The body of a transgendered woman was found in an Olmsted Township pond on April 17. Monday, the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner identified the body as Carl Edward Acoff Jr., a man who identified as a woman and suffered repeated incidents of discrimination.
This morning’s story in the PD chronicles the criminal history of Acoff — whose female name we’re trying to track down — and the details of her grisly murder.
Commenters have been lambasting reporter John Caniglia for what they’ve identified as aggressive insensitivity for refusing to use feminine pronouns when referring to Acoff. Naturally, the debate has soured into name-calling and one-upmanship, but the two sides tend to look like this:
It is disgusting that you continue to [misgender] this women. She identified as female and thought of herself as female just as I do. Even after her life ended through violence you still couldn’t summon the decency to respect her. Transwomen are especially vulnerable to violence. People can’t seem to understand the difference between biological sex and gender. You are feeding this climate of hate.
And the other side:
The negative criticism of the PD writers of this article referring to Acoff as a man is without merit.
After all, Acoff admitted to RTA police that he was a man. Thus, it is appropriate for the PD writers of this article to refer to Acoff as being male.
Things have been getting pretty heated over there, and though the commenters calling for the immediate dismissal of reporter John Caniglia and fiery death of the Plain Dealer are blowing things out of proportion, strictly from a journalistic style perspective, they’re in the right. And it turns out to be more than just a matter of decency.
As of May, 2010, The Associated Press, The New York Times and The Washington Post, follow an updated media reference guide approved by GLAAD when reporting on LGBT lives, issues and stories.
Pertinent to the Carl Acoff story is the “transgender” entry:
Use the pronoun preferred by the individuals who have acquired the physical characteristics of the opposite sex or present themselves in a way that does not correspond with their sex at birth.
In other words, if Acoff identified as a woman and presented herself as such, she should be an undisputed ‘she.’
The question of the murder — whether or not it was a hate crime, specifically — is still just that: a question. But as new details alter the context or circumstances of her death, they should not alter the way journalists refer to the victim.
This article appears in Apr 24-30, 2013.
From the same paper that defended calling Rachel Maddow “a big lesbian that looks like a man.”
i understand that the PD writer was in the wrong and everything, but I hardly doubt this was a horrible malicious attack. sometimes it seems like people want so bad to be offended that they feel discriminated against or hated or attacked when there wasn’t the slightest bit of malicious intent. we’re human, we all make mistakes.
Ci Ci Dove was her name.
Correction on the spelling: Her name was Ce Ce Dove.
We are not in the times of Salem Witches, where women were hunted down because they were “different”. However, our society still is so far away from making peace with Transwomen/Transmen. If only people can learn more about it. It’s a hard life to live and many times a very lonely one. It’s a scary world out there.
I’ll never understand this transgender thing – I’ve had many gay male friends throughout my life. But I can’t imagine a man having his penis “butchered” to become a woman. I met a transgendered person who had her breasts removed & is taking shots to become a “man”- but she/he still looks very much like a woman. I feel really bad about the person who was murdered. Life is too precious.
Helen – that is a dreadfully ignorant thing to say. I am a transgender individual. I did not decide to be a transgender individual, I discovered that I was one. However many “gay male friends” you have had throughout your life has nothing to do with it. Nobody “becomes” a woman. They just are a woman and decide their body should catch up. It is not my duty to make you understand who I am. It is your duty to show me the respect I deserve. The transman you encountered is a he. Not a “she/he” – why would you even write that? What sort of hubris does it take for you to think that you know someone’s identity better than they do, and can fathom their existence to such a degree that you can disagree with them on what they look like, or what pronouns are applicable to them? A woman was murdered because of the same ignorance you share.
43 year young transwoman here…. I’ve never seen so much anger and hate in my life. I dont care what walk of life you come from; trans, str8, gay, sheep lover,<-- lol (DONT LAUGH! YOU MIGHT HURT A SHEEP FUCKERS FEELINGS'! lol) Kids under the age of 30 are filled with so much rage and hate towards EVERYTHING that isnt "them"....it has this country messed up. You think the world should bend over backwards for you? No it shouldnt!!! We live in a democracy with the right to free speech. If I want to say that I dont like Asians cuz they smell funny to me then I will…and SHUT THE FUCK UP! and just laugh at or with me 🙂 Im LEGALLY ALLOWED TO SAY THAT. If you dont like it, then piss off you cry baby sack of mental insecurity!!! Im just SOOO sick of kids whining and bitching and moaning over EVER LITTLE damn thing. You kids NEED to fight in a war. Go have you legs blown off or face shot off. THEN youll know what REAL pain is. Oh boo hoo, they called me a name, FUCKIN WAA! shut up you sissy cry babies