I met Rachel Crandall more than twenty years ago, when I first started volunteering at the Listening Ear crisis center in East Lansing, Michigan.

I remember some of the conversations we had as she was coming out, and some of the challenges she talked about. We fell out of touch for a while, as happens sometimes. When we reconnected again years later, I was amazed at the things Rachel had accomplished, including founding the International Transgender Day of Visibility and working with her partner, Susan Crocker, to start what I believe was the first transgender helpline in the country.

Transgender Michigan was founded in 1997, and continues to run one of the only transgender helplines in the country, available 24/7 at 855-345-8464.

We know transgender youth are at a higher risk of depression and suicide, and these coming months and years could be very difficult. Therefore, I’ve enlisted some very generous SF/F friends to put together a fundraiser to help Transgender Michigan continue their important work providing support, education, and advocacy.

24 Auctions in 24 Days

Each day at noon (with the exception of Thanksgiving weekend), I’ll post an auction from one of the people listed below. It could be for autographed books, a manuscript critique, a Tuckerization (where you get to be a minor character in an upcoming book), or something else altogether. Bidding will take place in the comments, one bid at a time.

The following day at noon, I’ll close the bidding and notify the winner. The winner then donates their bid to Transgender Michigan and sends me the receipt, at which point I’ll send your information to the donor so they can hook you up with your winnings.

Transgender Michigan is a 501(c)(3) Michigan nonprofit corporation, which means your donation is tax deductible.

Note: I will wait until 10 minutes after the last bid to close an auction. That will hopefully reduce the impact of last-second sniping.

Bonus Raffle from DAW Books

That’s right, there’s more! My publisher, DAW Books, has agreed to give away:

6 Tad Williams Bundles: each bundle includes one copy of Otherland: City of Golden Shadow (hardcover first edition, first printing)  plus 1 Advance Review Copy of The Heart of What Was Lost.

6 DAW December Release Bundles: each bundle includes one copy of all DAW December titles: Dreamweaver, Tempest, Alien Nation, and Jerusalem Fire, plus a bonus ARC (dependent on stock).

Have I mentioned before how amazing my publisher is?

How can you win one of these awesome bundles? That’s easy. At any time between now and the end of the fundraiser, simply donate $5 to Transgender Michigan and email me a copy of the receipt at jchines -at- gmail.com, with the subject line “DAW Raffle Entry.”

Each week, I’ll pick at least one donor to win their choice of either a Tad Williams or a December Release bundle from DAW. (Which means the earlier you enter, the better your chances of winning!)

You can donate more than $5 if you want more than one entry. For example, donating $20 would get you four entries. However, you can only win a maximum of one of each bundle.

This is separate from the individual auctions. Winning an auction does not count as a raffle entry.

Our Donors

Here are the donors for the fundraiser.

• Chuck Wendig
• Alyx Dellamonica
• Sherwood Smith
• Naomi Kritzer
• Stephen Leigh
• Leah Cutter
• Jim C. Hines
• Nicole Kornher-Stace
• Jenna Black
• Tricia Sullivan
• Stephanie Burgis
• Dawn Metcalf
• John Scalzi
• Steven Gould
• Laura J. Mixon
• Lyda Morehouse
• Blaze Ward
• Rachel Searles
• Amanda Downum
• Jessica Reisman
• Stina Leicht
• Leah Bobet
• Pamela Dean
• Seanan McGuire

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Yesterday was the International Transgender Day of Remembrance, memorializing those “who were killed due to anti-transgender hatred or prejudice.” In my mind, that makes today the perfect time to work to make things better.

My thanks to everyone who helped make this happen. Please spread the word about the fundraiser, and about the individual auctions as they go live.

And if you want a hint about tomorrow’s auction? Well…let’s just say the Force will be with you, always.

A lot of people have been talking about harassment and violence since the election, often done in Trump’s name. Others claim the stories are all made up, that it’s deliberate fearmongering.

I get that a lot of people who supported Trump don’t want to be associated with racism and hatred, and sometimes it’s hard to know what stories to trust, especially on the internet. So I’m pulling together some examples where there’s documentation of what actually happened — actual news articles, photographs, video, etc. These things are happening in the U.S. right now.

Obviously, I denounce this behavior. It’s hateful, violent, and un-American. But the fact is, most of the people perpetuating or encouraging this stuff aren’t going to listen to me. I’ve been dismissed again and again as one of those gullible, libtard, SJW idiots. I’ll keep doing what I can to raise awareness and push back, but what would help more is for those of you who did vote for Trump to do the same.

Don’t pretend these incidents aren’t real. Don’t turn your back on people who are being harassed and attacked and threatened because they don’t look white, or because they’re not male, or because they’re disabled, or because they’re gay, and so on.

I keep hearing how angry Trump supporters are at being called racist and bigoted and hateful. Prove it. Speak up.

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1. Racist graffiti at Maple Grove High. A bathroom at Maple Grove High school was vandalized with racist messages including “#whites­only,” “Trump Train” and “#gobacktoafrica.” (Photograph)
2. Whites Only graffiti posted at Illinois High School bathroom. Article includes video with photos.
3. Message of Unity Vandalized with “Trump 2016”. Theresa Govert, of East Haddam, Connecticut, painted a sign saying, “Dear Muslims, immigrants, women, disabled, LGBTQ and all people of color, we love you boldly and proudly. We will endure.” It was vandalized within the day. (Photograph)
4. Black Penn students added to “Nigger Lynching” and other hateful groups.
5. “Sieg Heil,” swastikas, racist Trump graffiti appear in South Philly.
6. Pride flags on people’s homes set on fire the day after the election in Rochester, NY.
7. Students yelling ‘cotton picker,’ heiling Hitler at this local school. Confirmed by this letter from the principal.
8. Y’all black people better start picking your slave numbers. KKK 4 Life. Go Trump. Photo of graffiti from a high school bathroom in central Florida.
9. Two Oregon high school students suspended for harassing Hispanic students. A group of 30 to 40 students gathered in the parking lot with Trump signs and American flags, the newspaper reported. “Pack your bags, you’re leaving tomorrow” and “Tell your family good-bye” were shouted at Hispanic students, according to witnesses.
10. Vandal wrote ‘Trump!’ on door to prayer room used by New York University’s Muslim student organization.
11. Video of a self-described Trump supporter’s racist rant against another driver.
12. Florida truck decorated with “Kill all Muslims” and “All Muslims are child-molesters.”
13. Campus police investigate robbery as hate crime. “‘Comments made to the student indicate she was targeted because of her Muslim faith, including her wearing of a traditional garment and hijab,’ a statement from SDSU President Elliot Hirshman, Vice President of Student Affairs Eric Rivera and Interim Chief of Police Josh Mays said.”
14. Texas State University police investigating fliers calling for “tar & feather vigilante squads”. “Now that our man TRUMP is elected and republicans own both the senate and the house — time to organize tar & feather VIGILANTE SQUADS and go arrest & torture those deviant university leaders spouting off all this Diversity Garbage,” the flier reads.
15. San Jose State Police issue alert after student attacked, choked with her head scarf.
16. Wellsville softball field dugout marked with swastika, graffiti. “Make America White Again”

There are so, so many more reports out there of people being harassed and attacked. I could spend all weekend adding to this list of documented incidents. Shaun King has been collecting reports over on Twitter. He has reports of people being threatened, insulted, physically and sexually assaulted, and more.

The typical defensive reactions I’ve seen fall into one of three categories:

1. It’s all made up. It’s not really happening. It’s just liberal fearmongering.
2. It’s all being done by liberals to make Trump supporters look bad.
3. Well, what about these other things that Hillary supporters did?

Starting with the first point, we’ve all learned you can’t trust everything you read on the internet. We know that one report of an attack against a Muslim girl by Trump supporters turned out to be fabricated. So sure, we can’t say 100% of what’s being shared and reported is true. But it’s equally absurd to claim 100% are false. It didn’t take me that long to find support and evidence for the stories I linked to above. Not everything is true? Okay, fine. But a lot of it is, and that should be horrifying to all of us.

To the second point, that these are all done by liberals or Hillary supporters or whatever? Do you have any evidence whatsoever for that, or are you just using it as an excuse to ignore what’s happening? Even if this is true — and I’ve seen nothing to suggest that it is — this harassment and violence is still being done in Trump’s name, which means we really need to see Trump and his supporters speak out loudly against it.

As to the third point, that Hillary supporters did bad things too? One piece of this claim seems to default to, “All protests against Trump are riots,” which is a very dangerous road to go down. I’ve seen reports of people attacking a man for being a Trump supporter. (Snopes describes this as a mixture of fact and fiction, saying it actually arose out of a traffic altercation.) Look, it’s certainly possible that there are instances of Hillary supporters committing acts of harassment and violence too, and that’s not okay either. But this doesn’t erase the documented harassment and violence happening in Trump’s name.

If someone describes an act of hatred, saying “They did it too!” doesn’t make it all right. It just gives you an excuse to keep ignoring what that person is telling you.

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These incidents of racism, sexism, bigotry, harassment, and hatred are happening. They’re real. It’s easy to close your eyes and pretend they’re not happening when you’re not the one being targeted. But those people who are being targeted? They’re Americans. They’re men and women and children. They’re your neighbors. They’re your child’s schoolmates. They’re your coworkers. And they are afraid. They’re afraid because they can’t close their eyes. They’re afraid because they know they could be next.

They’re afraid not just because of the people committing these acts, but because so many more people stand by and say nothing. Because so many of us let this happen.

You want to push back against the idea that Trump supporters are racists and bigots? Then prove it! Speak up against the hate. Not just the blatant stuff, like the KKK’s planned victory march in support of Trump, but the everyday harassment and dehumanization.

Your voice is powerful. So is your silence.

“The standard you walk past, is the standard you accept.” -General David Lindsay Morrison

I know I have family and friends who voted for Donald Trump. I know those people are … perhaps not happy, but satisfied with the results of yesterday’s election. This post is for you. Not to attack, but to hopefully help you understand why I and so many others are angry and afraid.

To begin with, Trump has promised to completely repeal the Affordable Care Act. The ACA is far from perfect, but it offers protection for those with pre-existing conditions. People like myself and my wife, among many others. I have friends whose lives were literally saved because the ACA allowed them to get health insurance. I’m among the fortunate — when Trump takes steps to eliminate my family’s health insurance coverage, we have an alternate option through my wife’s job. For many others, this is a very real life-or-death situation.

The counterargument is that Trump will replace the ACA with something better. However, his statement on his website says nothing about protection for people with preexisting conditions, and offers little concrete information on how this plan will work. Understand, I want to see something better than the ACA. Nothing I’ve seen makes me believe a Trump administration will create something better, something that helps protect the health and lives of our most vulnerable people.

Trump has called global warming bullshit and a hoax. He’s promised to cancel the Paris accord on the environment, reduce regulation, shrink the EPA, and is putting together a transition team of “veteran Washington insiders, many of them lobbyists for fossil fuel companies and skeptics about climate science.” (Source)

I’m 42 years old, and there’s a decent chance I’ll be dead and gone before the worst effects of climate change hit. But I’m scared for the world my children and grandchildren will have to survive in.

I know a fair number of Americans aren’t worried about climate change. But “97 percent or more of actively publishing climate scientists agree: Climate-warming trends over the past century are extremely likely due to human activities. In addition, most of the leading scientific organizations worldwide have issued public statements endorsing this position.” (Source) How much worse will we insist things get before we start taking this seriously?

Trump has routinely encouraged bullying and violence at his rallies, and we’ve seen his most extreme fans following suit. Comments like “A guy like that… [would] be carried out in a stretcher,” or telling the crowd to “knock the crap out of” any protesters they see (and then offering to pay the legal fees). He’s insulted and attacked women, people of color, the disabled, military veterans, and so many more. Marginalized groups in this country are already at a greater risk of harassment and violence. Legitimizing Trump’s bullying rhetoric will only make things worse.

The response I’ve seen here is that he doesn’t really mean it, or it’s all just talk, or whatever. But in the meantime, we’re seeing hate crimes against transgender people and black churches. I truly hope these incidents are a fluke, but as we watch a former KKK Grand Wizard celebrate Trump’s victory, I hope you can understand why people are afraid this will legitimize hatred and bullying and racism and bigotry and violence.

Trump openly bragged about being able to assault women. “Just kiss. I don’t even wait. And when you’re a star they let you do it. You can do anything … Grab them by the pussy. You can do anything.” I’ve worked with rape survivors. I’ve seen how hard it is to speak out against rapists and abusers with power. I’ve seen the backlash against survivors. I’ve watched our society continue to protect rapists and turn our backs on victims. And now half the country has signaled that this is an acceptable attitude for our most powerful elected official.

“It’s just locker room talk.” Even if you refuse to listen to the various women who claim Trump harassed and assaulted them — including one girl who was 13 years old at the time — we’re still talking about a man who believes this is an acceptable and normal way to talk about women. Who thinks joking about sexual assault is just boys being boys. You might not personally approve of what Trump said, but you’ve told everyone in America — victims and perpetrators alike — that you’re willing to accept it.

I could keep going. I haven’t even mentioned Pence, a man who claims to be pro-life but supports abstinence-only education, an approach which actually increases unwanted pregnancies. Or the potential gutting of protections for LGBTQ people. Or the stoking of hatred against Muslims. (I received an email a few weeks ago talking about voting for Trump because he’d “protect us from terrorists” … when in reality, you’re more likely to be killed by a toddler than a terrorist.)

So yes, I’m afraid. I’m afraid for myself, my wife, my children, my friends and extended family, my community, and my nation. I’m afraid for the world. (You can’t build a wall to keep out climate change.)

I don’t expect you to agree with me on everything. I do ask that you acknowledge these fears are real and valid. You might believe none of them will come to pass. You might believe America’s future is bright and hopeful for all. Obviously, I disagree.

Look, I hope you’re right. But if not, I hope you won’t turn your backs on the people who being hurt, and who are most vulnerable to being hurt more in the coming years. I hope you won’t rationalize and excuse the damage being done. I hope you’ll hold the men you elected accountable for their words and deeds. I hope you, like any patriotic American, will find the strength and courage to speak up and demand better.

Comments are closed.

Just got back from voting. I am officially declaring this the Happy Thoughts Post. Please post pictures, links, etc. of a non-political nature that make you laugh or smile. Like…

The San Francisco Zoo will be live-streaming its Red Pandas on the Firefox Facebook page today from 10-11 a.m. Pacific Time.

Or Brigadier Sir Nils Olav, the king penguin at at Edinburgh Zoo who “is an honorary member of the King of Norway’s Guard and gets to inspect the soldiers when they visit the Scottish capital.”

So post your link(s) and share the happy. If anything gets caught in the spam filter, just ping me in a separate comment and I’ll get it freed up.