#talkingwithmyhands

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INTERNATIONAL TRANSGENDER DAY OF VISIBILITY

Trans children, and adults, and families, are citizens of our state. They are also all members—constituent parts; just as they are—of the Divine creation. They deserve to have protected from interference the places they need to grow and to flourish as such. And while the evidence is too plentiful of just what lengths legislation now seeks to steal away any safe space, to remove any safe harbor, for transgender & gender-diverse persons of any age, never lose sight of the even greater truth: that we are each fearfully and wonderfully made.

May you be seen, heard, and loved on this International Transgender Day of Visibility--and all others besides.

(Oh, and: #talkingwithmyhands, scarf-matching-nails, sparkly-starry-jumpsuit, testimony-times-seven, truth-to-power, edition)

w/@tnequality

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Update from Action Central—TL/DR summary: What an amazing day filled with good people and tough work!

Thank you to Inclusion TN's @philcobizzle for inviting me to speak on behalf of @tnequality this last Tuesday. The occasion was the fantastic "Have a Heart" Rally, organized by Nashville's & the national offices of the @humanrightscampaign as we work together to encourage the Tennessee legislators that have brought yet another slate of deeply discriminatory, hurtful, bills to "Have a Heart" (like, seriously, please, go on a Cowardly Lion journey to find one if you have to). Just as importantly, we also got to lift up, tend to, and encourage each other!

So many talented, smart, caring, folks spoke on the day: HRC Nashville's Dakerri Rhone; Britney Banks; Phil Cobucci; Out Memphis' Executive Director Molly Quinn, not to mention the artist DeeDee, and a lovely, a capella performance by @morgxnofficial !

As I said then, I feel still: Yes, there is work to be done—the world can feel so broken—and we ourselves are works-in-progress. But each of you, all of us, are seen and known as sparkling, divine, creations...and we are the people, through which hope develops its steel backbone. Let's keep standing tall together...

(Oh, and photo credit Phil C, and for those who were wondering: I'm still talking-with-my-hands, determined, hopeful, don't-hate-me-for-my-sunglasses-hairband edition)