{"id":14187,"date":"2014-04-29T19:35:28","date_gmt":"2014-04-30T02:35:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/?p=14187"},"modified":"2015-03-29T04:15:05","modified_gmt":"2015-03-29T11:15:05","slug":"ian-finkenbinder-condones-violence-against-dgr-women","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/ian-finkenbinder-condones-violence-against-dgr-women\/","title":{"rendered":"Ian Finkenbinder Condones Violence Against DGR Women"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ian Finkenbinder (aka: Ian Awesome\/Fisher?) is a self described HIV positive ‘angry queer’ who maintains a blog and lives in the Seattle area near his family on Mercer Island. His published sentiments about the Portland State (PSU) incident last year where Deep Green Resistance (DGR) women, a radical environmentalist group who rejects the notion that transgender men are ‘women’, were assaulted and had their literature defaced and stolen while on the campus.<\/p>\n

\"ianfinkhome\"<\/a>

Mercer Island<\/p><\/div>\n

Finkenbinder has an alibi to allegations he was involved in that assault. He was with \u00a05 friends, he says, dining on his deck in Seattle at the time. Having engaged in some terse online exchanges and taken the measure of the man, Ian’s credibility is highly suspect. The violence the women experienced closely parallels his often repeated philosophy. Mr. Finkenbinder’s account of the incident reeks of gloating and familiarity.<\/p>\n

The following excerpt taken from his blog he maintains (oneangryqueer.blogspot.com) is posted to preserve it for possible litigation and illustrative of the mindset so common among violently inclined (A)narchists, particularly those with gender identity issues:<\/strong><\/p>\n

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\u00a0Deep Green Resistance: Transphobic Liars, Grasping at Straws<\/em><\/span><\/h3>\n
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Well, this has been an interesting week.<\/em>This year’s Law and Disorder conference, a radical political gathering in Portland, was particularly spectacular. While the program certainly had its merits and the organizers can likely call the event a success, the schedule was overshadowed by the controversial attendance of one organization and the community response to their presence.<\/em>Deep Green Resistance, a “radical” environmentalist group led by such figures as Derrick Jensen and Lierre Keith, were tabling at the event. Their environmentalist politics weren’t the problem, though. Deep Green Resistance advocates a hardline “radical feminist” stance on transgender issues, essentially denying that “transgender” exists, instead equating all trans women as “men” who are posing as women in order to infiltrate female spaces, deny their socialized privilege, and rape “real” women. Or something. It’s pretty disgusting (click over to Decolonizing Yoga’s breakdown of their transphobic stances here<\/a>).\u00a0<\/em>Anyway, they had literature to that affect at the conference, and some queer anarchists decided to confront them on the issue that weekend. The queers involved in the confrontation issued a statement that says:<\/em><\/p>\n

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On the first day of the Law and Disorder Conference in Portland, two anarchist genderqueers* approached the Deep Green Resistance Table to inform the two women of Lierre Keith\u2019s rampant transphobia. The people who confronted DGR were met with transphobic claim after transphobic claim, upholding the gender analysis held by their leaders. An argument ensued in which members of DGR denied the validity of trans identities. Offended by this, one of the genderqueers took a paint pen out and defaced the official Deep Green Resistance book written by Aric McBay, Lierre Keith and Derrick Jensen. While said person was marking the book, a member of DGR grabbed the book back and was smudged by the pen. The person with the pen, knowing that DGR members are known for snitching (see Derrick Jensen & FBI and Lierre Keith & the pieing incident) and grabbed a stack of Lierre Keith zines and was not seen again.<\/p>\n

Later that day, three anarchist genderqueers were sitting in the lobby of the Smith Memorial Hall of PSU laughing about how those transphobes got their book fucked up. While the queers were loling, a member of DGR** approached and started arguing with them. The DGR member even asserted that DGR believes that transpeople do not experience violence based on their trans identity. When he was challenged and given the tragically long list of transwomen murdered at the hands of transphobes, he had no retort. While he was walking away a burrito and some trash sailed through the air and landed on his head. Someone started a chant \u201cDGR ARE TRANSPHOBES\u201d and a dozen or so joined in. Laughter ensued!<\/p>\n

The next day, near the end of the conference, a group of about 15 to 20 people approached the same two women from the first day and started a discussion about transphobia espoused by the group and it\u2019s leaders. Some people yelled, others wrote down lists of zines and books to read so the members of DGR could educate themselves about the validity of transpeople and the daily oppression of transpeople. The DGR members decided to pack up their table at that point and go home. The DGR women proceeded to call Comczar Jensen and High Counselor Keith about their hurt feelings.<\/p>\n

Deep Green Resistance and all of their fucked transphobic ideas will be confronted by anarchist queers at every turn. Get used to it.
\n*We do not believe that only trans people can confront transphobia. If the fact that the people who confronted them were genderqueer brings more legitimacy to the confrontation, then so be. DGR should be confronted by people of many identities in many ways for a multitude of reasons.<\/p>\n

**This cult member was not one of the two women who were originally confronted at the DGR table.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

The incident has sparked a Facebook shitstorm, with radfems spouting their transphobic idiocy, anarchists responding with humor and outrage, and even Twitter harassment from Cathy Brennan, DGR supporter and transphobic bigot extraodinaire:<\/em><\/p>\n

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So yes, I was involved in the online discussion of what occurred. However, Deep Green Resistance then published an interesting statement that, frankly, included something that made me howl with laughter.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Since the events of May 11 and 12, threats against DGR have escalated to include threats of arson, beheading, bricks to the head, and rape.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The videos here were taken on Sunday.\u00a0Below in italics are the direct words of the woman who took the video. She is the woman who Ian Awesome, aka Ian Finkenbinder,\u00a0assaulted on Saturday. Ian has\u00a0supported violence publicly<\/a>\u00a0in the past.<\/p>\n

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This publication will assist those seeking to hold the assailants of the DGR women accountable.<\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>\n

You can find the entire statement here.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Imagine my surprise…\u00a0because I wasn’t even there.\u00a0I didn’t even know about the conference until the controversy erupted. At the time of my alleged assault, so effortlessly placed right next to allegations of\u00a0\u00a0rape threats (I’m\u00a0absolutely positive they’re not trying to accuse me of being a would-be rapist, right?), I was having dinner with five other people. On my deck. In Seattle. A three-hour drive away.<\/em><\/p>\n

Well, my burrito-throwing arm must be a lot stronger than I thought…<\/em><\/p>\n

I can’t imagine what these people are thinking. I took place in the online debate, to include telling these disgusting human beings how horrible their politics are. However, I was nowhere near the conference, and am a distinctive-looking enough person that it would be hard for people to mistake someone else for me. I can only conjecture that they started looking for queer anarchists who appear in the media, grabbed a picture from an interview I did over a year ago, and decided to\u00a0lie about who I am and what I do.<\/em>
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\nTo be frank, this is an attempt to intimidate and harass voices who speak out against them online. That’s cool. It doesn’t work on me, and I don’t know anyone who these lies would sway.<\/em><\/p>\n

So I’m not going to get into a debate of what violence is or isn’t, or what I have supported in the past (no, I have never ever stated support for violence, if you click on the link they provide I say nothing of the sort), but I would like to discuss violence and radical response to it, and how transphobia rightfully enrages those it affects.<\/em><\/p>\n

Because let’s be real, transphobic politics actually feed a larger culture of violence and destruction against trans* people. When we deny someone’s identity and essentialize them to the sum of their body parts (IE, the “every person with a penis is a man”), we are actually reducing them to something less than normal, less than human. Tell me, are you more likely to assault a human? Or an inhuman object of ridicule?<\/em><\/p>\n

In essence, the stance DGR takes against trans* folk actually and actively increases and empowers a culture that enforces gender assignment, victimizes them on the basis of their identity, and results in\u00a0real-world physical, state, and institutionalized violence.Their politics aren’t a difference of opinion– they are a literal assault on trans* people. Frankly? A marker to the hand and a burrito to the head are not an immature response to a\u00a0difference of opinion.\u00a0It’s a legitimate expression of rage, it’s resistance\u00a0to the violence these politics engender,\u00a0it’s a\u00a0BASH BACK, and a humorous one to boot.<\/em><\/p>\n

Dear DGR: Not only are you losing focus– who the fuck even talks about your environmental work anymore? Do you even do any?– but you’re\u00a0lying.\u00a0I wasn’t there. I didn’t throw a burrito. I didn’t deface anything, much less anyone’s hand. The weakness of your position is frankly leaving you grasping at straws, attacking anyone you can for whatever you can make stick. What next, are you going to call the cops on me, as your bullshit group of people is so fond of doing?<\/em><\/p>\n

While I’m owed a\u00a0serious apology\u00a0(sticking my picture next to allegations of rape threats is fucking disgusting, you creeps), I’m not bothered about the mischaracterization of myself as offering resistance to this bullshit.<\/em><\/p>\n

Do I support that resistance, though? Do I support a lone, airborne burrito? Do I support bashing back?<\/em><\/p>\n

Fuck, yeah.<\/em>
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\nUPDATE:\u00a0<\/b><\/em><\/p>\n

Left comments on both the website that initially published this statement and on Cathy Brennan’s website, which reblogs the statement with my picture, and thus far I have been ignored in requests for retraction. The original post, in fact, did not allow my comment with this piece to go through moderation. \u00a0-Ian Finkenbinder-<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Editor’s NOTE: [The editorial staff at this publication condemns all violence, bullying, and intimidation instigated or carried out in our colleges, universities, parks, and public spaces whether it is directed at women, transgender folks, men, photojournalists, the police, minorities, without regard to their race, religion, creed, political beliefs, or immigration status. The right to be safe and to exercise not only our inalienable, but civil rights, is absolute. It does not depend on the political posturing of any individual or group no matter what the pretext. Nor will those who work for Soul Snatcher ™ Productions turn a blind eye to felony assaults committed in their presence, or refuse to aid, assist, or cooperate with the aggrieved parties. It is said, a litigant is entitled to every man’s evidence. This well established legal principle is respected here and those involved with this company will not turn their back on it or the truth or the opportunity to demonstrate\/reveal that truth in a court of law. Perpetrators are advised to take notice or ignore this warning at their peril.]<\/strong><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

And from the Seattle PI (by Levi Pulkkinen):<\/em><\/p>\n

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Protesters march on the streets of Seattle on May Day. Photo: SOFIA JARAMILLO<\/p><\/div>\n

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\"Protesters<\/p>\n

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\"Officers<\/p>\n

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\"Black-clad<\/p>\n

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\"Dried<\/p>\n

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\"Seattle<\/p>\n

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\"Seattle<\/p>\n

A 30-year-old emergency room technician accused of punching a Seattle police\u00a0officer.<\/p>\n

A Seattle artist, previously convicted of drunkenly destroying construction equipment, now said to have spit in the face of another Seattle\u00a0cop.<\/p>\n

A photographer long involved in Occupy Seattle, alleged to have grabbed an officer who was attempting to arrest another May Day\u00a0protester.<\/p>\n

Among the hundreds who took part in Tuesday\u2019s protests, the trio are the only ones who\u2019ve been publicly identified as suspects in felony-level crimes. (Seattlepi.com does not generally name suspects unless charges are\u00a0filed.)<\/p>\n

A 23-year-old Vermont man suspected of vandalizing the old federal courthouse in Seattle\u2019s downtown is currently in federal custody. He could face charges as early as Thursday for destruction of federal\u00a0property.<\/p>\n

Still, pre-May Day warnings from the mayor\u2019s office that agitators might be \u201ccoming to Seattle\u201d to riot or hijack the annual march don\u2019t appear to be supported by the arrests thus\u00a0far.<\/p>\n

Speaking Wednesday after all three protesters appeared in court, an organizer of the protests described all three as \u201cvery great participants in Occupy Seattle.\u201d Of the seven arrestees identified by police, all except the Vermont man have obvious ties to the Seattle\u00a0area.<\/p>\n

Police, though, have suggested that more arrests may be coming in the days\u00a0ahead.<\/p>\n

Beginning around noon on Tuesday, masked, black-clad men and women launched a vandalism spree that also saw police and bystanders attacked. Vandals are believed to have also thrown a rock through the window of Mayor Mike McGinn\u2019s Greenwood home late in the\u00a0day.<\/p>\n

Among the vandals\u2019 targets were a block of shops near the Washington Convention Center, a Wells Fargo Bank office and \u2013 somewhat inexplicably \u2013 the William Kenzo Nakamura Courthouse on Fifth Avenue, a federal building used sparingly since the new downtown U.S. Courthouse opened in 2004.<\/p>\n

Speaking Wednesday, Seattle police officials said a task force formed to investigate the\u00a0 violence will be reviewing hours of video taken during the\u00a0protests.<\/p>\n

“I am convinced there are a lot of people who will be spending some quality time in prison for what they did yesterday,” Seattle Police Chief John Diaz\u00a0said.<\/p>\n

Prison doesn\u2019t appear to be on the horizon for any of the three protesters now accused of attacking Seattle officers. While none has been charged, each is suspected of third-degree assault; were any to be convicted on that charge, none is likely face more than three months in\u00a0jail.<\/p>\n

At an initial court appearance Wednesday, a King County prosecutor described all three suspects as having helped to turn a peaceful protest violent by attacking\u00a0officers.<\/p>\n

Speaking following the hearing, Occupy Seattle organizer Ian Finkenbinder described all three as \u201ccomrades\u201d to the Occupy movement and suggested the allegations against them are \u201cspurious and trumped up.\u201d He also declined to condemn Tuesday\u2019s vandalism\u00a0spree.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI believe people are very angry right now,\u201d said Finkenbinder, who went on to describe the arrestees as \u201cgreat participants in Occupy\u00a0Seattle.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Police contend a 23-year-old Central District man, one of the three facing potential felony charges, spit in a police officer\u2019s face after the officer demanded he hand over a wooden pole with metal bolts fixed to\u00a0it.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese poles had already been used by many protesters to cause tons of damage to the downtown core of Seattle, and were used in assaults,\u201d a Seattle detective told the court, describing the man\u2019s arrest at 4:30 p.m. in the 100 block of Pike\u00a0Street.<\/p>\n

Court records show Tuesday\u2019s arrest was the man\u2019s second of the\u00a0year.<\/p>\n

At 5 a.m. on New Year\u2019s Day, the man was arrested at a Capitol Hill construction site after breaking the windows on two excavators\u00a0there.<\/p>\n

He told police at the time that he was intoxicated and \u201cexploring.\u201d He later admitted to the vandalism, plead guilty to a pair of misdemeanor charges and was sentenced to 25 days on home detention and community service; he also received a one-year jail term that was suspended on the condition that he not break the law\u00a0again.<\/p>\n

Hearing from prosecutors and the man\u2019s private defense attorney, King County District Court Judge Anne Harper ordered he be held on $10,000\u00a0bail.<\/p>\n

The other two felony suspects \u2013 a 28-year-old Wallingford man and a 30-year-old West Seattle woman \u2013 were released under the condition that they stay out of downtown Seattle for the time\u00a0being.<\/p>\n

The Wallingford man was arrested at 4:40 p.m. near the intersection of First Avenue and Pike Street during a large disturbance there. Police contend he grabbed an officer\u2019s hand while the officer was attempting to make room for another arrest; according to police statements, the man\u2019s action hurt the\u00a0officer.<\/p>\n

Described by his attorney as a photographer with a long history of documenting Seattle protests, the man was released without\u00a0bail.<\/p>\n

The woman, an emergency room technician working in Bellevue, is alleged to have punched an officer in the chest as the officer was attempting to form a barrier in the same location as the other incidents. According to police, the officer pulled the woman to the ground and arrested her at the\u00a0scene.<\/p>\n

Waiting to receive more information from Seattle police on two other suspects, city prosecutors have charged 19-year-old Jack Tierny with unlawful use of a weapon following allegations that Tierny was carrying a fixed-blade knife during the\u00a0protest.<\/p>\n

Police contend Tierny had the knife sheathed on his fanny pack during a noon protest at Westlake Center. \u00a0According to officers\u2019 reports, Tierney, a California man, said he came to Seattle from Olympia to protest; he allegedly told police he was carrying the knife as a \u201cutility tool\u201d because he \u201cspends a lot of time traveling in the\u00a0woods.\u201d<\/p>\n

King County prosecutors have until Friday to charge or release the sole suspect currently in state custody. The Vermont man suspected of smashing windows at the federal courthouse also is expected in court in coming\u00a0days.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ian Finkenbinder (aka: Ian Awesome\/Fisher?) is a self described HIV positive ‘angry queer’ who maintains a blog and lives in the Seattle area near his family on Mercer Island. His published sentiments about the Portland State (PSU) incident last year … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-14187","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14187","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14187"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14187\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16695,"href":"https:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14187\/revisions\/16695"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14187"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14187"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/amicuscuria.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14187"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}