Thinking Outside the Gender Box

An article from BBC reports that India, in a land mark ruling, recognizes transgender persons. This is an incredible policy change! India has a huge population of transgender folks. This is particularly meaningful to me because I lived in India.  I remember encountering eunuchs coming to the coffee shop I worked at to collect the money due them.  What I mean is that this group was so ostracized that the only choices they are given to survive are prostitution and begging, as the article points out.  However, many eunuchs and transgender Indians commonly make deals with shop owners to give them an allotment of money every week so that they won't cause a scene in front of their shops and deter customers.  This sounds like shady blackmail, which is what my first reaction was. But the compassionate coffee shop owner I worked for redirected my judgmental perspective. He looked at paying these people as a duty because he knew this group was oppressed. 

I also, remember a story he (the coffee shop manager who will remain anonymous) told me that I think will always remain with me because it was so striking and really explains the level of shunning transgender Indians experience. He told me of a woman that was recently in the news because she was forced to give up her child, who was transgender, to the eunuch community.  The doctors call this community whenever they deliver a baby that is transgender or eunuch because they know and the parents know that the child will have no life and no chances outside of that community.  This was a heart-breaking story to me. Even if she wanted to keep the child, she couldn't.  The coffee shop manager told me that this is what was best for the child. You see, in India, the eunuch community is much like the leper community.  They have their own schools and schools.  It's a community on the outskirts that learns to survive with others like them.

I'm sure not every transgender person lives in these communities. However, I think this article shows a turning point.  When I read it, all these memories of people I encountered came rushing back.

  All the compassion and sorrow I had felt over their plight turned into a brimming hopefulness.

That the child I was told about might have a different future; that the eunuchs that came to our shop every week might have a chance to work in the coffee shop one day.  

This is even more poignant because this marginalized group has deeply touched me these past few weeks as I have studied and learned about what incredible strength and resiliency this group has despite the injustices they face every day.  I am honored to learn about them and from them and I hope to continue to advocate, educate and support transgender folks everywhere. 


References: 

Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-india-27031180

Opportunity for Community

Immigration reform has seen momentum as well as standstills.  There is a lot of fear surrounding this topic and I have always wondered why? Besides the fact that welcoming and showing kindness to strangers is an extremely Biblical commandment, it has never made sense to me that people with a history of being immigrants themselves can be so negative to immigrants today. 

Immigration reform NEEDS to happen and needs to happen NOW! 

It is inevitable and nothing to be afraid of. And yet, as seen in this blog article from Bread for the World, immigration reform seems to be caught in limbo. I believe a lot of Christians these days love to throw around terms like restoration, revitalization and renewal not only for their faith but for the communities around them.  These are all wonderful words and what a great thing to be a part of in bringing the kingdom of God to the earth.  

But something get's halted...

we are only serious about restoration if it's on our own terms. We after all know what's best? and that usually involves resistance to change.  But what if change is good! What if change can bring those words to life!  Even in a way we might not expect... 

Detroit might just be an example of change that has multi-faceted positive outcomes. In an op-ed article in the Detroit News, Governor Rick Snyder proposed a plan to give $50,000 visas to immigrants over a five year period to those who would be willing to live in work in Detroit. Detroit lost a significant percentage of their population in the past decade and the economy has suffered greatly. "Immigrant entrepreneurship is an American tradition," the article states. 

So, if immigration is a part of our history, why is reform so scary?  Why are we saying that immigrants can't contribute when there is clearly space enough? When immigrants can be part of the solution by joining us side by side in boosting the economy? 

We can work together. Major changes need to be made in giving immigrants opportunities to become citizens, but at the very least to be able to live, learn and work with dignity in the meantime. 

All For One and One For All

An article from Bloomberg Business Week shares the plight of wealthy white families seceding from their school district on a mission to create their own. These parents express their frustration with the state of the schools.  The violence, lack of challenging content and the lack of attendance in general, has these parents wanting more.  And that's a wonderful strength of this neighborhood!  But I wonder if this desire can be rerouted to benefit the community and city in a better way?  I'm not convinced that building your own school and shutting off your neighbors access to the school because of their lower economic status is the answer.  But this group the neighborhood has formed, "Local Schools for Local Children," has been collecting signatures to make these changes.


Again, the situation of investing in your children's education and not seeing improvement of the schools over the years must be frustrating.  I am glad that there is a desire to change, but perhaps we should re-evaluate what would be best for everyone?  Have we become so individualized that we do not see the impact this might have on others?

I'm so glad this neighborhood sees that change needs to happen.  I am truly inspired by their desire to want their schools to be better.  So perhaps, this group can lead the whole community that this poor education effects in a mission to better the entire school district.  

Everyone wants more and better things for their children. Why not invite others into the conversation about how to make this happen for the city of Baton Rouge?  

Oh Beautiful Diversity

The Cheerio's commercial wasn't the only controversial ad during the Superbowl. If you don't know about it you should definitely check out a very thoughtful blog by Hannah Abbe on the topic. The Coca Cola commercial was also bringing out some disturbing reactions from Americans.  The commercial sings "America the Beautiful" in several different languages and paints a beautiful picture of diversity in America.

I was shocked at the harsh reactions I saw all over Facebook by people I call friends and even some of my family (distant relatives but still those who proclaim to be Christian). One of which said, "Thanks Coca Cola, we just HAD to hear America the Beautiful in foreign languages. You just made everyone a Pepsi fan." 

Is this really so offensive in a country that actually does not have an official language in the first place?  

These reactions scare me a little, especially in light of the extreme actions taken in this article about Central African Republic and the "ethnic cleansing" going on there of Muslim. Not to mention what I guess we can call "lesser forms of discrimination" like in this article about hate crimes going on in Britain right now against Muslims.  People are becoming more and more afraid of each other. This is a problem!

I'm sure you're thinking that those are extreme examples and not even happening in our country.  Well, discrimination, prejudice and persecution is definitely still happening.  I grew up in a suburb outside of Houston, that was booming with people from all over the place. A mosque was built in a nearby neighborhood next to a farm.  Well, the owner of the farm held pig races every Friday night ( a holy day, like our Sunday in the Islamic Faith) trying to send a message that they were unwanted here.  While no one died, is that not the same motivation as ethnic cleansing? Doesn't Jesus say in the Beatitudes (Matthew 5)

                                   21 “You have heard that it was said to the people

                                   long ago, ‘You shall not murder, and anyone who

                                  murders will be subject to judgment.’ 22 But I tell 

                                  you that anyone who is angry with a brother or

                                   sister will be subject to judgment.

Don't we need to reflect on our motivations? Still not convinced we may be guilty?

Take a look at this article about the case of Jordan Davis, an African American teenager killed for his music being played too loud in Jacksonville, FL.  If you don't think this relates to racial distrust, read the article and you will see that it was a senseless death based on unfounded fear.  

We don't know each other. 

And that is vital to any community because it unifies and wipes out fear. We need to be intentional about getting to know each other. To recognize that we all have stories to tell.  The dignity and worth of a person should be celebrated but we can only celebrate what we know. Are we making it a point to get to know each other?  

A writer with immigrant parent's perspective on the Coca-Cola commercial...

"We come to America, in other words, and we become American–but we don’t erase everything else that we were before, we don’t forget our cultures and languages as if they never existed, and we don’t hide them as if they’re shameful or less than patriotic. We bring them out and share them, and they make this country better and stronger. America isn’t weakened because people don’t submit to a monoculture; it’s strong because it can absorb the peoples and aspirations and talents of the rest of the world without erasing their cultures".

Read More Here

Game of Groans

                                            

Last week, before the Olympic games started in Sochi, there was a comical article from the Washington Post that collected tweets from journalists who had arrived in a very under-prepared Sochi. It included reports of hotel roofs missing and undrinkable water. Apparently, this is not surprising and fairly typical of all mega-sporting events. Articles are coming out everyday on Brazil's controversial hosting of the World Cup games this summer.Controversial because this excessive amount of spending on hopeful economic boosts in light of incoming tourists is taking away from the most marginalized and vulnerable people of these countries. Countries compete to even host and it present itself as a sort of "right of passage" being able to host any of these games. But at what cost to the local people?

I mean really, the games should be controversial in every country. There are few that have the infrastructure to handle the amount of people that flood into the cities where these games are hosted.  And the buildings are left vacant and unused after the games have finished.  Does anyone else see a big problem with this?

Well, local Rio de Janerians do. In this article, a major backlash to rising transportation costs summarizes the frustration of the people towards their country for spending money on this, no doubt, prestigious event. The most poignant part of the article, I think, is ""We want Fifa-standard hospitals too," they shouted, making reference to the high standards demanded by the World Cup organisers for the event's venues." 

It makes me wonder why FIFA and the Organizing Committees of the Olympic Games (OCOGs) not seem concerned about a country's welfare.  And if they are not concerned, then we, as watchers and consumers of these mega-sports programs should take a stand with those who are making sacrifices for the world's entertainment.  

It's a trend, these days, for corporations to have a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) department so why can't FIFA and OCOG too?  PepsiCo has a clean water initiative and Coca-Cola works to empower women all over the world. Corporations understand that giving back is important to people and over the past 20 years, consumers have demanded this of the companies they love.  In the same way, we as conscientious consumers can demand that these buildings be put to good use for the welfare and betterment of the population after the Olympic games. Most host cities have great plans for re-purposing the buildings like London who plans to re-use the buildings for sporting events or housing. Many are skeptical of this being an actual possibility. Most decay and sit idle for years, like the buildings in Athens, Greece. 

So much planning goes into making these buildings, I'm just asking for a plan that contributes to the community after and accountability that the money spent on these buildings will not be in vain. That the local people benefit from such an astronomical task. 

The games embody so much! They are about countries coming together to celebrate athletic ability, hard work and determination, diversity and national pride.  I think there's room for giving back to the local community somewhere in there, too.  

Beijing may be leading the way. Below is the Olympic "Water Cube" from the 2008 Olympics. It cost 100 million US dollars to make. 

And here it is today...the largest indoor water park in Asia...

"LLLs"

In social work, we are taught that every person has the right to self-determination. Essentially, what this boils down to is that the social worker cannot tell the client they should do this or that.  The social worker helps the client see all of the options and the consequences of those options. Then the social worker helps empower the client to make the wisest choice.  Even if the social worker disagrees with the final decision, it is theirs to make. But at least there was a conversation.

This proverb reminded me of this social work ethic but it is definitely not limited to that. As Christians, we can make this a habit for challenging each other and encouraging one another to learn.

Really, I think this proverb is so great because to me it says "DIALOGUE!" You can learn from each other and everyone's voice is important at the table. Even if you do not agree, it is important to listen and respect others perspectives. 

We are life-long students. 

A Grief Unobserved

A multitude of psalms are lament.  Which got me thinking about how terribly our culture grieves.  We do not have time in our busy schedules to do this.  "The show must go on" as the saying goes and we find that after having a few days to organize funeral arrangements we must get back to work.  This is the case for even close family members it seems.  A friend of mine who is a professor at Baylor studies death and dying trends in our culture. She sees more and more outlets for grief like stickers on the back of cars remembering loved ones and tattoos of the person's name.  




    It is no surprise to her that our culture has a renewed fascination with immortality and death scene in pop culture films that feature vampires and zombies. 



In Egypt, people are expected to spend at least 40 days in morning.  Some people wear black for a year as a symbolic act of grieving their loved ones.  At first, it sounds strange but I think there is something to this. 40 days of not talking to anyone or going to work (if it was a close family member).  Perhaps one doesn't need the whole 40 days but at least you are given the opportunity to move through the stages of grieving.

I think this is severely lacking in our culture.  My mother is still grieving her mother's death ten years later because there was no time to carve out of her demands at work when it happened.  I think the psalms point us in a good and healthy act of expressing emotions that are distressing and may make others uncomfortable.  We need to be leaders in normalizing grief in our churches and being good, healthy examples ourselves.