Dear Editor:

I pray that I’m never arrested in San Diego County.Vanessa Facen’s November 2005 death—while in the custody of the San Diego Sheriff’s Department—sends chills down my spine. After following this story’s coverage closely, I can’t help but feel that significant bias may have been involved in the arrest.

If there was bias, was it because she was transgender? Was it because she was black? Was it because they thought she was a thieving meth user? Was it because they thought she was mentally ill? Was it some combination of these? Was it none of these?

I don’t know.

I do know that I’m transgender; I do know I’m type two bipolar; I do know I don’t want to be arrested and find out how the police may treat me if they suspect I’m a transgender person and/or suspect I have a mental health condition. What Vanessa Facen’s death tells me that getting arrested as a transwoman with a mental health condition may mean I may die in police custody. That’s a scary thought.

I pray also that I’m not the victim of a serious crime in San Diego County.

A transwoman was stabbed on University and Eighth on the Transgender Day of Remembrance—November 20th, 2006. The victim was hospitalized with a collapsed lung.

Online, the Union-Tribune referred to the crime victim as a “man in a dress.” The North County Times referred to the victim as a “transvestite,” outing her by her male name in their piece.

Apparently, a police spokesperson described the victim to the press as a “man in a dress.”

The victim wasn’t a man in a dress or a transvestite; the victim was a transgender person.

I don’t ever want to be called “a man in a dress” by a police spokesperson describing me as a crime victim to the press . Knowing that all it takes is one officer using inappropriate terminology to the mainstream press is all it takes for the mainstream press to get it wrong scares me too.

When dealing with the police officers or sheriff’s deputies in San Diego County, transpeople have been given a lot to think about recently. I know I have discussed transgender issues with one police agency police and one mainstream press organization recently, and know I would prefer to work with both press and police to solve issues. I’m volunteering as a member of the recently constituted Citizen’s Patrol just because I do want to be one of the people who work to solve problems instead of just complaining about issues.

But, that doesn’t mean I’m not a little afraid of dealing with the police officers or sheriff’s deputies. And it definitely doesn’t mean that I, as a transwoman, ever want to be arrested, or ever become a victim of a major crime in San Diego. Being transgender and dealing with police is just a little bit scary.

Autumn Sandeen

Transgender Advocacy And Services

Center

Transgender American Veterans

Association

Dear Editor:

Your Feature story, People of 2006, initiated some healthy year-end reflection. 2006 brought with it increased attention to, and efforts to combat issues surrounding crystal meth use/abuse in the gay community here in San Diego. These included an array of informational and educational events, media coverage and social marketing, policy and law enforcement efforts, a variety of support groups, the expansion of CMA, and the launch of Knowcrystal.org. It was with pleasure that I read that Knowcrystal.org was being honored as one of the Hopes of the Year.

As the New Year hurtles in I’m filled not only with reflection but also with thoughts of the future and the need for our continued vigilance. Men are filling meeting rooms around town - seeking support, information, empathy, skills, strength, and reasons to make changes in their lives around their use of meth. The availability of initiatives to address meth use from a variety of theoretical perspectives and service models is a plus. Both abstinence and harm reduction-based efforts are helping men make changes in their lives that significantly improve their health.

Perhaps next year we can build on the continued shift in community norms that serve to increase awareness and availability of venues, parties and bedrooms in the gay community where crystal is not invited. Here’s to the continuation of inspiring people

Sheri Kirshenbaum, Ph.D.

Clinical Director of HIV Services

Jewish Family Service of San Diego

Dear Editor:

As an openly gay Democrat, the November elections brought a lot of good news; we kept our majorities in the Legislature, took control of Congress, and expanded Democratic governors and state legislatures across the nation. However, I did lament the loss of one Republican office holder - Coronado City Councilmember Frank Tierney.

Frank was elected as the first openly-gay councilmember in conservative Coronado fours years ago - a pioneer of sorts. While he and I had our political and partisan differences on a number of issues, Frank was a devoted public servant who worked very hard for his city and for the LGBT community. As a Republican, Frank was in the minority among LGBT elected office holders, but he was committed to working across party lines for our common priorities.

Together, Frank and I founded the LGBT Elected Officials Caucus within the League of California Cities, the first state municipal caucus of its kind in the nation. Frank recognized that the GLBT community was stronger and more effective when its local elected leaders worked together to promote beneficial legislation and public policy. He wanted to create a forum in which local elected leaders could bring their knowledge, resources, and influence to bear on a variety of issues, including marriage equality, non-discrimination in education, employment and housing, and for increased funding and services for those living with HIV/AIDS, at the local, state and federal level. With more than 50 LGBT elected officials in California, Frank understood that this was a powerful community asset that needed to be harnessed to serve the greater community.

It is hard to lose any of our community’s elected officials as the road to getting them has been so hard and fraught with so many obstacles and challenges. He is a man of integrity who always worked hard to do what was right. Frank’s tenure in public service was cut far too short, but he has earned a debt of gratitude from our community for what he has done on our behalf. Thank you Frank.

Jeffrey Prang

Councilmember, West Hollywood

Dear Editor:

Well Nicole, I hope that people of our LGBT community who support fairness in employment will thank the members of the City Council who voted against the big box super center. Council members Atkins, Frye, Hueso, Peters, and Young seem to understand not only the environmental impact of these super centers , and the consequence to small business, but also the importance of paying a livable wage .

The truth is that Wal-Mart has let Americans down by lowering wages, forcing good paying jobs over seas, and cutting costs with total disregard for the values that have made this nation great.

Wal-Mart has exploited illegal immigrants and faces the largest gender discrimination lawsuit in history.

As I said when I spoke against the super center at the City Council meeting, we must hold Wal-Mart accountable and put people before profit. And those profits are over $10 billion for Wal-Mart.

If Sanders carries out his commitment to veto this vote, I certainly encourage those principled Democrats on the City Council to overturn his veto.

Gloria Johnson

Dear Editor:

How is it that a writer on your staff, that goes by the name Nicole Murray-Ramirez, has the ability to be so tremendously ignorant, vicious, negative and purely nasty?? I recently read her article on Jackie Beat which was extremely out of line. Though talent maybe be left up to the perception of the audience or spectator, there is the fact that Jackie has a huge following that adore her style of humor and performance art and she sells out shows. Of course, this Nicole person is entitled to her opinion.

However, her article on Jackie Beat, displays the lowest level of intelligence and lacks compassion, on her part, to make such a personal attack. Sadly, Nicole is the one that appears to be the most bitter and serious lacks even a dab of humor. We are hoping that 2007 will bring her a grand sense of humor and eliminate her personal attacks on people.

Sundae

Dear Editor:

Wow!!! Who does this Nicole Ramirez Murray woman think she is???

First of all, Jackie Beat is exceptionally talented - an amazing singer, writer, performer, and make-up artist, to name a few of her talents. Second of all, clearly, that article Jackie wrote was all sacasm and humor. From the very beginning you can see she is taking the piss out of Hollywood and our current obsession with celebrity and making a very funny social comment. I mean Jackie’s whole schtick is irony and humor and, oftentimes, scathing commentary on social issues.

This NRM woman really needs to look around the world and find some actual villians to attack and learn how to decipher serious opinion from sarcasm

it may be a helpful tool for her ‘journalism’.

Greg Siebel

Dear Editor:

It is sad that you chose to publish the recent article by Nicole Ramirez Murray attacking Jackie Beat.

I’ve produced Jackie Beat’s live shows in New York for nine years, and I am sure I know her a great deal better than Miss Murray. If you read the entire article Jackie wrote, it is clearly one huge joke. Did she really believe that Jackie was gleefully tanning in a hot pink string bikini? That she is boasting about Blackberrying Paris Hilton? That she actually feels superior to starving children? Instead of reading and comprehending the tone of this satirical article, Miss Murray zeroed in on one sentence that offended her, about how Jackie feels “superior” to lip-synching performers. (I don’t know Miss Murray’s personal values, but the image of Jackie texting Paris Hilton is a whole lot more offensive to me. That’s downright sordid.).

I can’t fathom why Miss Murray responded to a generalized joke piece with a public personal attack on Jackie Beat, which I suppose all of gay San Diego has now read. For the record, Jackie is a kind person who has proven herself to be supportive of other performers over and over again, including those who lip-synch. God knows she’s dragged me to many such shows. And Jackie has always stepped in for any charity event I’ve ever asked her to do —- she just doesn’t go round boasting of the “hundreds of thousands of dollars” she’s raised for charity. She’s raised a bundle, but she knows that even the character she portrays onstage wouldn’t go on and on about her charitable works. That’s just vulgar, and not in a satirical way.

I know Jackie takes a jealous dig like this article in stride, because she is confident in her talent, and she needn’t be concerned about the ill-formed rant of someone she’s likely never met and likely never will. Maybe if Miss Murray had a little more self-esteem and some confidence in her own talent, she could learn how to appreciate a joke. I hope so —- I don’t know her at all, but she sounds a little grim and self-righteous. Perhaps I should just make up some crap about what an ugly person she is in word and deed, and run to our local gay magazines to publish a lengthy article about how miserable she appears to be.

Of course, I’m joking. What sort of person would publicly deride, in particularly ugly terms, someone they actually know nothing about, based on a throwaway article in a local gay paper?

I’d like to invite your readers to Jackie’s Christmas show running in New York this month. Better hurry, there are only a handful of tickets left.

Chip Duckett