this kind of seems like a way to advertise the conference, but well done anyway
We do have incredibly talented transgendered speakers:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sophie_Wilson
and at least one very talented asian transgendered speaker:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audrey_Tang
It is notable that both these are transgendered women I don't know of any transgendered men.
I find it interesting that you didn't add black speakers to your list. Our industry has a very notable deficit of anyone from an African, Afro-Carribean & African-American background. Personally I have worked with many more women programmers than I have with black programmers (although I have worked with two very talented black men, both ex-programmers in a senior management role, one military trained). I wonder why?
But you are right. Equality is equality. We'll get there in the end!
Tim Chevalier, of Rust - http://catamorphism.org
His "The Male Programmer Privilege Checklist" is a depressing, informative read.
http://geekfeminism.wikia.com/wiki/Male_Programmer_Privilege...
Might be because trans men in tech are men and thus "the norm"? Further, maybe most of them weren't in tech or high-profile before transition? Both Tang and Wilson were high-profile before transitioning.
(no evidence or anything, just providing possible working hypothesis).
That is, a transgender man would not be a man who became a woman, but a woman who is now a man?
Audrey & Sophie are women. A transgendered man was,usually, once, physically, a woman. A transgendered woman was, usually, once, physically, a man.
I say 'usually' because as society becomes more open about this stuff it is becoming increasingly clear that gender is a sliding scale, not a binary state. A surprisingly large percentage of the population people are born somewhere on the scale between male and female physically (and/or mentally).
Hopefully we'll just get over gender. It's essentially an unhelpful social construct that is too rigid for nature.
For a transgender person, one's gender is always what it is; it's just the body that might need adjustment. Also, it's hard to say when one's "arrived" anyway; there's not really a point when you just say "tada!" and you're all done. It's a very gradual process.
Some trans* people will still rrefer to themselves as trans* even "after" transition (inasmuch as you can pinpoint an 'after') because they internalise that as part of their identity; others don't.
> a transsexual man is a person who was assigned the female sex at birth [but] identifies as a man and is transitioning or has transitioned to a male gender role and has or will have a masculine body.
They're separate components of the person's identity: a transgender man is a man and transgender. From [it is common courtesy to refer to a person as their current preferred/identified gender] it follows that a transgender man is transitioning, has transitioned or will transition to masculinity.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=9MM...
1. Invite straight white male 2. Invite straight white female 3. Invite gay white male 4. Invite gay white female 5. Invite straight black male 6. Invite straight black female 7. Invite gay black male 7. Invite gay black female
etc. etc.
I think the best way to be diverse with genders, ethnicity, sexual orientation, is to ignore genders, ethnicity, sexual orientation, not to invite male, female, male, female. Simply invite the best speaker, taking into account their sex isn't diverse, even if you do take turns.