In the United Kingdom, healthcare is supposed to be free and equally accessible to everyone. Unfortunately, for the over 2,700 patients on NHS GIC (gender identity clinic) waiting lists, this may not always be true. With an average of 284 new referrals for gender identity services per month, the underfunded NHS is struggling to provide for the trans community. Their guidelines state that patients should be seen within 18 weeks, but in reality it can be more like 18 months before they even receive an initial consultation. A government report on Transgender Equality says the NHS is failing in its legal duty under the Equality Act, not only with its unacceptably long waiting times and long distances to travel to access treatment, but in the “lack of understanding” of many doctors.

Like many young trans people in the UK, Harlan, a trans boy from London, is now paying for his testosterone prescriptions himself. With the required quarterly visits to the endocrinologist, he is spending £1,400 a year to fund a treatment that should be available on the free healthcare system. LGBT-friendly alternative lifestyle community Mookychick has set up a JustGiving page to help support him get the help he needs.

Harlan has been trying to take the next step of his journey for some time now, but has found referral difficult, and doctors dismissive and uneducated.

“One actually asked me to leave when I brought it up,” says Harlan, “I want to be able to live my twenties in a way that makes me happy and feels true to who I am. Gender dysphoria and resulting mental health issues made my teen years incredibly difficult, and I’m at the beginning of something that will change my life, so I desperately want to be able to keep moving forward with this.”

He is far from the only one – in fact, the UK Government is currently being petitioned to make bridging hormone prescriptions easier to obtain for transgender people.

Harlan just after receiving his first testosterone prescription

“Just the thought of being able to keep on testosterone without panicking about not being able to afford the next month & the idea of surgery down the line is so incredible.” says Harlan, “This time last year I was thinking I’d never transition and it was messing me up in a big way. Everyone’s support has helped me get on T & is helping me stay there and I’m so happy!”

If you would like to help support Harlan, by donating or simply by sharing his story, you can go to his JustGiving page. Any donations over his £1,000 target goal will be donated to non-profit organisation Gendered Intelligence.

Francesca Lewis is a queer feminist writer from Yorkshire, UK. She writes for Curve Magazine and The Human Experience as well as writing short fiction and working on a novel. Her ardent love of American pop culture is matched only by her passion for analyzing it completely to death.

The post UK trans boy crowdfunds treatment as health service fails first appeared on Lesbian.com.

In a departure from previous public comments from the Obama administration, White House counselor John Podesta said on Friday an executive order barring LGBT discrimination among federal contractors is “under consideration.”

During an interview with Bloomberg News’ Al Hunt, Podesta made the remarks when asked if President Obama would issue a heavily sought-after executive order prohibiting federal contractors from discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

“Well, what he said in the State of the Union was he was going to require federal contractors to pay a minimum wage of $10.10,” Podesta said. “The order that you’re talking about is under consideration at the White House. We’re looking at that.”

Read more at Washington Blade

Washington Blade is America’s leading gay news source.

The post ENDA executive order ‘under consideration’ first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Over the past few years, the modeling industry has taken some strides to redefine itself and maintain its relevancy in modern society. While there’s still a long way to go, luxury retailer Barneys New York has taken it a step further this year with its spring campaign, which features 17 transgender models.

The campaign, entitled “Brothers, Sisters, Sons and Daughters,” is meant to promote awareness of transgender issues and includes photos, videos and a short film. Women’s Wear Daily spoke with Barneys creative director Dennis Freeman recently about the decision to use transgender models in the campaign. Freeman stressed the importance of progress in the industry to include the entire LGBT community, noting that compared to the inclusion of gay, lesbian and bisexual models, “it’s striking how the transgender community has been left behind. It’s disturbing and upsetting to see that.”

Read more at Huffington Post Gay Voices

The post Barney’s spring campaign features transgender models first appeared on Lesbian.com.

BY LUCIEN MAE

CeCe McDonald, who pleaded guilty to a manslaughter charge after an altercation following a racist and transphobic attack outside a Minneapolis bar in 2011, was released on parole from the Minnesota Correctional Facility in St. Cloud, an all-male prison where she served two-thirds of her sentence, on Monday, January 13. She has asked to be granted a few days of peace and reconnection with her friends and family before she will release a public statement, according to her blog.

Her sentencing caused an uproar in the LGBTQ community, which sees her case as an example of a transgender woman who is forced to serve time for defending herself in a transphobic attack.

After serving two-thirds of her forty-one month sentence in a male prison facility, McDonald was released Monday, January 13, and was greeted by fellow activist Laverne Cox, who is currently working on a documentary about her case, “FREE CeCe.”

Read more at dot429.com

The post CeCe McDonald released from prison first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Chelsea Manning came out after standing trial for leaking classified government documents.

BY JAMES NICHOLS
Huffington Post Gay Voices

In late 2012, Vice President Joe Biden made the claim that transgender discrimination would become “the civil rights issue of our time.”

In the year since his statement, America certainly has seen progress, both politically and socially, towards the full inclusion and validation of transgender-identifying individuals within our society. From solidified rights for transgender minors to representation of trans people and experiences on mainstream television — what is means to be transgender is receiving arguably more mainstream recognition than at any prior point in our history.

Read more at Huffington Post Gay Voices

The post Memorable transgender moments of 2013 first appeared on Lesbian.com.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR), voted on Monday, November 11, to add protections for transgender individuals to its fair housing protections. The decision comes after years of effort on the part of the National Association of Gay and Lesbian Real Estate Professionals (NAGLREP), who successfully worked towards getting sexual orientation added to the list of protections back in 2011.

The NAGLREP hosted speakers at the NAR midyear meeting to talk about housing and workplace discrimination faced by the transgender community, and presented the language to various committees within NAR for approval. By the time it reached the board, everyone was familiar with transgender issues and ready to take a vote.

Thanks to their work, transgender persons are now protected under the code of ethics as both customers and employees in real estate.

Read more at dot429.com

The post National Association of Realtors adds gender identity to fair housing protections first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Lambda Legal, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC Foundation), and the LGBT Rights Committee of the New York City Bar Association, with pro bono assistance from Hogan Lovells US, LLP, have jointly released a unique, groundbreaking publication that will provide much-needed guidance to hospitals seeking to improve health care for transgender patients.

“Lambda Legal’s Help Desk gets scores of calls from transgender people who are facing discrimination or being denied care when they need it. Transgender people face significant barriers to equal, consistent, and high-quality health care,” said Dru Levasseur, Director of the Transgender Rights Project at Lambda Legal. “This first-ever guide to transgender-affirming hospital policies will reduce health disparities for transgender people and offer them truly equitable care.”

Read more at TheSeattleLesbian.com

The Seattle Lesbian online magazine reaches more than 188,000 readers per week globally.

The post New guidance to hospitals for treating transgender patients first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Yanel Valenzuela

BY JAMES NICHOLS
Huffington Post Gay Voices

Popular health club LA fitness is coming under fire after allegedly telling a transgender woman that she is no longer allowed to use the women’s locker room at her local facility.

Yanel Valenzuela told reporters that the manager at a Montclair, Calif., branch of the establishment allegedly requested she no longer use the women’s locker room. The incident reportedly occurred after Valenzuela shared her personal transition story with an employee in an effort to seek workout advice catered to her specific needs.

Read more at Huffington Post Gay Voices

The post Transgender woman alleges discrimination by LA Fitness first appeared on Lesbian.com.

One day after a military judge sentenced then-U.S. Army private Bradley Manning to 35 years in prison for leaking classified documents to Wikileaks, the 25-year-old soldier released a statement through her attorney coming out as transgender.

“As I transition into this next phase of my life, I want everyone to know the real me,” Manning said. “I am Chelsea Manning. I am a female.”

Manning’s dramatic announcement was first disclosed on NBC’s “The Today Show” early Thursday morning by her lead defense attorney, David Coombs, who said Chelsea Manning will request from prison authorities permission to undergo hormone therapy.

Read more at Washington Blade

Washington Blade is America’s leading gay news source.

The post Will Manning case affect effort to lift trans military ban? first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Imagine living every day in a body that isn’t your own. It’s completely foreign to your brain. It feels, looks and works differently than your mind would expect it to. When you try to fix this frustrating, broken connection, people discriminate against you and strip away your rights. Transgender people go through this every day. If this isn’t challenging enough, add trying to access and pay for health care. And then add going to college.

Transgender students face a multitude of hurdles in college, like finding gender-neutral, inclusive bathrooms and housing and using preferred names or gender in paperwork, as well as admission itself.

Read more at Care2.com

Care2 is the largest online community of people passionate about making a difference.

The post Making the case for trans-inclusive health plans for college students first appeared on Lesbian.com.