January 25, 2010 | A statement from Pride President Meghan Stabler:

On Monday, January 18, the brutal murder of Myra Ical occurred in Houston. Myra is a transgendered woman, but the media continues to use male pronouns along with colorful statements about being found in an area known for drugs and prostitution. This lazy and irresponsible journalism shows the amount of ignorance about transgender issues that is rampant among far too many reporters despite the existence of resources to assist them to report more accurately (www.glaad.org/referenceguide).

With so many local resources and organization available to local media,  I continue to be surprised that mainstream news sources are getting it so wrong. The prevalence of violent attacks against transgender people is horrible enough, and yet the situation is compounded when the press does not respect the transgender community enough to write in ways that are accurate and recognizes transgender humanity.

The media's inability to follow nationally recognized LGBT reporting guidelines bolsters fear,  further dehumanizes the transgender community, perpetuates a lack of understanding, and supports a culture of transphobic violence. It must stop.

The murder of Ms. Ical must be solved and and the violence against transgender people eliminated.

I call upon the media to report with fairness, integrity and respect.








Meghan Stabler
President - Pride Houston