<p><img alt=Peggy Burns at Transcending Boundaries src=/sites/default/files/pictures/Peggy%20at%20Transcending%20_0.png style=float:right; margin-left:5px; margin-right:5px />The Transcending Boundaries Conference (TBC) is a convention in the northeast United States for the bisexual community: genderqueer; transgender; intersex and polyamorous people; their family friends and straight allies.</p> <p>This year&rsquo;s Conference was held in Connecticut during the weekend of April 4-6. DignityUSA was a Conference sponsor and I attended and staffed an information table.</p> <p>The theme this year was &ldquo;Inclusion in Action.&rdquo; TBC strives to be inclusive of people representing all aspects of the gender sexuality and relationship spectrum.</p> <p>The weekend included workshops discussions and presentations from professionals community members and activists from across the country.</p> <p>Some two hundred people from every imaginable gender identity sexual orientation and relation- ship style had the opportunity to attend over fifty presentations panels and workshops to better under- stand the rich tapestry of diversity. Most presenters didn&rsquo;t just lecture but had interactive activities and plenty of time for Q&amp;A.&nbsp;</p> <p>Wintersong Tashlin was the guest speaker at lunch. He (preferred pronoun) wears many hats as an educator event producer blogger and shaman teaching workshops on such diverse topics as queer/LGBT issues BDSM pagan spirituality polyamory and disabilities.</p> <p>The conference organizers have posted educational materials on a variety of topics on their website: http://www.transcendingboundaries.org/ resources.html</p> <p>Below are some useful transgender terms:</p> <p><strong>Gender Identity</strong> &ndash; The gender that a person feels they are. The gender you are when you wake up in the morning and go to sleep at night.</p> <p><strong>Gender Presentation</strong> &ndash; The gender that a person shows to others and often to the world at large. It is the &rdquo;performance&rdquo; of gender that we all do whether consciously or unconsciously.</p> <p><strong>Transgender</strong> &ndash; A person who transitions from one gender to another.</p> <p><strong>Cisgender</strong> &ndash; A person who identifies as the gender they were identified as at birth.</p> <p><strong>HRT</strong> &ndash; Hormone Replacement Therapy. The artificial hormone regimen that many transgender people use to physically realign their bodies to their chosen gender.</p> <p><strong>SRS</strong> &ndash; Sex Reassignment Surgery. The operation performed to change the genitals of a transsexual person. Also often referred to as GRS Gender Reassignment Surgery or Gender/Sex Affirmation/Confirmation Surgery or other variants. It usually refers specifically to Vaginoplasty (the construction of an artificial vagina or Phalloplasty (the construction of an artificial penis).</p> <p><strong>Passing</strong> &ndash; Being perceived as one&rsquo;s chosen gender.</p> <p><strong>Gender Role</strong> &ndash; Societal expectations of gender.</p> <p><strong>Popular Gender Variant and Gender Neutral Pronouns</strong> &ndash; ze hir herm they them and their all may be used at various times to refer to a person without specifying gender. When in doubt about a person&rsquo;s preferred pronouns it is best to simply ask.</p> <p><strong>Mx</strong> &ndash; An honorific like Mr Mrs or Ms sometimes used by GenderQueer folks.</p> <p><strong>Zister</strong> &ndash; A similarly gender variant or gender neutral honorific. Also sometimes used to refer to a gender variant or gender neutral sibling.&nbsp;</p>