Global Justice Institute TDOR Public Statement

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

November 20, 2024 

TRANSGENDER DAY OF REMEMBRANCE 

 

Every year, the Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR) is observed on November 20. The week leading to TDOR is Transgender Awareness Week.  

 

GLAAD states on their website that TDOR is the “annual observance on November 20 that honors the memory of the transgender people whose lives were lost in acts of 

anti-transgender violence.” 

 

An HRC report states that of the 36 transgender persons murdered in the last year, 78% identified as women, 61% were women of color, half were Black women, over 54% were under the age of 35, 22% were killed by intimate partners, and 9% were killed by a friend or family member.  

 

It is clear that Anti-trans violence involves intersections of misogyny, racism, and domestic violence. 

 

When Transgender people are demoralized and targeted by preachers and politicians, it fuels the unreasonable hatred against them. 

 

During this year’s Transgender Awareness Week, according to LGBTQ Nation, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green of Georgia reportedly threatened to assault Rep.-elect Sarah McBride of Delaware if Ms. McBride were to make use of the women’s facilities at the Capitol. 

When asked if she had indeed made such a threat, MTG, without denying the report, said simply, “I shouldn’t have to” fight someone for using, in her opinion, the “wrong” restroom. 

 

This sort of threatening language makes Transgender people less safe. Sarah McBride is a person, and someone elected by her district to represent them in Congress. She is also a history maker as the first transwoman elected to Congress. Ms. McBride shouldn’t have to worry for a second that she might be bullied by a fellow Congressperson.

 

Today, the Transgender Day of Remembrance, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson announced a ban on transwomen using the women’s restrooms at the Capitol. Despite his very recent claim that everyone is treated with dignity and respect on Capitol Hill, this anti-trans bathroom policy seems disrespectful to transgender people in general, and to Ms. McBride in particular.  

 

When questioned by reporters about McBride specifically, LGBTQ Nation reported that the Speaker said, “For anyone who doesn’t know my established record on this issue, let me be 

unequivocally clear: a man is a man, and a woman is a woman, and a man cannot become a woman.” He wrongly claimed that his view is the teaching of scripture.

 

Mike Johnson is entitled to his prejudices and to his limited and outmoded understanding of gender, but he should not use his biases to discriminate against a duly elected member of the House of Representatives. And for this discrimination against and disrespect of Transgender persons to occur on TDOR is not only insulting, it also illustrates what fuels violence against Transgender people and why TDOR and Transgender Awareness Week are needed. 

 

The Bishops of the Global Justice Institute, under the leadership of Presiding Bishop Pat Bumgardner, call on all people of goodwill, and especially all people of faith to apply the Golden Rule toward our Transgender siblings.  

 

We ask that people who claim to embrace a religious tradition remember that love and kindness are the guiding themes of most religions, and to realize that Transgender persons are no less entitled to kindness than anyone else.  

 

And finally, we call on all supporters of the Global Justice Institute to continue your support during these uncertain and, for many, perilous times, and to join us in praying for the safety of Transgender people and all members of the LGBTQ community going forward.  

 

“…there is no longer male or female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.” St. Paul 

 

 

Wishing you blessings of hope and resilience, 

 

 

+Bishop Durrell Watkins  

on behalf of the Global Justice Institute’s Council of Bishops  

 

 

+Bishop Pat Bumgardner, Presiding Bishop & Executive Director 

+Jim Merritt, Auxiliary Bishop 

+Robert Griffin, Auxiliary Bishop 

+Durrell Watkins, Auxiliary Bishop

Hateful Administrations: We've seen them before, we'll survive them again

The text of my homily for the Nov. 6 Post-Election Prayer Service at Sunshine Cathedral:

Pastoral Response to the Election
Bishop Durrell Watkins, D.Min.
11-6-24

I am not a party loyalist, nor am I always enthusiastic about the leadership of my default party. But I am always troubled by people being demonized, whether they are immigrants or transgender persons or drag artists or women who want to own their own bodies.
And when vulnerable populations are targeted, I tend to speak up and stand up and sometimes even act out.

From pensioners to Queer families to transgender members of society to immigrants to climate scientists to civil rights activists – folk are afraid right now, for themselves and for their loved ones.
There is no reason to dismiss their fears. We can hope that the worst of what they fear will not happen, we can assure ourselves that we will stand together and support one another come what may, but anxiety today is to be expected.

But you know what? I’ve been afraid before. When our government wouldn’t say the word AIDS, and hesitated with funding research for it, and when I lived during a time of sodomy laws and my every act of intimacy was a crime…I was not infrequently scared. 

In high school, obviously gay but not out – not even really to myself, every day was miserable. The battle for marriage equality gave me plenty of agita. The last three elections weren’t good at all for my hypertension. 

But I was born in the era of civil rights struggle and I was a child during the sexual revolution and the peace movement and Stonewall and women’s liberation and I’ve been alive for the passing of and the dismantling of Roe v. Wade. 

This isn’t my first time to be faced with uncertain times and to hear almost hourly threatening rhetoric. But I’m still here, and so are you. I’m a product of Queer Nation and ACT UP. I’ve battled with family, church and state my whole life. I battled hatred and fear and discrimination in the midst of a viral holocaust.
So one thing I know about scary times is that we are equal to them. 

We feel fear, and we do what needs to be done anyway.
We feel fear, and help one another find a bit of bravery.
We feel fear and we let it fuel creativity and resilience and determination.
And we love one another through the scary times. 

No referendum, no court ruling, no abusive use of scripture, no family rejection, no negative ad campaign, no election of anyone to any office…nothing can diminish the power of our love and nothing can keep us from sharing it with one another. 

We have dealt with bullies our whole lives.
Sometimes we hid, sometimes we ran, sometimes we fought, sometimes we won, but we survived, and we will survive.
Greater is the love within us than the hatred that’s in the world. 

So, if you’re worried about your civil rights, your safety, the way other vulnerable populations might be treated, I can’t tell you that you don’t have good reason for that. But I can tell you that we’re in it together, and together, our voice is magnified, our courage is amplified, our resilience is fortifide, and our creativity is glorified. 

We’ll love each other through this and every challenge, as we always have. It’s one of many things we’re super good at. Today is sad, but the badassery of our love is intact. Amen.

We will get through a second dystopian Trump era - but we must stick together and love one another through it.

Nov. 5 - bundle of Nerves.
Nov. 6 - Shock. Depression. Anger. Incredulousness. Anxiety. Grief.
Nov. 7 - I was starting to regain perspective and letting myself feel determined again.


These were my thoughts on social media November 7:

Okay, I've had a couple of days to pray, marinate, ponder, wallow in denial, then in self-pity, then in fuming rage...you know, cope. Now I'm in a better place (but I reserve the right to come apart at the seems on any given day from now until Nov 2028).

So here's my sane moment: 45/47/34 aka Felonious McPredator von Perfidy will unleash unfettered Dickery & Fuckery & Shittery & Ass-Hattery & Buffoonery & Stankery (so many eries). We will be aghast. Then we will be furious that we were even the slightest surprised. Then we will be demoralized that we live in a country where he is both not incarcerated and is somehow, by anyone at all, admired. But, this is the reprise of this number. We know how it goes. We survived the original production of Orange Turd: the Musical. We'll somehow manage to get through the Revival. 

We are again "the resistance." We will have to use every tool at our disposal: law, hope, collective compassion, righteous indignation, love of neighbor, love of self, love of liberty, forensic skill, creativity, resilience, imagination, snark, humor, camp, spirituality, music, film, theatre, comedy, history, pride, storytelling, self-care...to protect ourselves and one another. We'll grow stronger in the process. We'll love more fiercely. After every fall we will get back up, middle finger at the ready. We'll be okay because we have one another. 

Yes, there will be ugliness, but it will not diminish or demolish our beauty. Our Queer and Trans and Subversive and 2 Spirit and Nonbinary and Ally and Ase and Intersex and Questioning and Pan and Poly and Leather and Drag and Bisexual and Interfaith and Agnostic and Humanist and Pagan and Atheist and Progressive Christian and New Thought and Jewish and Muslim and Buddhist and Hindu and Sikh and Baha'i and Tattooed and Pierced and Camp and Body Positive and Sex Positive and Weed smoking and Feminist and Womanist and Democratic Socialist and Poetic and Artistic and Science Trusting and Peace-seeking Woke and Ever Woker selves will prove indomitable, invincible, and indefatigable. 

It won't be easy, but we will be mighty and we'll survive and ultimately prevail. Don't give up. We faced Sodomy Laws, we faced opposition to marriage equality, we faced AIDS, we faced religious bullying, we faced unenlightened families and cruel neighbors...if nothing else, we know how to survive. 

Rest when you need to. Fret when you must. But then, get back in the fight. We are going to prove to be absolutely legendary in the next few years. My favorite table grace is: "God bless the food and the revolution." I'll be praying that daily for quite a while. Alright girls (I say that in the most gender non-specific way): It's time to slay (in the gay way that isn't lethal, but still, you for real don't want to be the recipient of Queer slayage).
--dw
#slay #ResistFascism #resistproject2025 #wegotthis #StrongerTogether #resistance #keephopealive #lovewins #lgbtqiaplus #lgbtqpride #staywokefolks

Don't Blame LGBTQ - We Voted Against Cruelty & Injustice in Huge Numbers

 "LGBT voters, a larger share of the electorate than ever, shift away from Trump Vice President Kamala Harris led President-elect Donald Trump 86% to 12% among lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender voters, according to the NBC News Exit Poll Desk."

Bless my tribe.

"Harris’ performance among LGBT voters was stronger than that of any Democratic candidate in the last five presidential elections."

That for real makes me proud.

LGBTQ voters doubled since 2008.

People are hurting and afraid after the 2024 election

 People are hurting, afraid, bereaved, bewildered, angry, sad...it is not helpful for someone who has the luxury of not having those same concerns tell them to relax, be calm, stay positive, have faith, in the end it'll be okay or "God's got this." There may be truth in those platitudes, and we will be more or less okay, but that does not preclude struggle, disappointment, & injustices along the way; and, it does not mean that we feel okay today. People worried about deportation, bans based on their faith, stripping away of their bodily autonomy, access to healthcare, or their marriage being invalidated don't need those not in similar peril to be dismissive of their experience. Yes we hope. Yes we work & believe in the work. And, we also can be overwhelmed by disturbing news, by cruelty, by attacks against our agency & right to live authentically. Some of us may need a minute, & it costs nothing to allow people time to process their feelings, start getting a plan together, connect with their tribe, & find their path back to hope.

45 (34) is Problematic

 Personal sharing (views not necessarily reflective of anyone else or any group or organization). 

An unpopular, intellectually stifled, morally bankrupt, one-term president who lost pop vote by almost 3 million votes & 4 years later lost by 7 million votes, refused to concede, incited a brutal insurrection in an attempt to overturn election results, twice impeached, boycotted the swearing-in of his successor, first former president to be indicted, 34 felony convictions, adjudicated rapist...

and that's beside "grab 'em by the pxxxy", shithole countries, Mexico will pay, his tragic mishandling of covid, birtherism, "lock her up", tax cuts for billionaires, the apology he owes the Exonerated 5, & packing scotus with antichoice liars who said under oath they considered Roe settled law...

& all that's beside collusion with Russia, tax evasion, draft dodging, less job growth than his  predecessor & his successor, gassing peaceful protestors, & saying he wants to be dictator for a day.

My God! Who, with any sort of conscience, or memory, would even consider voting for him? How much must one hate immigrants, refugees, LGBTQ, women, BIPOC, the Academy, the environment, civil rights, & general prosperity to vote for him over almost anyone with a brain & a soul?

I'm sad, scared, disgusted, & furious that he has any chance at all. He wasn't a good president & you'd have to look hard to find many people who are worse humans. 

Speaking only for myself, a voting citizen & no one else, I distrust anyone who finds him even remotely acceptable. I expect to have room for about 10 new friends after this, but seriously. WTAF? Darth Vader, Jabba, Hannibal Lector (his hero!), Dracula, Satan, & Mussolini can't be on the ballot so he is the sociopaths' booby prize? 

How is it even necessary or controversial to point out that he's a gadomn narcissistic criminal menace unfit for leadership? It makes no sense for any decent person to support him to any degree.

This isn't about party but about naming a racist felonious grifter & trying to protect my country from him. There are people from more than one party who share this sentiment (though I am not claiming to speak for them). This is from ME to whom it may concern.

That's all. Please register to vote. Please vote. Every time.

#deplorables

(dw)

Why I Resist Trump

Saddam Hussein, Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, Idi Amin...If more people had resisted them before they became super powerful, brutal, autocratic dictators, history might have unfolded a bit differently. My opposition to Trump is not partisan. I don’t reject him because he’s on “the other team”...I reject him because he is a danger to decency, justice, fairness, equality, and peace. I am not a member of his party (and neither was he for most of his life), but I didn’t wake up in a deep, despondent depression on Nov. 9, 2016 because I’m a tax and spend liberal who doesn’t believe Science is Satan’s tool and who believes compassion is not a sign of weakness and my lady lost (with 3 million more votes than the so-called winner...though that fact is galling)...I woke up in deep despair because an incompetent, soulless, psycho rode a wave of racism, xenophobia and corruption to immense power and I was honestly scared. We will have R and D presidents and they will do things I agree with and things I don’t...my 100% rejection of Trump has nothing to do with that. My rejection of Trump is my chance to say I did what I could when I could to prevent an Idi Amin (who was in power for 8 years...may that not even be an option for us!) from ruling with unchecked brutality in my own country.

My Not Very Lefty Attitude Toward Bush 41

My possibly controversial attitude toward the passing of President Bush. 

Full disclosure (and unless we met 10 minutes ago, you know this already): I am not a member of the Republican Party. I have never voted for a GOP candidate who was running opposed by a Democrat. I have only voted for Democratic presidential candidates (so far). I believe we need and deserve and can afford a strong social safety net. I believe war should be avoided whenever possible. I believe the government should try to protect the environment. I believe health care is a right, and higher education should be affordable. No person who works full time should ever be living below the poverty line. I am pro-choice (realizing that even “choice” implies privilege that not everyone has).  I am a person of faith and cherish the freedom of religion, AND, I am furious that “religious freedom” is misapplied and intentionally misunderstood to protect and promote a variety of prejudices and injustices. Reasonable gun safety legislation is desperately needed. I hold the radical view that LGBTQ citizens are entitled to equal protection and equal opportunity and are, in fact, fully human. And, the Reagan-era silence and apparent apathy in the face of AIDS was almost unforgivable, and certainly cost many lives. Had the sufferers not been largely gay folk, I honestly believe the response would have been swifter and more compassionate. So...you know, a hard right winger I ain’t. 

That being said, my own health and sanity depend on a level of grace, a measure of forgiveness, a need to see more than misdeeds when evaluating a human life, especially a life that was dedicated (in whatever flawed way) to public service. 

I do NOT share the ever so popular view that Reagan was a great leader. He was charming and patriotic and eloquent, and often, wrong. 

At this point in my life, I can say absolutely nothing positive about Donald Trump. I hope I grow to a point where I can one day say something good about him, but I find him to be the least qualified, least moral, and most dangerous person to occupy the WH in my lifetime. But I tire of hating him, and I do pray that I am or will evolve to the point of being able to pity him, forgive him (and those who enable him), and look to a future filled with hope.

I am more gracious when it comes to Bush 41. I did NOT vote for him. I AM aware of a series of things that I think he could have done better. I am also aware of things he did well. I believe his intention was to serve honorably. I am not excusing his mistakes or misjudgments, I’m simply not reducing his life to them. I know many of my friends and fellow liberals are outraged by him, but I’m so tired of hatred and rage and despair and regret...I am NOT chastising anyone who feels entitled to such feelings or who feels that such feelings are the only feelings available to them, but I am saying that for me, for my peace of mind, I have to be able to honor his service and let him depart this world with dignity and peace. No one has to share my view, but I hope those who don’t will understand that it is also a legitimate path. Our complex world offers very few all right vs. all wrong answers...we’re all just to trying our best to make meaning in the midst of chaos. 

I have personally been hurt, betrayed, insulted, deceived by people, and anger is natural. Trust is sometimes destroyed forever. But eventually, I find myself being willing to be willing to forgive...if only because the anger is too exhausting and I’m getting too old to haul it around all the time. If I can forgive, or try to forgive, or be willing to allow forgiveness to overtake me when it comes to people in my life who proved untrustworthy, then I can probably forgive well meaning, flawed, sometimes myopic political leaders who deal with pressures, challenges, and choices I will never face. That’s not a pass to all A-holes, but it is a declaration that at some point, I have to let the A-holes go so that they don’t continue to hurt me because I am keeping them active in my own head. 

I voted for Dukakis. I voted for Clinton. Bush 41 wasn’t my candidate, but he was my president.  And so to President Bush I can say, “Rest in peace.”  And that actually gives me some peace.

Midterm Election Prayer

Midterm Election Prayer
By Rev. Dr. Durrell Watkins

Spirit of shared life,
In the United States it is election time again.
It is time to choose our House of Representatives, a third of our Senate, and many of our governors and local officials.
We can’t ask you to do what we will not, but we can invite you into our thinking, into our actions, into our attitudes, and into our service.
It is both a right and a responsibility of all citizens to vote.
May we have the courage to resist voter suppression.
May we have the desire to participate in shaping the direction of our nation.
May we know that our votes matter, and are needed.
And may we vote according to conscience and character.
May our votes be influenced by both head and heart.
May our votes protect equality, promote justice, preserve peace, and proclaim a respect for the dignity of all people.
Inspire us to vote in this election, and in every election that follows.
May we do our best to be our best, in the name of all that is good and holy. Amen.

The Right is Wrong

Christians are not being persecuted in the U.S. Christian fundamentalist domination is being resisted (and rightly so!).
White people are not being persecuted for their whiteness. Their (our) unearned white privilege is being named and challenged (and rightly so!).
Patriots are not being persecuted. The many who love the values of integrity, generosity, compassion, justice, equality, and opportunity which our nation has always claimed (even if it has not always lived up to and into those values) will not let such patriotism be replaced by petty, bigoted, angry nationalism.
The cruelty, fear, tribalism, and violence that has been presented as religion and politics is being challenged, but that is because ultimately, the Good must prevail. This is an anxious time, but anxious times are times for hope, and hope leads to better days. The Good will prevail.

Calling People Animals: A Bible Lesson

Calling People Animals

by Durrell Watkins, DMin

“Even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” Matthew 15.27

When a woman from an ethnic group that Jesus' community had long held in disdain and with suspicion approached Jesus to help her suffering daughter, Jesus responded in a perplexing manner. He basically called the woman a dog, or perhaps "dog" was an ethnic slur sometimes used against people of her heritage. Tradition and certain readings of ancient texts would have justified Jesus' seeming dismissal of this woman and her pain, but she challenged Jesus. She basically says, "Even if I were a dog, you'd show me some compassion. You'd give me table scraps, scratch my head, speak to me in a gentle voice. How about you treat me as well as you would treat a dog?!" And Jesus then had a change of heart, praised her faith, and blessed her daughter.

If Donald Trump really believes hurting communities are "animals" (another of his famous and frequent insults), then that is a matter for his conscience to wrestle with and hopefully he will experience a breakthrough; but in the mean time, could he maybe show such people the kindness and generosity that we would expect people to show toward animals? We work to rescue, feed, medicate, and shelter animals. It's ugly enough to call people animals, but uglier still to treat people with less kindess than we tend to show animals.

There is so much animosity and hatred in the world right now. Let us pray for healing, and let us be the answers to our own prayers. And when anyone, no matter who he or she might be, dehumanizes an entire community, let us not be silent but rush to affirm the dignity and sacred value of all people.

US Attacks Syria: Let us pray...

Goddess/God, Spirit of Life, Universal Presence, Higher Power:
Once again a despot attacks his people.
Once again, bombs are dropped.
Once again combat is initiated.
Once again, we find ourselves hacking our way through mendacity and deception to discover what is true, what is trustworthy, what is real, what is wise.
Once again, lives are placed in danger by those who will not have to personally face such danger.
Once again, we feel overwhelmed by the chaos and uncertainty that is all around us.
Once again, we are compelled to pray but we scarcely know how to pray in such times. Do not be limited by our inadequate words but rather, be moved by our hearts’ desire for healing, for peace, for justice, for goodwill to prevail. Help us be better than we’ve been. Stir compassion and hope and kindness within us. Let healing flow to where lives are in peril, and as we constantly pray, “May peace prevail on earth.” Amen.

I Can Say Something Good About Most Presidents, but Not Trump

PRESIDENT’S DAY
Today I reflect on President Ford trying to bring healing and normalcy after Watergate. 
I recall President Carter as one of the most moral and decent presidents in U.S. history. 
I remember President Reagan appointing the first woman to the Supreme Court. 
I remember President Bush organizing (with James Baker) a global coalition that quickly and decisively liberated Kuwait from Iraq. I also remember him signing the Americans with Disabilities Act. 
I remember the charm and erudition of President Clinton (and the strong economy he presided over).
I remember the 2nd President Bush appointing the first African American Secretary of State and the first woman National Security Advisor (who later became the first Black woman Secretary of State). 
I remember President Obama being an orator, a diplomat, and a constitutional scholar as well as the first African American president, appointing the most diverse cabinet ever, appointing the first Latina Supreme Court Justice, and overseeing the most gains for LGBTQ Americans in US history. 
I recall Hillary Clinton being the first FLOTUS to hold elected office and being the first woman to  head a major party presidential ticket (and making history by winning the poplar vote in that election - “the people’s president”). 

I can say at least one good thing about every president in my lifetime (I was too young to remember Johnson, who did increase the safety net making life better for may Americans, and I barely remember Nixon); from Ford on, there was something admirable about each president. Until now. 
Without being partisan or petty or intentionally mean, I honestly cannot say one good thing about the current president’s skill, intellect, character, motives, or achievements. 

On this President’s Day I celebrate the good that was done by all the presidents of my lifetime (choosing to not focus on mistakes or philosophies and policies I might have disagreed with)...except the current one. And that, truly, makes me sad (and more than a little nervous). Nevertheless, may our nation find healing and reclaim its potential and promise.

It Took Trump to Make Me Appreciate Other GOP Presidents

When the U.S. invaded Lebannon I called the 40th POTUS a maniacal bastard in a sociology class. After presiding over 100 or so AIDS funerals, I called the same POTUS a murderer (blaming his silence and his reluctance to address the AIDS crisis or provide funding for research and care on helping the epidemic take more lives than it needed to). Today, I look back and while still disagreeing with his philosophies, policies, and inaction regarding a health crisis, I now see a decent if flawed human who was sincere in his beliefs even if I did not share them and who conducted himself with diginty and decorum. You shouldn't get bonus points for not being a total A-hole, but these days that seems like a really big PLUS.

Poppy Bush never really embarrassed me (except when he puked on the Japanese PM, but hey, people get sick...what can you do?). He built a world coalition to save Kuwait from Iraqi agreesion (or, James Baker did, but he was smart enough to have JB). Of course, he also chose an idiot for his VP and that was a little scary. Still, over all, he was a pretty good president (although we now know he may have gotten a little handsy now and then...SMH).

When Bill Clinton (who I very much admired) signed DOMA and allowed DADT turn into a witch hunt, i was disappointed. I know he believed in government and to govern is to make sacrifices and compromises, but nevertheless, I felt a little betrayed. And then when he had an affair with an intern (I didn't care about his sex life nor did I presume to know the covenant that he had made with his wife, but I was very much disappointed in the abuse of power - the most powerful man in the world seducing or allowing himself to be seduced by a virtually powerless intern - the breech of ethics was astounding), my only defense of him was that being a bad husband didn't make him a bad leader. In hind sight, taking advantage of an intern is almost unforgivable and I should have been more outraged. Still, his charm, his oratory skills, his intellect...those I miss to this day.

When W. invaded the wrong country for the wrong reason and lied about WMD, and when he "won" his first term ever so barely (damn Nader), I was certain he was the worst president in history. But, I think he really cared about most people, never intended to be cruel, thought of himself as a public servant, and while I bemoaned every minute of his presidency (he was certainly no advocate of LBGTQ rights), I'd trade the one we have now for him in a minute (but not his satanic vice president...what is it with the Bush boys and their veeps?).

President Obama was pretty close to perfect. Historic private sector job growth, marriage equality, protections for Trans people, elogquent speeches, optimistic rhetoric, a brilliant mind, a kind and generous demeanor, a way of connecting with people that was almost magical, a constitutional scholar, someone who took more abuse than anyone should with more grace than almost anyone could, recovery from the Great Recession...but even he, though close to perfect was not perfect. I was very disappointed with his use of drones and with his not fighting harder to get his legimitate SCOTUS choice to have a Senate hearing.

I'm a left of center kind of guy on most issues and my candidate doesn't always win, but I was never humiliated by any of the presidents. I was a kid for Johnson/Nixon/Ford/Carter and my views of them are shaped by what the grown folk were saying and by historical accounts (though I really like me some Jimmy Carter...he may be the best "person" to occupy the WH in my lifetime with BHO tying or coming in a razor thin second...I'm talking character, not skill, though both had plenty of that as well), but I have lived through Reagan/Bush/Clinton/Bush/Obama as an adult and in the end, they were all decent people...not always right in my view, but never evil, never insane, never cruel or infantile or a danger to the planet.

I don't think I will look back on 45 with the grace I have discovered for his predecessors. I hope we survive 45. But even the worst circumstances reveal a blessing. It took 45 to make me appreciate 40 and 43. The GOP platform is just too radically different from my values for me to vote for their candidates, but hopefully I will not in the future demonize candidates simply for having different views. Good people can disagree. Now, I will remain vehement and adamant when it comes to human rights - whether its LGBTQ people or immigrants or refugees or Muslims or whoever...justice and equality shouldn't be negotiable...but I believe that there are Republicans who share that view.

45 IS the worst ever (the data is pretty conclusive), and he is the most mendacious ever (a neat trick in the world of politics which lends itself to spin, exaggeration, and lies of omission), and he may be the most dangerous ever. He is the least decent and least moral. I find nothing good or commendable about him, except that his ineptitude and viciousness forced me to rethink some of his predecessors and see their good qualities. So, thanks for the lesson 45...Now, if only a house would fall on you and some chick with a dog from the midwestwould throw a bucket of water on Pence...

His Fans Like Him, His Detractors Do Not, but Trump is No Victim

People get to like, respect, agree with, admire, worship, and/or wish to emulate the 45th POTUS (I currently do none of those things but am open to future, joyful surprises). What people DO NOT get to do is say that people's mistrust of him or response to his antics are unfair or unprecidented. We are no where near the point of questioning his citizenship, which a previous president had to endure.

And, even if one were to dig him deeply, that same one must surely understand why feminists, same-gender loving people, transgender/gender queer/two spirit/nonbinary folk, Latinx, Muslim, people whose lives depend on having access to health insurance, environmentalists, people who fear he colluded with a foreign power, and people terrified of the possibility of nuclear war would perhaps not share that admiration of him.

I will say, the last two presidents have shared one thing in common - both have been suspected of practiciing religions which they do not...Islam (44) and Christianity (45), respectively. 45 was Baptized into a Protestant tradition (but then, so was his predecessor); however, to claim a kinship with the evangelical right is politically expedient for him but has not been the witness of his life (or speech) lo these last 7 decades.

In any case, people are entitled to like him (we tend to like the people who reflect who we are or who reflect the sort of person we wish to be), but they are not entitled to paint him in any way as a victim. Without experience, relevant preparation, or even the majority of the popular vote he became the most powerful man in the world. He arguably may have victims, but he is in no way or by any credible definition a victim himself.

Will & Grace as Good Medicine in the Time of Trump

If what W&G was meant to do was recapture a bygone moment, then it was not quite successful. If it was meant to help a generation reconnect with old icons, it came closer to the mark. But, if it was meant to provide a catharsis in a devastating, depressing, dystopian moment in American history, then it may prove to be the most important television offering of the Fall. 

When a group is hurting, feels powerless, and is routinely dehumanized, an age old coping mechanism is to fight back with fantasy, with camp, with humor, and with burlesque. If we can laugh at pain, we can endure it. If we can wink at hopelessness, we can resurrect hope. If we can imagine the Beast being defeated, we can transcend some of our fear of the Beast (the monster, the ghosts, the demons, the little green folk with ray guns, etc.). 

Transgender folk in military targeted? Mention Caitlin Jenner in charades.

DOJ suggests gay folk are not protected by civil rights laws? Jacks makes out with a Secret Service agent.

45 cozies up to the homophobic religious right? Grace leaves a Make America Gay Again hat in the Oval. 

The struggle will be long and arduous; a little laughter and self affirmation will help us endure it...and will also remind us what the struggle is for and why we cannot give up.

Comedy reboot = B minus.

Social Commentary = A minus.

Much needed healing catharsis = A PLUS.

Thank you Will & Grace (& Karen and Jack)!

Grieving the loss of the U.S.

I'm usually an optimist...but less so today. I'm grieving the loss of the U.S.

I feel like I'm approaching the "acceptance" stage of grief. I have been in denial and I have bargained with the gods of justice and sanity, but I'm seriously close (at least today) to just throwing up my hands and saying, "It is what it is."

White supremacists are no longer the crazy uncle or the evil neighbor or the fictional movie character...they are now running the show. Homophobia has practically become a religion. We have declared war on the poor, the sick, and on the planet. We act as if science is just one more opinion that we can take or leave. Transgender people serving their country with honor are summarily dismissed on a whim. Families can be ripped apart if they are brown, religions can be vilified if their Prophet is from Mecca rather than Nazareth, someone who applied for multiple draft deferments feels entitled to insult war heroes, couragious people who claim their right to peaceful protest have their patriotism questioned, a constitutional scholar can become president and have his faith and citizenship questioned and be replaced by the very person who so ridiculously questioned them! Someone can brag about groping women without their consent and that doesn't hurt his political ambitions, we are closer to nuclear war since anytime since the Bay of Pigs, Nazis are said to include "good people" while athletes of color protesting white supremacy are called "sons of bitches" by the most powerful person in the world - who, btw, is the same person associating with and defending Nazis! If this is really who we are, then we deserve the comeuppance which is surely at hand.

It's too much. It's too depressing. It's too sad. It's too frightening. It's too disgusting. And I'm too weary. This dystopian time will not last forever and sanity will return, but the US will never again be what it was nor what it once perported to strive to become. We will join the burning rubbish heap of history where fallen empires wind up. Our borders will be secure and we will have an economy and education and families...we aren't going away, but the shining city on a hill myth is being ripped from us (and perhaps it was arrogant to hold onto it in the first place).

I'll probably return to denial and bargaining. I hope I do. I pray for such a resurrection of hope and determination. But right now, I'm afraid it's over for us, for the US. I'm afraid that I'm dangerously close to accepting the seemingly inevitable. The angels will defeat the beast (according to the Christian apocalyptic myth), but the angels seem to be getting a pretty severe ass whipping for the time being. And that makes me very sad. God helps us.

An Open Pastoral Letter to Transgender Members of the US Armed Forces

An Open Pastoral Letter to Transgender 

Members  of the US Armed Forces

by Rev. Dr. Durrell Watkins 

I believe we are called to work for peace and justice in the world. That being true, it is also true that nations must have defensive capabilities. Perhaps we rush to war too often, but our government is challenged to provide for the common defense. For decades now, service in the  U.S. military has not been conscripted, but rather, has been completely voluntary. For a variety of reasons, many people choose to spend a number of years ready to defend their country if called upon to do so. Such service takes courage and discipline, and those who risk so much for so many deserve our respect and our best wishes. 

Today, the pastoral leaders of the Sunshine Cathedral in Fort Lauderdale wish to take a moment to thank all members of the Armed Forces, and to celebrate in particularTransgender members of the branches of the U.S. military. Transgender people continue to be misunderstood, vilified, feared, and targeted, and yet as many as 15,000 Transgender service people work to keep our country safe. Transgender people who serve, like gays and lesbians, women, and people of color at various times in our history, have had to fight for the right to serve and defend a country that didn't always show them the respect as individuals they deserved. And still, love of country and devotion to what it could be prevailed and LGBT people and other minorities have served with distinction, proving that what's in the heart is mightier than the various prejudices that try to hold us back.

Transgender service people, we at the Sunshine Cathedral want you to know that you are in our hearts today, we are praying for you, we appreciate and respect you, and we will speak out for you whenever you are being attacked, no matter who may be launching the attacks. You are heroes and we bless you for your courageous and faithful service. You bravely defend us. We will try, now, to stand faithfully with you. 

Blessings,

Rev. Dr. Durrell Watkins

Senior Minister 

SunshineCathedral.net 

"As a veteran I find it appalling that the current Commander-In-Chief of the United States of America would seek to ostracize, discriminate against, or prevent anyone, especially those of the Transgender Community who willingly volunteered, from serving in the Armed Forces.  They, like many others raised their right hand and affirmed to 'support and defend the Constitution of the United States...So help me God.' With God's help and protection, let our Transgender brothers and sisters be an example of what it means to serve with pride, honor and dignity." Rev. Dr. Robert Griffin, Executive Minister

"I honor, affirm, and recognize the humanity of all Trans* people serving in the U.S. military. I see you. I will fight for you.  I will not accept the continued erosion of your rights." Rev. Anne Atwell, Minister of Connections 

"The thousands of transgender servicemembers bravely and honorably serving their country today need to know that in spite of the President's ugly words and regressive policy decision, millions of Americans recognize the value of their lives are grateful for their sacrifice and that of their families for this country." Rev. Ty Bradley, Minister of Social Justice 

Dr. King's Widow's Words Ruled "Impuning" a Senator to Silence Another Senator

Coretta Scott King had this to say about Sessions (Senator Warren was silenced by Sen maj ldr McConnell because she was going to read this into the record):
"I write to express my sincere opposition to the confirmation of Jefferson B. Sessions as a federal district court judge for the Southern District of Alabama. My professional and personal roots in Alabama are deep and lasting. Anyone who has used the power of his office as United States Attorney to intimidate and chill the free exercise of the ballot by citizens should not be elevated to our courts. Mr. Sessions has used the awesome powers of his office in a shabby attempt to intimidate and frighten elderly black voters. For this reprehensible conduct, he should not be rewarded with a federal judgeship. I regret that a long-standing commitment prevents me from appearing in person to testify against this nominee. However, I have attached a copy of my statement opposing Mr. Sessions' confirmation and I request that my statement as well as this be made a part of the hearing record. I do sincerely urge you to oppose the confirmation of Mr. Sessions." (Coretta Scott King)

It's Apocalyptic But To Be Fair It IS What He Promised

So here's the thing: Yes, the current (US) regime is filled with white supremacists and oligarchs, yes they plan to destroy the Dept. of Education, yes they are coming for your/our social security and medicare, yes they are actively trying to delegitimize both the free press and the judiciary, yes they are shamelessly in bed with Christian Fundamentalism (which is all the reprehensible things named above masquerading as faith) even while 45 has not a pious bone in his body, yes they think the government should control women's bodies, and yes they are flagrantly trying to discriminate against Muslims, immigrants, and gays...it's all true. BUT, it is also what they campaigned on.

They said they would do this. And some of us said that was fine, or even good, or not so good but there would be more good to balance out the evil, or that they didn't mean any of that because it was too horrible to be true and so they supported this bloodless coup or they stayed home and said, "let's see what happens." It's scary and it's ridiculous and it is the downfall of our nation as a significant player in the world, but it's also what they promised. Yes, they lie so much as to make the average politician look like truth serum in shoe leather, but their promise to usher in autocracy and oppression they meant and they are delivering on that promise wtih BLITZKRIEG like speed.

I now recall the slogans that were used to make this dystopia possible:
"He speaks his mind."
"He'll shake things up."
"He'll make some real changes."
"He can't do worse than the ones before him."
"All the candidates are really the same."
"Benghazi."
"Emails."
"Make America Great Again."
"He's all bluster. He dosn't mean that hateful stuff. Once he's in he'll behave properly and do some good things."

Those of us who believed him when he told us he was a horseman of the acopalypse take NO PLEASURE in being right. I, for one, hoped to highest heaven that I was wrong. I am devestated to realize how right we were. But, when you're social security is a third less and you are almost 70 before you can draw it and your kids' schools are lagging behind every developed nation in the world and your loved ones are suffering or broke or dying because access to health care has been eliminated and we are drinking poisoned water and breathing contaminated air, at least you can admire the beautiful "wall" (that we will pay for) and be grateful that the Flat Earth Society is leading prayer in your kids' algebra class.

It's a horror show, but it is the exact horrow show we were promised. Now, God help us all.