So all of America has weighed in and decided that "Work It," a show in which two men decide to dress as women to find a job, is ... how shall I say this ...
awful. First, I liked this show much better when it was called "Bosom Buddies" and starred Tom Hanks. But more importantly, it gives me a chance to raise an important issue about just one of the things I've learned since we've taken the opportunity to support
Morris House, a residential treatment program for transgender individuals.
I'm sure there's plenty of comedy to be mined from a guy wearing a dress. Shakespeare darn near made a whole career out of it. But the unemployment rate for transgender individuals is more than double the unemployment rate of the rest of the population. More than 90 percent of transgender individuals who are employed report discrimination, harassment and violence on the job. And about 25 percent of transgender individuals report losing a job because of their gender identity, according to the National Center for Transgender Equality and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.
Noelle Howey, the daughter has a really compelling read on this
here: "It's offensive not just to transgender people, with its stereotypical images of burly men in kitten heels hiking up their dresses to use the urinals, but also to any men, women, children -- anyone -- seeking entertainment."
Other than that, it's OK, I guess ...