A controversial on-line magazine for transsexuals is being sued for millions of dollars for libel and defamation by women the magazine called “failed transsexuals.”
Five male-to-female (MTF) transsexuals are suing Transgression.com, its parent company, one of its writers and its owner and editor Joelle LeGassé, also known as Greg Pichler. The plaintiffs are seeking $2 million in damages and $2 million in punitive damage from each defendant.
The plaintiffs, four of whom are post-operative transsexuals, allege in their statement of claim that, “the defendants have engaged in a vicious, carefully orchestrated and unlawful campaign of defamation against the plaintiffs, widely publishing their harmful and defamatory statements on the Internet via Transgression.com.
“The defamatory statements were published with malice for the express purpose of embarrassing the plaintiffs and furthering the defendants’ political struggle to prevent reinstatement of government funding for gender reassignment surgery. In furtherance of their political agenda, the defendants have elected to target, libel, slander and thereby harm the reputation of the plaintiffs in the most humiliating and public manner.
“In their campaign to discourage the reinstatement of funding for gender reassignment surgery, the defendants label the plaintiffs as ‘failed transsexuals’ and therefore argue that the Ontario government should not financially support their gender transitions.”
The statement of claim alleges that Transgression.com contained articles falsely claiming the plaintiffs were misdiagnosed with Gender Identity Disorder and are mentally ill, unfit for employment and dangerous to society. One plaintiff, formerly LeGassé’s doctor, claims that articles falsely accused her of being vindictive, violent, incompetent, that she prescribed herself drugs and faced charges from a medical disciplinary body.
A statement of claim contains allegations that have not yet been proven in a court of law. LeGassé has not yet filed a statement of defence, but claims that in fact it is the plaintiffs who are seeking to advance a political agenda.
Though LeGassé considers herself an MTF transsexual, she’s gone on and off hormone therapy, claiming it makes her depressed. She doesn’t plan to have sex reassignment surgery herself and, based on interviews with other transsexual women, has made it her raison d’être to raise doubts about the procedure’s effectiveness. LeGassé claims Transgression.com has 2,143 subscribers, of which one in 15 pay.
“I would contend that genital surgery is not an effective treatment for most transsexuals. Reinstating public funding for genital surgery will do more harm than good. One of their goals was removing an article from Transgression that would have worked against them in the debate over funding of genital surgery.”
The plaintiffs have succeeded in gaining a court order requiring the removal of the articles and audio files in question from Transgression.com and a related discussion board. LeGassé says she has been given a chance to fight the order, and expects to be able to repost articles. She says that if the judge okays the articles, then the lawsuit would become moot.
LeGassé says the lawsuit is an attempt to silence her voice and her dissent over the effectiveness of surgery.
“We’re under attack from people in our own community. What’s been going on in our community is intimidation and harassment. It’s not only put us at risk of being sued, but we can’t carry… the liability insurance. I’ve had to lock down our e-community to only people I know.”
The statement of claim also alleges that LeGassé “published a request for contributors to come forward with medical histories of former patients of the Centre For Addiction And Mental Health who met their description of ‘failed transsexuals.’”
The plaintiffs also allege that copies of some of the articles were sent to at least one journalist.
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