Great Shift Blog #35 Signs that the Shift is Happening (1): Gender Identity and Relationships

Published: Sun, 01/28/18


Great Shift Blog #35 Signs that the Shift is Happening (1): Gender Identity and Relationships 
January 28, 2018


Dear fellow travelers,

Some three years and thirty blogs ago (GS Blog #5) I posed the question When will the Shift filter down to the physical? In addressing the question I noted that I saw two major phases in the Shift. The first phase, which we are in the midst of, will be completed when the death rate from war and other violent crime drops to zero. I offered a time estimate for completion of the first phase being within tens of years, and not more than 100 years. In 2017 influxes of high- vibrational solar and cosmic energies took place, most of which are undetectable to the instrumentation of mainstream science, and by all indications these will continue in 2018. In terms of the mainstream consensual reality that most humans still inhabit, the effect has been increased polarization, unpredictable and crazy-making behavior. Nevertheless, in 2017 for the first time I have seen a significant increase in the number of stories in the mainstream media that challenge the dysfunctions of the dominant patriarchal paradigm in ways that seem to be both a reflection of, and catalyst for, positive changes in the awareness of humanity collectively.  

This is the first of what I anticipate will be a series of Blogs drawing on information from mostly Time Magazine (the weekly news magazine with the largest worldwide circulation) and the New York Times (the U.S. daily newspaper with the largest worldwide influence)​​​​​​​ as indicators of profound changes that are taking place in how we humans see ourselves and our relationships with others. In these blogs I will be citing specific news stories with sufficient information for those who wish to follow-up and read the details can find them, but I will not provide links. As an American raised by parents who instilled in me the feeling of being as much a global citizen as an American citizen, I am well aware that many in the rest of the world view what is happening in this country with bemusement and bewilderment at how a country that styles itself as a world leader can be so backward when it comes to justice and human rights. Blogs in this series will tend to focus on what is happening in the U.S. for the very reason that signs of awakening here are noteworthy, though I will also note news from other countries that are leading the way in certain aspects of the growing awakening of the collective consensual reality.

Gender Identity and Relationship. A quiet revolution, led by many courageous individuals, has taken place globally in the last fifty years as the conventional notion of heterosexual male-female monogamous marriage as the socially accepted norm has given way to a marvelous diversity of ways in which individuals are able to identify themselves in terms of gender and sexuality and how they enter into relationship with others.  Since coming of age in the 1960s I have seen the gender identify rights movement expand from gays and lesbians to include bisexuals and transexuals and then expand further to include those who identify themselves as queer, intersex, and asexual: LGBTQIA+. Here is a selection of examples of how this issue has moved into the mainstream of the collective consensual reality:
  • The Time cover story on March 16, 2017 titled "He or She: How a new generation is redefining the meaning of gender" represents a milestone in bringing into the collective awareness how wide open the possibilities are for gender identity. The article was an eye-opener for me.  I didn't realize that Facebook had about 60 options for users to identify their gender at the time the story came out. I just now checked and the number is up to 71!
  • A somewhat earlier milestone was the U.S. Supreme Court ruling on June 26, 2015 making same-sex marriage legal in all 50 states, though from a global perspective the United States was slow in becoming one of the more than two-dozen countries that have recognized same-sex unions since the Netherlands was the first to do so in 2000.
  • On January 1, 2018 Iceland became the first country in the world to enact a law making it illegal to pay men more than women for the same work (New York Times "Iceland Makes Companies Prove They're Not Paying Women Less," January 3, 2018). With the momentum that is now underway for addressing gender inequalities globally I trust that it will take the United States less time to follow suit than the 15 years it took to legalize same-sex unions.
We are still in the relatively early stages of the first stage of shift, yet I find the positive changes that are taking place in the areas of gender and relationship reason for celebration.​​​​​​​

​​​​​​​In the meantime, the shift is happening. Hang in there. Stay grounded.

Blessings, Love and Light,

Russell


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