WEBVTT
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John Oliver: This has clearly been
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a big week for the LGBT community.
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But it's also been a big year
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for the T part of that equation
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from Caitlyn Jenner's Vanity Fair cover
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to TV shows like Transparent
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uh, to another small milestone
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just this Friday.
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Announcer: "Actress Laverne Cox
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marked another milestone with the drop
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of a curtain at Madame Tussaud's
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San Francisco"
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John Oliver: Now that is big step forward
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for transgender Americans.
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And it's frankly about time.
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Because bear in mind,
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it came after the same milestone
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for Spider Americans
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and wookies.
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But for all the strides transgender people
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have made lately,
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let's not get too complacent
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about how far we've come.
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Because they still face a host of obstacles.
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Even when the news media are trying
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to be supportive,
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they can make dumb mistakes.
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Host: Your... private parts
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are different now, aren't they?
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Trans interviewee: Shh, Shh!
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I don't want to talk about it
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because it's still-
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it's really personal.
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Host: Don't you
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feel funny with the-
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wrong genitalia?
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Not as a joke,
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you stand up in the women's bathroom.
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Host: You've got breast implants.
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Laverne Cox: [laughs]
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I, you know, I, uh
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Host: They're tasteful, whatever's going on there.
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LC: Thank you.
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Host: So if I saw you undressed,
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you would look
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like a woman to me, totally-
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yes?
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John Oliver: What are you doing??
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It is no more okay to ask
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transgender people about their sex organs
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then it would be to ask
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Jimmy Carter whether or not
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he's circumcised.
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Which, by the way,
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he is.
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Smooth like a boiled carrot.
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And, and sometimes
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sometimes- don't think about that-
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and sometimes
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the media's confusion
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is even more basic than that.
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As in the case of
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this Arizona weatherman
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just two weeks ago.
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Announcer: And a transgender woman
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says she was kicked out
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of a Tempe bar
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Weatherman: Let's bring it back
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to that earlier headline.
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Now, what is a transgender woman?
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Announcer: Yes?
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Weatherman: What does that even mean now?
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Announcer: Ok...
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She- used to be a guy!
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Announcer 2: But now is a woman.
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Announcer: This is, this is uh, chuckles
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Weatherman: Aren't you just saying a woman then?
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I, I can't even keep up anymore!
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John Oliver: Holy Shit!
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I really hope that's also
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how he reports the weather.
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Wait, wait, it used to be rainy-
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and now it's sunny?
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So, so now it's just sunny?
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I can't even keep up anymore!
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I can't-
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This doesn't make my head work!
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Look- let's give him
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the benefit of the doubt.
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Maybe for him,
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and for many people
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this is new information.
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Maybe he's thinking about
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transgender issues for the first time
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And he needs a minute
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to try and understand it.
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So let's take that minute
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to fill in that bamboozled weatherman
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And everyone else on some basic details.
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Transgender people have a gender identity
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that differs from the one
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they were assigned at birth
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and that gender identity
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is not the same as sexual orientation.
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Gender Identity is who you are,
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Sexual Orientation is who you love.
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Some transgender people do
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undergo hormone therapy
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or sexual reassignment surgery
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as part of their transition, some do not!
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And interestingly, their decision on this matter is
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medically speaking,
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none of your fucking business.
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Audience: [cheering]
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And if you're still wondering
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well hold on, hold on,
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what do I call a transgender person
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it's so confusing,
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well actually it's pretty simple.
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Call them, whatever they want to be called.
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You can do it!
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We do it all the time.
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Think of it this way.
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David Evans woke up one day
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and said,
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"Everyone call me The Edge"
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and we all went,
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Fine, The Edge
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are we talking the noun or the verb?
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And, and that's
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it's not just that, it's not just that!
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Over the past twenty years,
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we've agreed to call this man
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Puff Daddy,
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P. Diddy,
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just Diddy,
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and now Puff Daddy again
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and most people don't even like him!
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[laughter]
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And here's the thing-
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Here's the important thing
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it's genuinely crucial
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that we get this right.
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Because there are more transgender people
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in the US than you might realize.
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One study estimates that nearly
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700,000 American adults are transgender.
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That's more than the population of Boston
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and you probably know someone from Boston.
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I'll give you a clue-
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it was the guy who wore a Bruin's jersey
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to your sister's wedding.
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And while a handful of transgender people
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have been winning awards,
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or appearing on magazine covers
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the community at large
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has been facing some staggering challenges.
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Voiceover: "A 2011 survey
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by the National Center for Transgender Equality
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found 41% of transgender people
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had attempted suicide."
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Presenter: They are nearly
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four times more likely
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to make less
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than 10,000 dollars a year
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compared to the general population.
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Voiceover: 78% of those surveyed
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reported harassment during K-12 schooling,
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35% reported physical assault,
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and 12% were sexually assaulted.
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John Oliver: That is terrible.
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Those statistics are so depressing
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it's enough to make you angry
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at the very concept of numbers.
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Fuck you, symbols meant to represent
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a specific value!
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You're the absolute WORST.
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The WORST!!
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Look, look.
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We've clearly
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got work to do.
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Because when you're transgender,
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pretty much any interaction
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with bureaucracy
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can be humiliatingly difficult.
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Just take what happened to
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two transgender women
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when they went to the DMV
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in West Virginia.
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Announcer: Both women
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were asked to remove
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all their jewelry, makeup, and wigs
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before the DMV would photograph them.
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Trans Woman 1: They're saying
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that I need to fulfill
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a certain- a certain look
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that they are designating means- male
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and that I'm, you know, hiding who I am,
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which I am absolutely NOT.
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Announcer: Both women say
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they were also referred to as "it".
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Woman 2: Words can't explain
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the humiliation I felt that day.
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That was the worst thing
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in 52 years of my life
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that I have ever felt.
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John Oliver: Listen,
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I'm not saying anyone
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has a good DMV experience.
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But that is the worst
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I have ever heard.
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And for the record,
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you get pick virtually everything else
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on your driver's license.
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They ask you your weight.
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They don't weigh you
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like a prize hog.
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[laughter]
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Plus, the whole idea
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of a driver's license photo
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is to present
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how you look from day to day.
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That's why DMV employees
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tell you not to smile,
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because they can't imagine anyone
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whose normal existence
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involves happiness in any form.
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And, even in,
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even in organizations
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that have seemed willing to change,
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that change has come frustratingly slowly.
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Take the military-
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both the Secretary of Defense
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and President Obama
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have indicated they are open
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to transgender troops
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being able to serve.
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And yet, they are still
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banned from enlisting
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because of weirdly archaic restrictions
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on things like, uh,
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"defects of the genitalia"
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such as "change of sex" and
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"psychosexual conditions
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including but not limited to
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transsexualism and transvestism"
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Our current recruitment poster
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is essentially,
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I want you, maybe,
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after we talk about your genitals for a bit,
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I know that's weird,
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but for the moment
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this is apparently how we do things.
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And yet even despite
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those restrictions on enlistment,
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by one estimate
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there are currently
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15,000 transgender service members.
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And while you can be discharged
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for being transgender,
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those rules are enforced inconsistently
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depending on your branch of service
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and commanding officer,
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meaning experiences can vary wildly.
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For some, like Logan Island,
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it can be great.
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Logan: What I like about
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this deployment, is-
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I can be my authentic self.
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I'm just another guy
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whereas back home,
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I'm... still seen as female
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and I go by female regs and standards.
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Here, in Afghanistan,
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a war zone,
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It's like a vacation to me
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because I can be myself
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in such an austere environment.
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John Oliver: It is not
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a great sign
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for how we treat transgender people
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that Afghanistan is
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"a place where you can be yourself"
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That is the least likely
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tourism slogan for Afghanistan.
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Well, I'd put it right behind
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"Waterpark Capital of the World"
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and "Birthplace of the Twerk"
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But, compare that with the experience
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of Captain Jacob Eleazar,
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of the Army National Guard
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who faced discharge
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for being transgender
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despite his own commander's support
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and the fact he was being awarded a medal.
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Jacob: The thing
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that stuck with me the most
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is as they were pinning
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that army commendation medal on me,
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my regimental commander said,
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"Thank you for everything that you've done for our regiment,
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Jacob."
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And, and used- used my real name.
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Um, and, I can't- I can't express
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just the emotion
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of that juxtaposition.
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Because like, you're,
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you're kicking me out
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um, but you're acknowledging me
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for myself and giving me an award
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at the same time.
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John Oliver: That's utterly ridiculous.
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They gave him an award
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and then tried to kick him out.
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It's pretty much what
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Hollywood did to Cuba Gooding Jr.
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And that wasn't ok either!
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But, but this is the big problem.
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this is the big problem!
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Because even when
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people say the right things
00:09:18.142 --> 00:09:19.505
about the transgender community
00:09:19.505 --> 00:09:20.199
too often
00:09:20.199 --> 00:09:22.201
practical change fails to follow.
00:09:22.201 --> 00:09:24.038
And perhaps the perfect embodiment
00:09:24.038 --> 00:09:25.797
of this concerns bathrooms.
00:09:25.797 --> 00:09:26.742
We all use them.
00:09:26.742 --> 00:09:28.260
As the good book tells us,
00:09:28.260 --> 00:09:29.714
Everyone Poops.
00:09:30.297 --> 00:09:31.836
Or, as it's known in England,
00:09:31.836 --> 00:09:33.881
Everyone Poops but the Queen.
00:09:34.571 --> 00:09:36.789
She has people do it for her.
00:09:37.482 --> 00:09:39.042
Across the country,
00:09:39.042 --> 00:09:40.612
there have been efforts by lawmakers
00:09:40.612 --> 00:09:43.347
to fight non-discrimination ordinances
00:09:43.347 --> 00:09:45.497
with so-called "bathroom bills"
00:09:45.497 --> 00:09:47.074
Like this one, in Arizona.
00:09:47.074 --> 00:09:47.914
Announcer: It's a new
00:09:47.914 --> 00:09:49.267
"show me your papers" bill
00:09:49.267 --> 00:09:50.207
for Arizona,
00:09:50.207 --> 00:09:51.807
the sex on your birth certificate
00:09:51.807 --> 00:09:52.887
would have to match
00:09:52.887 --> 00:09:54.017
the sex of the bathroom
00:09:54.017 --> 00:09:55.727
or locker room that you use.
00:09:55.727 --> 00:09:58.087
The target: transgender men and women
00:09:58.087 --> 00:09:59.100
here in Arizona.
00:09:59.100 --> 00:10:00.102
Interviewee: 6 months in jail,
00:10:00.102 --> 00:10:01.853
2500 dollar fine,
00:10:01.853 --> 00:10:04.173
for just going in to pee.
00:10:04.173 --> 00:10:06.623
John Oliver: 2,500 dollar fine
00:10:06.623 --> 00:10:08.848
for peeing in the "wrong place"
00:10:08.848 --> 00:10:10.778
Look, unless you happen to urinate
00:10:10.778 --> 00:10:12.858
a 1989 Chateau Petrus,
00:10:12.858 --> 00:10:16.119
you're not even gonna break even on that deal.
00:10:16.688 --> 00:10:18.417
In the most recent session,
00:10:18.417 --> 00:10:20.756
at least 13 bathroom bills
00:10:20.756 --> 00:10:22.849
have been introduced in state legislatures.
00:10:22.849 --> 00:10:23.923
And the reasoning behind them
00:10:23.923 --> 00:10:25.393
can be pretty insulting.
00:10:25.393 --> 00:10:27.723
Just listen to Presidential Candidate
00:10:27.723 --> 00:10:28.743
Mike Huckabee.
00:10:28.743 --> 00:10:32.491
MH: We are now, in city after city,
00:10:32.491 --> 00:10:34.078
watching ordinances that say
00:10:34.078 --> 00:10:35.763
that your 7 year old daughter,
00:10:35.763 --> 00:10:37.184
if she goes into the restroom
00:10:37.184 --> 00:10:38.554
cannot be offended-
00:10:38.554 --> 00:10:40.032
and you can't be offended
00:10:40.032 --> 00:10:41.178
if she is greeted there
00:10:41.178 --> 00:10:42.779
by a 42 year old man
00:10:42.779 --> 00:10:44.618
who feels more like a woman
00:10:44.618 --> 00:10:46.081
than he does a man.
00:10:46.731 --> 00:10:48.901
Now, I wish someone had told me
00:10:48.901 --> 00:10:50.004
when I was in high school
00:10:50.004 --> 00:10:51.617
that I could have felt like a woman
00:10:51.617 --> 00:10:54.077
when it came time to take showers in PE.
00:10:54.077 --> 00:10:55.437
I'm pretty sure I would have found
00:10:55.437 --> 00:10:56.927
my feminine side and said,
00:10:56.927 --> 00:10:58.410
Coach, I think I'd rather shower
00:10:58.410 --> 00:11:00.677
with the girls today.
00:11:05.482 --> 00:11:06.377
You're laughing
00:11:06.377 --> 00:11:08.327
because it sounds so ridiculous,
00:11:08.327 --> 00:11:09.057
doesn't it?
00:11:09.057 --> 00:11:10.587
There's something inherently wrong
00:11:10.587 --> 00:11:12.492
with forcing little children
00:11:12.492 --> 00:11:15.755
to, to be apart of this social experiment.
00:11:15.755 --> 00:11:17.405
John Oliver: No, but uh,
00:11:17.405 --> 00:11:18.935
there IS something inherently wrong
00:11:18.935 --> 00:11:20.385
with forcing us to listen to
00:11:20.385 --> 00:11:21.945
your fucked up daydreams about
00:11:21.945 --> 00:11:24.315
all the sex crimes you would have commited
00:11:24.315 --> 00:11:25.728
as a teenager
00:11:25.728 --> 00:11:29.408
had you just been able to find a legal loophole.
00:11:29.408 --> 00:11:30.638
That's weird!
00:11:30.638 --> 00:11:31.548
[cheering]
00:11:31.548 --> 00:11:33.088
And that, that kind of
00:11:33.088 --> 00:11:34.288
baseless fear mongering
00:11:34.288 --> 00:11:35.478
is everywhere!
00:11:35.478 --> 00:11:37.263
It even turned up in a campaign ad
00:11:37.263 --> 00:11:38.564
when Gainesville, Florida
00:11:38.564 --> 00:11:40.616
was trying to pass one of these bills.
00:11:40.616 --> 00:11:42.246
[sounds of children playing]
00:11:57.776 --> 00:11:59.015
John Oliver: Ok-
00:11:59.015 --> 00:12:01.815
let's- let's break that bullshit down.
00:12:01.815 --> 00:12:03.036
Because, first,
00:12:03.036 --> 00:12:05.496
assaulting children is still illegal.
00:12:05.866 --> 00:12:07.636
Secondly, someone abusing
00:12:07.636 --> 00:12:09.077
a non-discrimination ordinance
00:12:09.077 --> 00:12:10.642
to assault someone in a bathroom
00:12:10.642 --> 00:12:12.030
is almost unheard of.
00:12:12.030 --> 00:12:14.125
It's a borderline imaginary crime.
00:12:14.125 --> 00:12:15.695
Like, dragon rustling
00:12:15.695 --> 00:12:17.408
or space bestiality.
00:12:17.408 --> 00:12:19.212
Sure, it's terrible,
00:12:19.212 --> 00:12:21.747
but it doesn't really happen!
00:12:22.197 --> 00:12:24.747
Also, forcing transgender people
00:12:24.747 --> 00:12:25.777
into certain bathrooms
00:12:25.777 --> 00:12:27.853
can actually be much more disruptive,
00:12:27.853 --> 00:12:29.323
as activist Michael Hughes,
00:12:29.323 --> 00:12:30.914
a transgender man, showed with
00:12:30.914 --> 00:12:31.904
this photo
00:12:31.904 --> 00:12:32.951
of himself looking,
00:12:32.951 --> 00:12:33.641
understandably,
00:12:33.641 --> 00:12:35.181
awkward in a ladies room.
00:12:35.181 --> 00:12:36.851
Because, there are many places
00:12:36.851 --> 00:12:38.260
that Michael would fit in.
00:12:38.260 --> 00:12:40.198
Um, a tattoo parlor in Reno,
00:12:40.198 --> 00:12:43.468
playing steel guitar in a Johnny Cash tribute band,
00:12:43.468 --> 00:12:46.118
or on the label of his own BBQ sauce,
00:12:46.118 --> 00:12:48.265
but a women's bathroom
00:12:48.265 --> 00:12:50.082
ehh, not so much.
00:12:50.082 --> 00:12:52.992
Besides, it is so much easier for everyone
00:12:52.992 --> 00:12:55.035
when people are allowed to use the bathroom
00:12:55.035 --> 00:12:56.583
that matches their gender identity
00:12:56.583 --> 00:12:58.513
rather than one that might match
00:12:58.513 --> 00:13:00.515
the genitalia they were born with.
00:13:00.515 --> 00:13:02.404
That is why, the little pictures
00:13:02.404 --> 00:13:03.799
on bathroom doors are
00:13:03.799 --> 00:13:06.249
stereotypical representations of
00:13:06.249 --> 00:13:06.984
men and women
00:13:06.984 --> 00:13:09.316
and not biologically accurate depictions
00:13:09.316 --> 00:13:11.292
of penises and vaginas.
00:13:11.292 --> 00:13:12.181
Because that,
00:13:12.181 --> 00:13:14.245
would be troubling for children!
00:13:14.245 --> 00:13:16.477
Um, Mommy, mommy,
00:13:16.477 --> 00:13:18.517
Do I go with the one with the
00:13:18.517 --> 00:13:21.352
pouty slug or the angry goat skull?
00:13:21.352 --> 00:13:22.847
I'm scared.
00:13:24.020 --> 00:13:26.770
Yet, legislators have even tried to
00:13:26.770 --> 00:13:28.742
enforce these bills in high schools
00:13:28.742 --> 00:13:30.448
with damaging consequences.
00:13:30.448 --> 00:13:32.447
Take the case of Henry Brousseau,
00:13:32.447 --> 00:13:34.427
a transgender high school student
00:13:34.427 --> 00:13:35.615
who spoke in opposition
00:13:35.615 --> 00:13:37.869
to a proposed bathroom bill in Kentucky.
00:13:37.869 --> 00:13:39.162
HB: Even though I've been living as a male
00:13:39.162 --> 00:13:39.968
for some time,
00:13:39.968 --> 00:13:41.528
and I've been accepted
00:13:41.528 --> 00:13:42.959
by my friends and family as male
00:13:42.959 --> 00:13:45.339
I was being forced to use the girl's bathroom
00:13:45.339 --> 00:13:46.959
at my school until very recently.
00:13:46.959 --> 00:13:48.689
Because the school administration
00:13:48.689 --> 00:13:50.564
did not support my gender identity
00:13:50.564 --> 00:13:51.924
by letting me use the restrooms
00:13:51.924 --> 00:13:53.658
concordant with my gender identity,
00:13:53.658 --> 00:13:55.474
the kids at my school bullied me.
00:13:55.474 --> 00:13:57.030
The kids thought that because
00:13:57.030 --> 00:13:59.340
the administration didn't support
00:13:59.340 --> 00:14:02.210
my gender identity, they didn't have to either.
00:14:02.210 --> 00:14:03.089
John Oliver: And that,
00:14:03.089 --> 00:14:04.524
is the whole point.
00:14:04.524 --> 00:14:06.501
Official rules can end up
00:14:06.501 --> 00:14:08.133
legitimizing prejudice.
00:14:08.133 --> 00:14:09.756
And besides, teenagers
00:14:09.756 --> 00:14:11.956
really don't need extra ideas
00:14:11.956 --> 00:14:13.087
for how to make each other's
00:14:13.087 --> 00:14:14.447
lives miserable.
00:14:14.447 --> 00:14:15.687
That's what they do!
00:14:15.687 --> 00:14:17.847
Uh, sit on your own Becca~
00:14:17.847 --> 00:14:19.637
side ponytails are so
00:14:19.637 --> 00:14:23.637
5 nevers ago.... ha!
00:14:24.946 --> 00:14:26.231
And, look,
00:14:26.231 --> 00:14:27.931
as Henry finished his speech,
00:14:27.931 --> 00:14:29.441
it actually seemed like
00:14:29.441 --> 00:14:31.921
he'd really connected with the legislators.
00:14:31.921 --> 00:14:33.660
HB: If you don't know a transgender kid already,
00:14:33.660 --> 00:14:35.049
you do now.
00:14:35.049 --> 00:14:36.250
You know me, Henry.
00:14:36.250 --> 00:14:37.785
Please let me know how I can be
00:14:37.785 --> 00:14:39.085
of any further assistance
00:14:39.085 --> 00:14:40.495
and thank you so much for your time today
00:14:40.495 --> 00:14:42.885
and please vote no on Senate bill 76.
00:14:42.885 --> 00:14:43.948
Sen. Max Wise: I educated myself
00:14:43.948 --> 00:14:44.858
a lot today,
00:14:44.858 --> 00:14:46.326
and I appreciate the testimony.
00:14:46.326 --> 00:14:48.116
Sen. Carpenter: You should be proud of yourself
00:14:48.116 --> 00:14:48.886
for being able to stand
00:14:48.886 --> 00:14:49.846
in front of this committee and
00:14:49.846 --> 00:14:51.406
be so articulate in your comments.
00:14:51.406 --> 00:14:53.331
Sen. Kerr: Henry, I love you man.
00:14:53.331 --> 00:14:55.911
I- I appreciate you.
00:14:55.911 --> 00:14:58.110
I appreciate your courage.
00:14:58.110 --> 00:15:02.007
I can't really imagine that anyone else
00:15:02.007 --> 00:15:04.339
in this room has the kind of courage
00:15:04.339 --> 00:15:07.849
that it took for you to come
00:15:07.849 --> 00:15:09.569
and testify today.
00:15:09.569 --> 00:15:10.959
John Oliver: Ok, ok, but
00:15:10.959 --> 00:15:12.129
"I luv you man"
00:15:12.129 --> 00:15:13.690
is a little much.
00:15:13.690 --> 00:15:14.800
I love Henry too,
00:15:14.800 --> 00:15:16.780
but he's not the best man at your wedding,
00:15:16.780 --> 00:15:17.771
he's a teenage boy
00:15:17.771 --> 00:15:19.695
trying to take a shit in the men's room.
00:15:19.695 --> 00:15:21.783
And, and it's worth noting
00:15:21.783 --> 00:15:23.873
once they were done patting Henry
00:15:23.873 --> 00:15:24.693
on the back,
00:15:24.693 --> 00:15:26.031
and then patting themselves
00:15:26.031 --> 00:15:27.133
for patting Henry,
00:15:27.133 --> 00:15:28.913
all three of those lawmakers
00:15:28.913 --> 00:15:30.702
voted to advance the bill
00:15:30.702 --> 00:15:32.522
to force him into bathrooms
00:15:32.522 --> 00:15:33.692
where he's bullied!
00:15:33.692 --> 00:15:36.252
Now, thankfully that particular bill
00:15:36.252 --> 00:15:37.492
never became law
00:15:37.492 --> 00:15:38.472
but that dynamic
00:15:38.472 --> 00:15:40.882
of praising a transgender person's
00:15:40.882 --> 00:15:42.132
couuurage
00:15:42.132 --> 00:15:44.472
and then not actually supporting them
00:15:44.472 --> 00:15:45.577
speaks to the fact that
00:15:45.577 --> 00:15:46.720
we are weirdly comfortable
00:15:46.720 --> 00:15:48.582
celebrating transgender people
00:15:48.582 --> 00:15:50.932
while simultaneously dehumanizing them
00:15:50.932 --> 00:15:51.750
at the DMV,
00:15:51.750 --> 00:15:53.140
pinning awards to them
00:15:53.140 --> 00:15:54.784
as we drum them out of the military,
00:15:54.784 --> 00:15:56.334
and constantly quizzing them
00:15:56.334 --> 00:15:57.566
about their genitals.
00:15:57.566 --> 00:16:00.323
And look, this is a civil right's issue.
00:16:00.323 --> 00:16:01.843
And, if you are not willing
00:16:01.843 --> 00:16:03.311
to support transgender people
00:16:03.311 --> 00:16:04.283
for their sake,
00:16:04.283 --> 00:16:06.503
at least do it for your own.
00:16:06.503 --> 00:16:09.088
Because we've been through this before-
00:16:09.088 --> 00:16:10.993
We know how this thing ends.
00:16:10.993 --> 00:16:13.386
If you take the anti civil right's side,
00:16:13.386 --> 00:16:15.256
and deny people access to something
00:16:15.256 --> 00:16:16.304
they're entitled to,
00:16:16.304 --> 00:16:19.232
history is not going to be kind to you.
00:16:19.232 --> 00:16:21.882
There is no biopic where Liam Neeson
00:16:21.885 --> 00:16:24.535
kicks the shit out of a Suffragist.
00:16:25.165 --> 00:16:27.825
There, there's not a stamp
00:16:27.825 --> 00:16:29.635
featuring George Wallace
00:16:29.635 --> 00:16:31.041
at the school house door.
00:16:31.041 --> 00:16:32.653
And you are not going to get
00:16:32.653 --> 00:16:34.290
a monument that says at the base of it,
00:16:34.290 --> 00:16:37.010
"He Told People Where to Shit."