Hate... Really? Part Two

So my last post generated a comment from Kaitlin Priess about the Texas A&M Student Senate that voted 35-28 April 3rd to approve an anti-gay measure that would allow students to opt out of funding the campus GLBT Resource Center if they have religious objections. The name of the bill was changed from the “GLBT Funding Opt Out Bill” to the “The Religious Funding Exemption Bill,” and specific references to the GLBT Resource Center were removed. The President of the Student Council, John L. Claybrook, vetoed the bill.

The thing that is really disturbing are the comments this generated on DallasVoice.com's article, "BREAKING: Texas A&M Student Senate passes anti-gay bill in 35-28 vote". Go and read some of the sick comments this generated and amount of propaganda that is quoted from religious conservatives. The big one being that being a homosexual is a choice.

According to the APA (American Psychological Association) "most people experience little or no sense of choice about their sexual orientation". Further they state,

"There is no consensus among scientists about the exact reasons that an individual develops a heterosexual, bisexual, gay, or lesbian orientation. Although much research has examined the possible genetic, hormonal, developmental, social, and cultural influences on sexual orientation, no findings have emerged that permit scientists to conclude that sexual orientation is determined by any particular factor or factors".

 I cannot speak about being gay. I can speak when it comes to being a transsexual, the only choice I had was to continue living feeling like I was wearing someone else's dirty underwear, in such mental conflict and distress or brave being who I really am and facing all of society's prejudice, hate and ignorance and placing myself in real physical danger. Some choice. Think about it for a moment and wonder just how terrible your situation has to be when the latter is preferable to the former and you start to get an idea why I say there really is NO CHOICE.

But according to the same mental giants that claim creationism is science, I chose to be transsexual, because I am a sick pervert of sin and because I am I stop being a human and citizen of this country. That I lose my right to equality and that it is perfectly right and divinely ordained that I be hated and even threatened with imprisonment and physical harm.

Perhaps one of you reading this are thinking "well that is what you chose, choose something else". My honest answer to that is this, if I could, I would. My life would be so much easier, it would not have cost me all but one of my friends, it would mean that I could see the grandchildren from 5 of my 6 children. It would mean I would be able to enjoy a good job because of my 20 years of experience. Before I transitioned I was making 70,000 plus bonuses, after the best I was able to get was half of that.

I am what I am, I can't change it but that does not make me less than human and honestly, the last 11 years I have had to watch a constant attack that denies me my rights and honestly I feel myself becoming more and more militant. So when it comes to being a transsexual, I did not have a choice. When it comes to stepping on the neck of some fundamentalist conservative that says I for some reason do not deserve the same rights and privileges, well that is my choice and I WILL exercise it.