Reprint from The Detroit News

Candidate is milestone for transgender Americans

by Deb Price

Monday, July 24, 2006

Dr. Dana has a prescription for you.

The 54-year-old former eye surgeon believes the glut of lawyers in state legislatures leads to too many chest-thumping confrontations and too little teamwork on such critical things as expanding access to health care, creating incentives for driving environment-friendly cars, boosting the minimum wage and ensuring equality for all. Teachers, engineers, architects and, yes, doctors are what's needed to air out chambers filled with stale ideas, she says.

And so, when her local delegate in Chevy Chase, Md., announced he was running instead for state Senate, "Dr. Dana," as she introduces herself to voters, jumped into a crowded field.

The contest for one Maryland House seat normally wouldn't attract national attention. But this seat is special: It's being vacated by Richard Madaleno, the first openly gay non-incumbent elected to the Maryland House.

Heavily favored to win in November, Madaleno's poised to become the state's first openly gay state senator. And if Dana Beyer wins, she'll be the first transgender lawmaker in any state legislature.

"When I transitioned three years ago, I found myself, my voice and my cause. I have an opportunity to give back to the people who have laid the groundwork for me," the progressive Democrat explains of her leap into politics.

While transgender Americans are increasingly being welcomed in workplaces, faith communities and social circles, politics is still relatively new territory. New Zealand and Italy each have a transgender member of parliament. In our country, Michelle Bruce, who sits on the Riverdale, Ga., city council, and Jessica Orsini, on the Board of Aldermen in Centralia, Mo., are among the groundbreaking transgender politicians.

This November's elections will feature a slew of races important to the gay community. One of the most exciting is in Alabama: Democrat Patricia Todd, who won her state House primary on July 18 and has no Republican opponent, will become the first openly gay lawmaker at any level in her state.

But while openly gay officials -- now numbering 350 -- can fight for rights of transgender citizens, they can't speak with the trans perspective of someone like Dr. Dana.

For example, two of her priorities are pushing for an amendment to the Maryland Constitution to prohibit health care providers from denying treatment based on their personal or religious beliefs. Beyer recalls a notorious incident in Washington, D.C., when a transgender woman in a car accident died after a paramedic reportedly temporarily interrupted treatment.

And Dr. Dana wants to push for in-depth research into how certain drugs and environmental toxins are affecting humans, leading to such things as dramatic drops in sperm counts.

Competing in a progressive district already comfortable with a gay lawmaker, Beyer is testing new political waters: A credible candidate who happens to be both a doctor and transgender is a milestone on transgender Americans' road to full acceptance.

Despite feeling she was always female, Beyer didn't make the transition through hormones and surgery until after September 11. She decided life is too short for her body not to match her heart. As she puts it, "I flew out to San Francisco as a guy, and flew back as a woman, and I never looked back." Her mother's biggest shock, she says, is how much more she smiles.

Dana Beyer literally embodies what we need more of in politics: The courage to change.