UPDATED::I left Hasidism to become a woman | New York Post

UPDATED to add:: Leaving My Ultra-Orthodox Home and Finding My Trans Self: Part One and Leaving My Ultra-Orthodox Home and Finding My Trans Self: Part Two by Abby Stein.

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A man descended from a Hasidic “dynasty” is transitioning into a woman — enraging members of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community she left behind.

Srully Stein — who now goes by Abby — recently came out as a woman and said she’s finally living as her true self — something she said was impossible to do growing up in her restrictive household in Brooklyn.

“In the community that I was raised in, Trans did not exist, neither was it ever discussed,” the 24-year-old writes in her blog.

“I was therefore convinced that I have to be crazy, and that I have to get this ‘stupidity’ of feeling like a girl, out of my head.”
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 “The road is long, but with the support of some amazing friends and professionals, for the first time in my life I feel like I am getting to be my real self,” she wrote in a recent post, which received more than 20,000 hits in just a couple days.

Stein’s roots trace back to Rabbi Yisroel ben Eliezer, also referred to as Baal Shem Tov, considered the founder of Hasidic Judaism.

Her grandfather, Mordechai, was born in Fălticeni, Romania, and her father was born in Israel.

Her ancestors are part of several Hasidic sects — and her great-grandmother was a member of the Twersky family, a “very famous” old dynasty from the Ukraine, she said.

I left Hasidism to become a woman | New York Post

Brunei's LGBT Community Faces Terrifying Future

In Brunei, being gay could soon be punishable by death.
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Once the third phase is rolled out, activists are worried that the country will crack down on the LGBT community. This final phase, which was slated to be implemented later this year or in early 2016, will reportedly involve the introduction of executions for “offenses” like homosexuality and adultery.

“In Southeast Asia, the country that has the most worrisome state of rights for LGBT people is Brunei,” Ging Cristobal of the International Gay and Lesbian Human Rights Commission says. “[The community] there is really concerned about their safety.”

LGBT activism in the public sphere is non-existent in Brunei, and based on anecdotal reports the small community that does exist keeps itself well hidden. Brunei was the only country in ASEAN where not a single LGBT person or advocate was willing to step forward to share their story with HuffPost -- even anonymously.

Brunei's LGBT Community Faces Terrifying Future

How bad is the epidemic of violence against transgender women? It's hard to know. - Vox

But are these murders a growing epidemic? The answer, worryingly, is we don't know. Local, state, and federal governments don't collect much data on trans populations or violence against them, which means the 21 deaths we know about are — at best — a bare minimum, and it's unclear how big of a problem those deaths signify.

"There's very little data on violence against transgender women of color," Chai Jindasurat, the co-director of community organizing and public advocacy at the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP), told me. "There's so much data that needs to be collected for us to make the case that we know we can and should be making to policymakers about why this issue is so important."
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That's important, because if we don't know exactly how many trans people are in the US, we can't figure out the rates of violence they face. And further demographic breakdowns could give more insight into who, exactly, is more likely to face violence — whether, for example, trans women of color are at greater risk.

But we also don't know how many trans people are victimized by violence each year. The biggest issue is that trans people often aren't correctly identified by authorities. If a homicide victim has a penis, police will assume that person is a man. If a victim has a vagina, police will assume that person is a woman. That's it. Police will rarely question if the victim identified differently — at least until family, friends, and media bring it up. (As one example of how bad this can be, the Advocate, an LGBTQ news outlet, reported that one woman, Jasmine Collins, wasn't identified as trans for two months.)

How bad is the epidemic of violence against transgender women? It's hard to know. - Vox

UPDATED::Transgender Woman Shot Dead In Maryland Shopping Center

UPDATE:: Transgender woman fatally shot in Maryland; suspect arrested

Gawker reports that a witness saw four or five teenagers surround Ziona, and an argument quickly ensured. Soon after, one of the men reached for his gun and fired.

On Friday, authorities arrested Rico Hector Leblond, 20 of Germantown, charging him in connection with Ziona’s murder.

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Zella Ziona, a 21-year-old transgender woman, was fatally shot Thursday evening in a suburb outside of Washington, D.C., police officials told BuzzFeed News.

Ziona is the 21st confirmed transgender or gender-nonconforming person killed this year — the highest number recorded by the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP), which tracks violence against LGBT people.

Ziona was shot in the upper body in an alley that separates the Montgomery Village Plaza and the Montgomery Village Crossing shopping centers in Gaithersburg, Maryland, police said.

The Montgomery County Department of Police has not identified a suspect.
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An initial call to 911 identified Ziona as a woman, Starks said Friday.

However, as Natasha Plotnikov, a spokesperson for the department, told BuzzFeed News, police later identified the victim as male because “the identification was [at the scene] and we went by the driver’s license.”

Starks also said that during Ziona’s media treatment, it was reported back to those at the scene that her gender was male.

“After deepening the investigation and speaking with family and friends,” Starks explained Friday, “it was learned that she was a transgender female.”

Detectives are asking anyone with information about the shooting to contact them at (240) 773-5070.
Transgender Woman Shot Dead In Maryland Shopping Center

In Cambodia, Some Families Still Try To 'Cure' LGBT Sons And Daughters

When Meas Sophanuth started to transition in high school, his mother -- afraid that her child would bring shame to the family -- tried to stop what she saw as his “unnatural” behavior.

She took away his phone, kept him at home, and forbade him from seeing his friends. She finally took her son to a traditional healer, known in Cambodia as a Kru Khmer, in the hope that the shaman would be able to “cure” him.

It was a traumatic experience, Sophanuth, who identifies as transgender, told the Phnom Penh Post last year. “After that, I did not feel warm to my parents anymore. They frightened me,” he said.

Such attempts at “curing” are not uncommon in Cambodia, where LGBT people are often seen as being mentally ill or as being possessed with “bad spirits.”

“Usually the Kru Khmer will chant something [at the LGBT person], sometimes they burn the head, back or palm,” Srun Srorn, an LGBT activist, says of a typical “curing” ritual. “When they burn they believe the bad spirits will fly away. Sometimes they use the bamboo to hit the person.”

Homosexuality is not criminalized in Cambodia, which is a predominantly Buddhist country, but marginalization of the LGBT community is widespread.

In Cambodia, Some Families Still Try To 'Cure' LGBT Sons And Daughters

Why Is Pro-Marriage Chick-fil-A Sponsoring an LGBT Film Festival? — Charisma News

The Reich is cannibalizing "one" of their own for not being a "real" Christian.  

The fast-food restaurant drew controversy in 2012 when CEO Dan Cathy told the Baptist Press he was "guilty as charged" for supporting traditional marriage.

But after the anti-LGBT headlines, Cathy appeared to be changing his tune, claiming he recognized he made a mistake.

"Every leader goes through different phases of maturity, growth and development and it helps by (recognizing) the mistakes that you make," Cathy said. "And you learn from those mistakes. If not, you're just a fool. I'm thankful that I lived through it and I learned a lot from it."
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"Shame on you, Dan Cathy," Grider writes. "Christian Americans stood by you and Chick-fil-A every step of the way back in 2012 when you were persecuted for taking a stand for Jesus Christ. But we will not stand with you on this. No sir. One of my favorite places to get lunch is at one of your restaurants, but that can and will change."

Why Is Pro-Marriage Chick-fil-A Sponsoring an LGBT Film Festival? — Charisma News

Russia jails six who tortured gay teens, posted videos online and drove them to suicide - Gay Star News

Six members of Occupy Pedophilia, the group that tortured gay teens, posted the videos online and drove many of them to suicide, have been jailed.

Police in the Russian region of Ural arrested nine who were luring unsuspecting young victims through personal ads.

They manipulated the young men, many of them teens, who would show up for a ‘date’. They would then be captured, taken to an apartment or a woodland, where they would be bullied, tortured and humiliated while being recorded on video.
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The group, started by Maxim Martsinkevich, led to many copycat groups across Russia. They claim they are simply trying to ‘identify and report pedophiles’. Martsinkevich is currently in jail for ‘hooliganism’.

Russia jails six who tortured gay teens, posted videos online and drove them to suicide - Gay Star News

Logan, Utah trans* woman steps into traffic to end her life - QSaltLake Magazine

According to Logan, Utah police, a local trans* woman stepped into traffic and was hit by a dump truck on U.S. Hwy 89/91 south of town shortly after posting a suicide note on her Facebook wall.

“According to witnesses and information that we gathered on the scene, it appears that the pedestrian had jumped in front of that northbound vehicle,” Logan City Police Capt. Tyson Budge told the Cache Valley Daily. “We believe that the act was intentional.”

“Evidence at the scene gave every indication that the driver had attempted to swerve and brake, to avoid the collision but was unable to do so,” Budge further said.

Budge also said the department received reports of the suicide note and photo and were investigating in order to check on her welfare. They were unable to find the victim before the report of the auto-pedestrian incident.

“These are going to be my final words. I can’t stand to live another day, so I’m committing suicide,” 26-year-old Ashley Hallstrom wrote on her Facebook wall shortly after uploading a new profile photo. “The reason why I’ve decided to do this is because I’m transgender.”

Logan, Utah trans* woman steps into traffic to end her life - QSaltLake Magazine

WATCH: Shock Therapy Used to 'Cure' Chinese Gays, U.K. Journalist Reports | Advocate.com

Electroshock therapy was once commonly administered to gay people in the U.S. in an attempt to “cure” them — and it’s still being used in some countries, including China, as documented in a report that aired tonight on U.K. television.

Shaunagh Connaire of Britain’s Channel 4 reported on the distressing situation in an episode of the foreign affairs series Unreported World.

Connaire went from a part of the world that is embracing LGBT equality to one where the situation of LGBT people “is somewhat darker,” she told Elle U.K. She saw “clinics that offer gay conversion therapy, sometimes even electroshock therapy, as a ‘cure’ for homosexuality,” she said. This practice continues even though the Chinese Psychiatric Association stopped classifying homosexuality as a mental illness in 2001.

John Shen (pictured above with Connaire), a leader of the Beijing LGBT Centre, and his colleagues are seeking to expose those clinics, but it’s dangerous work in a nation “whose intelligence simply cannot be outmaneuvered,” Connaire noted. Filming was difficult too.

WATCH: Shock Therapy Used to 'Cure' Chinese Gays, U.K. Journalist Reports | Advocate.com

Help needed for gay prisoner; his lawyer faces death threats | 76 CRIMES

Cornelius Fonya, 35, of Limbe, Cameroon, was disowned by his family after his conviction on a homosexuality charge in a trial marred by improprieties.

Providing Fonya with adequate legal representation has been difficult, because his attorney received numerous death threats merely for having an LGBTI client. Attorney Walter Atoh (known in Cameroon as Barrister Atoh Walter M. Tchemi) — one of the few lawyers in Cameroon willing to represent LGBTI defendants — fled to London for safety, but will soon return to Cameroon to represent Fonya.

He is appealing the conviction on the basis of procedural irregularities that marred the trial. Those irregularities included the admission of medical/legal documents that were presented by prosecution witnesses but had never introduced during police investigations.
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Atoh’s defense of Fonya has been disrupted by death threats. Anonymous phone calls from people with disguised voices threatened to kill him and his family if Atoh did not stop representing LGBTI people.

“We will eliminate you and your entire family since you have decided to remain stoic and adamant [in] defending or supporting abominable acts,” said one caller.

In March 2015, faced with continuing death threats, Atoh and his wife left their home and started sleeping in a hotel room.  She left Cameroon for London in March. Atoh joined her in August. Despite the risk, Atoh vows to return to Cameroon to pursue the case.

“Notwithstanding the murder threats against me and my family, I will be going back to Cameroon to continue with my crusade as an LGBTI lawyer,” Atoh said.

Help needed for gay prisoner; his lawyer faces death threats | 76 CRIMES

The Dangers Of Being LGBT In ‘Tolerant’ Philippines

The Philippines has one of worst records of violence against the trans community. The murders of 29 transgender people have been documented in the Philippines since 2008, according to the TvT project, which monitors and analyzes cases of transphobia worldwide. This is the highest number in the Southeast Asian region, and the second highest in Asia -- though activists say that many murders of trans people go unreported in the country, so the number is likely much higher.

The trans community is not the only LGBT group that has experienced violence in the Philippines. There were at least “28 LGBT-related killings” in the country in the first half of 2011 alone, according to a 2014 UNDP/USAID report. These troubling statistics offer a glimpse into the marginalization and abuse that the LGBT community faces in the predominantly-Catholic archipelago.

On the surface, the Philippines may appear to be one of the more “liberal” ASEAN countries when it comes to the LGBT community.
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However, although “there is high tolerance here, there’s not real acceptance,” Ging Cristobal, a Manila-based activist with the International Gay & Lesbian Human Rights Commission, tells The Huffington Post.

Legal recognition and protection of LGBT people at the national level largely remains absent.

The Dangers Of Being LGBT In ‘Tolerant’ Philippines

'We Were Treated Like Animals': The Story Of Indonesia's LGBT Activists

Aceh, located on the northern tip of the island of Sumatra, is known for its draconian system of Sharia law. It has a population of 4.7 million and is the only province in Indonesia where homosexuality is illegal. The LGBT community has been forced “into hiding” there, according to Reuters.

Earlier this year, the deputy mayor of Banda Aceh, the province’s capital, labeled homosexuality “a social disease that should be eradicated.”

The province, however, isn't the only place in Indonesia where it's unsafe for the LGBT community.

Though homosexuality isn't technically criminalized under Indonesian law, in many states, such as south Sumatra, anti-prostitution laws (where “prostitution” is widely defined to include same-sex intercourse) are used to limit the rights of LGBT people, and according to activists, the community is marginalized even in bigger cities like Jakarta.

“LGBTI people are discriminated against in just about all domains of life,” Dédé Oetomo, founder of Gaya Nusantara, the first LGBT rights organization in the country, tells The Huffington Post. Discrimination even happens in the work place and in schools.

Indonesia, which has the world's largest Muslim population, is mostly conservative and society is “very heteronormative,” Oetomo says. “The greatest challenge is still the immediate family.”
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Despite myriad challenges, LGBT activism has been growing in Indonesia. About 120 LGBT grassroots organizations are currently in operation, working primarily “in health issues, publishing and organizing social and educational activities,” according to the USAID/UNDP report.

Still, despite a relatively vibrant activist community, activists say real change has been slow to come. 

'We Were Treated Like Animals': The Story Of Indonesia's LGBT Activists

UPDATED::Students react to claims that UND fraternity assaulted a gay man | Grand Forks Herald

UPDATE::  UND finishes investigation of alleged assault, clears fraternity

The investigation stems from an incident reported to Grand Forks law enforcement in late August involving a 18-year-old man claiming multiple men stripped him of his clothing and physically assaulted him while calling him homophobic slurs at a party at Lambda Chi Alpha.

On Oct. 8, the county state's attorney office released a statement saying a police investigation found that the accuser, Haakon Gisvold, who is not a UND student, fabricated the story he told police and was responsible for starting the altercation.

With UND's independent investigation concluded, the incident is considered "closed" with no follow-up planned by the school, the release said.

This story originally tagged - Anti-Gay, Crime, Hate.  Those tags have been removed to reflect the findings of the investigation.
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A man claims he was beaten up by a fraternity for being gay. Today University of North Dakota Police confirmed they are investigating.

“I guess I really can't believe that, but if it's true that's crazy,” said UND freshman Maria Diepolder.

Students were shocked to hear to about the allegations one man is raising against the Lambda Chi Alpha fraternity.

“We were informed by the victim that people with the assault had made comments regarding sexual orientation,” UND sergeant Danny Weigel said.

The victim, who is openly gay, said he went to a party at the frat with friends. That's when he claims the fraternity brothers told him to leave because of his outfit and sexual orientation. The victim said once outside, he was pushed to the ground, choked and whipped with his own belt while anti-gay slurs were yelled at him. If the allegations are true, police say this could be treated as a hate crime.

Students react to claims that UND fraternity assaulted a gay man | Grand Forks Herald

See also:: Updated: UND president 'disturbed’ by alleged assault near campus 

Meanwhile, the local Lambda Chi Alpha chapter has been placed on “limited operation,” meaning while police investigate the allegations, the fraternity’s formal activities will be restricted, according to a press release from Lambda Chi Alpha’s international headquarters.

“We take this alleged incident extremely seriously, and although there isn’t ... sufficient information to support the claims, we are working in partnership with the university and local law enforcement to ensure an immediate and thorough investigation is completed,” said Nick Zuniga, director of chapter services at the international organization.

Teen claims Penn State 'frat guy' attacked him for being gay - NY Daily News

Please keep in mind as you read this, authorities aren’t investigating the assault as a hate crime because Pennsylvania law does not consider LGBTQs a protected class.  Yes you read that correctly!!

A Long Island teenager claims he was brutally beaten by a fraternity member after revealing he was gay during a visit to Pennsylvania State University.

John Mateer, 19, posted photos on social media after the bloody attack Sunday, sparking outrage from thousands of supporters and a police probe into a possible hate crime.

"Don't let a frat guy know that you're gay," he wrote on Twitter. "I am bleeding on my phone."

The Wantagh, L.I., native studies at Queens College but was visiting Penn State over the weekend when he said he was targeted outside a fraternity house by a man who outwardly said he hated homosexuals.
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Penn State condemned the alleged attack in a statement Tuesday.

"Violence in any form is repulsive and hurtful, and those responsible should and will be held accountable for their actions," the statement said.

The suspect was identified late Monday and is not a Penn State fraternity member, the State College Police Department said. Officials did not release his name.

Teen claims Penn State 'frat guy' attacked him for being gay - NY Daily News

Kenya: Pervasive Homophobic Violence in Coastal Region | Human Rights Watch

A report by Human Rights Watch detailing Kenya's treatment of the LGBTQ community by police in the coastal region of that country.

Mobs in Kenya’s coastal region have repeatedly attacked people based on their sexual orientation and gender identity, PEMA Kenya and Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. In at least six incidents between 2008 and 2015, mobs in the coastal counties of Mombasa, Kwale, and Kilifi have attacked or threatened lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people or health workers serving the LGBT community, without sufficient response from authorities.

The 70-page report, “The Issue is Violence: Attacks on LGBT People on Kenya’s Coast,” is based on research conducted in 2014 and 2015 by Human Rights Watch and PEMA Kenya, a community organization in Mombasa that provides support to gender and sexual minorities on human rights, health, HIV/AIDS, and economic well-being. The groups documented rights abuses against members of sexual minorities in Kenya’s coast region, including mob violence, assault, rape, incitement to violence, and inadequate protection. The groups identified ways the Kenyan authorities could improve their response to these abuses.

“For many LGBT people in the coast region, safety is a daily concern,” said Esther Adhiambo, executive director of PEMA Kenya. “While police treatment of LGBT people has improved in recent years, discrimination remains a major problem. LGBT peoples’ justified fear of reporting hate crimes to the police means that violence continues with impunity.”

The authorities’ response to mob attacks and other forms of anti-gay violence has been limited. Officials rarely condemn the attacks. Police, even in the few instances in which they provide protection to victims, have not arrested anyone for participating in or inciting these attacks.

Kenya: Pervasive Homophobic Violence in Coastal Region | Human Rights Watch

Transgender Woman Sues Louisville Nursing College For Discrimination

A transgender woman files suit against a Louisville nursing college. The lawsuit, filed Friday in Jefferson Circuit Court, alleges the Galen College of Nursing discriminated against Vanessa Gilliam for being transgender. The complaint also accuses the college of excluding Gilliam from using the women's restroom even though she identifies as a female.

“It took a lot for me to go back to school,” said Gilliam. “I was really proud of myself … they took that from me.”
Gilliam, a U.S. Army veteran and a single parent, said pursuing a nursing degree was just one piece of her new life. Shortly after she started classes at Galen, she began physically transitioning from a male to a female.

Gilliam said many of her classmates were very supportive and cheered on her decision to wear women’s clothing. She remembered that, for the first time in her life, she felt confident showing off what she long knew to be her true self – but not everyone was receptive.
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Gilliam, who stopped attending Galen following the confrontation, is seeking reimbursement for her tuition and books, as well as damages for the emotional trauma she claims she endured during her transitional period.

Transgender Woman Sues Louisville Nursing College For Discrimination

NYPD Seeks Suspect In Midtown Anti-Gay Attack: Gothamist

 

Police are hoping the public can help them identify the suspect in a violent assault that took place in Manhattan last week. The attacker allegedly used anti-gay slurs during the incident.

According to the NYPD, on Wednesday, September 23rd, around 6:45 p.m., a 37-year-old man was near West 50th Street and Broadway when he was "punched and kicked several times in the face while being called anti-gay slurs."

The attack is being investigated as a bias assault.

NYPD Seeks Suspect In Midtown Anti-Gay Attack: Gothamist

Family mourns transgender teen after he takes his own life - 10News.com KGTV ABC10 San Diego

A local family is grieving after another transgender teen took his own life.

It's the fourth such suicide in San Diego County since March.

“I can’t even begin to describe the pain of losing a child,” said Sarah Castle.

Emmett Castle, 14, was sensitive, owned a big heart and a quiet maturity.

“He had a wisdom beyond his years,” said Castle.

On Saturday morning, Castle learned her son took his own life at her ex-husband's Mission Valley home.
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Family members say there were no immediate warning signs. Emmett had friends, and was looking forward to getting his name legally changed later this month.

Since March, three other local transgender teens have committed suicide.

“There's nothing to make of it. It's tragedy. Just tragedy,” said Castle.

Family mourns transgender teen after he takes his own life - 10News.com KGTV ABC10 San Diego

UPDATED::Friends Speak Out About Slain Transgender Woman | NBC 10 Philadelphia

UPDATE::  Slain Transgender Woman Was Target of 'Neighborhood' Robbers: Police

A Philadelphia man with a history of violence stands accused of being involved in a robbery plot that led to the murder of a young transgender woman last week.

Police said they're continuing to search for three additional men in the killing.

A tip to homicide detectives led police to Pedro Redding on Sunday. A judge arraigned Redding on murder, conspiracy and weapons charges in relation to the brutal killing of Kiesha Jenkins early on Oct. 6.

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Clark said police believe Redding and his cohorts suspected people may have been carrying money in the high-prostitution area where Jenkins was killed. He said investigators do not believe Jenkins' killing was a hate crime.

"They rob a lot of different types of individuals. They just so happened that night to [target] Kiesha," Clark said, saying she was targeted at random.

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Police are not calling Jenkins' death a hate crime at this point, but said the violent attack happened when 22-year-old woman was dropped off on Wingohocking Street near 13th about 2:30 a.m. Tuesday. When she got out of the car, police said, a group of at least five men accosted her, beating her. When she fell to the ground, one of the men pulled a gun and shot her twice in the back.
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Police said they don't yet have any suspects in Jenkins' killing. They are trying to find the driver who dropped her off before she was killed, whom they believe is a key witness in the murder.

"Right now we don't have any motive," Homicide Unit Capt. James Clark said earlier in the week. "We don't know if it's potentially a hate crime or if it was a robbery. We really don't know. It's too early in the investigation to tell."

Friends Speak Out About Slain Transgender Woman | NBC 10 Philadelphia

Crossdressing man found murdered at 6 Mile and Woodward - Story | WJBK

A young man was found dead and gay community activists fear he was targeted for his sexual orientation.

Julisa Abad is remembering her friend, the man known as Melvin, found near McNichols and Woodward Monday morning

"Melvin identified as a gay male not transgender," said Abad, a trans advocate. "He did cross dress from time to time in order to make a living."

Detroit Police are not releasing the victim's real name but said they were called to the 100 block of Arizona to investigate a homicide.

According to the Advocate, "Police have not indicated whether they will investigate Melvin's murder as a hate-crime, as Michigan's current hate-crime laws do not include protections for those targeted because of their sexual orientation or gender identity."

Crossdressing man found murdered at 6 Mile and Woodward - Story | WJBK