6/5/13, 8:30 PM UPDATE: I’ve spoken with Senior Vice President of Communications at SiriusXM and they have made it clear that they don not support the comments of the Lex and Terry show and have taken steps, via an official statement (see below), to distance SiriusXM from the show.

Sirius satellite radio, founded by out transwoman Martine Rothblatt, bought XM satellite radio in 2008 and is now known as SiriusXM. The SiriusXM talk show, Lex and Terry came out in support of murdering trans people in a cases of gay/trans-panic. On Friday (06/03/2013), the Lex and Terry show began discussing this issue saying, There’s a teen that shot a tranny after finding out that it was a man after they had a little sexual encounter. A co-host responded, I don’t blame him. I would have shot his ass too.

This conversation happened days after an LA transwoman was brutally beaten and left for dead. The SiriusXM show was discussing another incident whereby another transwoman, Coco McDonald, was lured into an abandoned house and shot twice. The victim of the shooting Lex and Terry were mocking went on to say, I tell anyone, whether its platonic, intimate, I let everybody know because I’m not ashamed of who I am. I’m very confident about my sexuality… I’m transgender, if you really don’t want to have any dealings with me I understand, but I’m just letting you know so there’s no confusion.

The so-called gay and trans “panic” defense tactics ask a jury to find that a victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity is to blame for the defendant’s violent reaction. The perpetrator claims that the victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity not only explain – but excuse – their loss of self-control and subsequent assault of an LGBT individual. By fully or partially acquitting the perpetrators of crimes against LGBT victims, these defenses imply that LGBT lives are worth less than others.

The same day that Lex and Terry were supporting murdering trans people in cases of  trans/gay-panic, the National LGBT Bar Association announced that the American Bar Association’s Criminal Justice Section recently passed a resolution banning this as a defense. This tactic was used in the Matthew Shepard, Angie Zapata, Brandon Teena and Larry King cases. This practice will become officially banned in August should the American Bar Association’s House Of Delegates approve it at that time.

I encourage you in contacting SiriusXM and request that they issue a formal apology to the trans population. Their contact information is below:

On Twitter: @SXM_Help

On FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/siriusxm

IRL:  1-866-528-7474

Let them know that supporting the murder of trans people is unacceptable. Let them know that they need to make it right by making a stand against anti-trans murder.

Official SiriusXM statement:

We apologize for this programming and don’t in any way condone it. The Extreme Talk channel and the Lex and Terry show are programming providing to us by Clear Channel. The channel and all the shows on it are under the control of Clear Channel. We are required to carry the channel based on pre-existing agreement with Clear Channel. We have made Clear Channel aware of this issue and the complaints from listeners.

Patrick Reilly
Senior Vice President, Communications

The Lex and Terry show’s wiki states that the show is produced at  KEGL studios (a Clear Channel station) and is distributed through Clear Channel’s IHeartRadio network. Obviously SiriusXM has taken a stand against the support of trans murder, but I think that Clear Channel – the company that produces the show – should hear from you too.

Clear Channel contact:

On Twitter: @clearchannel

On FaceBook: http://www.facebook.com/clearchannel

Email:  wendygoldberg@clearchannel.com

The fact that the trans community has to take steps to ensure that media companies understand that promoting trans murder is wrong is absurd!

Clear Channel boasts that it has a, ZERO TOLERANCE (their caps, not mine) policy that prohibits discrimination extends beyond our employees, into each and every market in which we conduct business. We operate openly within a corporate culture that allows each and every Clear Channel employee the opportunity to excel.

I wonder if their “ZERO TOLERANCE” policy covers the promotion of murdering trans people. Since their show took a public stand in support of trans murder, please contact Clear Channel and ask them to take a stand public against murdering trans people.