Tuesday we discussed the beating of a 14 year old transgender student at East Side High in Newark. It was captured on cell phone video and seven students were suspended in the incident.

I think they should throw the book at the students who committed the violence and also dish out harsh punishment for the idiots who thought it was more important to capture the beating on video than to help.

We see it often in society today, when someone is in trouble or being attacked, people stand around to get it on video rather than assist their fellow human being or go get help. Amazing to me.

The transgender student is Kylie Perez and she has displayed more courage and strength through this ordeal than most of us would in a similar situation. She says she is looking forward to getting back to school.

We took calls about people in New Jersey and their relationships with people who are transgender. One call in particular stood out, Liz from Woodbridge, telling the story of how her father came out as transgender.

Liz's father was married to her mother for 35 years until they got a divorce a few years ago, followed by her father calling her to tell her that he's always felt like a woman on the inside. She said it was "shocking" at the time, especially growing up in a very strict household.

Liz admits that she was angry for a long time and at first, "couldn't even look at her own father." She also admits she was afraid to bring it up to her husband, who considers her father as a role model, but was surprised when her husband said "What's the big deal?" She praised her husband's support, saying she "never could have done this without him."

At the end of the day, Liz's story is one that I haven't heard before, but I'm sure many people who have brushes with transgender people can relate to. I give a lot of credit to Liz for coming on the air to tell such a personal story.

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Dennis & Judi are on the air weekdays from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tweet them @DennisandJudi or @NJ1015.

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