Pretty Faces and Human Rights - America Are You Nuts ?

Big Up to India for hosting it's first Miss India Transgendered Contest; Donald Trump Can You See This ?

This is a first and hopefully it won't be the last.  the Chennai community supported the contest and it was well attended. this is what the USA needs to do. Donald Trump - Are You Listening ?  Sexual Acceptance is wonderful. if these beautiful transgendered contest winners were judged on simply their beauty, they could compete and win anywhere. they are beautiful, have found acceptance in their community; and accept themselves.  That Works For Me.  Be Who You Are, and Be Proud Of It.

Just Last Month we saw the fracas over Lou Jing - Oriental Angel - that showed us something about china and it's problems with skin color.  this is india where they are working on their identity sorting, actively.

Personally Speaking, I think if there were national contests for all people; it would open the door to a higher level of acceptance, for all Genders, Colors, and Races.  the other night I saw a new tele-show where the bbc is looking for a new top model from the special needs community.  there were some women who were stunning, regardless of their physical challenges.  this type of acceptance is what will grow us as people, and promote more of a planetary society model.  India, and Parts of Asia in general; are years ahead in the sexual rights arena, and we applaud them for setting the path.  there needs to be more universal acceptance of people generally. if sexual identity is included in the list of identities then other identities will emerge, growing us as a people into a complete civilization.

To see the US Senate arguing about giving health care to those who need it, right before christmas is enough to make you want to grab them and scream Bah Humbug On You.  if there is ever a time of year when men are supposed to think of their fellow humans, it's christmas in christian countries.  the us is a christian country with the most twisted values system. America you deny your citizens identities and fundamental human rights, Why ?

America Are You Nuts ?

in November,  India revolutionized identity when it allowed the use of a third gender on it's official citizen identity cards. 

 Hello America, Are You Listening ?

we want to let all of our visitors know that we are not against alternative lifestyles; and we support the choice to "Be Who You Are - Always" . Family Values start with a healthy acceptance of who you are before examining what that might mean to anyone else -

Like My Friend Sylvester Says, BE YOU and Be Proud of Who You Are; Feel Mighty Real Baby - ALWAYS

India hosts its first transsexual beauty 'Miss India' pageant in Chennai

BY Neil Nagraj
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Monday, December 21st 2009, 10:25 AM

Laskshman/Getty

Winner of the Miss India Transgender pageant Karina Shalini (C) from Mumbai celebrates with runner ups Romi (L) from Manipur and Padmini (R) of Tamil Nadu.

India has hosted its first transsexual beauty pageant, an event that allowed a demographic often relegated to the shadows to take center stage.

Some 120 hopefuls from across the country battled it out to become the first transsexual "Miss India," the news agency Agence France-Presse reported. 

The pageant, which drew contestants ranging in age from 20 to 35 to the southern city of Chennai, was organized by the Indian Community Welfare Organization, a gay-rights advocacy group.

In addition to the grand prize, awards were handed out recognizing Miss Beautiful Hair, Miss Beautiful Eyes and Miss Beautiful Skin, the news agency reported.

Kareena, a 25-year-old model from Mumbai, snagged the contest's top honor. Romi, a 23-year-old beautician from Manipur, came in second. Third place went to Padmini, 25, a dance instructor -- and hometown favorite.

"We had a meeting of the transgender community some months ago where we discussed various events to bring community members into society," A.J. Hariharan, a founding member of the advocacy group, told AFP.

Hariharan added, "Everyone unanimously supported the idea of a national-level beauty pageant" after debating, and punting, several other proposals, including a sporting event.

"We thought it would create an opportunity for the transgender community to showcase their skills [and] create a platform to address the problems they face -- discrimination, marginalization and misconception," Hariharan said.

The pageant is the latest in a series of steps forward for India's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, AFP reported.

Eunuchs won a long-fought fight to be identified as "other" on voter registration cards in November.

This past summer, gay sex between consenting adults was decriminalized when a colonial-era ban on homosexuality was ruled unconstitutional.

Today We Need to Forget Ourselves; Others Are In Need

Image by mvcorks via Flickr

Who Deserves Human Rights?

EVERYONE DOES

With 80 percent of Haitians living in abject poverty, many children are forced to work against their will in homes, fields, gangs and as prostitutes. As many as 200,000 are the victims of human trafficking. But there is a solution: microfinance. » These children are driven into trafficking for economic reasons. Reducing poverty, therefore, would help stop this slave trade in children. It's simple really: through microfinance, small loans enable hard-working women to open small businesses that let them feed and shelter their families. Just a few dollars a day in added income can mean children do not have to be forced into work. Instead, they can go to school and be healthy. Former President Clinton is the UN Special Envoy to Haiti. At the top of his priorities is sustainable job creation. Tell him that there is no better way to protect Haiti's children and create sustainable jobs than microfinance. » Thanks for taking action! Samer ThePetitionSite

Lift Haiti's Children Out of Servitude Microfinance can help break the cycle of poverty and keep children out of the hands of traffickers. Forward to a friend >> Read the petition >>

Take action link: http://www.care2.com/go/z/e/AFsUc/zJ84/xshE

Today We Join Our Blogs with many others for International Human Rights Day. Take a Moment and Consider what Your Freedom means and what you will do to Keep It.

Freedom for ALL, Globally

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Hey Barack and Michelle Do Ya have enough Pillows and Quilts for the Rest of Ya Kin Folks ?

Can You Forget What happened to the folks in Nawlins, and along the Gulf Coast; following Hurricane Katrina ? Neither can we, because some of them are family..

check this out, and Please take a Moment Today and ACT -Click This Link to Tell President Obama to Stop the Evictions scheduled to begin on Saturday May 30, 2009.

I Think since Mr. Obama and Mrs. Obama claim to be interested in helping where there is a genuine emergency, maybe they can take a moment and check out what's happening to these folks who are still suffering from their predecesors promises of restoration.

So Today on F^cked UP Friday we're askin the First Family, Do Ya Have enough Bedding for the Rest of the folks who are about to become homeless, due to your lack of attention, Mr and Mrs Obama ?

Hurricane Katrina Part 3- post Katrina Mississippi

We're Gonna Keep our Attention Focused on This Issue this weekend and report basically on this because we know there is a real mess and somebody's gotta fix this right now,, not later NOW.

"I need the trailer. I ain't got nowhere to go if they take the trailer…This storm broke me. I need some help. And I got a long way to go."

Ernest Hammond, 70, on pending FEMA trailer evictions

Dear KIN Folk,

FEMA is at it again and we need your help.

The agency has announced that on May 30, 2009, it will act to evict thousands of residents from FEMA trailers in the Gulf States in spite of the fact that these residents have had limited support and lots of barriers in their efforts to find permanent housing.

Please act now to stop this travesty.

Mr. Ernest Hammond is a case in point. Hammond, a 70 year old, former New Orleans homeowner, could not get financial help from Louisiana's Road Home program for his triplex since the housing structure was ineligible for a grant. To help himself, Mr. Hammond has collected almost $10,000 in aluminum cans but that won't even begin to cover the costs to rebuild his home in the 7^th Ward. His FEMA trailer is keeping him off the street while he struggles to return home.

Mr. Hammond is one of thousands of families living in FEMA trailers because they are either caught in a web of deeply flawed, bureaucratic home repair grant programs, a victim of all too rampant contractor fraud or simply priced out of a rising rental markets where affordable housing is being demolished or gentrified.

No one chooses to live in a FEMA trailer, but it is better than no home at all. Evicting residents without providing access to safe, permanent housing will only lead to homelessness and further destabilize families.

Thursday, May 28th is a National Day of Action organized by the US Human Rights Network to turn this around. Together, we helped keep survivors off the streets. Please take a minute to click and send an email or make a call to let the Administration know that evictions are a bad idea.

Tell President Obama and Congress to extend the May 30^th FEMA trailer program deadline!

Say NO to FEMA's decision to forcibly evict residents from trailers!

Tell President Obama and FEMA that they must stop FEMA's plan to forcefully evict Gulf Region residents from temporary trailers.

The Facts:

• Nearly 5,000 FEMA trailers continue to provide housing to residents displaced by Hurricane Katrina
  
  
  
  • 2,800 FEMA trailers in Louisiana, with 1, 000 trailers located in Orleans Parish, LA
  
  
  • 2,000 FEMA trailers in Mississippi
  
  
  
  


• Most FEMA trailer occupants are elderly and/or disabled persons in desperate need of effective support and case management services to stabilize their housing and wellbeing.


• FEMA trailer occupants are displaced homeowners and renters still struggling to rebuild their homes or secure affordable housing after Katrina and Rita.

Human Rights Begins at Home!

The United Nations' Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement is a human rights policy that, for several years, has guided our government in providing temporary and permanent homes for people in foreign countries displaced by earthquakes, typhoons, and flooding. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton only recently announced that the U.S. will apply the UN's standards to assist displaced persons in Pakistan.

Please act now to stop this travesty.

Hurricane Katrina displaced over a million people, many of whom have yet to fully recover as a result of governmental actions that are contrary to the UN's standards and human rights treaties ratified in the US. Gulf Region residents, both renters and homeowners, have worked tirelessly to access safe, permanent housing, and should have the support that our government provides to foreign countries under the Guiding Principles.

Abrupt removal of residents from their only source of shelter is unacceptable!

Hold our elected leaders to their promise of Gulf Region recovery, and demand equal protection under the same human rights policy that the U.S. government applies to displaced persons in other countries.

Tell FEMA to provide an extension to all homeowners and renters living in FEMA trailers to allow them sufficient time to repair their homes and/or find alternative housing.

Additional time would allow:

• Louisiana homeowners to appeal denials of Road Home grants, or go to a Road Home closing.


• Mississippi homeowners to be matched with available Katrina cottages that sit idle.


• Renters more time to obtain rental assistance or other permanent affordable housing.

Demand Action Now!

Call the Obama Administration and FEMA to demand action now! Tell our government not to carry forward yesterday's short-sighted policies and to apply the same human rights standards to displaced persons in the Gulf States. Demand a stop to the FEMA trailer deadline and the guarantee of safe, permanent housing in the Gulf Region.

HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan (202) 708-0417

DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano (202) 282-8000; (202) 282-8495

FEMA Administrator Fugate (202) 646-2500

Thank you for making a difference and please forward this note to others. Our voices matter.

In Solidarity,

The KIN Team

REFERENCES

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Please act now to stop this travesty.

1Ready or Not, Katrina Victims Lose Temporary Housing, The New York Times, 05-8-09

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/08/us/08trailer.html

Residents keep nervous eye on trailers, The Times-Picayune, 05-03-09

http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-12/1241328957289870.xml&coll=1

Visit the KIN website for more information.