We must never forget Nex Benedict.

Nex was a non-binary girl whose death was the result of anti-LGBTQ policies in Benedict’s home state of Oklahoma. Today would have been her birthday.

At the time of their death my members and I were outraged. No charges have been laid. You can read about her here – https://fionadobson.com/owasso-police-department-fail-to-safeguard-children/

A comprehensive article about Nex can be found here: https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/nex-benedict-death-explainer-1.7156530

Below is a picture of the coward who failed to investigate her death, Police Chief Yancey.

Wondering where the police were during this incident? Yes, so is everyone else. You can call the Owasso Police Department at 918-272-2244 to ask them. Here’s their website – https://www.cityofowasso.com/161/Police-Department

J.K. Rowling is at it again!

Not content to spread hate through her vitriolic claims that trans people want to take over the world, J.K. Rowling had a run at John Oliver recently.

Some time ago I made the suggestion that while we did love J.K’s Harry Potter series, we can show our disdain to her misguided and heartless attacks on the community by placing her books for sale on Craigslist and FB Marketplace, and then donating any proceeds directly to Trans organizations such as:

https://mermaidsuk.org.uk/ – https://mermaidsuk.org.uk/?form=donate
https://transrescue.org/ – https://transrescue.org/donations/donate

Or The Trevor Project in North America.

Transgender Day Of Awareness.

My friend Andy has made this transgender day of awareness video. I think it very good. On this special day we must remember our sisters that didn’t make it. Please share this.

She writes:

Through Transgender Awareness Week, I have been requesting that if you are feeling generous and would like to support an organisation, I’d like you to consider Mermaids UK, or Transrescue. They both do amazing work supporting trans kids in the UK, and helping trans people move to a safer country. You can find out more about them and donate here:
https://mermaidsuk.org.uk/ – https://mermaidsuk.org.uk/?form=donate
https://transrescue.org/ – https://transrescue.org/donations/donate

You can find Andy’s channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@Andy_trans_education

What can I do as a transgender person post US election?

Hi everyone!
For those new here, my name’s Andy and I’m a transgender woman who has recently started coming out and transitioning. I’ve been sharing my story and experience here on YouTube as a way for me to share what’s on my mind, and to help me verbalise certain things and send them into the universe.

I have to be honest, the decision the American people have made to re-elect Trump has devastated me and so many other people. It’s hard to come to terms with this, and a lot of people are feeling so scared and anxious about the future.

I must admit that I feel somewhat powerless in the face of this rise of a much more right-wing, authoritarian (at best) way of thinking. It saddens and terrifies me that the people who have learned from history are the ones dedicated to repeating it.

I felt I needed to say something – anything – in the hope that it might touch and comfort some of you out there. I want you to know that I am here, even though perhaps a long way away, I feel you.

Looking to history as a blueprint for what we can do – what I can do – shows that there is such power in strenth in unity and community. I hope you can find your group and your people if you haven’t already done so.

As always, I’d love to hear about your experiences and your perspectives – I look forward to hearing from you all in the comments section below!

Love and peace,

Andy

If you like this video Andy requests you donate to Mermaids – the UK charity – here’s the link: https://mermaidsuk.org.uk/?form=donate

Owasso Police Department fail to safeguard children.

Nex Benedict, a 16-year-old non-binary high school student, loved nature and watching the television show The Walking Dead. Nex enjoyed drawing, reading and playing Ark and Minecraft. Nex also had a cat, Zeus, whom they loved. Nex’s family trace part of their roots to the Choctaw Nation, and were on a journey to understanding more about Nex’s identity – like many other parents of transgender and non-binary youth. On February 7, 2024, Nex was brutally and viciously beaten inside a bathroom at Owasso High School in Owasso, Oklahoma, where Nex was a student. Nex was taken to the hospital and released, only to be readmitted the following day. On February 8, 2024, Nex succumbed to sustained injuries and tragically died.

Wondering where the police were during this incident? Yes, so is everyone else. You can call the Owasso Police Department at 918-272-2244 to ask them. Here’s their website – https://www.cityofowasso.com/161/Police-Department

Police Chief Yancey – public protector or coward?

You can ask the Police Chief why his staff are incapable for protecting children in his region by reaching out to him here –

Dan Yancey

Chief of Police

Email Dan Yancey

Phone: 918-376-1564

Show your support for Zooe Zephyr today.

From time to time I like to draw attention to the people out there who are really making a difference for anyone who considers themselves trans. Zooey is one of the finest of us.

You can learn about Zooey herehttps://www.zooeyzephyr.com/

Regardless of your political stance, it is up to us to support our sisters who achieve public office, as they are our voice in the corridors of power. If you’re a US resident and can help Zooey she is one of several emerging voices that can help us. It’s a great way to help all your sisters.

You can support her work here – https://secure.actblue.com/donate/mastodonforzooeyandmissouladems I encourage you to get behind her in true Fiona Dobson style and give her something to smile about. When I mentioned that to Sylvester he made some lewd suggestion. He really can be quite coarse at times!

My support for Zooey is not only a salute to her courage, it is also a reminder that rights are not given. They are won. Zooey is out there winning battles daily and it’s a never ending task. She deserves our support.

So, if you have a spare dollar be smart, make a difference and let’s give Zooey one.

Republicans vote to censure Montana’s first transgender state legislator

Rep. Zooey Zephyr, D-Missoula, alone on the House floor stands in protest as demonstrators are arrested in the gallery Monday in the Montana State Capitol in Helena Thom Bridge / Independent Record via AP

Montana House Republicans voted Wednesday to censure Rep. Zooey Zephyr, a Democrat and Montana’s first transgender state legislator. The vote came roughly a week after Zephyr told lawmakers they would have blood on their hands if they supported a measure to restrict gender-affirming care for minors and two days after she was accused of inciting protesters in the chamber.  

Get the full story HERE

Take a moment to thank Zoey by using the contact form on her webpage here – https://www.zooeyzephyr.com/

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Barry Humphries – RIP

An icon of British Television, this is what all those GOP losers are so afraid of with their relentless attacks on drag acts. Barry Humphries was a great performer and wit. I was lucky enough to meet him in Vancouver years ago. What joy he brought.

A formative influence upon myself, he hails from Australia, as my mother did. Dame Edna was a feature of TV entertainment throughout my childhood. Enjoy Dame Edna’s performance in Montreal below.

Barry Humphries leaves a legacy of comedy and of dignity. Those who speak against drag performance show only their own sad ignorance.

FD

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Not what they expected…

Photo credit: Germany’s national football team cover their mouths in protest against FIFA’s ban on the ‘One Love’ LGBTQ+ armband during the World Cup in Qatar | Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images

I’ve just posted on my Patreon tier called ‘Behind the scenes with Fiona’. In the wake of yet another shooting in the US it can seem hard to find the joy. Join my tier for my most intimate thoughts.

Sylvester is watching me post this. He’s reading back that last paragraph and sniggering. He really can be quite coarse, you know.

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Sophie – It’s OK to cry.

I have a dear friend who is lesbian. She grew up in a conservative place where being ‘different’ would earn you a good kicking from kids of her age, and likely from some adults too. She did however have a supportive mother and she found her way.

I have another friend who ran away from their home when it became obvious that she was trans. I say, ‘it became obvious’ because their body was so obviously feminine, though through a convention of biology and naming she was assigned male gender at birth. She’s as feminine as any woman I know but for a minor anatomical quirk.

And of course I know a host of people who as they understood themselves better realised there was an enormous part of themselves that they had suppressed, doing their best to conform to societal norms and denying much of their nature. The fear of being outcasts is a powerful thing, even in the 21st century.

My lesbian friend has phrased it very well. She says, “We don’t raise our own young.” It’s not far fetched to say that the archetypal emo teen that flees an abusive home, misunderstood by their family and hometown, who ends up on the street in a big city – often homeless and friendless – is far from a meaningless trope. It’s practically a template for how some of us have rejected and been rejected by society. It all sounds painfully tragic.

But wait… As my friend points out, eventually – with a little luck – those ‘outsiders’ gravitate to others, and by some miracle find people who are like themselves. It can look a little odd to others, but somehow they find their people, or what we used to call ‘our tribe’. Whether it’s the ‘gaybourhood’ or friends within the ‘queerspace’, there are ways to connect with others. We find our way. And we grow.

As we do so we learn to support others like ourselves in whatever way we can. And suddenly there is something akin to family. Perhaps we don’t raise our own young, but they do find us and we can nurture them everyday in ways both direct and indirect.

Today we lost one of our own. Sophie was an amazing artist. A creative soul any family should treasure, even one so diverse and dispersed as our own. Let’s take a moment today to appreciate our sister.

Sophie died at 4 a.m. local time on 30 January 2021 at home in Athens, Greece.] According to their UK label, Transgressive, Sophie’s death was caused by slipping and falling while climbing to watch the full moon.

Finally, at peace.

Fiona