TODAY'S SCHEDULE

SATURDAY, AUG. 23

Breakfast
9:30AM-10:45AM

Breakout Sessions
9:30AM-10:45AM

Breakout Sessions
11:00AM-12:15AM

Lunch Plenary
12:30PM-2:00PM

Breakout Sessions
2:15PM-3:30PM

Closing Session
3:45PM-5:15PM

Authors' Café
3:45PM-5:45PM

Not-So-Silent Auction
6:45PM-8:45PM

View the full schedule here

TODAY'S WEATHER

WHAT IS NLGJA?

Find out more about NLGJA at the official website.

MENTORS

A big thanks to our mentors:

Brett Zongker
The Associated Press

Caroline K. Hauser
The Washington Post

Mark S. Luckie
Entertainment Weekly

Larry M. Shaw
ABC

Dennis M. Powell
ABC

Doug Mitchell
NPR

Trans documentary shows daily struggle

by Laura Simmons

In 2007, Steven Stanton made the decision that would change his life. Steven became Susan.

In doing so, Stanton set off a series of events that would land her in newspapers across the country and make her a poster child for the transgender movement.

As a man, Stanton was a successful city manager in Largo, Fla., for 17 years. But after announcing to the city council that she intended to transition, she is still unemployed.

What happened to Stanton behind the headlines is perhaps best put in her own words. To do that, Stanton will be at the 2008 convention Friday for a partial screening of the CNN documentary with the new working title "Her Name Was Steven."

The documentary, which follows Stanton's transition and subsequent struggle, is scheduled to be finished in the fall. No date has yet been set for broadcast.

Although she's not doing any other interviews until after the documentary has aired, Stanton will answer questions from the audience after the screening. CNN decided to do the documentary because "it's something you wouldn't typically see," said director of CNN public relations, Jennifer Dargan,

"This documentary looks at a person who had — well there's obviously the event that happened in the news and that's a part of it — but this is also a personal journey of a person and what brought this individual to all of the other events that happened," she said.

As a man, Stanton was married, had a young son, Travis, and was making a six-figure salary. Stanton continues to share parenting responsibilities, but the dismissal has left her "pissed off."

In a 2007 interview with Larry King, Stanton said despite everything she stood to lose, she had to come out because "ultimately, you want to be authentic to yourself."

Ina Fried, vice president of print and new media for NLGJA and the chair of Transgender and Allies Task Force, said Stanton's story is unique, but other transgendered people can relate.

"I think what's common for all transgendered people is that the act of coming out at work is stepping into the abyss," she said. "It's pretty interesting in this day and age that we can have a debate over whether you can fire somebody because they're transgender."

And the debate isn't limited to Florida.

This week in Washington, Diane Schroer is in federal court alleging that the Library of Congress rescinded a job offer in 2005 after she revealed she'd be transitioning from male to female. The trial continues this week, and no decision is expected anytime soon.

In a larger sense, the stories of Schroer and Stanton underscore the reality of transgendered rights in the U.S.

Thomas Cashman Avila, deputy executive director of NLGJA, said the organization is working to focus more on transgender issues by featuring speakers such as Stanton.

"I think this is a part of a growing attention towards making sure that we're including trans-issues — that LGBT is not just a convenient acronym — that it's actually reflecting our own diversity," Avila said.

Transgender events at past conventions have included Trans 101 and 102 — workshops to help journalists write accurately about transgender issues, Fried said.

At last year's convention, Christine Daniels, a sportswriter for the Los Angeles Times, spoke about her transition. Daniels was able to keep her job after coming out.

"What happened to Christine Daniels is a good contrast to what happened to Susan Stanton," Avila said.

And increased visibility is essential to transgender people gaining acceptance in the workplace and elsewhere, Fried noted.

"I think we're still at the stage where it's still really important for people to hear and see transgender people," she said. "Most people know people who are gay or lesbian. We're not at a place where most people know somebody who's transgendered."

"Too often transgendered stories are told in ways that aren't thoughtful, aren't accurate, aren't fair. It's great to see NLGJA finding ways to include the issue."