5 Ways to Celebrate Transgender Day of Visibility in Self Quarantine

5 Things You Can Do to Celebrate Transgender Day of Visibility in Self Quarantine

     March 31st is Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV).  It is not intended to be a day of mourning and quiet reflection, like Transgender Day of Remembrance. It is a day of to bring attention, loudly, proudly and publicly, to the living presence and amazing contributions of trans folk. To spread understanding and fight cissexism and transphobia. For trans-persons and their allies to bring to bear the combined power of open visibility and collective action. 

    But if TDOV is all about public visibility and group communication, what do we do during the time of COVID-19? We cannot safely get out in the streets, come together in the public square. How can we be seen? 

1. Learn About Trans History

Study up during the quarantine! Trans people have a long and proud history.  Did you know that Transwomen of color were the spark of the Stonewall riots that established LGBTQ rights as a civil movement? That a transgender woman exposed the U.S. government’s war crimes in Iraq and Afghanistan? That a transgender man helped fund the New Age Movement?  Our history is full of interesting facts and events!

2. Support Trans Organizations

    Less than 10% of grants going to LGBTQ organizations go to trans ones. Many trans organizations run on donations from people like you! The following are five trans organizations run by and for trans people that you can donate to:

1. El/La Para TransLatinas
2. Sylvia Rivera Law Project
3. Transgender, Gender Variant, and Intersex Justice Project
4. Trans Justice Funding Project
5. Trans Women of Color Collective

3. Learn to be a Better Ally

Learn the do's and don'ts of effective support for trans-rights and your trans-friends. And remember, don't out your trans-friends and family unless you first make sure they want you to! It may be Transgender Day of Visibility but sometimes trans folk don’t want to be or aren’t safe being visible.

4. Learn the Differences

Gender identity, gender expression, sex assigned at birth, sexual and emotional orientation: these are real and important differences. Peruse this chart:

Trans Student Educational Resources

    Gender identity is as different from sexual or romantic orientation as Gender is different from sex.  Learn more here.  Trans language is always changing and important to know. You can learn some trans terminology here.

5. Recognize, Call Out and Act in Consideration of Intersectionality


Trans Student Educational Resources


While trans is an identity, it is not a person's sole identity, nor the only issue a human being struggles against. This includes race, religion, ethnicity, immigation status, class and other factors. When trans awareness means vocal recognition of these intersections, it also means acting upon them, including always centering and never forgetting the plight and challanges of transfeminine persons of color, by far the group at greatest physical and social risk.



As we spend more time online and communicating verbally and electronically, we can still work this day and every day to expand awareness and create safer and more inclusive spaces for our transgender friends and family. 

Via noflowershere.tumblr.com

PantryRaiders: Top NY Chef and Standup Comics Team Up to Demo Quarantine Cooking Tips

Hilariously raunchy.  Deliciously amazing. See it here. 

Full Recipe: 

Risotto:

1 cup Arborio or short grain (any rice will work)

2 cups water

Onion garlic powder

1 Packet of ramen noodle flavoring (save the noodles for another recipe)

Two strips bacon (more if its in your nature)

Chop bacon into small bits and sauté over medium low heat until fat rendered but not crisp. Turn heat to medium, add dry rice, toast in bacon fat 2-3 mins. Add half the water, onion garlic powder and the ramen seasoning, stir as water absorbs (9- 10 mins). Add remaining water, repeat until rice is tender but not mushy (9-10 mins more) Place pan in fridge uncovered until fully cooled.

Arancini:

1 cup bread crumbs (finely crushed potato chips will work)

Cajun seasoning or whatever you have, to taste

2 egg yolks, beaten

Cooking oil

In a large heavy-bottomed saucepan, pour in enough oil to fill the pan about 1/3 of the way. Heat over medium heat until a deep-frying thermometer inserted in the oil reaches 350 degrees F. (If you dont have a thermometer, a cube of bread will brown in about 2 minutes.) 

With clean hands roll 1 1/2 to 2 inch balls of the cold rice, roll in egg yolk until well coated, roll in mixed spice and bread crumbs or chip crumbs until well coated. 

In batches, fry the rice balls, turning occasionally, until golden, about 4 to 5 minutes. Drain on paper towels and serve.

Time at Home? Upgrade your Bread Making

Time, boredom and a kitchen are a magic combination which should be taken advantage of. There is a bewildering number of excellent rustic bread recipes online, but genuine sourdough bread requires a wild yeast starter, which can be hard to find or take weeks to grow yourself.  Here is a quick-start peasant loaf recipe that is easy to put together with store-bought yeast. But because it features long rising times and many of the same shaping and handling techniques as the best sourdough recipes, it produces a deliciously similar result.  If making it gives you the bug to notch up your game, you can find a full sourdough starter and bread recipe here. Be patient and have fun!

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups unbleached bread flour

1/2 cup barley, rye or spelt flour

1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

All-purpose flour, for dusting

1 1/2 cups lukewarm water

Directions:

1. Whisk all dry ingredients in a  large bowl. Add water and mix with your hands or a spoon until a “shaggy” dough just comes together (wet and sticky). Cover the dough tightly with plastic wrap. You may stop and refrigerate at this stage for up to a day.
2. Let the dough rise, covered, at room temperature for about at least 12 hours, or longer in cooler weather, until at least doubled in size, bubbly and jiggly.
3. Generously dust a work surface with the all-purpose flour. Turn the dough out onto the flour, then sprinkle flour on top. Fold the top and bottom of the dough into the center, then fold in the sides to make a free-form square. Use a dough scraper or a spatula to turn the dough over, then tuck the corners under to form a ball.
4. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and generously dust with flour. Transfer the dough to the baking sheet, seam-side down, pick up the corners of the parchment paper and carefully drop the loaf (with the parchment still under it) into a bowl about the size of the dough. Let rise at room temperature until doubled in size, 2 to 3 hours.
5. Position a rack in the bottom of the oven and place a 2- or 4-quart cast-iron or enameled Dutch oven (without the lid) on the rack. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F for at least 30 minutes. When the dough has doubled, carefully transfer the hot pot to a heatproof surface. Uncover the dough, lift up the parchment and carefully drop the dough into the pot with the parchment still under it. Be careful not to touch the hot pot with your hands.  Spray the interior of the pot with water to create steam. Cover with the lid and bake 30 minutes, then uncover, give the inside of the oven a spray of water, close the door and bake until brown and crusty, 15 to 30 more minutes. Turn onto a rack to cool.