RIP Muhlasia Booker

[lauraincolumbia]

Very sad to hear:

 

https://dfw.cbslocal.com/2019/05/19/transgender-woman-muhlaysia-booker-fatally-shot-east-dallas/

[Charlize]

It certainly is sad when something like this happens.  The current climate and rhetoric may well contribute but unfortunately the LGBT community has always been targeted. 

 

Hugs,

 

Charlize

[Julielynn]

I grew up in that crap.  Admitting even that you're gay down there is a death sentence.  Trans is way worse.  That area is hard core bible belt material.   Dallas may look like the big city life compared to the rural towns north and south of it, but it's still got a large share of people who believe the same way.  There's a reason I hid from everyone and just purposefully dressed up as the classic businessman for the entire time I lived there. 

 

I moved to get away from that type of hate.  I live in Michigan now and it's not a lot better, but it's not a death sentence.  I feel for anyone still living there.  It's taking a chance on your life to come out there.  Sometimes, I wish they'd ban religion altogether, though I doubt it would do any good and that would be unconstitutional anyway.  Honestly though, that is not a good area to be stating that openly living there.  It's like walking around with a sign in south side Chicago with a sign that says "I hate <insert racial slur>" or something equally stupid.  It's sad, but I can't say I'm surprised.  I'm more surprised it actually hit the news.  There's quite a bit of that happening down there.   The viral video is the only thing that got attention I'm sure.  Otherwise, no one cares.  It's really that bad. 

 

 

[Phoenix]

On 9/22/2019 at 1:31 AM, Julielynn said:

Admitting even that you're gay down there is a death sentence.  Trans is way worse.  That area is hard core bible belt material.   Dallas may look like the big city life compared to the rural towns north and south of it, but it's still got a large share of people who believe the same way.  There's a reason I hid from everyone and just purposefully dressed up as the classic businessman for the entire time I lived there. 

 

I feel for anyone still living there.  It's taking a chance on your life to come out there.  Sometimes, I wish they'd ban religion altogether, though I doubt it would do any good and that would be unconstitutional anyway.  Honestly though, that is not a good area to be stating that openly living there. 

Don’t be fooled. The violence has nothing to do with religion. In more than one instance, I’ve mentioned who and what I am, adding that I couldn’t wait for a “right-leaning conservative” to voice displeasure about me so I could tell him or her to “check with their boss.” (Long story.)

 

And in an equal number of instances, the guy sitting next to or across from me said something along the lines of “I’m a right-leaning conservative and I don’t care what you do. I’m glad you’re happy becoming who you are meant to be.”

 

One of those became a friend of mine, telling me repeatedly that when my various mental issues (not gender dysphoria) flare up and I have a meltdown, to call him and he’d be there in a flash. 
 

He and the rest of my friends made good on that promise last month when I texted them all, telling them it was time to… (ahem)…. And he was one of the louder voices talking me down. He also said to let him know when I got checked into the psyche hospital so he could visit… unfortunately thanks to our friend Covid, in-person visitations weren’t allowed.

 

But he tried.

 

I found out just recently he misunderstood something I said in group therapy. (I met him in the first hospital I was in.) He thought what I was sharing was about an actual physical attack I’d suffered. I was referencing my various issues and just being really abstract in my references and said something like “and then it’s like you’re in a dark alley surrounded by a bunch of baseball bat-wielding freaks.”

 

He looked at me and said “that hurts my soul, when that happens, call me and I’ll be there with my own bat to take them all on.”

 

I found out all this time later (5 months) he thought I was talking about an actual assault. That just makes what he said even sweeter. He was ready to physically fight a group he thought had attacked me. And we’d only just met a couple of days before. I was really touched.

 

Mine may not be the standard coming out story, but in my life, I first came out to my best friend, she was behind me 100%; then my stepmom, who “couldn’t wait to meet *me*”; and to my entire friends’ list simultaneously. And no one batted an eye except to ask if they could call me a shorter version of my new name.

 

In fact, I stipulate I just might be lucky, but I haven’t even met any strangers yet who have a problem with who I am.

 

Just this lady Monday night, some friends and I went to Olive Garden. I had to… “go,” and did not feel comfortable using the men’s room. Realizing the chance for trouble, I approached our waitress and let her know I was trans and that I needed to use the restroom, but I didn’t want to make anyone uncomfortable or cause a scene… She happily walked me to the restroom, opened the door and gestured for me to be comfortable do what I needed to do. This was a restaurant I’d never set foot in in my life (at least this location). It was such a non-issue, I felt silly for even making it an issue.

 

No… the ones most responsible for the attacks and murders are part of a group no one is allowed to talk about. The group is already  referenced in another thread addressing the attack on Chrissie Lee Polis, so there’s no need to bring it up again.

 

Besides, my post has gotten too long already.

 

All I’ll say is there’s a reason this t-shirt was made:

[Phoenix]

Okay, I just realized how long I’d rambled and exactly how off topic I ended up being. My apologies. 
 

Now I’ll just be short and sweet and say I saw this on the local news right after it happened. The end of my post above covers the most likely culprits…and it’s not the religious types. (Okay, some might be, but that’s not the only…demographic they fit into.)