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CALL TO ACTIONhe Red Pill is looking for volunteers: graphic designers,

writers, poets, cartoonists, artists, and photographers are

needed. Get your work published now. Help distributehe Red Pill in your community, church, and school:

ontact us at gjredpill@hotmail.com. You can also do

your part to keep us in print by donating time, paper,

film, copies, and of course money (it doesnt print itself).

he Red Pill is collectively produced by Grand Junction

Alternative Media, with the aim of publishing stories and

deas that the mainstream media wont cover. It is distributed

ree, collects no advertising, and is completely staffed by

volunteers. All materials are copyleft, no rights are reserved.HOTOCOPY AND DISTRIBUTE AT WILL!

www.gjredpill.org

tate of isunion

www.gjredpill.org

* Sources for the State of Disunion can be found atwww.gjredpill.org

NUMBER OFSEXES

the Human GenomeProject has documentedgenetically in humans:

ERCENT OFEPORTED HATE

CRIMESwhich take place against

BGLT people:15.5

NUMBER OFRRESTS

made during the first dayof DNC in Denver this

past summer:106

NUMBER OFCOLORADO

MOUNTAIN NEWSMEDIA NEWSPAPERShat have been shut

down or scaled back:

MONTHLY WAGEpaid to H2a Sheep

herders in Colorado:650

ERCENT OF STATESwithout laws addressing

ate crimes based ongender:

76

NUMBER OFREPORTED HATE

CRIMESagainst BGLT peoplenationally in 2006:

1,472

PERCENT OF DNCRREST CASES

that have gone to trialthat have ended in

acquittal:90

NUMBER OF TIMESObama has orderedbombing strikes on

Pakistan:

NUMBER OFMONTHS

The Red Pill has beenovering the sheep

herder story:12

I ts a girl! Medical professionals tookone look at my genitalia, and the ideaof whom I was supposed to be was

born. Amidst my struggle for genderedauthenticity, gender consciousness becamea part of my life. From a very early age I

became acutely aware of gender disparityand inequity, ofthe importanceof gender toour society, and

the power ofidentity policing.I identify as

a transman. Forme, identifyingas a transmanmeans that Ihave accessedavailable medicalservices to helpothers see me asthe man that I am.Others in similarcircumstancesmay identifyas transsexual,

female-to-male, or simplymale. For me,identifying as atransman means that I have had differentexperiences as a man than those who were

born with a male body. It acknowledgesthat I am a man with unique sensibilitiesregarding genderthat I know what itmeans to be both a man and a woman

because of my experiences embodying both.For me, identifying as a transman

acknowledges my female past and thesensibilities I acquired because I was bornfemale. As a transman I can feel safe walking

the streets alone at night, and I understand

why a woman also walking the streets alonemay fear me. As a transman I know thatclaiming armrests on an airplane or takingup two seats on the bus is a subconsciousdeclaration of entitlement that robs womenof greater personal space. As a transmanI know what cramps feel like and I know

what morningwood feels like.As a transmanI went through

menopause anda second puberty at the sametime. And as atransman I knowhow to talk aboutmy feelings, butits become moredifficult for meto access them.

As a transmanI was onceunequivocallyaccepted as afeminist but nowhave to prove

my feministcredentials. Being

born biologicallyfemale dictated

how others treated me and how I was supposedto look/act/move, and foreclosed man asan identity for me. This made me highlyreceptive to the feminist claim that biologyis not destiny. The contradictions betweenhow I was treated and how I identified myselfmade the difference between (biological)sex and (social) gender painfully obviousto me. Transpeople (transmen, transwomen,transsexuals, transgenders, transvestites,genderqueers) seem to embody the best of

ITS A GIRL....

b e t h e m e d i a !TRANSMAN ON PAGE TWO

and prejudice, but lack community and/or institutional support because they are

perpetually treated as one of them byfeminists, employers, assaulters, the state,

by gays and lesbians, family, womenand men. Employment discriminationand social ostracism force many into sexwork. They are subjected to sexist andhomophobic acts of violence. And on adaily basis transwomen (and to a lesser

extent transmen) are battered by rude stares,loud whispers of What IS that? or Isthat a boy or a girl?, and invasive pryinginto their private lives and private parts.

In our post-9/11 society gender policing has increased in the name ofnational security. Gender terrorists findthemselves subjected not only to heightened

policing activities by their fellow citizenson a day-to-day basis, but also state-sanctioned actors constantly questioning thelegitimacy of their identities. Transpeopleare met with suspicion and treated asdeceivers, being subjected to the if yourenot with us, youre against us mentality.

Clinically I am considered a transsexual,

which means that I have utilized medicalservices to help me better embody maleness.However, to access these services I first hadto be diagnosed as having a disorder. TheAmerican Psychological Association claimsthat transsexuals are born with genderidentity disorder, which is treatable byundergoing hormonal and/or surgicaltherapies. Yet unlike with other disorders,insurance companies deem such treatmentselective. In other words, actualizing myidentity entailed being told that I was sickwith a disorder and sick for wanting to doanything about it. Even within the realmof science and medicine transpeople

are treated as threats to the social orderrather than examples of natural variation.Transpeople have the radical desire to

be who they are, and for others to see themas they see themselves. The declaration Itsa girl! were the firs t words that I ever heard.Such a seemingly innocuous statement, yet itrobbed me of my authenticity for nearly threedecades. But now Ive taken my identity intomy own hands, declaring I am a transman.

TRANSMAN FROM PAGE TWO

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Pill goes to print, after over 100 years in print.

But there is hope. The community ofCarbondale has come together and are creatinga non-profit community weekly to replace thenow defunct Valley Journal. And The RedPill will continue to print, because thats whatwe do, and we have never made any money.With community-generated news and local

bloggers with columns, can you imagine whata local paper could look like if every and any

citizen could contribute content? After themass media oligarchies come crashing down,there will be an opportunity to create anopen, encompassing media system where weare all consumers and producers of mediathe prosumer age will soon be upon us.

N ewspapers are dying all over the place.Colorado Mountain News Media, aSwift Newspapers subsidiary, and the

owners of the FreePress, has scaled back andoutright shut down many of its papers acrosshe mountains of Colorado. Gone is La Tribunathe Western Slopes only Spanish languageaper), The Valley Journal (Carbondale), andhe Leadville Chronicle. The Aspen Timesas gone from seven to six-days a week

and the GJ FreePress has scaled back fromfive to only three-days a week. The DailySentinel has been for sale for months with nouyers, after Cox News decided to shed someseless flab and sell off the Sentinel this pastummer. The Rocky Mountain News will beublishing its last issue the day after this Red

MASS MEDIA COLLAPSE: AN OPPORTUNITY

Iwill always remember the first time I metsome BashBack! kids at the DNC this past summer. They definitely helped me

find part of myself I didnt know existed untilwe enbraced under that August sun, in front ofthose homophobic hate mongers that stormedFood Not Bombs, or those heartless bastards thatfollow Fred Phelps. I will always remember thefirst time I made out with a BashBack! kid whilethe world around us called us scum and sinners.

Not familiar with Bash Back? Well

Bash Back! is a group of radical queers,transfolk and feminists dedicated to buildingstrong communities and militant oppositionto heterosexism and transphobia and all formsof oppression including: white supremacy,

patriarchy, fascism, ageism, classism, capitalism,fatphobia, ableism, poverty, and borders.

Bash Back! membershold the following tenents:1. Fight for liberation. Nothing more, nothingless. State recognition in the form of oppressiveinstitutions such as marriage and militarism arenot steps toward liberation but rather towardsheteronormative assimilation.2. A rejection of Capitalism, Imperialism, and

all forms of State power.3. Actively oppose oppression both in and out ofthe movement. All oppressive behavior is notto be tolerated.4. Respect a diversity of tactics in the struggle forliberation. Do not solely condemn an action onthe grounds that the State deems it to be illegal.

BashBack!s last communique #666calls for fellow queers to infiltrate the militaryto obtain weapons/training, while other BB!crews have been gathering pepper spray andother self defence tools (to hopefully givethe cops a taste of their own medicine). Notthat they need them. BashBack! kids are someof the toughest (and sexiest ;]) anarchists Iknow. I cant personally wait to see BB! tearthe army a new asshole (pardon my french) anddestroy it from the inside out like right-wing-

christian-fanatics/ politicains/ and militaryofficals claim will happen if Obama repealsthe DontAskDontTell policy like he has said.

Bash Back! is also hosting a national radicalqueer convergence to take place in Chicago thissummer, from May 28th through May 31st of2009. Were pleased to invite all radical queersto join us for a weekend of debauchery andmischief. The last weekend of May will proveto be four solid days of workshops, discussions,

performances, games, dancing and street action!

For more info/news on BB! go to:www.bashbacknews.wordpress.com.

For more info on the Radical QueerConvergence email radicalqueer2009@gmail.com.

You can contact the denver chapter at www.myspace.com/bashbackdenver, or email

bashbackdenver@gmail.com

BASH BACK! RADICAL QUEERS UNITE!

Denver riot cops protect homophobic christian fanatics after a BB! memberassaulted one of their group by Food Not Bombs this summer during the DNC.

GRAND JUNCTION MAN AQUITTED OF ALLCHARGES STEMMING FROM DNC ARREST

or had their charges dropped. Only five ofthe almost forty defendants that have takentheir cases to trial have been convicted.

The only violence I saw that day

was the police attacking us, said Lafferty.The jury agreed that I wasnt doinganything illegal. The police deployed

pepper spray, pepper balls, tear gas, andbatons indiscriminately against protesters.

Denver Police were also caughtusing undercover officers as agent

provocateurs, lying on the stand, andfabricating charges for the 106 arrestees.DPD has also drawn criticism from theACLU and the National Lawyers Guildfor widespread civil-rights violations.

G and Junction man, Ian Lafferty, 21,as acquitted last month of chargesstemming from a protest during the

Democratic National Convention, held last

August in Denver. Lafferty was originallycharged with Interference with an Officer,Obstructing a Passage, Refused Orderof Officer. Two charges were droppedand Lafferty was acquitted on the third.

I feel vindicated, said Lafferty. Itwas a huge expense to take it to trial, butwas worth it to set the record straight.

Lafferty was arrested as a part of a massarrest in downtown Denver on August 25th,the first day of the convention. Over 100

people were a part of the mass arrest. Manyother defendants have also been acquitted

NEW YORK TIMESBREAKS STORY ALREADYBROKEN BY THE RED PILL

T e New York Times, this past Sunday,February 22nd, published a storyntitled In Loneliness, Immigrants

Tend the Flock by reporter Dan Frosch.

The full-page feature-length storyfocused on the working and livingconditions that H2a visa immigrants haveto endure in the sheep-ranchi ng areas ofnorthern Colorado and southern Wyoming.

The Red Pill has been covering thisstory for the past year. We have publishedtwo stories in The Red Pill, and have

produced three mini-documentaries on theplight of the sheepherders, two of which areavailable on youtubeour screen name is

gjredpill. The third video is available atour bookstore, Confluence Books, 600 WhiteAve. Suite 302, downtown Grand Junction.

Thanks to all of you that havesupported The Red Pill over theyears. Without your support, thisstory would never have been broken.

feminist theory, and I proudly identify as afeminist. But for decades feminists deemedmen like me t raitors. Historically feministsaccused transsexuals of being betrayers toour sex, especially when they felt they were

losing strong independent women to the luresof patriarchal privilege. However, I feel thatwe have not betrayed our sex, but that oursex betrayed us. I remain as committed as

TRANSMAN ON PAGE TWO ever to womens causes I am a transmannot because I wished to reap the benefits of

being a male in this society (in fact I resistthem as much as possible) but because I feltwholly disconnected from my female body.I revere women; Im just not one myself.

As a feminist and transman, I amdeeply concerned about my trans sisters.Transwomen face extreme discrimination

TRANSMAN ON LAST PAGE

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IN LOVING MEMORY TRANSGENDER 101BY SHARI DALY-MILLER

owdy YallI aof the WesternDirectors. Weste

organ zation dedicatedcommunity for everisexual, gay, lesbr

ansgender people.e use the letters BGL

shorthand to describeery diverse communi

Most people nowadanow the meaning of gaisexual and lesbian, annderstand that sexua

orientation refers to whoa person is attracted to

hether same-gendeor all genders. Howe

ost people, includingand lesbians remain babout the idea of tranThere is a good reason ferm transgender has

coined and is still in the

eing defined. I will g iveof various trans terms hecaveat that the consensusof these terms is still incimportant to note that G

rom ORIENTATION. Gender refers to whattransgender

e straight,r bisexual inrientation.ur culture haseen taught thate are only two

for gender,ale. Actuallymapping ofgenome has

s that theret six differentour genes that

ender, makingchoices look

istic. The wordDER meansender, and istion of anyonethe traditional

es for male orANSGENDER

scribe anyonen-conforming,transsexuals.

Activist Calendar

VERY SATURDAY 4:00PM

olidarity Not Charity meets at Whitman Park to serve

free food for free people.

For more info: 257-9520

VERY SATURDAY 12:00PM

The Red Pill meets at Confluence Books.

ET INVOLVED!

For more info: 245-4442

00 White Ave. #302 Grand Junction, CO

Saturday, March 21st 11AM-5PM

Peace Rally and Concert. Bands, Booths, Speakers,

Free Food and much more. Fun for the whole family.

Lincoln Park, Grand Junction, CO

Wednesday, March 4th 5PM

Drinking Liberally gets together to drink and talk

politics the first Wednesday of the month.

Kannah Creek Brewery, Grand Junction

onday, March 2nd 6PM

olidarity Not Charity has its monthly meeting the first

Monday of every month to discuss the numerousprojects going on throughout the community.

onfluence Books 600 White Ave Suite 302

Saturday, March 28 1-2:30PMAlternative Parenting Series #3: Homebirth: Come Listen to two local homebirth midwives

about your birthing alternatives. Future Parenting Events: Home Schooling, Breast Feeding,Baby Wearing, Natural Parenting/ Attachment Parenting, and more!

600 White Ave., Suite 302, Grand Junction, CO

GENDER TRUEBY ABBY S. DAVIS

Iam who I say I am really its true.Inside is where I am boy or girl, not

hat appears to you. Since this is trueay I please have dignity too? If I say my

ame is Sue would you please say her and shehat would be so accepting of you. If I say myame is Bob could you say he and him even ifam only five foot two? Society says that itsnly a life style, this is so untrue it is simplyeality same as what you feel inside of you.

This I know is true; to deny is to suffer,o accept is to be healthier. So when I acceptyself, and dress and act a certain way, it is

ot to shock you, it is to be healthy in my trueender just like you. Like all, I search for Truthnd meaning, so I ask will you welcome men my journey? As I in turn welcome you.

support

local mediared pills, cd zines,

patches, underground

comics, books used and

new, fair trade coffee

and teas, t-shirts,

magazines, dvds, and

more.

confluence

books600 white ave. suite 302

grand junction

DARCY DANIEL BLISSDECEMBER 16, 1971DECEMBER 27, 2008

D rcy is remembered best by herany friends and family, for her pecial gift to make one laugh and

smile and make friends with animals.She loved life and she loved people.

Darcy Bliss loved the outdoors especiallyh

e feel of the grass and mud beneath her feet.She lived life by her own set of rules, that made

er the very special person that was so dearlyloved. If Darcy had her own way, all the signshat read shoes required, would read No

Shoes Allowed. She will be greatly missedy all whos lives she had touched. God bless

Darcy Daniel Bliss, may she rest in peace.Darcy is survived by her mother

Tanis and sister Angelina. Darcyill always be loved by Allen.

Editors NoteDarcy is, to our bestount, the 23rd local homeless person

who has passed away on the streets inhe past year.

Saturday, March 28th 6PM

Documentary screening to support the RNC 8

Grand Junction Alternative Media will be screeningTerrorizing Dissent a film about t he repression faced by

protesters at the RNC this past year.

Confluence Books 600 White Ave Suite 302

April 20th-26th All WEEK

V Turnoff Week.Tune out, Turn off, and Join the world.

riday, March 20th 5PM

ritical Mass. Bring your bike or skate for a

community ride. We are traffic.

Lincoln Park, Grand Junction

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2008 was a good year for activism, protestand growth for the radical community here

in Grand Junction.From the Palin

blockade, to the DNCin Denver, to GrandJunction AlternativeMedia (publisher ofThe Red Pill) openingConfluence Books,

to the formationof Solidarity NotCharity, 2008 has

basically kickedass. The followingis a rundown of allthe cool ass shit that happened in 08. IfI forgot anyones kick-ass action, protest,or community building, I apologize.

In February, the arrival of the LongestWalk II, whichmarched from thePacific Ocean toWashington D.C. todraw attention to thecontinued hardshipsfaced by this nationsindigenous peoples,was the first event thatreally roused us fromour post-holiday-lazy-depressed-funk. Local groupsincluding CatholicOutreach the Unitarian Universalists andother local activists coordinated speakinggigs and places for the marchers to sleep in

both Fruita and GrandJunction. Thesestrong women andmen of many different

tribes marchedthousands of milesfor redress of theirgrievances, and lit afire under our assesfor the whole year.

March saw thefifth annual peacerally commemoratingand protesting theinvasion and occupation of Iraq. The march

brought the protest to the door of our localweapons manufacturer, Capco Inc. 1341Winters Ave. The un-permit ted march tookthe streets and made their presence knownat Capco with a community picket blockingthe street in front of the war profiteers... justto let them know we know where theyre at.

In April, GJ was blighted by the visit

of war crimi nal Dick Cheney. Hundredsof Junctionites showed up and occupied all

sides of the intersectionCheney would have to

pass through to get to theBob Schaffer fundraiser.With lots of funny propsand signs, the crowdwas able to UnwelcomeDick Cheney, in

what he considered aconservative stronghold.Two people werearrested after Cheney

passed the crowd whenthey tried to enter the

neighborhood to go talk to Cheney. Thismarked the first political arrests in GJsince 2004. It wouldnt be the last.

In May, Grand Junction activistMallory Rice disruptedthe Colorado StateRepublican Convention

by getting on stagewith a banner that readEnd The War Now.After the disruption,

police escorted her tothe free speech zonenearly a mile from theevent. Throughoutthe summer, we harassedBob Schaffer a lot.Richard Crespin and

Jaynie Curington tried to hand him a checkfor a million dollars in war profits to Big OilBob from Dick Cheney. Local activists also

crashed the RepublicanHeadquarters GrandOpening in downtown GJ.

Wal-Mart was

harangued this summer,with a disruptive DanceParty organized by theFun Liberation Front,reminding you to putthe fun back in your life.

In August, atleast 12 Grand Junctionresidents traveled to theDemocratic National

Convention in Denver to make sure theDemocrats know that well hold themto account as well. The Grand Junctioncontingent was in every march, loud and

proud. They marched with the Immigr ationRights Coalition, Iraq Veterans Againstthe War (for five fucking miles in an un-

permitted march), the Black Bloc, the GreenAnarchist Green Washing Tour, SAFER,

and with prisoner rights groups. The GJcrew was also able to organize a spontaneousaction against Fred Phelps and his group (theevangelical wackos that protest fallen soldiers

because they believe its gods punishment forour acceptance of GLBT people). GJ folksgot a bunch of people to march from CivicCenter Park to where homophobes wereand then proceededto have a queer in

(thanks Bash Back) allaround them. Two GJresidents were arrestedon trumpeted chargesduring the DNC. One

plead guilty and theother took his case totrial and won. We had

bonded as a group,and when we got backto GJ in late August,activism took off again.It always is amazing how mass-mobilizationcan create an energy you can take back toyour own community to build alternativesand oppose injustices.

In September,Solidarity Not Charityformed, with its initial

project of feeding theHomeless. Since then,SNC has fed dozensof people in WhitmanPark and providedfood for strugglingfamilies for free. Freefood for Free people.

September alsosaw dozens of protestersat the Obama rally, calling him out on hiscentrist business-oriented pro-war beliefs.

October saw the now infamous PalinUnwelcoming. If you havent seen ityet, check it our on You Tube. A total offive adults and two minors were chargedwith Obstruction of a Highway or OtherPassageway and Obstruction of GovernmentOperations for attempting to block themotorcade. The Adults were given 24hours of Community Service and a $100

fine. But the video went out all overthe world. It was on CNN for days, Al-Jeezera English, the BBC, and Telemundo.

A few days later, a walkout wasorganized at Palisade High Schoolagainst the unjust tardy policy and badgesystem. One hundred kids walkedout and over 30 kids were suspended.

Less thana week later, Grand

Junctionites traveledto Durango to helpAnimas SDS makeMcCain Unwelcome inDurango. Then again,

protesters confrontedMcCain on ElectionDay in Grand Junction.

On Halloween,Durango Zombies (anda few GJ Zombies)reclaimed the streets

with thousands of other Zombies whomarched despite police orders to disperseand, in the end, five arrests were made.

Duringthe first week of

November, GrandJunction AlternativeMedia openedConfluence Books:Radical Bookstoreand CommunityCenter in White HallVillage, 600 WhiteAve Suite 302, GrandJunction, CO 81501.The space offers zines,radical books, used

books, magazines, obscure newspapers,underground comix, fair-trade coffee, and

meeting space for groups, from AlternativeParenting workshops, to Know Your RightsTrainings, to Queer 101 for Straight Folks.

The radical community in GrandJunction is organized, growing, active, andcant be ignored. The year 2008 exemplifies

just that. We will become an even morepowerful force for change in this communityin the future. See you in the Streets.

GRAND JUNCTION IS RISING...