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Are You Aware? My Complicated Life as a Transgender Latter-Day Saint
This is part II in our LGBTQ+ Education Awareness Wednesday series. Read the other posts in the series here. Ever since I can remember, I have felt that I was somehow different. As I got older, I learned that the way I was different was not OK — even shameful. I hated this part of myself that made me different. I prayed and wished and hoped that someday I could be the same as everyone else. My name is Ann Pack and I am a transgender woman. It has taken decades for me to not only be OK with this part of myself but actually love and embrace this part of…
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Are You Aware? LGBTQ+ Education Introduction
This is part I in our LGBTQ+ Education Awareness Wednesday series. Read the other posts in the series here. My husband and my oldest son have brown eyes, I have gray eyes, and my younger son has grayish-green and gold hazel eyes — I don’t have any other way to describe them. My husband has dark brown (almost black), salt-and-pepper hair. My hair is naturally brown, though I choose to highlight it to cover some of the gray that started showing up when I was 16 years old. My youngest has red hair, and I don’t even know what color to call my oldest son’s hair. Sometimes I say red or…
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Awareness Wednesday :: Unintended Consequences — War on Drugs
America’s war on drugs has now lasted nearly 50 years without success. This “war” began in 1971 with President Nixon’s declaration of a war on drugs soon after the passage of the Controlled Substances Act in late 1970. The act put a full prohibition on certain drugs, including marijuana, LSD, and heroin. This act declared that these drugs had high potential of abuse and had no valid medical uses. The prohibition of these drugs made it difficult to procure them, even for pure scientific or medical research. This act was not based on any scientific or medical studies. Supporters claimed it would reduce drug-related crime, drug overdoses, and disease. They…
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Awareness Wednesday :: Unintended Consequences — Ban the Box
It is no secret that an individual with a criminal background will struggle to find employment. It goes without saying that the majority of employers do not want to hire ex-convicts. Learning that a future employee once attempted murder, committed a string of robberies, or even sold drugs is an unsettling feeling for any employer. The stigma of a conviction and time served is not an easy obstacle to overcome. In order to lower the barriers faced by those who have been convicted of a crime to being offered a job, fair-chance policies or “ban the box” laws have been introduced. Ban the box is legislation that restricts employers from…
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Awareness Wednesday :: Unintended Consequences — Mandatory Minimum Sentencing
The Old Testament is a fascinating read. The first five books, known as the Torah, lay out the Mosaic Law. There are various punishments prescribed for all types of offenses, the most severe being death. For instance, if there were a dispute between two men, and one of them was judged to be in the wrong, that man could be beaten. Or, if a woman intervened in an argument between her husband and another man in an unseemly way, her hand could be cut off (Deuteronomy 25). Did you know that according to the Law of Moses, a person could be put to death for the following offenses? • Hitting,…
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Awareness Wednesday :: Unintended Consequences — The Castle Doctrine
When I was a child I dreamed of having a castle. As I got older I realized a more realistic goal would be an English Tudor. Today I am happy to have a comfortable, small house of my own. Houses — our homes — are the symbol of our prosperity and comfort. The symbol of the good life. The Bible gives us an indication of the emotional connection we often have to our houses. The promise of a wonderful future is described in this way: “And they shall build houses, and inhabit [them]; and they shall plant vineyards, and eat the fruit of them. They shall not build, and another…
