, abuse or crime. It seems to have stuck as I have 5 wonderfully adjusted adult off spring who are in turn respected by all their friends.

    ilona
    felinewyvern at googlemail dot com

    ReplyDelete
  8. You know sometimes you hear good stories and think, yes we make progress and then you meet bigotry and sexism, homophobia and prejucide, sometimes from people you haven't expected, it's sad but I don't think even another 100 years will eliminate prejudice, sadly, I think people can always find something what they can hate and distrust and history is full of such examples.

    emiliana25 at web dot de

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    Replies
    1. I have a set of cousins who are ten years or more younger than I am. In the summer I was fourteen or fifteen, my brothers and me, along with all my cousins would be dropped off at Granny's and Papa's so the adults could go to work. The older cousins help care for the younger cousins. The youngest were four girls and one boy. The boy, Paul, was four and wanted, desperately so, to where a pink barrette in his hair. Granny indulged him and every day after his dad dropped him off, he would go to Granny for his barrette. Before my uncle came to pick him up, Granny would reclaim the barrette. I will never forget the day my uncle came early and Paul was still wearing the pink barrette. Everyone was yelling. Granny said Paul wearing a barrette wasn't hurting anything. My uncle said Paul was a boy and boys don't wear barrettes. My cousin was devastated. It was very tense for a couple of weeks and something I will never forget.

      The point is, regardless how the children were raised, they grew into adults with their own set of beliefs that didn't follow "boys don't wear barrettes". It didn't take 100 years them to get there. I would've preferred the lesson was taught in a different manner but the outcome was the same. The key, I believe, is to not forget the lessons over time. Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  9. I'm amazed that gender is still so binary for many people nowadays--great post!

    vitajex(at)aol(dot)com

    ReplyDelete
  10. Genderbread graphic was so interesting.

    strive4bst(At) yahoo(Dot) com

    ReplyDelete