So Transman whinged to “City Hall” and the City actually listened. Several city officials have emailed or called Transman to talk about providing sensitivity training for staff who deal with the public. They asked if he had resources that would be helpful in their training. Well, Transman wants to help, but he’d like to provide professional resources for “customer service and the transgender client” instead of “Transman’s guide to being Super Nice & Discreet When Dealing With the Public.” There are lots of good materials about employing transgender people or education and the transgender student, but he hasn’t found much on customer service/interacting with the public.
Any suggestions or favorite resources?
February 6th, 2013 at 8:09 pm
Try Matt Kailey at tranifesto.com ? He does trainings and may be able to point you in the right direction for materials. He has some FAQ on his site, although they might not be relevant to clerks at City Hall.
February 7th, 2013 at 10:30 pm
Yes, Matt Kailey does have lots of useful info on his site and in his books.
February 6th, 2013 at 9:21 pm
Don’t know if you’re in NYC — if so, the Riverside Church of New York supports the transgender community and may have materials or resources that might be useful.
February 7th, 2013 at 10:31 pm
Thanks for the tip. I’m not in NYC, but it’s still good to know.
February 6th, 2013 at 9:41 pm
I’m going to ditto the suggestion to try Matt Kailey, since Jamie Ray beat me to making the suggestion first!
February 7th, 2013 at 10:32 pm
Thanks!
February 6th, 2013 at 10:19 pm
I don’t have advice to offer, just support. I’m so glad you’ve gotten positive feedback from the city officials. That makes me happy…one step forward for mankind. =)
February 7th, 2013 at 10:33 pm
It would be really cool if my state got attention for doing something cool for a change instead of our usual “weird news” specialty.
February 8th, 2013 at 9:13 am
Tell me about it. Based on recent events, Colorado is mostly populated with with whack jobs.
February 6th, 2013 at 11:09 pm
They should PAY Jillian Weiss, Jamison Green or Matt Kailey to come and give the training.
Kudos to you for getting their attention but most importantly, for not doing their work for them. Places like this always expect the trans person who was the victim of ineptitude and ignorance to do the ‘heavy lifting’ when they should do their own damn homework about it and find the resources or a trainer themselves!
Hm, can you tell I’m cranky about this particular issue?
February 7th, 2013 at 10:35 pm
If they paid ME, I would come run a workshop. Seriously, there are resources out there, and our town does have an LGBT center, so the city could make use of that.
February 9th, 2013 at 8:52 am
Unless the LGBT center really isn’t just an ‘LG’ center. So many LGBT organizations are clueless about the T…
(Hm, another issue that I’m cranky about, apparently.)
February 9th, 2013 at 8:58 am
This one actually is very focused on the T in that acronym soup, so I would feel okay referring the city to the group. They have meetings, group sessions, and different events to support the trans community (actually, they’re pretty visible, so it’s disappointing that the city leaders don’t seem to know about it.) On another note, I have mixed feelings about the LGBTQ lumped together because for me, one of the things I find difficult is explaining that being trans has nothing to do with my sexuality. We can definitely all help each other though.
February 9th, 2013 at 3:17 pm
I can answer that for you. It *isn’t* about sexuality.
Hm, maybe I should write a blog post about this…
February 9th, 2013 at 5:48 pm
I know. I always have to explain that it isn’t about sexuality. Then I have to repeat myself over and over.
February 7th, 2013 at 2:29 am
How about:
If ever in doubt about someone’s gender, be mindful and respectful when talking to the person so as not to draw the attention of others to the conversation. This is important because trans people are often the target of violence, which stems from other people’s fears, doubts and insecurities around uncertainty. It’s scary for some people to have their judgments and worldviews challenged. It’s normal and natural to be uncertain about something, and it is important to ask questions to clarify things. Just make sure to do so in a courteous and professional manner, and in the way YOU would want to be treated if someone had confusion over a personal matter of yours.
I like Transman’s be “Super Nice & Discreet When Dealing With the Public” — there is lots to be said for common sense (which isn’t so common!) and keeping things simple. It really just comes down to being Respectful in our Relations with others.
Just my 2 cents. Please do share with us what you end up giving them, I’d be curious to know and learn about it.
February 7th, 2013 at 10:37 pm
It really is fairly simple–keep private info private; treat people with the same respect you yourself would like, etc. I think they just panicked because they’ve never run into this before. But, as soon as I said, “it’s a private medical issue,” that really should have been a big enough clue to either go get a supervisor or at least speak quietly and keep the info between us.
February 7th, 2013 at 10:41 pm
Yeah, the pvt medical issue part should’ve been enough of a clue. Unforch, no matter how much training some people get, you just can’t instill good ole’ common sense! But for the others, hopefully the info/resources you provide is enough to get them rockin’ and rollin’.
February 7th, 2013 at 2:33 am
oops, make that “if ever in doubt about someone’s sex or gender, or a discrepancy over this issue comes up,”
February 7th, 2013 at 3:34 am
Local LGBT community center?
February 7th, 2013 at 10:38 pm
Definitely planning on suggesting them as a contact.
February 8th, 2013 at 6:05 pm
http://ebookbrowse.com/services-working-with-transgender-clients-pdf-d212195055
http://www.gendercentre.org.au/discrimination_service_providers.htm
http://www.masstpc.org/get-help/training/
February 8th, 2013 at 8:59 pm
Fantastic! Thank you, Zander.
February 13th, 2013 at 4:17 pm
Sounds like you got some good follow up on your request. I have a cultural sensitivity training which explores LGBT. The training slides and the work booklet are on my web site. It’s free, no strings or questions asked for anyone who needs it. They are located on the Links and Resources page.at myemailtherapist.com. Take care.
February 13th, 2013 at 5:39 pm
Thank you! I’ll check it out.