RESOLUTIONS

I hope everyone enjoyed the festive season and all it had to offer, and trust we all made a few resolutions for good measure as well. Every year we embark on a new journey into a promising fresh year, armed with optimistic and hopeful resolutions that we pray we might keep. I have in the past, like many before me, taken up the challenge of keeping to new years promises of being 10kgs lighter and 10 times wiser and hoped they would come true. I guess we all know that the only one who can achieve this is the one we call ourselves, and if we are lucky we may get a little help from our friends as well. Only we can achieve goals set out for us and the wisest of all take a modest leap of faith when setting the height of their bar. Of course I am not referring to the bar a few of us lean on or hold up around the scene while drinking our weight in poison of choice liquid gold. One must give oneself the edge by at least making sure that goals to be reached are not out of our league or so far off the map that finding the destination is like someone walking to Kilcoy in one thong and a pink bikini.

I gave myself a break this year and just wished for the best I can achieve in 3 simple steps. 1. Smile and laugh more, worry less 2. Look after myself first, and then share the love 3. Don't take life too seriously, think musicals! Voila! Very achievable! I hope you too chose a kinder approach to this unfortunate ritual of setting ourselves up for feeling like failures in our future. Never set yourself up for heartache, just give yourself the love you deserve and keep it simple. No one wants to get to the end of the year and realize that the 20kgs we promised we would lose, somehow managed to follow the G.P.S back to our rear. That fortune you didn't make does not need to haunt your mind if you decide enough can make you happy. Just learn to be one with yourself and happy to be still here breathing in the good fortune of having the chance to see another year in. So many miss the opportunities life brings by missing out on living in the moment when too much focus is placed in the future. I am vowing to never take more from myself than I give to others, and many lessons were learnt in this regard in the year that has past. I will cherish my virtues and squander none on those who don't deserve them, and if you take heed you may do the same. Whatever your wish, all I wish for you, is that you have a Happy New Year!


Copyright © Robyn Whittaker. 2010.

Balls and Tinsel!

Well it's that time of the year again when we shake off the tree and fill it with balls and tinsel and hope the fat old man in a red suit leaves us something under it for our yearly efforts. This part of the world warms up and the other part cools down and we all think of the good and the bad times past. No amount of shaking the boxes produces that Prada handbag or Jimmy Choos that I have wished for in years gone by and this year I guess will be much the same. I too will enter the land of gastronomical madness and produce a euro styled hot banquet of turkey and baked ham fit for a queen, punctuated with custard drowned pudding. I will no doubt drink my weight in champagne, pausing briefly to rest my stomach before re-emerging to inhale what is left over. Christmas is my favourite time of the year, a period where many of us gather together to celebrate what it is to be human in this consumer obsessed planet we call earth. It's the thought that counts they say, but who of us would scowl at a box of Chanel or a Gucci watch with a diamond or two.

Of course we do encounter the odd scrooge or two on our travels who spit and splatter about how vile it all is and how we should somehow feel guilty for just having a good time. Take no heed to these nay sayers and party poopers who relish any chance to ruin someone’s happiness, they are just there to remind us of how not to act and challenge us to have fun in spite of their efforts. Park your clown car of fun where ever you like this silly season and surround yourself with family and friends and enjoy the month that ends with presence of mind and the presents you find. Drape your life with a sparkle and a smile, never wane from joyful desire. Spare a thought for those less fortunate, the sick and lonely without family and open your heart to those on a limb. Many a Xmas orphan has found their way to my home in years gone by and I delight in sharing the day and all it has to offer with them. Finally when all else fails, the tinsel disintegrates and your tree falls apart and no amount of turkey or ham fills your hole, just think of the gift of the life you've been given and turn all your thoughts into gold. Most of all, may my wish come true, I hope you have a Merry Christmas.

Copyright © Robyn Whittaker. 2010

HISTORY OF THE FUTURE

Is it all in vain to hope that we may some day all skip to a similar beat that sets the rhythm of a race accepting of difference and change? Will our new ordered world understanding fully include those on the fringe into the taken-for-granted so-called norms of our every day? Shall I live to enjoy this future I feel certain is bound to arrive eventually on the doorsteps of a generation beyond our alphabet?

Living on the edge of dark clouds that bring occasional rain is how we are seen by some. Instead of our rainbow, they only see storm clouds gathering, and with bated breath they wait and anticipate where next lightning may strike.

To say that it is right that only one type of person is entitled to certain liberties afforded to many and stolen from some, is surely the hares way to run. And soon, perhaps even sooner than you think, hard-shelled instructors of steady sure pace will one day win the seemingly failed chase. Futures full of children will change the wrongs to rights, not all at once I guess, but time will tell a new tale.

Marriage between anyone for whom it pleases will seem oh so very "normal" by then, so much so that a yawn is the only protest you may get. Will you marry for Love, maybe money or pleasure? Why not combine the three? After all, some have had centuries to work this out and look what is happening to that. Gender and sexuality will be something of which we blend and bend, shaping them to our heart and souls desire. No human fear will be leading a charge against what is finally realised as nature’s way. And the earth will still revolve around its sun, inevitably gaining heat on every new go round. And occasionally the future will take a look back as they do today, and with a beat in their hearts and relief on their brow they might say, "Wow! What a weird lot".


Copyright (c) Robyn Whittaker. 2010.

Book Thrower!

What makes us who we are? What joins us together to complete a sentence handed down from the book thrower that says this is your lot so stick with it. No escape from tunnels dug deep into the sediments of toiled soil long past turned to rock that's never going to avail itself to become rubble we wish was behind us. Keep digging and searching for the fools gold in pans filled with the joy that sends feet skyward and a body in fast pursuit.

If only riches were fast pertainable and many to be had by those that wish for less work for best returns and a place in history that the royalties only ancestors gain. Love me now for who I am and who you wish me to be and think not of who I sometimes appear to be. If the joy I bring is a fleeting gift, let the jester in me be the one you cherish for all mans time, and let that time last for exactly the length of the strings in the history of theory.

Copyright (c) Robyn Whittaker. 2010

"Stuffed" with Choice!

Life is full of choices: what to wear, who to love, where to live and how to live and so on as the wheel of life spins us in and out of control. Sometimes those choices take you far whilst others seem to stop you in your tracks and leave you wondering how to reverse what appears unchangeable. Superficial changes to one's appearance and lifestyle are easy to make when financial grease flows freely to the axle of your wheels and life glides along like a dream with beautiful scenery at every vantage point. Our clothing, the home we live in and the car we drive all say a lot to those passing through our scope of being and "new" is where it is at for the ones who desire the appearance of "most".

We are what we believe and thoughts become things, it has been said, and with every passing moment we are potentially the creators of what we soon will see. The world and its human inhabitants, good and bad, spin silently in space pondering the meaning of it all and wishing this power we have been told we possess, was one that automatically was ours to control. What if we were able to blend our minds in unison to positively bring about world change of any magnitude to prevent our own genocidal annihilation via the environment? Would we do it? Are we too far gone with our collective pursuits of selfish gratification to ever make the change?, or will we get to the brink of no return to face the ultimate result of over consumption on a cancerous scale.

These are the thoughts that make us conscious beings of positive and negative change, and these thoughts create the actions that have the potential to save our human ship or sink it under the waters without a trace. We live in a throw away society trained to give away what has lost style and use product designs that are cheaper to replace than fix. Stuffed with choices in a sea of obsolescence, we try to convince ourselves that the old world order of protecting values and reliability in goods is somehow going to be fully achievable again. I like to think that we can effect a new direction for us all, but after witnessing the things we discard on our footpaths and a futile phone call to an appliance repair store to fix an unfixable blender, I can only wonder.

Copyright (c) Robyn Whittaker 2010

SPITTING RIGHTEOUS VENOM

Gay marriage is a contentious issue for many "religious" members of our wider human community. With God on their side, the Righteous Crusades continue. Many American church leaders, for example, are actively opposing and trying to overturn judicial rulings and legislative activity that has extended marriage rights to everyone, gay or straight. For example, the highest court in the state of Iowa just, over a year ago, ruled that equal rights are just that, and that they extend marriage rights to all. As fundamental rights are extended incrementally, and from place to place, to a traditionally marginalized minority, some pious folks' bile is being hatefully displayed, a distinct difference from the love and humility that one might expect based on the teachings of their various sacred texts.
Marriage has traditionally been a preserve of the straight. Religious leaders and secular lawmakers have arrogantly held the moral and legal keys to this domain. In much of the world, unfortunately, they still do and nothing has changed in this regard. Pandering politicians and dogmatic piety stand, locked arm in arm, in fear of change, in fear of the pink nuptial.
State-recognized gay marriage is a contentious issue for many devout persons because they confuse state "sanction" with religious "sanctity." According to many of their various "sacred" rulebooks, male and female unions are the only couplings their God approves of, and therefore secular authorities need to adhere to those rules, too. And that's just the way it's always been. However, in modern, progressive societies, we don't legislate, or give state sanction, based on these sacred texts. In tolerant and open countries, we can't. Whose book would we choose? Whose interpretation? Instead, we distinguish between the secular and the sacred, and try to avoid the one encroaching on the other. Proponents of gay marriage are not demanding the right to be married in your church. Instead, we are demanding the right that your church not interfere with our rights to marry in our government courthouses, our public parks, our homes and gardens, and yes, even in those churches that do open their aisles to all God's children.
Where human progress and change confronts the comfort zone of long-established beliefs, you will find conflict as some try to romanticize the past, mythologize the status quo, and marginalize any calls for change. But, equality is about treating all humans with dignity and respect, providing equal rights for all regardless of sexuality or gender. It is not about mankind's ongoing "what's next" fear. As for your spirituality, believe what you want to believe and find happiness in what you will, but do not denigrate and oppress others as we all seek to live our best lives in our short time in this world.

Copyright (c) Robyn Whittaker. 2010

THE PUZZLE OF LIFE

LIFE IN TIMES OF HARDSHIP CAN SOMETIMES FEEL LIKE A SHATTERED PUZZLE, WITH THE PIECES OF YOUR SELF SCATTERED ALL OVER LIFE'S FLOOR. WHEN TIME COMES TO PICK UP AND RE ASSEMBLE, THE LIFE PICTURE IS NO LONGER WHAT YOU SAW BEFORE.

THE PUZZLE, THE PICTURE AND PIECES THAT WE ARE MADE UP OF, LOOK ONE WAY BEFORE NEGATIVE AND POSITIVE EVENTS HAPPEN AND ANOTHER WAY SOON AFTER.
THE YEARS PASS AND CONFRONTING LESSONS GOOD AND BAD, CHANGE US IN A WAY THAT IS SOMETIMES ONLY EVIDENT WHEN WE PLACE MOST OF THE PIECES BACK TOGETHER, AND WE WITNESS A VERY DIFFERENT SCENE.
LIFE AND ITS EVENTS EITHER BREAK US APART, OR BRING US TOGETHER TO FIND A NEW RESOLVE AND WE EXPERIENCE AND VIEW A DIFFERENT SCENE. WHETHER IT IS PLEASANT AND POSITIVE OR NUMBING AND NEGATIVE IS THE CHOICE THAT IS OURS TO MAKE.
YOU START WITH THE EIFFEL TOWER AND WHEN MOST OF THE PIECES ARE COMING TOGETHER YOU REALIZE IT'S NOW THE LONDON BRIDGE.
BOTH STRONG, YET ENCOMPASSING TWO DIFFERENT IDEALS.
ONE A SYMBOL OF STRENGTH AND BEAUTY, THE OTHER A STRONG MEANS OF GETTING OVER AND ACROSS DEEP WATERS. WATERS THAT RUN DEEP LIKE BLOOD RUNNING IN VAIN.
A BRIDGE THAT IN TIME YOU KNOW IN YOUR HEART YOU WILL HAVE TO CROSS, IN ORDER TO REACH A LAND THAT YOUR SOUL WILLS THE FLESH TO TRAVERSE. LIFE'S JOURNEY AND THE COMPLEXITIES WE ARE FORCED TO ACCEPT, LOSS AND ALL THE CHANGES WE EXPERIENCE WITH THE PASSING OF TIME.
A COMING OF AGE FORCED UPON US FOR DARING TO CONTINUE WITH THE BELIEF THAT OUR LIFE AGAINST ALL THE ODDS SHOULD END UP THE ONE THAT IS MEASURED, PREDICTABLE AND SAFE. DRAWN TO UNDERSTANDING THE FUTILITY OF FIGHTING LIFE'S REALITIES WITH WHAT WE WOULD PREFER, TEACHES US THAT AT TIMES WE APPEAR TO BE LIKE ACTORS THAT AT BEST CAN GUIDE THE SCRIPT WITH POSITIVITY AND ULTIMATELY CHANGE OUR FATE. WE ARE, I BELIEVE, SENT AND DRAW TO OURSELVES THE EXPERIENCES WE NEED TO LEARN TO BE THE BEST WE CAN BE. YOU ARE WHAT YOU BELIEVE AND WHAT YOU GIVE OUT YOU RECEIVE.
SOME EXPERIENCES ARE A GIVEN, DEATH, AND LOSING THE ONES WE LOVE. WITH EVERY PASSING BREATH WE ARE IN THE FLUX OF CHANGE, AND FROM SECOND TO SECOND THE PERSON WE WERE PASSES AWAY. FOCUS ON THE GOOD IN YOURSELF AND OTHERS AND YOU WILL GET THROUGH, WHATEVER IS IN STORE FOR YOU.
EVEN THOUGH BACK THEN IN THE PAST IS SOMETIMES LONGED FOR WITH NOSTALGIA, OR DREADED WITH REMORSE AND HEARTACHE, FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE WE WILL NEVER BE THE SAME. THIS IS MY VIEW, YOURS MAY NOT BE THE SAME. ONE THING THAT I AM SURE OF, THE PUZZLE OF LIFE COMES WITH A GUARANTEE OF CHANGE.

(c) Robyn Whittaker

Weight A While

Weight a while, think,

Plants in the mind keeping you here.

Places we stay, locked faithless embrace,

Hooks that catch, working against yourself.

Positive mindset, loving reflection releases the trap.

Absorbed self acceptance is key, to what we finally see.

Core set of values, constrict or release,

Freedom is body image at ease.

Copyright (c) Robyn Whittaker 2009.

Meshel apologises to save her face

Well looks like Meshel has attempted to apologise for her part in the whole mess that was created on the 3rd of November by leaving a comment under the original online story that was on the Pride web story. It seems she has had a change of heart and is not so sure she is going to stick by her Transphobic behaviour or her attacking comments about me having no sense of humour. Strangely Q-News reported that she was always steering things in the right direction and did no wrong but that was just a clever cover up to save Meshel's face and now it seems she has decided to admit she did wrong and retract her prior behaviour with an apology to the Trans community and a vague apology to me. Thanks Meshel, now all you have to do is convince your other mates to do the same and then organise an official on air apology and a written one, but then that may be asking too much from someone who sincerely did not want to offend anyone from my community. I think it is very big of her to do so but I also guess under the circumstances she had little choice if she intended on ever showing her face at an LGBT event again.

It has been reported that she has just given birth to her twins, a boy and a girl and is happily getting on with that part of her life so I guess in her mind the whole situation has been saved and is now on the back burner in favour of nappies and formula milk feeds... Well that may be true for a while, of course that is until the ADCQ decide to start proceedings against the station and Ben Teo, at which time she and her crew will be dealing with number one's, two's and three's! As I promised here is my response quotes to her attack on me and my lack of humour and under that is her apology...... Thanks for your apology Meshel, it is something I guess until the ADCQ accept the complaint, investigate and hopefully force you all to appreciate the virtues of keeping your opinions to yourself and learn a little respect for a the Transgender Community.

Copyright (c) Robyn Whittaker 2009.

(My quote responses in full to Meshel's original attack on me are as follows....)

As a Transgender I have the right to stand up for who I am and react against a 5 minute on air vilification attack, regardless of how much Michelle has deluded herself in thinking having Transgender friends or working in a brothel affords her the right to denigrate my kind.

No sleep has been lost over the lack of a false friendship with the likes of Michelle and her Nova team, she can be well assured of that. And let me also assure her that I have a very good sense of humour and shock jock cheap shots that are aimed squarely at a minority to destroy their self esteem and garner negative feeling amongst the wider community for Trans people through sick comical vilification is thankfully not my idea of comedy. What next, is the LGBT community supposed to lay down and laugh at dictated humour styles by a bunch of glass house dwelling bigots just because they say they know a Trans person or a gay person?

On air, Michelle has been asking what gender her listeners think she will be giving birth to, with only two binary choices, boy or girl. How about a Trans child Michelle?, they are worthy of birth and love too! or is that not a valid guess from this listener?

Regards Robyn Whittaker.

(Her Apology as a comment under the Pride online story is as follows...)

From Meshel Laurie written by Meshel Laurie , November 26, 2009...

OK, seriously, this has gone way too far, mainly because I totally took my eye off the ball in a time of intense pressure and reacted glibly and defensively. I can't really cope with anyone suggesting that I am in any way homophobic so I lashed out at my accuser rather than considering that I may have lost my judgement while trying to get a cheap laugh. I really am so sorry for hurting the feelings of members of the transgender community for whom I have great respect. I am genuinely sorry for the whole thing.

(You can view her apology here at the bottom of the original Qld Pride online story in the comments section...)

http://qlp.e-p.net.au/news/nova-fm-dj-in-trans-attack-2942.html

Gary Burns lends a hand.

Gary Burns decided to give his valued opinion on this issue.....Gary is the only person to have successfully taken John Laws to court for his comments on homosexuals, referring to them as pillow biters etc. I am very thankful that there is such strong support for the Trans community by someone who understands that apathy is not acceptable on these issues... The story can be found in the link below......

http://qlp.e-p.net.au/news/burns-weighs-in-to-nova-stoush-2943.html

After sending in another two complaints about Transphobia and vilification on the Nova airwaves, the first of 3 being on the 26th with the Lady Ga Ga comments, I received after each complaint, response letters in the form of a legal jargon laden "we are sorry your offended but we don't believe we were offensive" style replies. Over the last few weeks I have been trying to get Nova to admit they were in the wrong and did in fact broadcast damaging vilification and Transphobia on the radio again on the 3rd and the 9th of Nov and get them to apologies in writting and on air directly to the Trans community, to no avail.

I even received an abusive phone call from Sean Ryan, the manager of Nova, yelling down the phone at me about my Blog ...."What is this rubbish you have written about me, saying that my apology was insincere?!!!" What apology Sean?! If you are apologising for offense that may have been caused you are only apologising for my own perception of what you are saying I perceived as offensive and not taking responsibility for actually being offensive, not to mention breaking vilification laws. You may have come down in the last one mate but this gal was a few showers before that I can assure you. I was amazed that after everything this lot had done to attack the Trans community, he thought he would ring me and berate me like a child for employing my right to defend my kind with free speech on my own Blog site. After calling him back when he hung up on me, he ended the next conversation with a threat to take legal action against me for harassment! Yeah right! go ahead, do your worst, I will gladly stand up in any court in Australia and give this issue the Media attention it deserves on your behaviour in regards to picking on a minority with reckless abandon. You lot are nothing more than a pack of glorified schoolyard bullies that have spread prejudice and have encouraged our youth and the wider community to despise and discriminate against the Trans community. Your on air handy work has the potential to cause loose canons in the community to commit hate crimes on anyone that you dictate is not worthy of respect and fair treatment. You need to be stopped from this irresponsible vile form of banal entertainment and as far as I am concerned this sort of broadcast is the reason that school kids, (one of your largest listening groups) commit heinous hate filled bullying attacks that they film and upload to what ever medium suits there sick minds, to fulfill a desire to physically and verbally abuse other kids they deem as under them.

Even after trying to get Nova to realise what they have done, Sean tried to stage manage with Q-News an alleged apology to the LGBT community..(Strangely that same apology was not sent to Qld Pride to print)... Meshel Lorry (spelling is intended) had sent Qld Pride a scathing attack on me accusing me of not having any sense of humour! Meshel you are seriously twisted if you think any of that broadcast was funny, and dear I don't give a flying duck wing if you worked in a brothel with Trans women you have no right to attack and ridicule Trans people. Your about to give birth any day now apparently, and what a revolting attitude to have when your about to become the mother of twins. Lets just hope you don't have to deal with anything other then the gender they are born with as I would guess you would be a real treat of a mother to them with that sense of humour. Yes you cleaned up your act at the end of that braodcast only when you realised that it had gone too far. Q-"News" was so certain you were steering the conversation in the right direction all the way through but you and I know that is not the truth, and anyone else that heard it on the day or during the week that it was left up on the Nova website, and those that hear it in the future will get to know you for who you really are, someone with a very twisted and sick sense of humour who thinks it is ok to vilify and persecute the transgender community!

Here is the link to the story that you can find on Qld Pride online and soon I will be posting my responses to Meshels attacks on my sense of humour!

http://qlp.e-p.net.au/news/nova-fm-dj-in-trans-attack-2942.html

LGBT-Party Engagement at Paliament House

Here is the story I wrote for the ATSAQ newsletter that was recently published about my visit to Queenslands Parliament House... I am currently in the process of putting together a Parliamentary E-Petition with Grace Grace as its parliamentary signatory to stop Transphobia in the media. Nova radio here in Brisbane is a good example of why this form of abuse needs to be stopped. Still no official apology to the Trans community, written or on air from Nova or Ben and the band of bullies that joined into his ridiculous banter about Trans women on the 3rd of Nov and I will not stop pursuing them for this written and on air apology and will be posting all of the developments on this issue in the near future.



What a difference a day makes to proceedings at the QLD Parliamentary community engagement and the BBQ that followed. History was made on Thursday night 29/10/09 at Parliament House, when members of the LGBT community were invited to an informal community engagement gathering with parliamentary representatives from all walks of politics. The Pollies were out in force and I was happy to be a part of a historic event that I very nearly missed. Around about 100 people from the LGBT community attended the event that was originally organized to include only those who had responded to the RSVP capped guest list. I had heard about this event through the GLBT press and also via word of mouth and was considering going along as one of the T-Girls from my crew to ensure T was not left off LGB. Unfortunately my usual last minute style nearly lost me the chance to visit the Brisbane Parliament House to get a good look at all of its members big and small. I had originally thought it was only the BBQ that was strictly RSVP and from what I could tell that was the impression most people had received from the PR being put out. It struck me during a week of Trans activism against transphobic media attacks, that this could be an opportunity to voice my concerns about the negative anti-Trans proper gander I was seeing and hearing in the media with my local member. I rang the number to make sure it was just the BBQ that was RSVP only to find out that I had missed the boat and was unable to attend this event, and was told that if I liked I could attend the next one. I explained that I really did want to attend and asked if there was anyone from the Trans community coming and was told that they were not sure but would get back to me. Even though it was to be informal it struck me as odd that they were not sure whether the capped guest list included representation from all members of the LGBT community and for a moment I thought I had lost my chance to attend this history making event. The next day I rang again and told the lady on the end of the phone that I really did want to come and that I was surprised that some gauge of who was attending was not in place. I know that it is not considered polite to ask certain questions of who or what people are but I wondered if it may have been wiser to ask people if there was a group that they identified with to gain a perspective of who was taking up the numbers in the capped guest list. It may sound like a silly idea but it does eliminate any chance of the guest list not representing all of the LGBT community that this event was trying to engage with.

As it turns out my wish was granted and thanks to a room change and a call from Paul Reynolds, I was added to the list and the cap was taken off to let extra guests in. Even the BBQ was opened up for all attendees and after a round of welcoming speeches and a few pats on the back of various dignitaries; we were being guided through the processes of accessing our members via the new look “Everyone’s Parliament” website. One notable pat on the back went to Dean Wells for his work on the original Gay and Lesbian law reform bill that as Grace Grace put it, made this night possible as a gathering like this would have been illegal 20 years ago. A marvelous achievement in many minds for most except for the fact that the Transgender section of this bill that had been tirelessly worked on , was cut out and abandoned at the last minute to get it over the line as it was put to me later in the evening. After all of the formal proceedings were over it was on to the BBQ part of the evening and then if you wished you could take a guided tour. The tour was excellent and was given by Paul Reynolds who I found to be very informative and friendly, his candid knowledge was filled with humorous anecdotes and stories that kept us all interested and amused.

Even though I had felt I had missed my chance to talk with my local member during the previous proceedings, I was later given an audience with Dean Wells when he wandered into the Legislative Council forum that my group was being shown through. Paul Reynolds introduced him and once again his achievements with Gay and Lesbian law reform was mentioned, and though I did not want to steal his thunder I did feel it was important to mention the tragedy of my communities omission from this law reform. I asked him why this had happened and though he seemed slightly deflated with my question he replied with some candor that it was what needed to be done to get the bill over the line. This may have made sense to many at the time and with those on that night within the walls of that room, but you could sense the realization of a missed opportunity when I asked him if this was the case then why did it take them 12 more years to rectify this issue and reinstate us to our rightful position. Dean Wells seemed a little lost for words for the one that spoiled what had seemed like a good record and began telling some story about a woman who was refused entry into a place for breast feeding her child. He recounted how he and his wife’s children were very young at the time and I guess he was alluding to the fact that the issues surrounding a woman’s right to breast feed in public also had to be dealt with. I was not trying to be rude or confrontational, I just wanted to keep it real and lend a voice to the countless Transgender people that had endured pain and suffering owing to the 12 years of being left in the wilderness with little recourse for legal protection. I quietly listened while he finished his story about the breast feeding woman and soon after he left. Paul Reynolds then went on to talk with others in the group and when I had a chance I said again that I understood that it may have seemed like the thing to do at the time and meant no offence but I did feel that 12 years was a long time to wait and was a shame. He said that it was once said that an opportunity delayed is an opportunity lost or something to that affect and then he said that he was not sure about that though being the case here, but I had to agree with this statement to some degree. I then went on to tell the story about a Blind Transgender with a Seeing Eye dog who only a few years before the 2003 law reform, was refused entry into a coffee shop because she was Transgender. At this time, her dog had more rights than her. Thanks to this delay in adding Transgender people to this law reform, her dog had the right to go in and enjoy the coffee shop but as a Transgender, she was refused entry. The idea that a human being had fewer rights than a dog seemed to put this delay in the perspective it deserved, and many of the faces in the group conveyed the shock that this story always generates. I am grateful for the work our Politicians have done for us and I hope will continue to do for us in the future.

I am in no way trying to discount the effort and time that goes into this work, but historically in the end this is how it was for our people and it is and always will be our history. To not speak up about this history would only be adding to its tragedy in my mind and speaking of our history and the stories that go with it helps to ensure that it never happens again. Even though in my opinion this night also was well overdue and its existence curiously was nowhere to be found on the Parliament website, overall the night was a fantastic opportunity for our community to engage with our Politicians and learn how to get involved with Parliament and its processes. They are only a website, email or a phone call away and are there to serve our community as well, so give your issues a voice and be heard. As a group of people it is up to us to keep up the fight for the right to fair treatment and equality, don’t ever accept Transphobia and discrimination.

Choose to come together cohesively with your community and continue the good work of those that have fought for the rights we already have. Remember that you are a powerful being with the strength to continue changing the world into a place that welcomes us all and accepts diversity as a natural expression of what it is to be human. Stand up and be counted for who you are and help work towards the fair and happy world you deserve.

Copyright © Robyn Whittaker. 2009.

Poor tasting Breakfast!

Well it seems that Radio Nova have decided to apologise for their poor taste!!! If that is the case, it would make alot of sense for them to apologise for all of their programing choices. Anyway after yet another week of Transgender bashing they assure me this is a one off occurrence and not discriminatory. Yeah right!!! Tuesday morning it was one of the Broco's turn to degrade and denigrate my community with his story about one of his ape like drunken buffoon mates over in Miami that apparently nearly walked out of a club with two trannies, as he put it he saved this guys life by telling his mate that they were blokes. Much laughter was shared amongst Meshell, Ash and the other fool with this Teo larakin for a full 5 mins of Transgender radio bashing...........OH yes radio Nova, it was only a one off occurrence! Poor taste! try hate based no taste!
And by the way, I rang Nova today to ask Morag one of the managers there if Nova supported the LGBT community and she said what does that stand for? And this is the same radio station that we hired Meshell from to compere our Gay Day at the Wickham....Wake up everyone, it is time to make sure that those that don't support us do not get access to our events or our dollars!
(Response letter is unable to be copied but I will find a way and it will be published soon.)

Here is my response to their predictable response...

Sean Ryan,

Thank you for your response regarding my complaint letter, I will now be contacting ACMA about this complaint as I do not accept your weak excuses for your announcer’s behaviour or your insincere apology. I will be taking this as far as it has to go and promise you that I will not stop until this behaviour is eradicated from your programming or anyone else’s for that matter. This is not acceptable behaviour and would not be tolerated if the comments were made in regards to any other minority, nor should it be acceptable.

I have evidence that this is not a one off occurrence and encourage you to look further into your own files before claiming such a false statement. Only this week your morning crew once again vilified Transgender people on your show and from what I know it was much worse than my complaint, so to claim that reasonable listeners would not pick up on this is complete rubbish. To also claim or insinuate that these comments were in some way light hearted and satirical because they were made during this style of show is not only offensive, it is ill informed and is based on ignorance.

Unfortunately for all concerned your response is not based on fact and to describe that this is a one off occurrence is untrue. If you look more closely into your programming you will find that this statement is false.


Robyn Whittaker

Novarated ignorant mouthpiece goes for GAGA

Hi again,

So long between postings it is almost criminal. I have not written anything for ages and felt compelled to put together this letter of complaint and sent it to a local Brisvegas radio station. I happened to be listening to a radio shock jockass fool with a caller on the line yesterday on a station that is one of the growing number of media machines hell bent on generating trans phobic and anti gender variant vilification. It seems every week I witness on TV and other media formats new evidence of a subversive concerted effort to dismantle trans-activism and the growing support for those identifying as gender diverse. It seems that many issues and topics are seen as fodder for laughter and ridicule and I understand that comedy takes great licence in these areas, especially when it comes to picking on minorities and the weakest link. What I do not get is the way that this male dominated entertainment medium is responding to a perceived threat of growing acceptance by mainstream society of gender variant people. This insecure mostly male generated backlash seems to be whipping up a frenzy of anti trans and trans phobic media attacks by the likes of Rove and his comedic gen x counterparts and other shows in the vein of Good News Week and any other show that seems to have attached itself to some self righteous premise that they are an authority on what is worth dismantling and pulling apart with humour to destroy it's validity for mainstream acceptance. Yes I know what some may think about freedom of expression with humour, but when a group of people are already behind the eight ball with human rights and freedoms compared to others and are vulnerable to the affects of this campaign, one has to question why it is happening so much and with such spite filled venom. Is there is a responsibility for society to stem the frequency of these attacks? I feel it is coming from a place of ignorance and fear of accepting something they know is more powerful than they can control. It is natures beautiful wild animal that they would like always kept in a cage, until it's the last animal left in the only circus in town. Gender variance is a natural expression found in every life form and to continue to deny this diversity is stupid and one of the reasons why humans are so out of touch with mother nature. The Universe makes no mistakes! everything happens for a reason and is an opportunity to learn from every lesson, good or bad experience is given as a gift. It is up to all of us to accept it and unwrap. Everyone can learn something we did not even think we needed to know from the experiences and people we do not understand. It is a chance to grow if we can find a way to turn our lemons into lemonade. All you have to do is open your mind and add a little sugar. xxx Banksy

Here is the letter of complaint that I sent to a novarated shock jock lion tamer!

To whom this may concern,

I am writing this letter to voice my disgust with comments that were broadcast on your radio stations morning show with Brendan Dangar at approximately 9.50am.

I would like to make a complaint to your station in regards to derogatory comments about the validity of Lady Ga Ga’s femininity and that it has allowed offensive comments to be aired which directly vilified members of the Transgender community. I was shocked to hear Brendan Dangar joke with a caller to the station about whether or not Lady Ga Ga was a real woman. He said that her statement that she was a real friend to a fellow musician was somehow invalid because nothing about her was real and she was a “dude” as he called her. As a member of the Transgender community I find this personally offensive that he would try to validate on air the idea that anyone who is suspected to have gender variance is in some way not real or worthy of respect and open to ridicule and discrimination. I have no idea about Lady Ga Ga’s gender identity and as far as I am concerned that is none of my business or anyone else’s. She is a woman and has identified herself as a woman and any comments made to slander her gender identity are discriminatory and highly offensive to all who identify as female. In my opinion this is not only a form of sexist misogyny against all women in Australia, it is also a deliberate attempt to debase women subversively through a male dominated broadcasting medium.

I have the right to listen to a radio program without feeling humiliated, degraded and ridiculed as a member of a community that is being made fun of by one of your ignorant announcers. This is blatant discrimination and vilification via comments that deliberately attempt to incite hatred against Trans people. These comments encourage transphobia and endanger the lives of vulnerable members of my community that encounter negative anti social behavior directed at Transgender people. As a broadcaster it is your responsibility to ensure that what you broadcast is not offensive or discriminatory and in breach of radio code of practice. I am appalled at the amount of anti Trans behavior directed at my community and will be taking this matter further. I would like to know what you are going to do about this incident and hope that an understanding can be reached that it is not ok to ridicule and degrade anyone on the basis of gender or gender identity.

I have attached sections of the radio code of practice that are in relation to my complaint and hope to hear a response from you in the near future.

Yours Sincerely,
Robyn Whittaker.

The tragedy that led to my fathers Death (A Memorial 17/08/09)

(THIS WAS A STORY I ORIGINALLY WROTE FOR A NEWSPAPER BUT JUST BEFORE PRINT THEY PULLED THE STORY UNDER THREATS FROM THE HOSPITAL'S LEGAL TEAM. THE NAMES HAVE BEEN CHANGED. MY FATHER HAS SINCE DIED.)

AS ALOT OF US ARE AWARE THE NAMED TOWNSVILLE HOSPITAL HAS BEEN LEFT SADLY LACKING UNDER THE PRESSURE OF A LARGE COMMUNITY IN NEED, AND THE LACKLUSTER ATTEMPTS OF THE SAID GOVERNMENT TO PROVIDE ADEQUATE HEALTH CARE TO ITS CITIZENS.
AS A RESULT OF THIS SQUEEZE OF PRESSURE, ULTIMATELY MANY PARTS OF THE HOSPITALS SYSTEM START TO FAIL.
ONE SUCH EXAMPLE OF THIS IS MY FATHERS TREATMENT AT THE HANDS OF CERTAIN DOCTORS WITHIN THIS SYSTEM. I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE IT QUITE CLEAR ON MY FATHERS BEHALF THAT THIS IS NOT AN ATTACK ON ANY OF THE WONDERFUL NURSING STAFF OR VOLUNTEERS, AS HE HAS ALWAYS SPOKEN VERY HIGHLY ABOUT ALL OF THEM.

MY FATHERS CASE IS A GOOD EXAMPLE OF EVERYTHING NOT TO DO TO SOMEONE AFTER DIAGNOSING THEM WITH BLADDER CANCER. WAY BACK IN AUG 04, MY FATHER WAS DIAGNOSED WITH AN AGGRESSIVE FORM OF BLADDER CANCER AND THIS IS WHERE THE VERY TRAGIC STORY BEGINS.

THE DIAGNOSING DOCTOR FROM A PRIVATE PRACTISE ATTACHED TO THE CERTAIN HOSPITAL TOLD MY FATHER THAT IF IT HAD BEEN DIAGNOSED ONE MONTH LATER IT WOULD HAVE BEEN TOO LATE TO ASSURE SUCCESSFUL TREATMENT. THEY TOLD HIM TO GO HOME AND THE DOCTOR WOULD SEND WORD TO THE HOSPITAL AND THEN THE HOSPITAL WOULD RING HIM WITH AN APPOINTMENT.
AFTER 2 WEEKS AND NO CALL FROM THE HOSPITAL, HE DECIDED TO DRIVE OUT TO THEM AND FOUND THEY KNEW NOTHING ABOUT HIM. TO HIS HORROR HE ALSO FOUND OUT THE DOCTOR HAD NOT WRITTEN ANY LETTER, LET ALONE SENT IT. MY FATHER WENT BACK TO THE GP AND WAITED WHILE THEY WROTE A REFERRAL LETTER , THEN RUSHED UP TO THE HOSPITAL AND SUPPLIED IT TO THEM HIMSELF.
CHEMO AND RADIATION TREATMENT STARTED VERY LATE TO CATCH THE VITAL ONE MONTH PERIOD GIVEN. AFTER MORE THAN TEN MONTHS AND MANY REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION ON THE STATUS OF HIS HEALTH, VERY LITTLE INFO WAS GIVEN ON HOW HIS TREATMENT WAS PROGRESSING. THIS SILENCE FORCED US TO ENACT THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION TO SEE FOR OURSELVES THE RESULTS.

AFTER MANY QUESTIONS, MY FATHER WAS ASSURED HIS TREATMENT WAS GOING WELL. THE TREATING DOCTORS TOLD HIM EVERYTHING WAS SUCCESSFUL AND THAT THE TREATMENTS HAD BURNT THE CANCER OUT AND IT WAS DEAD. ONE STAFF MEMBER EVEN RANG MY FATHER AT HIS HOME TO CONDESCENDINGLY ASSURE HIM OF THIS REALITY. AT NO STAGE DID ANY STAFF MEMBER OF THAT HOSPITAL EXPLAIN TO MY FATHER OR HIS FAMILY THE GRAVE REALITY OF HIS SITUATION, THAT TREATMENT HAD FAILED AND HE WAS FALTERING. THIS WAS NEGLIGENCE AND A TOTAL COMMUNICATION BREAKDOWN ON THEIR BEHALF. INSTEAD THEY LET HIM GO HOME AFTER INADEQUATE TREATMENT TO WASTE AWAY IN ALOT OF PAIN AND HE WAS LEFT TO WONDER WHY HE WAS STILL FEELING SO UNWELL. OUR FAMILY WERE UNINFORMED AND JUST THOUGHT OUR FATHER WAS PANICKING WHEN HE WAS TRYING TO RAISE THE ALARM ABOUT HOW HE FELT AND IN RESPONSE WE TIED TO ALLAY HIS FEARS AS BEST WE COULD. TRAGICALLY FOR HIM AND ALL OF US, THE NIGHTMARE BEGAN WITH HIS LEFT LEG SWELLING WITH FLUID. THE SWELLING WAS CAUSED BY A LARGE TUMOUR CUTTING OF HIS VENUS RETURN, ALLOWED TO GROW THANKS TO THE HOSPITALS INCOMPETENCE. THIS ALL HAPPENED ON THE NIGHT BEFORE I WAS TO RELOCATE TO BRISBANE.

JUST LIKE A FOREBODING OF THINGS TO COME MY OWN LEG THE NIGHT BEFORE WAS SORE AND MY LEFT FOOT WAS ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO WALK ON.
THE NEXT DAY AS I PREPARED TO DRIVE TO BRISBANE, I URGED HIM TO GO TO THE HOSPITAL. YOU COULD SEE IN HIS EYES THAT HE KNEW THAT ALL MAYBE LOST AND HE SAID TO ME WHAT DOES IT MATTER NOW ANYWAY. IT WAS POSSIBLY ONE OF THE MOST DIFFICULT THINGS FOR ME TO DO, TO LEAVE HIM STANDING THERE IN THE DRIVEWAY WHILE MY MOTHER AND I DROVE OFF TO MEET MY FURNITURE THAT WAS ARRIVING AT MY NEW HOME. I WANTED TO STAY WITH HIM AND I SAID I WOULD, BUT HE INSISTED THAT I WENT. TEARS STREAMED DOWN MY FACE AND A LITTLE PIECE OF MY HEART BROKE AWAY THAT DAY. IT WAS THE HARDEST THINGS TO DO AND FOR SOME REASON THAT DAY I JUST KNEW THAT THERE WAS SOME HORRIBLE EXPERIENCES TO COME. I LEFT PROMISING MY FATHER THAT I WOULD COME STRAIGHT BACK TO HIM AFTER SETTING UP HOUSE AND LOOK AFTER HIM.

BY HIS OWN FORCED CALL HE WENT OFF TO HIS PRIVATE DOCTOR ON THE MONDAY TO INVESTIGATE WHAT I AM SURE IN HIS SOUL HE KNEW WAS WRONG. I WAITED BY THE PHONE IN BRISBANE FOR WORD OF HIS TEST RESULTS AND WHEN THE TESTS CAME BACK AND THE DISGUSTING REALITY CAME TO LIGHT AND THE NIGHTMARE BEGAN. HE WAS TOLD BY HIS TREATING HOSPITAL DOCTOR THAT IN FACT THEY HAD ALWAYS KNOWN IT WAS TOO LATE AND THAT IT HAD SPREAD TO HIS LYMPHATIC SYSTEM AND WAS ONE OF THE LARGEST TUMOURS THEY HAD SEEN.
THIS WAS THE FIRST HE HAD HEARD ABOUT THIS AND WAS TOLD TO GO HOME AND PREPARE TO DIE. THE SHOCK TO MY FATHER AND ALL OF HIS CHILDREN WAS UNBEARABLE AND WE WERE LEFT TO FEND FOR OURSELVES OVER THE WORST EASTER ON RECORD. THEY SENT HIM HOME AND SAID THEY WOULD MAKE HIM COMFORTABLE BUT AT NO TIME OFFERED ADVICE, COUNSELING OR EVEN PAIN MEDICATIONS. INSTEAD WE TRIED IN VAIN TO COME TO GRIPS WITH THIS SITUATION ALONE AND DEAL WITH IT AS BEST WE COULD.

I LODGED A COMPLAINT WITH THE HEALTH RIGHTS COMMISSION AND IT WAS ACCEPTED AND REGISTERED FOR INVESTIGATION. FOUR MONTHS LATER AND AFTER A FEW SHORT STAYS IN HOSPITAL WHERE THEY COULD NOT WAIT TO FIND EXCUSES FOR FREEING UP HIS BED AND SENDING HIM HOME. AFTER WHICH HE LAID IN A BED IN THAT HOSPITAL UNABLE TO BE LOOKED AFTER AT HOME.
I HAD MOVED FROM BRISBANE TO LOOK AFTER HIM BUT HIS ILLNESS RAPIDLY PROGRESSED AND HIS LEVEL OF CARE BECAME TOO MUCH FOR ME TO PROVIDE. I CANNOT BEGIN TO DESCRIBE THE HORRIBLE EXPERIENCES THAT CARING FOR A LOVED ONE WITH THAT DISEASE CAN PRODUCE. IT WAS A VERY CONFRONTING AND TRAUMATIC EXPERIENCE TO TRY AND DEAL WITH, BUT I WOULD DO IT AGAIN IN A HEART BEAT FOR HIM AND ANYONE THAT I LOVED.

THANKS TO THAT HOSPITALS LACK OF DUTY OF CARE IN RELATION TO PROVIDING THE BASIC HEALTH INFORMATION HE IS ENTITLED TO, WE HAD TO SCRAMBLE TO PLAN HIS EVER DWINDLING FUTURE. WE WERE LEFT TO MAKE A TRULY HORRIBLE DECISION TO PLACE HIM IN A NURSING HOME THAT WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO PROVIDE THE CONSTANT MEDICAL CARE HE REQUIRES. YET ANOTHER THING TO ADD TO HIS BADLY MANAGED TRAUMA AND DISEASE. THE SYSTEM IS SO STRESSED THAT THE ASSESSMENT TEAM CANNOT TELL US WHEN HE WILL BE EVEN ASSESSED TO GO INTO A HOME, (SOMETHING NEEDED BEFORE BEING PLACED IN A HOME EVEN THOUGH HE IS THE HIGHEST CATEGORY, NUMBER ONE.)
OWING TO A LACK OF FUNDS AND A LONG WAITING LIST HE NOW WAITS FOR A FATE HE TRIED TO AVOID BY ALL WAYS KEEPING A VIGILANT EYE ON HIS HEALTH. I DID NOT WANT HIM TO GO INTO A NURSING HOME TO BE POSSIBLY NEGLECTED AGAIN. STAFFING LEVELS AT THESE HOMES ARE UNDER PRESSURE AND PROPER CARE IS VERY DIFFICULT. I WOULD LIKE THE GOVERNMENT TO EXPLAIN TO ME WHY HE IS FORCED TO GO INTO A NURSING HOME WHEN HE HAS SUCH A SHORT TIME TO LIVE. OUR FAMILY HAS BEEN THROUGH HELL AND I REFUSE TO ACCEPT THAT THIS IS A FAIR OUTCOME FOR MY VERY ILL FATHER.

I WILL NOT HAVE HIM TUCKED UNDER THE CARPET SO THOSE IN CHARGE CAN CONTINUE THIS COVER UP. THEY HELD THE TRUTH OF HIS ILLNESS FROM HIM AND LET HIM WASTE AWAY IN PAIN WITH NO COUNSELING FOR HIM OR US TO PROCESS THE SHOCK. THEY TOLD US HE WAS CURED AND WOULD BE OK, BUT KNEW THAT HE WAS NOT. ALL THIS JUST TO SAVE MONEY ON TREATMENTS AND RESOURCES FOR A HEALTH SYSTEM THAT HAS A POLICY OF SELECTIVE HEALTH CARE FAVOURING THE YOUNG. IF WE WERE EVER TO HAVE A MAJOR DISASTER WE WOULD BE ALL LOST AND THE CURRENT 6 TO 8 HR WAITING TIMES TO SEE A DOCTOR AT ANY EMERGENCY ROOM IN THIS COUNTRY WOULD LOOK VERY FAVOURABLE INDEED.
THE HOSPITAL SHIP IS LEAKING AND WILL ULTIMATELY SINK IF IT'S ALLOWED TO CONTINUE BEING RUN AS LOOSELY UNDERFUNDED AND UNDERSTAFFED AS HAS BEEN THE CASE SO FAR. GOD HELP US IF THE UNTHINKABLE HAPPENS AND A VIRAL OUTBREAK OR TERRORIST ATTACK TAKES PLACE. AND PLEASE TAKE MY FATHERS ADVICE AND ALWAYS GET A SECOND OPINION.

AT THIS STAGE THERE IS NO PALLIATIVE CARE IN THE NORTH FOR
PALLIATIVE CARE PATIENTS, THE CLOSEST PLACEMENT IS IN BRISBANE.
SADLY ONLY WEEKS AFTER WRITING THIS LETTER MY FATHER PASSED AWAY, HE DIED ON THE 17TH AUGUST 2006. I STILL WANTED TO TELL HIS STORY AND A YEAR HAS NEARLY PASSED SINCE WE BURIED HIM AND I JUST HAD TO PUBLISH THIS TO FINALLY LET THE STORY BE READ. I WILL MISS HIM UNTIL THE DAY I PASS AWAY AND HOPE TO ONE DAY SEE HIM AGAIN. THE PAIN IS GETTING EASIER TO LIVE WITH AND I GET THROUGH MOST DAYS WITHOUT GETTING EMOTIONAL. HIS FUNERAL WAS BEAUTIFUL AND I HAD SPENT THE FOUR MONTHS THAT I LOOKED AFTER HIM RECORDING HIS VOICE. THE TAPES ARE OF HIM TALKING TO ME AND SINGING AS HE LOVED TO DO AS WELL AS HIS NATURAL TALENT OF PLAYING THE HARMONICA THAT I NOW HAVE ON MY BOOK SHELF IN FRONT OF HIS PHOTO. (HE HAD AN AMAZING VOICE SIMILAR TO ELVIS AND THE WEIRD THING IS THAT HE DIED THE DAY AFTER ELVIS DID. AS HIS COFFIN WAS GOING DOWN INTO HIS FINAL RESTING PLACE BESIDE HIS VERY CHERISHED MOTHER, THE CD I MADE UP FOR THE DAY PLAYED. HE PLAYED MOON RIVER ON THE HARMONICA AND SANG THE MOST HAUNTINGLY BEAUTIFUL VERSION OF GALL WAY BAY I HAVE EVER HEARD. EVEN THOUGH HE WAS VERY ILL DURING THESE RECORDINGS HIS VOICE WAS STILL AS BEAUTIFUL AS EVER, IF NOT JUST A LITTLE WEAKER BECAUSE OF HIS ILLNESS. I WILL NEVER FORGET HOW MY SOUL PINED FOR THE LIVE VERSION OF THAT SWEET VOICE I HAD LISTENED TO ONLY DAYS EARLIER.

I LOVE YOU DAD AND HOPE YOU ARE OK, MAY YOU REST IN PEACE UNTIL WE MEET AGAIN.

Robyn Whittaker. 2006, updated version 2007. Latest publication on 17/08/09.