Before I get started I need to mention this woman. She is my grandmother, and she is the only reason why I am still here to create this profile. She saved my life, and for that I am more than greatful.My name is Maria Grace, and I am a male to female transsexual. My birth name is Victor, but through the magic of modern science I will be transitioning to female. The process is long and quite costly, but happiness is worth it. I will explain transsexualism in depth later. I am 19 years old and will be 20 in November. I have obviously not had a normal childhood by any means or definitions created by society, however I am emotionally and psychologically a normal young woman despite the obvious anatomical deformities. For reasons beyond my control I was born with a female brain. It is the general idea of science that transsexualism is neurobiological. Basically my brain developed female before birth, and it is technically a birth defect. Anyways, I am a girl trapped in a disgusting male body and I am taking steps to free myself. Happiness is worth it. Don't you think? Now, I have to get a few things out. I cannot stand the phrase, "there's nothing I/we can do." It is laziness at it's worst. Hatred and discrimination make me sick. If you are here to hate and/or discriminate just LEAVE. Defamatory comments will not be tolerated, and anything I find to be defamatory, hateful, or harassing will be reported. Okay, now that I have set the rules I guess I can move on.    This is Gwen. She was also a transitioning male to female transsexual. I say was because she was murdered in 2002. It is significant only because of the media attention that it gained, but the truth is that she was just one more name added to a extremely long list of transgenders that have been murdered due to hatred and misunderstanding. Most of the people I ask say that is really weird for a man to suddenly decide on becoming a woman or for a woman to suddenly decide to become a man. I would agree with these people if it was really just a sudden decision, but it is certainly not. Transsexualism is not a choice. If it was then I would certainly not choose it. It's too painful and miserable, and why would anyone want that? We don't. We don't want pain and misery, but happiness, and that comes with making our bodies match our minds. I am here to open minds and eyes to the fact that transsexuals are not freaks of nature, but more simply neurological hermaphrodites. We cannot choose. We cannot change. Accept it, and don't hate. People hate and fear what they don't understand. That is why I am here. I will make people understand and hopefully indirectly save more Gwens from being murdered. The following is a list of companies that I know discriminate against gays, lesbians, bis, and transgenders. Either I have experienced the discrimination personally, have witnessed it, or have reliable sources that state they have experienced discrimination.                                             Who is going to stand up to corporate America? Are they all going to be allowed to discriminate forever? Something has to be done. We all need to be activists!Companies like Microsoft and Exxon Mobil are huge, and they should be the first to stand for diversity in the workforce. Big companies need to take a stand and do what is right for the people of our country. Living in a small town makes transitioning much more difficult. Small towns are typically the last to adapt to society. If you live in a small town you are more likely to experience discrimination and possible hate crimes. It is a scary truth, but it is the truth. I live in Mooresville, Indiana. The population here is approximately 13,000 making it a small town, and discrimination is not hard to find. Mooresville High School is especially bad. I was discriminated against by the staff and the administration. It is quite literally a dangerous place to go to school if you are part of the LGBT community, and for the record....    HE WANTS IT THAT WAY!!! "I love America. I would not want to live anywhere else in the world." That is the general feeling of most of us. I fear, however, a change in that feeling if George Bush is not put in his place. His plan to write discimination into a document that declares equality for everyone must fail, and we must make sure that another Bush or Bushesque individual does not get to be president. America will falter if people like this stay in power. It is just a matter of time. Love our country enough to save the equality and diversity it once stood for! This is a recent photo of me.   If you happen to see me on the street or something don't be afraid to say hello. I don't bite. Why am I here? I am here to make some new friends, and basically just to find new people to talk to. Open minds and open hearts are what I seek. It is hard to find people to talk to about special interests in a small town. So I guess I am just branching out. Anyone who wants to add me as a friend will be accepted unless I can see that you are some dirty pervert or something then I will not add you. I am extremely easy to talk to, and I can talk about anything. I may not know everything, but I still think I can help a lot of people, and hopefully there will be people out there willing to help me too. Afterall, that is how friendships work, right?