Vote! Our own Peoples award, Transparent’s Golden Globe, Win or Fail?

Ashley Love, wearing purple on awards night, told the cast she’s tired of transface.

My two cents…I felt like the shroud that had so enveloped me with sadness with the suicides of our transgender youth this holiday was suddenly lifted after watching Jill Solloway’s Golden Globe acceptance speech. This was especially surprising to me since I am one of the people who disparaged transparent calling it TransFace in an earlier post.

The cast member who plays the part of Maura Pfefferman, the Transparent isn’t transgender, but he like everyone of the crew apparently really cares about us as a community. Jill Solloway’s own parent came out to her as transgender giving her first-hand experience. In my opinion, this gives her every right to create this show.

I still wish that Transparent was cast with a trans person playing the part of Maura. And so does Jeffery Tambor. He told Janet Mock he wished a trans person was cast is his stead, but when the day is done I feel good about Transparent. This puts me somewhere in the middle of this highly volatile controversy.

Robin Lynn Frank so succinctly wrote at transsupport.org

“…..it isn’t an award for being transgender. It is an award for acting and portraying someone you are not, but doing it with excellence, is what gets the industry’s attention and wins awards.”

Not everyone felt good about Transparent getting the Golden Globe. One trans woman told Jeffrey Tambor, about it on awards night.

Ashley Love tagged me in this status on Facebook telling about how she educated Jeffery Tambor on awards night.. There’s a poll following this so we can hold our own peoples award.

Ashley wrote:

“Awkward is when you’re enjoying the InStyle & Warner Bros Golden Globes party but then Transparent actor Jeffrey Tambor comes over to talk to someone sitting by you (he recognized me from this summer when I educated his director following his Outfest screening). I was uncomfortable (also disappointed with his misguided Best Actor win) so I ignored him. Yes, it was politically correct to give him an award for his role on Transparent, but screw politics. Many other actors were more talented. Does America need to keep seeing privileged *men* misrepresent our sister’s lives on the screen? We’re tired of Hollywood ‘trans-face’ where male actors misgender and mock the women in our community. The messaging is that we are not women, but just dressing as them – like Tambor is doing. It’s humiliating, non-affirming and disempowering. A woman should have played that role, not a male pushing the ‘man in a dress’ stereotype.”

“An hour later when we were in line waiting for our limousine service Tambor and his entourage got in line behind us. I took it as a sign to communicate with him. I told him it was nothing personal against him specifically that many women are protesting trans-face (he’s just an ignorant actor who didn’t know better until we schooled him after the fact), but it’s the whole establishment that is at fault, a woman should have played the role and we are fed up with being othered and misgendered by Hollywood. He said he was thankful that I took the time to tell him that. I am more upset with director Jill Soloway casting a man (she actually knew better) because she thought it would be more profitable. And the ‘token trans toms’ apologizing for the show are fooling no one (they either financially benefit from ‘consulting’ gigs, get to further their acting career as glorified extras or are just schmoozing to the Hollywood Machine hoping to get ahead). There’s not enough money or screen time in the world to make me sell out my community. It’s time we stop settling for crumbs. “The whole damn system is guilty”.

There were many comments on Ashley’s status. Most applauded her actions. Some didn’t even know that there was a controversy to begin with. Let’s hear from you.

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