{"article":{"id":18288,"heading":"LA TRANSGENDER SUES SCHOOL FOR DISCRIMINATION","author":"Carolina","created":"2002-08-10 21:51:08","modified":"2002-08-10 21:51:08","last_modified":"Sun, 11 Aug 2002 04:51:08","article":"

LOS ANGELES (AP) 8.08.02, 6:40a -- A beauty school has been sued for

discrimination for allegedly refusing to accept a male student who looks like

a woman.

The Marinello Schools of Beauty violated city law when it refused to allow

the plaintiff, identified in court papers only as \"Sandy,\" to register,

attorney Gloria Allred alleged.

\"Sandy's outward appearance is female and she self-identifies as a female,\"

Allred said in a statement.

A woman who answered the telephone at the school's executive office Wednesday

afternoon said there was no one available to comment and hung up.

The Superior Court suit seeks unspecified damages and an injunction requiring

the school to accept Sandy as a student.

\"We haven't heard of any similar cases anywhere in the nation,\" Allred said.

The suit claims that Sandy enrolled at the school on July 18, paid a $100

registration fee and was told to report to class in August. But two hours

later, according to the lawsuit, a school representative called the plaintiff

and registration was denied.

\"She said, `I think you're going to have problems with the restroom.' I said,

`I don't think so. ... For three years, I never go to the men's restroom,\"'

said Sandy, who spoke to The Associated Press on the condition only a first

name be used.

\"I cried because they hurt my feelings very much,\" Sandy said. \"I just wanted

to educate myself to be successful in the future.\"

The suit claims that the school violated the state's civil rights act and a

city ordinance that bars discrimination against a person \"projecting a

self-image not associated with one's biological maleness or one's biological

femaleness.\"

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FYI; more on \"Sandy\"'s discrimination suit, from KFWB's website (August 8,

2002). In case some of you don't know, a 1979 anti-discrimination ordinance

in the City of Los Angeles defines \"sexual orientation\" using language from

the 1975 Minnesota statue which was intended to prohibit discrimination

against transgendered people. The language quoted in the suit is from that

L.A. ordinance.--Jake- ZeroboyJH@aol.com<\/a>



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http:\/\/www.kfwb.com\/news_local.asp?displayOption=&contentGUID=<\/a>{E5E2406D-7337-42F0-B40E-5A1588CF2E9F}&groupName=KFWB%20News%20Local%20Headlines&siteGUID={3B62BF55-4A93-48E6-A45D-6A495DC423AD}

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Ed note: This story was also carried on three local TV news programs that I know of. Also, this story occures against the backdrop of a LAPD vice squad's stepped up arrests recently, not only against transgenders on street corners, but also raids on their own homes!

Los Angeles County is said to be placing an inititave on the November election ballot to increase penalties against prostitution.

Often the argument is made that Transgenders accused of \"hooking\" should \"get an honest job\". What happens when they try to get 'straight work\"? Like Sandy, they often face discrimination and humiliation. - -Carolina

<\/p>\n","contact":"pinedaart@hotmail.com","link":"","address":"","phone":"","parent_id":0,"mime_type":"text\/plain","summary":"A Los Angeles transgender woman has sued a local "beauty" school for violating anti-discrimination laws after it refused her admission because of her change of gender.","numcomment":0,"fileurl":"\/uploads\/","filesize":null,"article_url":"\/news\/2002\/08\/18288.php"},"attachments":[],"comments":[]}