Friday, June 19, 2009

Violence and Hatred is Alive and Well in the Land

I find myself in the awkward position of having to retract my original post because it was indeed a hoax.

Here's the word from the source:
This was just posted on Laura's Playground at 11:16am.

"I have pulled the story about Rachel Roo as the story can't be verified. Things just didn't add up. This morning we traced the IP and there is no story in the local paper in that town. A story of this nature would be in the public domain. Roo has been a staff member here for a year and has never made up stories before. " It appears to be a hoax and one that is in very poor taste and hurting the trans community heavily in a time when we are fighting very hard to be understood."

I extend my sincerest apologies for reporting the story without verification. . I Posted it because I thought I knew the person personally and was grief stricken. I was upset over the loss and verification wasn't first on my mind. We were all fooled. I feel like such an idiot.

Laura"


I appologize too for being quick to post, but even so this event still shows how much we are hated and this hoax in itself was an act of terrorism and hate towards us. But don't let that stop you from being out and proud! Being visible consistantly, successful and happy is the only way to counter the ignorance and the hatred that is out there. It means taking a risk and being more careful where you go alone, but if the perps get you to be scared into hiding they have accomplished their goal.

Eva-Genevieve!

6 comments:

  1. A horrible story indeed. As transgender people become more visible and outspoken those that hate us will do everything to stop us. THe person that outed Raychel has blood on his/her hands.

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  2. I just wrote a letter to Pres. Obama urging him to speak out in favor of passing the hate-crimes bill and other eqwuality issues and included what I posted here.

    You and anyone can can e-mail him through the White House web site: http://www.whitehouse.gov/CONTACT/

    Maybe he will do more if we keep his inbox full.

    Hugs EG!

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  3. Has anyone verified this story? I have found no independent source for this story so it is HIGHLY SUSPECT!

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  4. If this is true, this is very disturbing. Do you have resources to point at statistics on violence and specifically murder against the transgendered?

    While trying to find an independent news story about this girl, I found the story of Angie Zapata. You know, my first reaction when I hear that someone is murdered is that MURDER is a hate crime? Why should it matter what the circumstances are? I guess this is my reaction because as a straight white person, I have a problem when someone accuses me of hatred when I have an issue with an individual who just happens to be not straight or not white. But then I read the man's statements about why he killed Angie ... about realizing "what he did" and then hitting her again to kill her. That's crazy. That is hatred beyond what I can fathom.

    Do you have resources to statistics about how hate crime legislation is applied and regulated to make it effective in punishing those that hate, without being misused?

    Just curious...

    And my heart goes out to the friends and family of Raychel. What a tragedy!

    XOXO,
    Suzy

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  5. This story came out via a TG support group I belong to and was verified by several there as accurate and that they had actually known her, but now people there are saying not to spread it because there are complications - a little late now to say that because it is already all over the place. I did corroborate the story via a different source before I posted it - I even sent it to President Obama. If it is false I am very sorry about that, though the fact remains that hatred and ignorance and violence is still alive and well and we must take a stand against it.

    Angie Z was another horrible tragedy and for every one reported there are many that are not - TG's simply disappear without a trace mostly and you never hear about that in the news.

    I don't have the current statistics but the most common ones regarding TG deaths and hate crimes are not accurate because deaths and crimes agains TG folk are still minimized or just not reported in a lot of places. To some we are less than human and as such killing us isn't criminal in their minds - like Angie Z's killer did. Some think they are doing God a favor by offing us too - thanks to the religious (so called) "right". (I resent how they have hijacked the good name of "Christian love" and turned into something most of us have experienced as evil, but that I'll save that topic for another time).

    In many places there is no protection at all for GLB's and especially none for T's - the US Constitution has never, in reality, been put into total effect - if it had there would be no need for any of this thread. It is still the Orwellian principle of "all are created equal but some are more equal than others" that is considered to be liberty and justice.

    Nonetheless being out and open about who we are (who any of you are - this isn't advice just for trans-folk) in public is the only way we will become accepted - so be careful and watchful, but be out and proud! The best revenge and the best way of educating the ignorant is to be visible, successful and happy about who you are!

    Hugs,
    EG!

    P.S. to those of you that have had browser problems with this blog I apologize - I am contacting Blogger's techies to look into it
    -EG!

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