xpand(nclude(D:\http/ads/ads0.html))
TGF News Briefs
From our fabulous News Hawks!
Have you seen a TG-related news story online or in your local paper? Send it in to TGF and become a News Hawk! Don't assume we know everything that's out there, because you are our eyes and ears. To file a story, send it in to Cindy.
TS Wins Harrass Case
Contributed by Jodie Miller
A transsexual has proven sexual harassment by a former New
York University professor despite a question over the plaintiff's gender, but
jurors have cleared the school of responsibility.
The $14 million lawsuit drew attention before it came to trial when U.S.
District Judge Whitman Knapp ruled that it could proceed, saying sexual
harassment can be proven even when the gender of the victim is unclear.
The plaintiff, Jennifer Miles, was studying musicology in a graduate studies
program and undergoing hormone treatment when Professor Cliff Eisen allegedly
began the harassment in 1993.
Eisen fondled Miles' breasts and buttocks, forcibly tried to kiss Miles and
repeatedly requested a sexual relationship, Miles' lawsuit against the school
claimed. She did not sue the professor because the statue of limitations had
run out.
NYU lawyer Dona Kahn argued that whatever happened between the professor and
his student may have stemmed from Miles' flirtatious nature.
--via Associated Press
TG Boxer Keeps Winning
Contributed by Elizabeth Parker, Doreen and Rachelle Austin
Sensational Thai transvestite
kick boxer Parinya Kiatbusaba won his second professional bout
on Saturday when the lipstick-wearing pugilist was awarded a
convincing points victory over a Danish opponent.
The result was in little doubt after the ever-smiling
Parinya, sporting his trademark foundation, rouge and mascara,
reduced his opponent's face to a bloody mess in the fifth round
with two flying elbow attacks.
Parinya, 16, who was awarded 10,000 baht ($255) for his
pre-fight dancing routine, had earlier looked pensive as his
seconds rubbed him down.
But he took control for most of a contest in which he put
19-year-old Dennis Koebke on the canvas three times with leg
sweeps.
Parinya, who says he has "strong feminine feelings" but
wants to become a great fighter, was roared on by a sell-out
crowd of about 2,000 at Oam Noi Stadium in Nakorn Pathom on the
outskirts of Bangkok.
Last month Parinya, who has knocked out 18 out of 22
opponents in two years of provincial fights, caused a stir
before his first big city fight in February when asked to weigh
in naked.
He refused, burst into tears and eventually was allowed to
weigh in wearing his pants. He also became an instant celebrity
when he subsequently beat his opponent.
Saturday's contest reportedly generated ticket interest from
as far a way as Europe, Japan and Hong Kong and scores of
disappointed fight fans without tickets were left outside the
stadium.
Though transvestites and transsexuals are quite widely
accepted within Thai society, until Parinya's fight last month
Bangkok's premier boxing venues have remained bastions of
masculinity. ($1 - 39 baht)
--via Reuters
Fewer Boys Born In First World Nations
Contributed by Jodie Miller
A review of birth rates from several industrialized
nations shows that the number of male births has declined significantly in the
past few decades. Researchers say this change may be tied to increases in male
reproductive health problems.
Researchers from the World Resources Institute in Washington, DC, looked at
data from Denmark, the Netherlands, Canada and the US, and found similar
declines in the sex ratio, or the number of male births per female births, in
these countries. For example, from 1970-1990 in the US, the reported decline
of 1 male birth per 1,000 births resulted in 38,000 fewer male births. And in
Canada, the decline of 2.2 male births per 1,000 births resulted in 8,600
fewer boys being born during the same period.
"Such small changes... can have profound implications for large populations,
where hundreds of thousands or millions of births occur each year," write
Devra Lee Davis and fellow researchers in The Journal of the American Medical
Association.
The investigators explain that several factors influence whether a fetus,
which starts out female, becomes male. Exposure to hormones, older age of
fathers, use of fertility drugs, hepatitis and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma may all
reduce the proportion of male fetuses. Workplace and environmental factors
such as "...exposure to smelting operations, pesticides, inorganic borates,
lead, solvents, (and) alcohol" have also been linked to reduced male
populations.
In addition to the concerns about the reduced male birth rates, Davis and
colleagues note that disorders of the male reproductive tract, such as
hypospadias (an abnormality of the penis where the urethra opens on the
underside rather than at the tip) and cryptorchidism (a condition where the
testes don't descend normally) are becoming more common. The researchers
suggest there is a link, and theorize that prenatal exposures may affect men's
overall health and development.
The authors call for additional studies about birth rates by state, region and
nation. "The potential repercussions of conditions that may alter the ratio of
the sexes at birth should be considered a matter of utmost concern," they
write.
--via The Journal of the American Medical Association (1998;279:1018-1023)
TG Killer Allowed to Go Shopping
Contributed by Elizabeth Parker
The New South Wales Prisons Service today
hosed down opposition concerns over a decision to allow a convicted
killer turned transvestite to take part in a pre-release program.
Nicole Louise Pearce, formerly known as Paul Wayne Luckman, was
sentenced to a minimum 16 years jail in 1982 for kidnapping,
torturing and burying alive a 13-year-old schoolboy.
Under the Department of Corrective Services' program, Pearce has
twice been allowed to go late night shopping in Sydney's north-west
under the supervision of a department officer.
A spokeswoman for Corrective Services Commissioner Leo Keliher
said the program was aimed at rehabilitating prisoners like Pearce
to prepare them for re-entering society.
"It would be completely irresponsible of the department to
expect prisoners to be thrown back onto the street and expect them
to cope with life after being institutionalised for such a long
period of time," she said.
"This particular program referring to shopping, may seem trivial
to (the average person) but it teaches them budgeting skills and
how to cope with everyday situations."
The spokeswoman said Pearce was now classified as a minimum
security prisoner and did not pose a risk to the public.
Opposition spokesman Peter Cochran said the pre-release program was
out of touch with the community's attitudes.
"I believe the judiciary and the (NSW) Parole Board are not in
touch with the community's expectations," he said.
"To release a prisoner who has committed an offence as horrendous
as this one, certainly flies in the face of that."
Mr Cochran said the government was desperately trying to reduce
prisoner numbers to alleviate the costs imposed on the state's
prison system.
"It costs something like $130 a day for a medium security
prisoner," he said
"It's up to $190 a day for a maximum security prisoner and down
to about $90 a day for a minimum security prisoner. It's a massive
cost involved and any of them (the government) can unload, they
will unload."
Pearce is due to face a parole hearing on April 21.
--via Australian Associated Press
"Ma Vie" Wins Award
Contributed by Rachelle Austin
Time magazine, Entertainment Tonight, singer k.d. lang and the film "Ma
Vie en Rose" were among the winners Monday when a
gay and lesbian media image group presented its annual awards. At the first
in a series of galas including Washington and Los
Angeles, the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation honored pop star
lang, one of the first nationally known musicians to
come out as gay, with a special achievement award. Other winners in the
entertainment field included "Ma Vie en Rose" ("My
Life in Pink"), the story of a young boy dealing with his sexuality which
was named best film in limited release, and Lifetime's
"Any Mother's Son."
--via Reuters
PETA, Marino Roast Rivers
Contributed by Elizabeth Parker
When People for the Ethical Treatment of
Animals holds its "Fur is a Drag" party in Manhattan tonight, the main
attraction will be a celebrity roast of comedienne Joan Rivers. But she
won't be there. The object of PETA's disaffection will be Joan Rivers
impersonator Frank Marino. PETA has targeted Rivers because of her fondness
for fur. Last winter, an animal rights activist got close enough to the real
Joan Rivers to splash red paint all over her fur coat.
Bad News: More Women Choose Low-Heeled Shoes
Contributed by Maiki
The majority of women are now wearing flat, more sensible shoes at work, according to a survey presented recently at the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons meeting in New Orleans.
"I think women are finally realizing that as they have to spend more and more time in the workplace, they want to be more comfortable in their shoes," said Dr. Cherise Dyal of Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York. "And they are realizing that they have more problems with their feet and they want shoes that are going to be able to accommodate what they have to do on a day to day basis."
Dyal presented the results of the American Orthopaedic Foot and Ankle Society's shoe survey, which polled 500 working women on the kinds of shoes they were wearing to work. About 46% of women wear flats, 23% wear athletic shoes, 21% wear pumps less than 2 1/4 inches in height, and only 3% wear shoes with heels that are higher than 2 1/4 inches. In other words, Dyal said, the majority -- 69% -- of women are wearing shoes that are 1 inch in height or less.
The survey showed that higher heels are more commonly worn to work by older women. "Only 16% of women 20 to 30 years indicated they wore heels higher than one inch to work, while 28% of women 40 to 50 said they did," said Dyal in a statement issued by the Society.
Wearing high heels places high pressure on the forefoot, which can lead to bunions, hammertoes, and other foot problems. Dyal also noted that the problems caused or exacerbated by ill-fitting shoes are cumulative. Over decades of shoe-wearing, these problems often worsen, so that doctors tend to see more women with foot problems in their fourth, fifth and sixth decades, rather than in younger generations. The findings could mean that there will be fewer foot problems when these young women age.
"In this study we saw that 75% of the women in the 20-30 are category are wearing shoes that are less than 1 inch in height," Dyal said. "And 30% are wearing athletic shoes."
Tranny Granny Runs for Office
Contributed by Elizabeth Parker
Veteran New Zealand lesbigay rights activist and transsexual Jacqui Grant --
affectionately known to her West Coast community of Moana as the "Tranny
Granny" for having fostered more than 50 children -- has been elected to
represent her ward on the Grey District Council of the South Island. On
January 1, she was named a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit for her
work with youth and in preserving endangered species, the first transsexual
to be so honored.
Grant is New Zealand's second transsexual to be elected to a district
council. The first was Georgina Beyer
of Carterton in 1993, who went
on to become mayor in 1995 and is likely to make a run for Parliament this
year.
--via Wairarapa Times-Age
|