"There is a lot of buzz on the blogs about HRC's hiring of transwoman Allyson Robinson as the organization's new associate director of diversity. Some complain that it's tokenism and that HRC is hiring her to assuage a trans community angered over the organization's abrupt about-face on an all-inclusive ENDA. Others say that it's about time that HRC hired a transperson, regardless of their reasons. Some are annoyed with Robinson for taking the job, while others applaud her. While I agree that HRC is the most politically powerful national GLB(T) organization in the country and that what they do has far-reaching influence and consequences, I think that we need to recognize that they are one organization, and that true power can be gained at the grassroots level if we decide to take it. Colorado has an all-inclusive ENDA. HRC didn't do that--we did. Our grassroots activists in Colorado made it so. We need to take back power at the local level and not turn it over to HRC or any other national organization, which includes not putting all our stock, one way or another, in what they are doing.
That said, trans and gender-diverse people, including gay men and lesbians who express their gender in non-traditional ways, still suffer from employment discrimination in most cities and states, and there is no all-inclusive federal ENDA to protect us. So since HRC is now hiring transpeople--and, honey, we need the jobs--let's all get those resumes updated!"
