Keisling responds to Luna's misrepresentation of working relationship between HRC and NCTE

[Ethan St.Pierre]

I arrived home from a five day vacation just in time to play catch up with emails and news items I had missed. I was happy to see that Baywindows had published an article on the Boycott of the New England HRC gala. The article started off reasonable enough:

In response to Human Rights Campaign’s stance on the Employment Non-Discrimination Act (ENDA), the activist group Queertoday.com, along with activists from Queers Without Borders, Pride at Work and KnowThyNeighbor.org are organizing a protest of the organization’s New England gala dinner, which will be held at the Sheraton in Boston on October 25th. It’s no secret that these organizations are frustrated with HRC’s support last year for an ENDA bill that did not provide anti-discrimination protections to the transgender community, and they have made it clear that they do not support many other aspects of the organization.

"We hope to continue what they’ve ignited. Activists have been protesting the HRC dinner in every major city," said Mark Snyder, founder of Queertoday.com.

The fourth paragraph of the article was when it began to go downhill.

According to Brad Luna, communications director for HRC, the organization is working alongside the National Center for Transgender Equality to fight for the rights of transgender individuals across the nation.

Does working along side mean working with? I have worked along side many people without working directly "with" them. Does Luna's statement leave one to believe that NCTE is working "with" HRC? You bet your ass it does and that is exactly what Luna and the other HRC employees want you to believe. This is yet another glaring example of the way HRC conducts business. Unethical, immoral and with the intent of harming a portion of our community. Is this an organization that anyone from the LGBT community should trust to speak on our behalf?

I alerted NCTE's executive director, Mara Keisling to Luna's statement and this is her response:

HRC continues to take a position on federal legislation that undermines the rights of transgender and other gender non-conforming people. So long as that is the case, NCTE will not work with HRC in any way that reinforces HRC’s inappropriate claim that they can speak for the very transgender people whose lives they are undercutting. While NCTE staff and board are occasionally invited by policymakers and others to attend meetings at which HRC staff is also represented and possibly being asked to speak for transgender people, that is the extent of our working relationship. We have asked HRC to stop misrepresenting our organizational relationship, and though they refuse to stop, we will continue to focus on the important work to be done and leave HRC to their irresponsible positions.

It seems to me that HRC has been exposed for exactly who they are. HRC is an organization who doesn't take responsibility for their own actions and has continuously tried to take the focus off their unethical behavior by trying to place negative attention on a transgender organization.

Please endorse the HRC Boycott today, how many more reasons do you need?

[Mark Daniel Snyder]

We need to get the NCTE statement heard loud and clear. I encourage everyone to forward it to your friends and media contacts.

[Richard]

What tricksters these HRC people can be. Thanks Ethan for exposing them yet again. They not only undermine the Trans community but also have blood on their hands. It is up to all of us to continue to bang our drums as loud as we can and to hound them out of business. I haven't trusted them since 1999 and regardless what they do now I would feel the same. As a gay man I am ashamed of some of my own people and will fight hard for my friends and loved ones in the Trans community against these baby stepping, crumb gathering rich, white gays and lesbians and their foolish fellow travelers. See you all in Boston!

[Richard]

Mark and Ethan
I just re-posted your article over at Queers Without Borders. Thanks for your watchful eyes.

[Ethan St.Pierre]

Thanks Richard, I'm a big fan of QWB.