An IML DIssenter

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By Stephen Lane, Ox Balls

What new doors have been opened by having a transexual win IML? None. How many trannies dream of winning a contest for and about leathermen? I guess the same right i have to win a trannie or lesbian contest? 

If i even thought i had a shot at winning such a contest, (I am, btw a 46 year old 6'2" hairy beast, always in leather), would i be allowed to enter? Would it be right for me to enter and take this honor from a deserving trannie or lesbian? 

No. Nor would i choose to enter because i know what i am, and i know the damage it would do if i did. 

Groups can still, in these days of all-inclusiveness, be exclusive...this isnt a episode of Glee. 

Did he/she consider the damage? The leather community is dying...every year there fewer men in leather at IML, at leather bars and leather events. Do you really think having a trannie as a figurehead of the largest group of leathermen will attract the new young gay blood we need? Will it keep the core group of leather-wearing dedicated leathermen together? 

i am pulling my financial/product support from all local leather events that do not have the balls to get the lesbians and trannies out of a group that once represented masculinity, leather, and god forbid, sex.

This is the leather community's Sarah Palin...just in leather.

----

As for the banning of anything "Bareback"...did you see all the bestiality videos in the vendor mart at IML?  none of the dogs in those videos were wearing condoms...

Did you see the leatherman in chaps tap-dancing in the talent portion of the IML contest?  I may burn my leathers and switch to rubber.

It is time to grow some balls and set limits, IML used to be sexy...now it is as dull as community center dance.

Comments

[SG]

Leather has become such a joke in the past 4 decades, and it's all about money and consumerism.

It has been like this since the late 70s and early 80s when the contests started, and leather became a total joke like it all still is today.

[Wolvesperv]

A fascinating debate, I'm from the UK and this was my second IML and personally I thought Tyler did am amazing job representing the most important group of all, which also happens to be the smallest. Himself.

I had no idea he was transgendered, came as a real surprise to me to learn this on the bus back to the hotel. But didn't change my opinion of him or what he had achieved.

Over the years I have read many Kink blogs and publications. I am very much an outsider to the 'Leather community' because we don't really have a Leather community in the UK. We have fetish bars / clubs - The Hoist, sponsor of the UK entrant this year for example. Its a great club - but the difference is that here in the UK and Europe we have more sex clubs with dress codes. How many Leather bars can you name from outside London in the UK? How many leather events are there in the UK that support the community? How many title contests do we have?

We have very few ... Mr Hoist is the only regular title contest. There are leather themed nights, rubber themed etc. But these are just about a dress-code not an attitude. I know so many people who have a huge interest in kink, ownership etc but non in the Leather / Butch Drag (as they call it) that goes with it.

I have read so many times about the dissappearing Leather Community in the US. As someone who would love to have a local Leather scene to enjoy I can attest to the fact that what you guys have in the States is far from dissappearing! It is *changing* and this is very different. The existance of this website is testament to that, the Internet has had its impact ... people meet, play and explore differently now.

It is moving away from being a Leather community, it is a Fetish community. And it is changing as society changes - gay rights are becoming more accepted as younger people reach voting age and don't see what the problem is. Younger people are joining the Leather community and are exploring their fetishes that don't involve animal hides. That doesn't make them any less of a Top / Dom / Master / Owner, just as it doesn't make them any less of a sub / slave / pup / boi. A pair of boots doesn't make the man!! I have seen too many men in full leathers who have no ownership of them, and seen many men in shorts and trainers with a scruffy t-shirt that have oozed sexuality and masculinity.

IML represents the organisation of IML, the titleholder represents the titleholder - there is no responsibility on them, no requirement to do anything or be anyone.

IML is about a gathering of people who have some shared interests. It isn't the centre of a community, and I don't think it has tried to make itself that center.

If it has done anything it has created and supported the LA&M to document and preserve the incredibly colourful and amazing past, history, story of the Leather / kink world and its future.

I will be back at IML in 2012, and once again getting involved as a volunteer to feel part of that amazing Leather Family / Community / Tribe. I only get to feel the spirit, energy and love from that community for four days every few years. If money allowed I'd be at as many events as possible.

Mat (WolvesPerv)

[David Dean]

I had a very unique perspective on Tyler as both a contestant and friend. On the first day at IML I had lunch with Tyler and his boy. He kept saying over and over about this "transition" and I thought he was referring to his transition from BDSM to leather [ I can be dense at times] only to realize what Tyler meant. We talked NOT about his transition but his play...and how he and I had very similiar thoughts about play. After lunch I made a promise that I would keep Tylers story one that HE would reveal...on his own watch. Respect. I reveal this story because we shared a moment about our likes that transended gender/sex. We shared play and what it meant to be in another's head space, and that Tyler has a very twisted headspace...and I LOVE IT...But I digress....

We can wax about how the old days of leather were...and as a student of Old Guard I see alot of traditions going the way of easier, less structured traditions....but they are new traditions and in time they will replaced and so on...What is new today will be seen as old in its good old time.

I'm also reminded that during the contest I was constantly assuring guys in my class that if they didn't win IML this wasn't the end of their leather "career" nor should it mean that their contributions were any less important. In fact it can be stated again that many of the great leaders of the leather community have never won a title. We sashed a man who best represented the IML class....thats all...nothing more....nothing less. Last time I checked Leather Emperor or President was not an option. Tyler was the best on that day...any other day could have produced a different result. I should know....I was there.

But ask yourself why the importance of this title? Does the winner of IML really shape or alter the leather landscape? Maybe...but I assure you the landscape of leather is doing well and good at the local club level and regional/national events that shape, mold and develop both young and old leathermen and kinksters. Mr IML compliments but rarely shapes the face of leather...leave that to the local communities and clubs. Maybe thats the problem we need to face...the problem that were ceeding our local responsibility to educate and develop leathermen/women by allowing events like IML to superceed our efforts.

Folks, IML represents less than a percent of the total leather experience worldwide. Tylers win is more about us looking in the mirror and seeing that the face of the community is changing than it is about the issue of Tylers' gender. We can argue the nuances of gender and the role of transgender leatherfolk at specific events. We can even dillute the conversation into many divergent camps until we lose sight of the real 800 pound gorilla in the room. The challenge we face is change and how do we embrace the myriad of opinions and egos and hurt feelings and sterotypes we have believed and supported in the name of the "community" we call leather.

Support or deride Tyler but the win represented a shift and refocus on what is truly important to the various levels of the leather community...that acceptance mixed with thoughful discussion and respect will yield far more to the candor and dialogue of where we have come from...where we are...and where WE will go...

I for one was honored to be a part of IML...tap dancers and all.....

David Dean
IML 2010

[ChainedBeast]

Please burn your leathers. I'm burning my Oxballs products. 'nuff said.

[Leather John]

Sorry David I am more on Ultra with this one. Also this post reminds me of two things. One the taste great vs less filling arguments, and a little kid playing the shadow mock games where you repeat people sentences.

[David]

You have every right to vote with your wallet, and I will defend your right to do so, but to me and the people I call my "Family", Leather is more than basic human decency that's often confused with core values that are supposedly unique to leather culture.

For us, it is about sex, embracing hypermasculinity, a common set of fetishes and mode of dress, and a shared history as masculine gay men.

Any of those ring a bell?

[Trevor H. Jacques, Toronto]

Karen wrote: "I remember Tony DeBlase (may his memory be a blessing) fearing the death of leather when heterosexual people started to join the National Leather Association."

While Tony may have once expressed such an opinion, I know that he rapidly changed his views, because he became one of the earliest (in the first two to five) very strong proponents of actively including FTMs in the kinky male community. Back in the 1990s, Tony was the primary initiator of moves to include FTMs in male BDSM events. I and at least one commenter here have had many discussions with Tony about how to support the trans and intersex communities in the male BDSM community.

As for Mr. Lane's position, I will defend his right to have and express it. I do not, however, agree with any of it, to the point that I have decided that I can no longer support his business until he makes an equally public retraction. This disappoints me, because his products were one of the few 'new things' I'd seen in the sex product market in quite a while. My reason is how strongly I feel we must understand that gender, gender identity, and sexual identity and orientation are separate constituents of a human being, and that they are all on a spectrum. They are not polar concepts nor polar realities, and they do not always align in historically understood ways. I can think of little worse than feeling oneself to be one gender but being trapped in the body that presents as something else.

This debate is similar to the bias toward women in the past. We would hear phrases such as "A woman has won the race to become [insert public position, here]." We still hear media comment on what a woman was wearing to a public event, but rarely, if ever, what the men were wearing. It's down to an inherent, and untenable, bias. We should focus on fitness for the job, not on personal elements that the rules say do not matter; e.g. not on elements like gender.

Hillary Clinton is a Secretary of State, who just happens to be female. Angela Merkel is a Chancellor, who just happens to be female. Tyler fulfilled the IML rules, and the judges (whom I am sure discharged their responsibilities fairly), decided that he was the competitor with the most of what they sought in a winner. So it follows that Tyler was the winner fair and square, and he just happened, at a time in the past, to have been/self-defined as female. He could just as easily have been the winner and happened to be someone who in his past played the guitar.

What matters is how Tyler (and, to an extent, the rules of IML, and perhaps the law) defines himself at the time of the competition. It is not for me to tell Tyler whether he is or should identify as male or female. His legal position and the IML rules define that. For the purposes of the competition, Tyler is a male. Having entered the competition fairly, he then went on the win the competition fairly. He knew and declared his position. In a similar, but different, situation, I suspect that Caster Semenya did not know of her unfortunate position, and so could not declare it in the same way.

Ultimately, this issue is about treating people as individuals as they are, not as we might pigeon-hole them. If one disagrees with IML's rules, one can take that up with IML, rather than publicly criticising someone who adhered to the rules.

While I will defend Mr. Lane's right to his views and to express them, in this day and age, I find them unnecessarily dated and wholly untenable.

[Mauro Montoya]

I am Vice-President of the New Mexico LeatherWolves, of which Tyler McCormack is a member. I am a New Mexico native - in NM, we have sexual orientation AND transgender protections. Tyler was one of the first openly transgender persons I met, but have since met many here in our leather/kink/fetish community. Upon meeting Tyler, I honestly did not know too much about being transgender. I consider myself a proud Leatherman, somewhat Old Guard, somewhat New Guard. I was Mr. MidAtlantic Leather 1996 and competed at IML that year. It was my first IML and I was fairly overwhelmed, but reveled in being with my leather family - I competed again in 1998, and there was the FIRST transgender man who ever competed that year - 12 years ago folks!!!! Since then I have won other titles, judged many many contests, produced Mr. Florida Leather and am now on the producing staff of Rio Grande Leather, which Tyler won in order to compete for IML. I consider myself a "Leatherman" through and through. And while I don't wear as much leather as I used to, it was NEVER the clothes or fetish gear that defined me - it was the sense of being part of a larger family, a community where we all cared for each other.
Meeting Tyler and many other transgender folk forced me to examine my own beliefs, feelings, prejudices, etc. At first I was somewhat resistant, but after a while realized this was based on ignorance more than anything. I have watched many go through the transition now from FtM or the reverse, and there was sometimes confusion as to what to call that person, he or she. I also had to very seriously go over the issue whether I wanted to play with someone who wasn't born a male or have a cock between his legs. This for me was the hardest to overcome - let's face it, I'm a gay man, I love cock! But for me, what it finally came down to was ACCEPTING what this other person considered himself to be - a MALE. I listened to what many transgender folk TAUGHT me - they were trapped in the wrong body. While it's a concept I'll never fully understand, not feeling that myself, I learned about it, I accepted it and I have no issues with it. Yes, it was a learning process, but if you're not learning, hell, you're no longer LIVING! And yes, although I had some initial reluctance, I have and will play with a transgender person - go beyond whether someone has a cock, and SEE THEM FOR THEMSELVES. To me, Tyler and the other transgender people I know are what they present themselves to be - in Tyler's case, MALE. He is recognized as such by the state of New Mexico, the federal government and all those who know and love him here in New Mexico. I am PROUD to call Tyler my leather BROTHER and my first reaction when we heard he made Top 20 was WONDERFUL! Then my reaction when we heard he won - OMFG, he did it, HE really did it! The negative reaction never even occurred to me, and I was rather shocked by some of the things I have heard and read since. I can say that ALL of us here in New Mexico are PROUD to have Tyler as our Mr. Rio Grande Leather and even MORE PROUD that he went on to win IML - and broke so many barriers, the first from NM, the first disabled person, the first transgender person. Proud can hardly define how I feel about Tyler winning IML.
I don't know if Ox personally met Tyler or not, but I urge you to do so. I urge you to look at what makes a 'leatherman' = as others have pointed out, it's Honesty, Integrity, Duty, Service, Community, Brotherhood. And I can tell you that Tyler exemplifies this spirit, this definition. Our LeatherWolves club is small - we accept those who will help us meet the goals we set forth, which include all of the above. Tyler has gone out of his way to provide service to our local community, he has always demonstrated the HIGHEST sense of integrity, community, duty, service, and YES, BROTHERHOOD. I am PROUD to call him my leatherbrother. Now I am proud he'll be able to show the rest of the world those same qualities which make him our leather BROTHER.
So for those who are against this, you have your right to make your opinions heard. But I urge you - look deeply into yourselves, learn from this, learn from TYLER, give HIM a chance and accept HIM for who he is - a PROUD Leatherman AND OUR IML 2010. Invite him to your community, talk to him and get to know him - and you'll truly understand that Tyler deserves the title of International MR. Leather.

[Alan Chiras]

I believe that honesty and telling others how you feel is something that the leather community does NOT want anymore :(

[Peter Fiske]

Is anyone else disturbed by the survey on the right? As a Californian who saw the effect of putting our marriage rights up to a vote, I am!
What if it was negative? Would Trans and disabled men be barred from competing at IML? Or participating in our community?
To those who dislike trans and disabled men... Dont play with them at parties or speak with them at contests and events...your choice...
but you dont get to bar them because you are uncomfortable or angry or fearful!
As these men become more visible, it is obvious they do not ruin contests or play parties or clubs. In fact the opposite is true! Ask IML or IMSL or Leather Sir or the multitude of clubs who welcome Trans and disabled men (and women).
So please grow up. Confront your prejudices and fears and overcome them. Anger,fear and prejudice are unhealthy for you and for our community.
Finally for those who dissent,on whatever side, we all have a right to speak freely but lets remember to respect each other and speak from our hearts.
Peter Fiske

[West]

Stephen,

You stated "i am pulling my financial/product support from all local leather events that do not have the balls to get the lesbians and trannies out of a group that once represented masculinity, leather, and god forbid, sex."

Since we're both in Los Angeles, California, will you be withdrawing your support from the Mr. LA Leather contest and all of the contests that feed into it? As you know, the winner goes on to compete at IML.

Will you stop working with Mr. S Leather and 665? Will your products no longer be available from these fine stores? Also, any leather you own from these vendors is surely at the top of your "burn" pile, as both stores employ "lesbians and trannies" in their production departments.

[William "Rubberwilli" Schendel]

@Honest John - Allow me to be honest for a moment if I may. There is a lot of "If" and "I heard" in your posting. I don't think many people can take your posting seriously because you haven't got your facts and your feelings sorted out. The are two different things.

I get that though. You have had a very emotional response to this years IML. As one of the judges for IML this year, people have been telling me all about my "emotional response" to Tyler. But you have to step back and look at the facts as well. And the facts for me are clear. Tyler had, for me personally, the best speech at IML2010. Arguably the best speech I've heard at IML in the 10 years I have been attending the event.

I would ask that you look into the facts of the contest, it's selection criteria, and the gossip that the rumor mill is churning out a little bit closer. Set your feelings aside for a moment and be analytical about the decision and the process. You may find that your beliefs do not match up with those of the IML organization. That is fine but state it as such as others have, "IML does not represent me anymore" is one comment that is going around a lot. But laying your beliefs over the IML organization and saying it was wrong to allow Tyler to complete is wrong as well. That's not your decision to make, nor is it mine. That belongs to the IML organization. It is their contest after all.

Obviously you do give a fuck about it, otherwise your response would have been "Meh..whatever." The question is, what are you going to do with that feeling now? Are you going to abandon the community you have been involved with for 20 years, or are you going to channel that energy into something to bring back the part you think is missing?

As a side note, being PC has nothing to do with denying people the right to speak their mind or "Freedom of Speech" as you put it. You spoke your mind, now others will speak their mind in response to what you have said. There is a price to pay for speaking your mind though. Sometimes that is taking criticism of your point of view.

William "Rubberwilli" Schendel

[LeatherBodhi]

HonestJohn,
If you're as much a supporter of transgender rights as you say, you are no doubt aware that there are many medical interventions (including many surgical possibilities) that occur with transition and many legal standards for maleness.

But as far as I can tell, in your mind, dick equals male equals man. That's just not the reality for everyone, nor is it a legal standard in all states. After all, even the State Department has declared that sex reassignment surgery is no longer a requirement for passport issuance in one's correct gender. They've come to understand that there are many paths guys take to maleness, some involve dick and some don't.

But let's get one thing perfectly clear - the rules for International Mr. Leather are that you be legally male. Tyler is. While he may not fit your definition of male, in the eyes of the state and in the eyes of the feds, he is male and therefore is allowed to compete for (and win) the International Mr. Leather title.

Don't like it? That's cool. Start your own title system and produce the hell out of it. As I've said elsewhere, you can bitch and complain under the veil of anonymity or you can step up and organize things in a manner that suits your fancy.

[Loki MadMonk]

@everyone being hyper focused on Tyler's penis

IF you are a supporter of trans-gender rights I would think you would have educated yourself about said rights and issues.

legally if you undergo srs surgery the federal government recognizes ftm sexual reasignment surgery that 1. dignoises of gender disphoria 2. removal of breast tissue and /OR 3. removal of internal reproductive organs.

after that the government legally reassigns I.D. documents.

so does completeing srs means he has a fully functioning penis? NO it doesn't.

there is currently no surgery that can do that yet. Right now you pay either 100,000 dollars for a phaloplasty or you pay 10,ooo (btw NO insurance covers it so you pay it out of pocket)for a hysterectomy. Also with the first option even if you have the money to do it (which I am sorry is the cost of a house!) you end us with a insensate meat tube you can pee out of and will NEVER HAVE AN ORGASM AGAIN! The chances for tissue rejection is high so after all that it might FALL OFF. O_O

Seriously I am surprised when people don't know this try to say someone isn't what they, doctors and the GOVERNMENT clearly would know better than you.

now Tyler won IML therefore Tyler is legally male, therefore Tyler had went through the process medically and legally. Hence why this particular rumor is false, and quite frankly desperate and dumb.

Everyone is making a big deal about his private medical information which btw is also legally protected. (HIPPA yo!) Instead of focusing on what he has to say or helping him do his job people are freaking about about what may or may not be in his pants! 0_0

and how dare US a community of sexual deviants (I mean that in the best possible way ;) ) be so closed minded and rude as to say for someone else who they are and use their private medical history for it?!

fine then 300lb+ obese men, men with fetal arm syndrome , diabetes , any skin color other than violet purple , taller then 5'1" are no longer men so go to wal-mart buy yourself a nice dress and btw your not welcome to the dungeon anymore.

0_0 this makes about as much sense!

[Chester Munro]

Honest John,

First, lets analyze the words used and the statements made:

"trannies"

"he/she"

"to get the lesbians and trannies out of a group..."

Sorry, all I have to go on is the language he used and the statements made. This very much sounds to me like someone whose ideal IML experience would be dick checks at the hotel door. Anyone not showing one would be asked to leave. Lets look at the dictionary definition of bigotry and see if this qualifies.

From the American Heritage Dictionary: "A person who is rigidly devoted to his own group, religion, race, or politics and is intolerant of those who differ."

Now, he might not be happy with the winner of IML 32, but is he intolerant?

Again, lets go back to his post.

"i am pulling my financial/product support from all local leather events that do not have the balls to get the lesbians and trannies out of a group that once represented masculinity, leather, and god forbid, sex."

The thing that I notice immediately is that HE CALLED A BOYCOTT FIRST. And saying that he essentially will not sell his products at any event to any audience that supports including lesbians and transgendered people sounds like he has zero tolerance.

[Honest John]

FREE SPEECH GIVES WAY TO "POLITICALLY CORRECT" OPPRESSION IN THE LEATHER SCENE.

Wow, Ox really stuck his neck out there when he gave us his opinion about IML! Now a handful of very vocal people are calling him a bigot and trying to organize a boycott of his business. I doubt that boycott will work since most guys that I've talked with have a similar opinion.

I don't agree with the tone of his letter and his use of the word "tranny" instead of Transgender, but I think he had a right to express his opinion about a scene that he's been an active member of for years. Everyone I know is afraid to be honest publicly about how they feel about IML and the selection of Tyler; the PC Police might attack like they’ve done with Ox. Is there is no free speech allowed in the Gay Leather Scene? Agree or be labeled a bigot and boycotted for expressing an opinion is what they are telling us!

I have watched over the last 20 years as the contests have been diluted by vanilla guys who borrow a friend’s leather, win a title and go on to “represent” a community about which know next to nothing. Now that those title holders are judges, they are electing people for political correct reasons. (BTW, some of those judges were actually wearing Flip Fops to IML for fuck’s sake! Some example they are setting!)

I have never met Tyler and I'm sure that he's a great guy, but I'm concerned about something I recently heard. I was told that Tyler has not had the sexual re-assignment surgery. If this is really the case, then “he” is not legally a man since “he” still has a vagina and not a penis. If he did not have the surgery, I have serious issues with his selection as Mr. International Leather. In order to be a “man” you need to be a “male,” Therefore, in order to be Mr. International Leather you need to have a penis and testicles (whether you are born with them or had the re-assignment surgery.)

In California, before a person can legally change their gender, a doctor has to fill out Form NC-310 and state that the person has had the sexual re-assignment surgery.
If Tyler has not had the surgery or legally changed his gender, then I think he should step down. If the title were International Leather Person, it would be a different matter, but this is a title for men.

Just how far are the PC police going to push this? Why not let a woman have the title next year since it’s sexist to exclude women? Why should contestants have to be in the leather scene, we don’t want to exclude anyone so let’s just let anyone off the street compete…Oops, too late, that’s already happened hundreds of times!

I am a liberal and strong supporter of Transgender Rights, but if someone has not completed the transition and are not legally a male, then they don’t qualify to compete. If the judges have decided to throw the rules out the window in order to be politically correct, then the contest has become a joke. Since when has the Gay Leather and BDSM scene ever been about being PC? Kinky sex is as un-PC as it gets and I like it that way.

The PC Police tell us that everyone has to be included, so what if they aren’t gay, male or even kinky? You know how some bars add too much mixer to their cocktails and you can’t even taste the alcohol? Well, we have been so inclusive that we’ve diluted the Gay Leather Scene to the point where there is no Gay Leather Scene. I think the need to save our Leather Scene is way more important than trying to include every other segment of our community. There are dozens of gay bars in LA, but there is only one Leather Bar left. Even that one Leather Bar is only a “Leather Bar” one night a week. On that one and only night when we can gather as a tribe, there is no dress code, so 80% of the guys who show up are in shorts and flip flops. The Leathermen are freaks in their own bar! This isn’t just happening in LA, it’s happening in every city in the US.

My first night at the host hotel bar, I barely saw anyone in Leather, Rubber or any sort of fetish gear. What I did see was lots of shirtless circuit boys dancing in shorts and sneakers. It’s really sad that we can’t have a dress code at a fucking Leather Event! Oh, but the PC Police wouldn’t like that; someone might feel excluded… boo hoo. How many of you felt disappointed to see so many guys in jeans, t-shirts and sneakers at IML? Well, speak up, complain about it, don’t let the PC Police destroy what little is left of OUR SCENE!

Where does it end? I’ll tell you where, it ends with all the Leathermen not coming back to IML and instead heading to events in Europe where they still have the balls to have dress codes and to be exclusive instead of inclusive! Let the PC Police, carpet baggers, twinks and circuit queens take over IML and all of the lame contests here in the U.S., I don’t give a fuck anymore. Go ahead and turn IML into a freak show/ Mardi Gras like Folsom Street Fair. Hell, there will probably be baby strollers at IML next year!

Something to consider: what will you call International Mr. Leather when there isn’t a single cowhide in site?

(Why don't I sign my real name? Like Ox, I'm a Leatherman and work in the industry. I don't want the PC Police trying to organize a boycott against me too. It's really sad that I can't openly express my opinion in the Leather Scene that I've been a part of for over 20 years.)

[Desmond Perrotto]

Stephen, do you even realize how absurd your posting is? You speak about the community dying, yet you put yourself out there with such bigotry. This alone makes me wish I wasnt a part of this community so in turn what you say is also a cause.

If you know anything about oppression, you will find once an oppressed group gains their status, they generally find a need to oppress another. Truth is IML permitted this long ago, and if you wanted to fight this fight, you should have started 10 years ago when it became an option. You cant smack a child 10 years after the they committed the crime (perhaps thats your game, but I dont know you from Adam).

Finally, you question yourself winning a lesbian or trans contest. If you identified or even had an inkling of what a trans person feels, I would say you might have a valid point, but to try and determine this, just shows lack of education in which I recommend more research on the topic of transgender. If you identified as a female to the point of knowing your true gender, and really wanted to win that contest, I would say you should have that right.

Finally, the younger generation is working, just in a different way than you want. Leather was told to me, and I learned, it was a mind set and how one thinks. The leather itself is the clothes we wear, and the kink is what we flag. Either way you look at it, lets just say, there are so many more kinky men coming out at an earlier age, and out there playing. Much more than when I was coming out.

Inclusivity does work, just those who dont buy in, generally get left out. It sucks to be left out of progress.

[Mike Doherty]

I too have believe that your concept of the Leather Community only exists in fantasy.

What I learned early in my leather travels was about family. It was about supporting one another because the so called mainstream (whomever that is - gay, straight or otherwise) thought we were too extreme, that leathermen and drag queens were the reason why we would never realize equality. Why couldn't we tone it down, be more you know "straight acting." But, I am not straight, nor do I need to conform to some so called ideal.

The Leather Community isn't dying because we have transgender contestants, the community is changing because the need for it has changed. I don't need to go to leather bars to flag my colors in order to find someone into my scene. I and most everyone else can go online and find just about anything, anytime, anywhere.

What isn't offered online is communal environment of a club, the education workshops focused on safer, saner, consensual. A place to learn from others to hone our skills.

Will it die? That depends on your view. It will not look the same, it might even be dramatically different - as it is dramatically different from the motorcycle runs of the 50 and 60s - so if such change is viewed as death of the community - then yes it will die, just as the old Guard has given way to a new generation of kinksters with their own rules.

But a community will emerge. A community where the likes of Tyler will remind of us perseverance and overcoming obstacles to find one's true path. A person we can look to in awe and wish we had a fraction of the courage and grace he has demonstrated on his leather journey. A community that doesn't judge on labels but on actions.

[Jason Venema]

Thanks for posting your opinons - I am a 43 year old leatherman who has come to the conclusion IML is simply a beauty contest and does in NO WAY represent me as a LEATHERMAN why not a MS. LEATHER CONTEST or an EVERYONE ELSE contest or change the name of IML - it certainly is not masculine in anyway.

[boy ron]

Ms. Ultra - Thank you for your post, here is something that Master Jim of Dallas shared with us several years back at SW Leather during boy's training camp. I for one I am very proud of Tyler for winning IML 2010 My Daddy who competed at IML 2010 has been questioned about :why did they allow a GIRL to win. I am a proud member of the International Imperial Court System from San Diego and the Court in San Diego along with other cities have had some well know leather people that have been or are the reigning Monarchs of their area. Empress Snatch of San Franciaco is a true leather person - and in San Diego we have had several as well one being a leather women who became our "first female emperor" so Mr. Lane can take his money and do what he wants to but your right it was the "leather community that got him his money in the first place. you ROCK ULTRA and you did an GREAT JOB as emcee of IML 2010
boy ron
Imperial Court de San Diego
Knight of Leahter 2006
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What Is a Leatherman? Master Dean Walradt: A Tribute

Many of our readers may have known Dean Walradt of Dallas, Texas. Master Dean passed away on December 15th after a lengthy illness. I knew Dean for a long time. We served together on the National Leather Association- Dallas Executive Committee, we co-founded and produced both the boys' Training Camp and the Masters' Retreat. Master Dean and Leather by Boots sponsored me and slave marsha in the International Master and slave Contest. Most importantly, we were friends. This post is written as a tribute to Dean Walradt.

Developing a definition for the term "leatherman" may best be done by process of elimination. One does not become a leatherman by buying and wearing leather, although leathermen do wear leather. One does not become a leatherman by assuming a certain identity in the community -- Master, Daddy, Top, bottom, boy, slave, or switch -- for a leatherman can be any of those. One does not become a leatherman by frequenting the local leather bar or leather events, although many leathermen do both. One does not become a leatherman by developing and using SM skills, although many leathermen are accomplished practitioners of the art of SM. And one certainly does not become a leatherman by self-proclamation, for leathermen have no need to tell others who and what they are.

Being a leatherman is a state of mind, an identity, a being. Just as the wearing of full leather---combat boots, chaps, harness, vest, and, if appropriate, a Master's cover--- does not make one into a leatherman, taking off those leathers does not take away a leatherman's identity. Once one becomes a leatherman that is who he is whether he is wearing full leathers, a simple leather vest over a black tee-shirt with 501s and boots, or a suit and tie as he goes on a business trip.

Being a leatherman means that one is "old school." A leatherman has a knowledge and sense of leather history. He acknowledges and honors the traditions of the past, without being tradition-bound. He is attracted by formality, order, and discipline. He knows who the leather forefathers were, he knows who the elders in the community are now, and most of all he honors and respects his history and those who made it. He know the leather pride flag, the hanky code (even if he can only remember a few of the colors), and what IML stands for. He understands what protocol is and what it is not. He knows that the "old guard" is both fiction and reality.

Being a leatherman means that one has an awareness and understanding of the leather community. A leatherman knows that he is not alone, that he has leather brothers and sisters who come together to make a whole that is far greater than the sum of its individual parts. A leatherman knows that in some way he must give something back to the community through his involvement in it and that he cannot live in isolation.

Being a leatherman means that you have been accepted by the leather community, for it is the community that defines a leatherman. A leatherman demonstrates through words and deeds who and what he is and the community takes him in.

Who then was Dean Walradt? As we all are, Dean was many things. He was a father, grandfather, partner, lover, friend, and mentor. He was outspoken, bullheaded, and ornery. He was kind, friendly, and quiet. I knew all of these sides of Dean Walradt and I called him my friend, I called him my leather brother, and above all else, I called him what he was and still is --- a leatherman.

In leather and with respect,

Master Jim

[tbone]

1st off - I love you Ultra.

2nd - "trannie" is misspelled. it's Tranny. it's also a very derogatory term - for trans men and women, it's our N-word.

3rd - this whole pronoun he/she dance is really disrespectful. Whether or not you are on board with a trans man winning IML, you should at least have the decency to respect him as a human being and use the correct MALE pronouns when speaking about him.

4th - if you feel in your heart of hearts that you were meant to be born female, and go through therapy, hormone replacement, and surgery, to where your home state recognizes you as female, you have every right to run for IMsL.

5th - and this is just my opinion... Everyone who is bitching and moaning about Tyler winning IML this year should go and run in their local bar contest. Go out there and win. Win your regional. Head to IML and compete. Don't just Monday morning quarterback.

[Dfwleatherboyadam]

"Imagination plays too important a role in the writing of history, and what is imagination but the projection of the author's personality."

-Pieter Geyl

Let me say first off, thank you for speaking up. We all know now what your personality shows you to be, a bigot. For god sakes this is a COMMUNITY, not a private good ol' boys members only country club. What gives you the right to decide who can and cannot be in this community? You had best pull financial support from quite a few events because your not going to be making any money off of me or quite a few other members of our community anymore. The only thing I'm going to be burning is every Ox Balls product I am. If you would, please be so good as to post your mailing address so that after I've burned and melted your product I can return it to you.

As for you doing damage if you entered IML, why don't you? If you feel like you are the end all be all embodiment of leather, then put up or shut up. Tyler and 51 other contestants got up there and did what you apparently don't have the balls to do.

Finally, once and for all to everyone whose pissed off about Tyler winning, IT'S JUST A TITLE. GET OVER IT. It's not like he was made President of the United States for 4 years. He's our ambassador for ONE year. Let him get out and do his job and I think quite a few people will be pleasantly surprised. It's just hard to believe 30 years after Stonewall when members from all walks of the gay community stood shoulder to shoulder and said enough is enough, we draw the line here, we have to put up with self hatred like this from members of our own community.

[Americanleatherman2008]

OX you rock on so many levels but we won’t see eye to eye on this one…but here goes.

First, on the issue of “Barebacking” I will agree with you on the position but on principle. Any form of censorship leads us to curiosity and ultimately uneducated and ignorant of the issue at hand. The information of the risk is everywhere and if not perhaps greater disclaimers should be place like the pharmaceutical ads that tell us we will shit like a herd of cattle, have heartburn, temporary blindness, etc. But censorship is not the way to go.

On Tyler I disagree on principle. He won fairly. As William stated he competed under the same rules I did and everyone else. What’s most astounding is that had he not told anyone that he was F to M the debate would have merely been…perhaps, a dude in a wheel chair that doesn’t give you a boner. At least I would hope that would be your stance. This argument goes nowhere because he won fair and square. As I stated previously no one was asked to pull their dicks out and have them measured.

Finally, this doesn’t change the rules of “our” play spaces. I’m not looking to play with the women PC or not and I’m sure likewise they have no intent of me playing with them.

[Karen]

Dear Mr. Lane:

You aren't the first to complain that an IML doesn't meet your standards of leather. I've heard men complain for years about the winners. Past winners have been too old/young/black/brown/disabled for someone's tastes. I am also pretty confident you won't be the last.

You are also not the first to fear that the leather community is dying. I remember Tony DiBlase (may his memory be a blessing) fearing the death of leather when heterosexual people started to join the National Leather Association. I have heard it from leatherdykes who wanted to exclude bisexual women from attending women's play parties. And certainly, there are leather groups that exclude trans men and trans women - even if the government recognizes their gender (I know of groups that have actually demanded that people drop their pants to "prove" their gender - even if it's an event where nudity is not likely to take place.)

And you're right - it frequently happens that when people demand exclusionary policies, these exclusive groups dwindle. I suspect it's because clubs and groups need energetic, committed people to keep them going, and the "not in my backyard" energy isn't as vibrant as the pro-active energy of people who have mutual goals for enjoyment.

I suspect that, just as the gay and lesbian community have worked actively to expand the hetero-exclusive definitions of "love," "marriage" and "family," we will see the expansion of gender as more and more transfolks "come out." And sure, we'll see pushback, and there will always be people who work to deny access to folks who don't meet our vision of what "woman" or "man" should be. But I think they're on the losing end of the fight.

Karen

[boy Glenn]

Mr. Lane,

First, as I do with all those brave enough to share it, I thank you for your honest opinion.

I would be remiss if I did not respond to it however, for while disguised as a plea to get back to "our roots"... I feel I must tell you that your romanticized image of leather only existed in Tom of Finland magazines and porn.

It never existed in reality as leatherfolk have always come in all shapes, sizes, fashions, and genders.

I am going to follow some of your advice however. I am going to "Set some limits." I am from this day going to boycott Oxballs and encourage my friends and local leather store to do the same.

This isn't for the reason you may think. You se Mr. Lane, you have threatened to pull financial support away from our community because we don't do things your way. That is not what community support is about.

You seem to forget that you have that money to give because our community gave it to you first.

So please keep your money.. You'll need as much of it as you can when we the leather community stop giving you ours.

boy Glenn