Hi Sweet Doll. First, I'm very sorry you have been verbally assaulted and threatened. No one deserves that type of treatment and I think the police should have taken a report of what happened to you. If you know these men who did this to you please call the police on the phone and make a formal complaint and name them so there is a record of what happened to you on file. If these were strangers I suppose now there is not too much you can do. Perhaps still call the police and report what happened to you and where this took place and describe them. I'm also sorry you have been so stressed. I can relate to the pain you are feeling and think many girls here can too. Do you have any type of support in your life? Friends or family? There should be some transgender groups in your area? Quebec is a large city right? I know things can get overwhelming and confusing.Remember you are not alone. You are not a bad person for being and feeling who you are. Try not to let the haters get you down either. They have way more issues then you do if they act like that. Trust me! Safety should be a big concern for all of us. Remember take the same precautions any genetic girl would take. Be careful at night and don't walk alone if at all possible. Stay in well lit areas and follow your gut about possible dangers in your surroundings. Stay very aware of people in the streets and avoid eye contact or keep it extremely brief. Try your best to stay out of bad areas too. I am against guns and knives myself but if you do live in a really bad area where danger is a constant issue think about carrying a can of mace with you or maybe even a taser. Make sure it is all street legal if you do this and only use it in physical confrontation where you fear for your safety. I don't know Canadian law because I am american but I don't think defending yourself from an attacker or being convicted of a crime has anything to do with a legal name change. I'm sorry you are having a hard time. You look really nice in your picture. I hope you stay at Gender Society. There are quite a few supportive girls and guys here who can help to talk with. It is a supportive community. I hope we can talk sometime here. xxx Jessica

Congratulations Jessi! Sounds like very positive steps are going on. You dress like me at home too. It is great not to have to hide. I remember doing the run everytime the door knocked. It gets old fast. I'm so happy you can be you without all that now. xxx Jessica

Hi Briana. To me the issue is about being sensitive in its use. These days words meanings are so varied and so many people use them with different intent behind them. For me personally tranny isn't a big deal usually but I can totally see a good reason to make people think twice before using it. The only reason I ever use it is in a relaxed personal low key envirement. Any type of public statement or official use of it is out of the question for me. In a relaxed friendly situation the use of it kills the power of the negativity and hate associated behind it. What I can't stand is people who have no intimate knowledge of what that word entails. This issue is very similar to african americans using the N word or women calling each other "bitch". I NEVER say the n word and only very rarely say "bitch" in jest to friends. Nothing is more annoying though then seeing people who are removed from intimate connections using the word as a power play to make themselves appear more significant. If you are going to use these words, you better be well aware of the sensitivity surrounding these words and zip it if you have any doubt about how it will be taken by others. xxx J

This post was edited by Jessica Nova at April 25, 2012 4:16:44 PM BST"

They sure are slow to enforce this! It's been almost 50 years since that law!! I'm glad for any challenges/suits made when discrimination of tgs takes place and even more happy when they succeed. It is slowly getting better but I would like to see things go much faster. I live in Virginia and state law here still has zero protections for trans people in the work place and no recognition for hate crimes against us either. We do have an equal rights law for gays in the workplace but even that law is being challenged at every step by the conservatives here. As you know though gay and TG laws legally are not the same thing at all. I am so sad that this happens so often and it takes a law suit to find justice. How many countless tg's are there we never hear stories about who have been pushed to the fringes of society to have a life of poverty due to job discrimination. How many have been forced to remain in hiding and the untold pain inflicted upon their souls due to such basic human rights as having the dignity to work. It makes me sooo mad. At least it is getting better but many are still falling through the cracks. I wish there were more "conservatives" like you Doanna :) I actually hope there are more so they can make some rational arguments and help stop the madness and hate within their ranks. I'm a socialist :) so i guess we come in all shapes and sizes.

What is this movie anyways? How is this related to being transgender? Some description would have helped Nick. I also do agree Rose about the need for more ordinary roles for transgenders. Silence of the Lambs and Psycho are not the best role models at all lol. I did enjoy them but I do hate how the misunderstanding of trans culture gets perverted for entertainment in horror and thriller movies.