Appleton, WI – Over 50 outraged community members gathered outside the Outagamie County Courthouse on May 23 for a protest demanding accountability around Tim Hermes, a member of the Outagamie County Board of Supervisors. The event took aim at Hermes after recent transphobic comments he made during a board meeting became public. A look at his social media reveals a long history of bigotry and racism. The demand put forward was for Hermes's removal from office.

The action was organized by members of Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), Appleton Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), and a brand new group called Hate Free Outagamie (HFO). Others attended in support, such as faith-based organization ESTHER and Appleton Diverse and Resilient.

Chanting, “Trans rights are human rights!”, attendees proudly held signs advocating for equality and justice. The atmosphere was charged with a collective spirit, fueling the determination to create a more inclusive and welcoming Outagamie County. The rally saw impassioned speeches from activists, community leaders, and affected individuals, highlighting the urgent need for change.

Among those speaking was Jonnie Urban, an Appleton SDS member and local university student. Urban said after the rally that Hermes needed to be removed from office, stating, “He should resign because he is letting misinformation dictate his opinions and his beliefs, and that misinformation is harmful, if someone who has no respect for actual facts is in that position, they can't be trusted to make decisions that actually benefit what we here in Fox Valley need.”

The outpouring of support and passion was evident as over 30 protesters continued from the rally to pack the county board of supervisors meeting that followed to voice their demands directly to those in power. The board attempted to prevent the public from speaking on the issue on the grounds that it wasn't on the agenda, but that didn't stop organizers.

Jay Gibbs, an event organizer and FRSO member, tried to utilize the public comment time to call for Supervisor Tim Hermes' removal, but was shut down. Gibbs was overruled and subsequently escorted from the meeting by sheriff's deputies. The board chair stated that because Gibbs spoke on a non-agenda item, that speech was not permitted. However, the incident only served to galvanize the crowd further, as they refused to be silenced.

What followed was a remarkable display of grassroots activism. The protesters who remained in the room, undeterred by the expulsion, rallied together and effectively shut down the county board of supervisors meeting for nearly an hour. They voiced their demands for justice, chanted slogans and made it clear that their fight for equality would not be silenced or ignored.

In the aftermath of the meeting, the movement to remove Supervisor Tim Hermes from office gained even more momentum. Community members and activists vowed to continue the campaign until justice is served. The call for his removal is not only a response to his transphobic comments but also a larger push for the expansion of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in Outagamie County and in the city of Appleton.

The collective power demonstrated at the rally and the determination exhibited during the county board meeting serves as a reminder of the strength that lies within grassroots movements. This event has sparked a renewed sense of urgency in the fight for transgender rights and inclusive policies. As the campaign gains momentum, organizers and community members are rallying together, confident that their voices will be heard and demanding accountability from those in positions of power.

The battle against discrimination and bigotry is far from over.

#AppletonWI #transgender

Denver, CO – About 150 members of the trans community and their allies gathered at the Colorado State Capitol on Sunday, April 23 to protest the legislative attacks on transgender and gender non-conforming people across the country. Groups such as Denver-Aurora Community Action Committee (DACAC), Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), & Housekeys Action Network Denver (HAND) co-sponsored the event.

This protest was hosted by Rise Up Trans Rights Network, a Colorado-based network aiming to connect transgender and gender non-conforming individuals and allies who are prepared to organize direct actions when confronted with attacks. This protest was their first ever event, which consisted of various speakers from the trans community and a clothing swap to provide gender-affirming clothing to trans people in need.

The organizers of the protest had a wide range of demands, including the right of all transgender and gender non-conforming people to present freely and openly in public; access to gender affirming health care regardless of age; freedom from all forms of discrimination in housing, employment, healthcare and education; access to information about transgender identity, community, and history in institutions of public education; and access to legal identification documents that align with their true gender identity.

Organizer Ryan Stitzel of DACAC made the case for trans liberation taking the form of community control of police. “You’re already intimately aware of how much more likely it is for trans folks to encounter police in general, to experience police violence, or just to have police look the other way when they’re the victims of violent crimes. Many of you know all too well exactly who will be enforcing these horrific anti-trans laws, who will be the boots on the ground for the erasure of trans people in this country.”

There have been 469 bills introduced in 2023 all around the U.S attacking LGBTQ rights. This is already more than double the 180 such bills that were introduced during all of last year. Many of these explicitly target the rights of transgender people.

While Colorado’s LGBTQ community enjoys many rights and legal protections not seen in other states, such as hate crime laws based on gender identity and expression and legal protections for seeking abortion and gender-affirming care for both Colorado and out-of-state residents, violence against trans people in the form of poverty, homelessness, police brutality and right-wing reaction are commonplace.

In November 2022, Colorado was also the site of a mass shooting in Club Q, the only gay bar in Colorado Springs. Five people were murdered and 25 were injured.

As the event drew to a close, Faye Valentine Rise Up for Trans Rights and DACAC wrapped up the rally by saying, “The last few years have shown that rights that we take for granted can be taken away in an instant. Whether it’s through the actions of the federal government or through the actions of our own state government, we need to be ready to stand united to protect both our fellow trans people and ourselves.”

#DenverCO #transgender

New Orleans, LA – On December 11, people from Texas and Louisiana came together to discuss recent attacks on reproductive freedom and transgender rights. They held an in-person forum at the New Orleans First Unitarian Universalist Church, with virtual attendance through Zoom and social media.

Participants spoke out against the Supreme Court for validating the Texas abortion ban. Some speakers discussed their experiences rallying against the 15-week ban in Mississippi, which currently threatens the limited right to abortion established in Roe v. Wade. Finally, the forum connected these attacks to the transgender sports ban that passed in Texas. A nearly identical one failed in Louisiana earlier this year, after encountering a mass LGBT movement. Both the sports bans targeted trans and gender non-conforming kids in athletics.

Speakers pushed for solidarity between people seeking abortions and transgender community members. Both deserve the freedom to control their own bodies, and both are facing attacks from billionaire-backed evangelical ultraconservatives.

Louisiana speakers included Pearl Ricks of the Reproductive Justice Action Collective, Mar Ehrlich of Real Name Campaign NOLA, and Jessica Frankel of the Louisiana Coalition for Reproductive Freedom. Desarae Lindsey, a progressive member of the Texas Libertarian Party, spoke as well. Real Name Campaign organized the event.

#NewOrleansLA #WomensMovement #LGBTQ #transgender #abortion

Student organizations such as Students for a Democratic Society, the Pride Student Union, and Planned Parenthood Gen Action were at the event. Community organizations also had a presence, including the Florida Coalition for Transgender Liberation, the Tallahassee Community Action Committee, and others. Both students and community members called out the lack of action on FSU’s part in securing transgender-inclusive housing.

“We have no need for platitudes, we have no need for claims of allyship, what our coalition and initiative needs is action, plans and communication,” said Finley Talley from Gender Odyssey. Talley also pointed out the lack of diversity within FSU’s housing program among its leadership, and the low retention rate of the LGBTQ+ community and oppressed nationalities.

Others agreed that there hadn’t been much focus on FSU’s behalf concerning transgende-inclusive housing. Planned Parenthood Gen Action member Emma Moses said, “When I first heard about FSU’s treatment of trans students I was shocked and upset but honestly I wasn’t really surprised. We all know FSU has a history of ignoring marginalized students on their campus, and the problem is that this has been allowed to happen for far too long. FSU administration refuses to hear us. Students deserve better.”

In addition to creating a petition that outlines their specific demands of FSU housing, Gender Odyssey has created the @transatfloridastate Instagram account where transgender and gender nonconforming students can submit their stories and anonymously share experiences in FSU housing. Gender Odyssey says they will continue to organize for safe and inclusive campus housing until their demands are met.

#TallahasseeFL #PeoplesStruggles #transgender #TallahasseeSDS #GenderOdyssey

New Orleans, LA – On May 4, a coalition of Louisiana’s transgender community organizers extended a solidarity grant to activist sisters and siblings in Uganda. The gesture makes clear that trans and gender non-conforming (TGNC) people are standing together against coronavirus all around the world.

This solidarity is the opposite of ‘charity.’ The two groups struggle arm-in-arm against the same injustice.

The coronavirus crisis hits TGNC people harder than most, both in East Africa and the U.S. Deep South. TGNC people face high rates of poverty, especially Black, Latino, and indigenous trans people. Healthcare providers and employers discriminate against any TGNC person bold enough to be themselves. Trans community members often have to rely on sex work, a dangerous profession not eligible for government relief.

Twice in the past decade, Ugandan lawmakers have contemplated a “Kill the Gays” bill. It wasn’t passed, but it could have imposed the death penalty for gay sex. The Louisiana injustice system and police routinely target, arrest and imprison Black, Latinx and indigenous trans people. Louisiana prisons have nearly 100% coronavirus infection rates, so arrests mean murder. Already on the edge of survival, many more TGNC people now face lethal circumstances.

The TGNC Peoples COVID Crisis Fund of Louisiana fights back by providing cash assistance to marginalized community members. Five organizations take part in the Fund: the LGBTQ Task Force, Trans*Visible, the Trans March of Resilience, Louisiana Trans Advocates, and the Real Name Campaign. The coalition has also negotiated with landlords and spread awareness of TGNC struggles.

Trans Positives Uganda and Lady Mermaid’s Bureau have partnered to support trans sex workers in Uganda. In their words:

“We, the campaign team, are fundraising to secure the critical basics for Ugandan sex workers who are vulnerable and struggling during these strange and disorienting circumstances imposed on the world by COVID-19. Basics include: Food, medicines, rent support and sanitation. We are especially focused on supporting the low income female and trans sex workers in streets, brothels, bars and slums in the Kampala Capital area.”

From Louisiana to Uganda, leadership comes from the community and fights for the community.

In solidarity with both coalitions, please share and donate if you can:

TGNC People’s COVID Fund of Louisiana: https://www.gofundme.com/f/tgncLA

Trans Positives Uganda and Lady Mermaid’s Bureau: https://www.gofundme.com/f/kampalaswrelief

#NewOrleansLA #PeoplesStruggles #transgender #Uganda

This is undoubtedly a big win for transgender and non-binary people across the state and a huge rebuke to traditional thinking when it comes to transgender and non-binary individuals seeking surgery to help with gender dysphoria. Gender Dysphoria is a newer term defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders’ (DSM) fifth edition (2013) as the distress a person feels due to a mismatch between their gender identity and their assigned sex at birth.

However, the movement for transgender and non-binary rights in Wisconsin and across the country can’t rest on this victory alone. Insurance companies are still a major gatekeeper for transgender and non-binary people. The struggle to take back and grow comfortable with our bodies sometimes but not always requires surgery.

The definition of what is medically necessary has been changing at a rapid pace since the 1960s. The earliest research in modern medicine has created a system of understanding that we are still rolling back today. The advent of the Kinsey model ranking the “level” a person is transgender and the misclassification of transgender people in the 1980s DSM-III have created lasting damage. The DSM-IV (2000) and DSM-V (2013) have made progress toward undoing the wrongs of the earlier flawed research.

There has been a push nationally for healthcare providers and health insurance companies to follow the World Professional Association for Transgender Health (WPATH) Standards of Care (SOC) for the Health of Transsexual, Transgender, and Gender Nonconforming People. According to WPATH’s SOC the overarching treatment goal is “lasting personal comfort with the gendered self to maximize overall health, psychological well-being, and self-fulfillment.”

WPATH is a big proponent of the informed consent model. Medical providers are coming around to the idea of informed consent, which removes or diminishes the role of gatekeeping mental health professionals when considering hormone replacement therapy (HRT). It must be noted that it’s still important to discuss hormones and transition with a mental health provider before going on HRT. However, transgender people sometimes feel HRT is important for their gender congruence.

Despite this victory in Wisconsin, the issues of access to healthcare still remain. While we remove barriers to receive gender-confirming surgery, financial stability is a serious obstacle for those seeking surgery. Income inequality is a common reality for transgender and non-binary people. According to the American Psychological Association’s (APA) survey, transgender people are four times more likely to have a household of less than $10,000 per year compared to the general cisgender population. The APA also reports that 47% of transgender individuals have reported workplace discrimination in regards to hiring, firing and promotion. Another 25% have reported they had lost a job due to discrimination on the basis of their gender identity – two things which could easily be solved with raising the minimum wage and strengthening a worker’s right to organize a union.

Those who are lucky enough to have healthcare may still be subjected to a for-profit plan, which are prone to denying surgery. The private insurance market is still woefully behind on transgender and non-binary issues. Private for-profit insurances have been allowed to drag their feet on progress, relegating these surgeries to being fee-for-service. The laws mandating that insurance companies pay for these surgeries are subject to incredibly weak interpretation.

The movement in Wisconsin has taken a big step forward in creating a future for transgender and non-binary individuals to reclaim their bodies. Transgender and non-binary people are subject to much shame and humility on a daily basis. Victories that allow the reclaiming of our bodies are a fundamental step in our long term happiness. There still needs to be a major push to remove the for-profit healthcare model so we all can achieve adequate and necessary medical care.

#KenoshaWI #PeoplesStruggles #transgender #Medicaid

Minneapolis, MN – Over 5000 people from all across Minnesota lined Lake Street, from South Minneapolis to Saint Paul, October 28, to show solidarity with transgender, gender nonconforming and intersex people under attack by the Trump administration.

The action comes in response to a Department of Health and Human Services memo leaked by the New York Times which reaffirmed the administration’s aim to legally define gender as “a person’s status as male or female based on immutable biological traits identifiable by or before birth.” This definition, if adopted, not only erases any legal definition of “transgender,” but by narrowing the definition of “sex discrimination” to discrimination on the basis of biology, it endangers the rights of all trans, intersex and gender nonconforming people across the United States.

In an interview with Minnesota Public Radio, Hamline student and event organizer Andrew Weston outlined the core principles of the action. “You cannot erase us out of existence. You cannot intimidate us out of existence.” Weston added that they wanted to “let people know that we are here, we are seen. We will not be erased and we cannot be erased.”

All along the line, people expressed solidarity in their own ways. Some drew messages of support in chalk on the sidewalk. Unlawful Assembly, a marching band, moved up and down the sidewalk, bolstering spirits and leading chants, and a choir came out to sing songs of remembrance for those we have lost and of hope for our future.

Dozens of political, cultural, faith and health organizations officially supported the event, showed up and provided resources to aid the movement.

At a press conference held in front of the Third Precinct Police Department before the action, Cole Nicholls, of SDS-UMN and the MN Transgender Health Coalition pointed out the historical significance of the event’s location, stating, “We fought to free Cece McDonald, who, seven years ago, in the Cub parking lot across the street, was brutally assaulted by a man with a swastika on his chest. She was subsequently sentenced to 41 months in prison by our Hennepin County Attorney, Mike Freeman.”

Nicholls continued, “They say transphobia kills. It’s true. But it kills with hunger, with homelessness, with illness, with violence from bigots and johns and police, with the same weapons used by white supremacy, patriarchy and capitalism to kill people all across the world. To those who stand with us today, I ask you to stand with us not only in the struggle for our rights, but for rent control, for public housing, for free health care, for community control of police and for unionization. We are fighting not only against discrimination. We are fighting to survive and to thrive. We will not be erased. And when we unite with oppressed people across the world, we cannot be erased.”

#MinneapolisMN #InJusticeSystem #WomensMovement #US #PeoplesStruggles #transgender #TransLivesMatter #DonaldTrump #TitleIX

There were two speakers from SDS, and they reminded the crowd that trans women, especially trans women of color, are targets of transphobic violence and that 22 trans women have been killed so far this year. With Trump’s blatant attack on the trans community this week, as well as his previous attacks on trans individuals serving in the military, we can only expect these violent attacks to increase. An SDS member also called out the University of Utah and all universities to pledge to protect its trans students even if Title IV no longer does.

In addition to SDS speakers, there was a speaker from Utah Against Police Brutality and the Freedom Road Socialist Organization.

It is important to remember that police brutality targets trans individuals. The fight for equal rights and protections in this country for trans and non-binary people is the same fight for all oppressed people. We must continue to fight Trump’s policies and to fight with our trans siblings for their right to health care, housing, and equal protection under the law.

#SaltLakeCityUT #WomensMovement #LGBTQ #US #PeoplesStruggles #transgender #DonaldTrump #TransRights #WeExistWeResist

Signs present included, “You tried to bury us, you didn't know we were seeds,” and “Protect trans lives!” Chants that include “It’s our history don’t deny it, Stonewall was a trans riot” and “When trans people are under attack, what do we do? Stand up, fight back!”

Nell Gaither of Trans Pride Initiative highlighted the need for justice for trans people in various fields. “We’ve been active in calling for accountability in Dallas for seven years now,” she said, “But we need to do more, and that takes bodies being involved. We need to do more to call for accountability in homeless services that still deny trans persons access to shelter. We need to do more to call for accountability in healthcare services, where providers still deny trans persons access to basic care and the public provider sends us to a 'separate' clinic to cover up their continued systemic discrimination.”

Sydney Loving of North Texas Action Committee, an anti-police brutality group, discussed the problem of police violence against trans people and in particular against trans people of color.

The march headed out of the park east down Main Street, before looping back west on Elm and then heading up into the West End. It passed a large number of sidewalk cafes as well as the Rosa Parks Plaza bus stops and the West End train station.

#Dallas #LGBTQ #transgender #Trump #antitransgender

Minneapolis, MN – Steff Yorek, the Political Secretary of Freedom Road Socialist Organization, sharply condemned the Trump administration, October 22, for orchestrating attacks on the democratic rights of transgender people.

According to widespread media reports, officials in the Trump admiration are moving to alter Title IX rules to exclude transgender people for any legal protections.

“The reactionary and right-wing bigots of the Trump administration are preparing an attack on the democratic rights of transgender people. They are attempting to erase people’s existence, and roll back the framework for the scant legal protections that currently exist,” said Yorek.

This latest attack on transgender people comes in the context of a misogynist, anti-LGBTQ agenda that is being promoted by Trump and his followers.

#MinneapolisMN #WomensMovement #US #PeoplesStruggles #transgender #TransLivesMatter #DonaldTrump #TitleIX

Chelsea Manning is a hero of mine. Not because she’s Trans but because she sacrificed her freedom and exposed the uglier sides of the war on terror. She was deeply in the closet but very aware of her transness and despite this she exposed the crimes of the U.S. war machine knowing she could be arrested and imprisoned for the rest of her life in a men’s prison.

And when we talk about Chelsea Manning and her struggles I have to reflect on the wider dynamics of mental health issues in the LGBT communities and in the Trans community in gender non-conforming communities in particular.

In my own life, I've known four women who killed themselves three of them were Trans. Two years ago, when a prominent Trans activist, friend and former coworker took her own life I felt myself going into a deep depression. I was drinking to numb myself. I was eating to forget.

Nearing 50 years old I realized I had no higher education. I'm a climbing guide and part-time day laborer on a construction site. Being a climbing guide is cool but I'm hardly an exceptional one. I started climbing when I was 38 years old. Far past any kind of peak that your average climbers going to have. And the lack of testosterone in my body means I often find myself taking a long time to recover from injuries. I often times have a lower level of energy than I think I should at my age.

I now work two, sometimes three jobs, often six or seven days a week. I work three jobs to keep myself busy, keep myself distracted but also because I almost lost my apartment due to failure to pay taxes. The state threatened to seize my apartment and start foreclosure procedures unless I signed a contract that requires me to work day after day in heat and cold, through injury and exhaustion to pay my bills. I am not alone.

The threat of foreclosure. Suicides in my community. My taste for self-destructive behaviors nearly dragged me down to a place with no return. I thought, no one’s really going to miss me. I’ve tried my best; I’ve been out for nearly 30 years and I am bone tired. Maybe I can be done and just rest now. And I feel such shame that I struggle to hold my shit together. That I can’t take care of my basic needs. That because of past abuse, transphobia, violence trauma and PTSD I am still a fucking hot mess.

I came out in 1989. My coming out was layered. I came out as dyke. I came out as a woman of Trans experience and I came out as leftist. These identities were and are intertwined within me. The AIDS crisis. Attacks on abortion clinics. Homophobia and transphobia in my home and community. The racist murder of Black men like Yusef Hawkins in Bensonhurst Brooklyn. These weren’t abstract struggles that I latched onto as I adopted the identity of a Trans social justice warrior. I felt this was a vision of a new me as I expressed my corner gender identity.

It was hard. It was so scary and I felt so alone. I had lost my community. The blue collar south Brooklyn Irish Italian stoops and street corners family-owned bars and broken down parks I grew up in were gone for me. I was effectively homeless at times – without job skills, without an education.

I remember being at Brooklyn College's library in early 1990s trying to learn about the French Revolution, feminism and Trans stuff for the first time ever, and honestly, this was also the first time I was trying to read – like really read (which says some stuff about my class education background).

And that’s when I learned about transphobia in feminism and it was this new pain and sadness. Another weight dragging me down. Then coming out and meeting a young stone butch who'd already been to some regional East Coast lesbian folk events that barred Trans women. Then trying to find out if it was okay for me to go to Lesbian Avengers meetings or WHAM (Women's Health Action Mobilization) meetings or bookstores and parties and social events. In sum I didn’t know if I was allowed to go anywhere in a community I desperately wanted to be a part of.

So when we talk about TERFs [trans-exclusionary radical feminists] today we need understand how transphobia was and is woven into our legacies. We need to understand the role of transphobia in Second Wave feminism, in much of the new left, in much of the lesbian and gay community.

But it was also such an important time in our community’s struggles. In particular AIDS. And in 1991 there was an AIDS forum held in New York where there were doctors, intellectuals, political operatives, and members of the gay community who would come together to discuss the state of the AIDS crisis. We were ten years into the crisis and 150,000 gay men – well side note here, they weren't all gay men, many of them, tens of thousands of them were Trans women – died. This is undocumented, this is not in the history books, but this is a fact 150,000 had died, and hundreds of thousands more were affected.

And the president of the U.S. refused to utter the word AIDS in public. We were year 12 into the third presidential term of right-wing Christian fascist Republicans running the government. And we were deep in the AIDS crisis.

At this meeting people spoke with absolute seriousness about fundraising strategies, medical developments and voting the Republicans out of office. For sure. But despite the urgency that everyone in the room felt it wasn't until Larry Kramer, the founder of the Gay Men's Health Crisis and the AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power (ACT UP), spoke that I think it was clarified what was truly happening in America. Larry Kramer was the last speaker. After they announced his name he took a long pause, perhaps thinking of the 18 of his closest friends who had already died of AIDS.

And then he said, “Plague. We are in the middle of a fucking plague, 40 million infected people is a fucking plague, and nobody acts as if it is. Nobody in this hospital, nobody in this city, nobody in this world. 40 million people is a fucking plague. Nobody knows what to do next. Nobody knows what to do next.”

It's without a doubt that if it wasn't for the sacrifices of a generation of gay men who died of the AIDS crisis that we wouldn't be all sitting in this room today. It is without a doubt that if it wasn’t for the Trans women, cis women and men and Trans men who shut down Saint Patrick’s cathedral, broke into the FDA building and stole vital incriminating files, got arrested, protested, and staged die-ins that I would be here today.

All of the political activism that emerged in the 1990s and in the 2000s are rooted in the second wave of our modern Civil Rights Movement and that movement is fundamentally linked to our sexual liberation or need for healthcare and our willingness to put our bodies on the line and do whatever it takes direct up and to fight AIDS.

Today, in the first six months of 2018, more than ten Trans women have been murdered. Each year we mourn our dead in November on the Trans Day Of Remembrance. And it feels insufficient. Nobody knows what to do except mourn the dead.

It feels like we are still under siege and we are one Craig’s List date away from being dead. We are one Tinder date away from being dead. One paycheck away from being homeless. We are one more heartbreak away from breaking. Each year we lose so many to suicide, drug and alcohol abuse, depression and feeling lost and without love. I know these feelingss they often nip at me at night after I turn off the lights before I fall asleep.

After Chelsea Manning announced on Twitter that she was thinking of taking her own life, the Maryland police went to her home to do an alleged ‘wellness check.’ Four cops broke into her apartment, with their guns unholstered, in Bethesda, Maryland. Four cops. Guns drawn. Three of them were female officers. It’s on video. You can watch it. It is without a doubt that they were looking to kill her. Her freedom is a spit in the eye to imperialism and you can draw your own conclusions about the motivations of four Maryland police officers who are called to do a wellness check. What their values and morality are. Likely, it’s the same values as ICE separating families and disappearing immigrants. It’s the same ICE that killed Roxana Hernández, a Honduran Trans woman who died after five days in U.S. custody in facilities notorious for their freezing temperatures. Like the morality of the Supreme Court who side with the bigoted baker in Colorado. Let’s be clear – even Caitlyn Jenner now understands the stakes. But what do we do next?

And there is a through line of transphobia in our communities that needs to be understood. It leaves Trans women particularly, Trans women of color vulnerable to violence, unemployment, depression and drug addiction. And suicide. The LGBTQ communities are stratified by race and class. It’s not simply that cops and corporations march at Pride. It’s that across the U.S., in small towns and cities, our Trans communities are being left to fend for ourselves without any support save charity. Without any struggle except lighting a candle at a Trans Day of Remembreace event in November and without any love but a “you look fabulous” when we pass each other on the street. We need more. We need material support and survival institutions. We desperately need access to mental health care that is gender affirming. We need jobs and job training. And we need fighting organizations.

Our responses are going to be varied. There needs to be some trial and error. We need to stand together and we need to ready ourselves for what may be coming but we cannot throw out empathy and love for the entire LGBTQ community. We’ve been through so much. We have to take care of each other. Some of us are going to go all in on the midterm elections. Some may want to consider building the next ACT UP. I'm long past the point of suggesting that I know the answers to any of this but I really want to argue the fact that we need a multi-tactical approach to dealing with the crisis that we are facing today. And having a multi-tactical approach means not having all our eggs in one basket.

I don’t want to lose any more of my community. Thank you.

This article is a modified version of a speech given at the “State of Trans 2018” Kingston LGBTQ Center in Kingston, NY in early June.

#NewYork #NewYorkNY #LGBTQ #Editorials #queerLiberation #LGBTQRights #transgender #workingPoor

Opa Locka, FL – On April 28, 20 community members, students and family members gathered to honor the life of Chay Reed and called for an end to trans murders. The vigil was held on the street corner of NW 27th Avenue and 39th Street, the corner where Chay Reed, a 28-year-old Black trans woman, was murdered by an unidentified shooter on April 21. Nine Trans women of color have been murdered in 2017.

The event started with a moment silence for Chay Reed, as activists gathered around and lit candles. A lineup of speakers spoke on the high rates of unemployment, homelessness and discrimination faced by trans women. “We must do everything to protect our trans sisters and all women from the daily violence and harassment we face in this capitalist society,” said Nocturnus Libertus, an Opa Locka resident.

Organizers called for five main demands that they wanted to push from the city to the national level: a democratically elected Civilian Review Board to review hate crimes; an end to trans panic defense laws; inclusion of Gender Identity and Sexual orientation as a protected class in the Florida civil rights code; government-funded healthcare for trans women, and decriminalization of sex work and for unionization of sex workers.

“When trans women of color are making an average salary of $10,000 a year, have a low life expectancy of 35, and are unable to get jobs due to discrimination we must organize for the economic and social aspirations of trans women of color,” Said Meena Rani, a trans woman of color and speaker at the event.

The vigil ended with chants from the crowd of “Trans liberation now!” and “No justice, no peace.” Organizers hope to build off the event and build a sustainable movement against trans violence in Miami. “Until stories of trans murders are no longer in newspapers, I will fight for the health and safety of trans women and gender nonconforming people every single day,” said Kizzy Rock, the LGBTQ+ coordinator of Broward County public schools.

Before leaving, organizers left a memorial for Chay Reed. The vigil was organized by Students for a Democratic Society-FIU chapter (SDS), People’s Opposition to War, Imperialism, and Racism (POWIR), Autonomous Womyn’s Front (AWF), Miami Femmes Coalition, and Miami Grrrls.

A sister action was held in Jacksonville earlier that day by the Jacksonville Transgender Action Committee (JTAC) and organizers from Fort Lauderdale Food Not Bombs have planned a vigil for Friday May 5 at 7 p.m.

#OpaLockaFL #transgender #ChayReed

Asheville NC – Dozens of people came out to protest Governor Pat McCory’s bigotry law HB2, May 14. They gathered at Memorial Stadium and marched to a Town Mountain Mansion where McCory meets for an annual open house in Asheville.

“HB2 is one of the most asinine laws we have seen in this country since the Jim Crow,” remarked community activist Tiffany Wilkins. Not only does it criminalize trans people who use the restroom of their gender, it also broadly forbids any discrimination claims to be made at the state level and puts a cap on minimum wage at the state’s unlivable $7.25 per hour.

Over 50 people gathered outside of the mansion carrying signs and chanting things such as, “No hate in our state!” and “When civil rights are under attack, what do we do? Stand up fight back!”

Meanwhile a dozen more protesters went inside to confront McCory and the local county commissioners about the hate law, many wearing shirts saying “This is what trans look like.” Gabe, a local transgendered high schooler at Asheville High came personally to tell McCory how sacred he is and hard it is for him being forced legally to use the woman’s restroom.

McCory quickly left, leaving his Republican county commissioner to take the heat about the oppressive law. Mike Fryar, a Buncombe County commissioner “assured” protesters he understood their outrage, because he too experienced oppression from being bald. When an activist from the crowd challenged him that he would never be asked to not eat in a restaurant or refused service for his baldness he responded, “I think that if we just stop talking about the issue people won’t find it one.”

An activist from Black Lives Matter said to this, “You are asking me not to take part in the democratic process of the United States and to just be silent?”

But if Pat McCory thinks he can silence the people he has another thing coming. Citizens are outraged. “In one fell swoop they back tracked us 40 years of progress,” local teacher Melissa Buchanan said. But people are not just sitting back watching. Protests with hundreds of participants have spread like wildfire across North Carolina, from the Raleigh, to Charlotte, and even little towns like Hendersonville, people are standing up for civil rights saying, ‘This is not us!’”

Governor Pat McCory and his republican henchmen shoved HB2 down the throats of the people of North Carolina. Hundreds of protesters have been arrested. Most recently over 50 were arrested staging sit-ins at Raleigh’s capitol building and for refusing to leave House Speaker Tim Moore’s office.

This bill criminalizes and further marginalizes the trans community, it take away what fragile protection they had previously under the law. The Federal Department of Justice has declared that HB2 violates the Civil Rights Act and has given the North Carolina state government an ultimatum: change course or lose federal funding to the state’s public institutions.

We need to keep organizing and fight for equality. It was not about water fountains then and it is not about bathrooms now.

#AshevilleNC #transgender #HB2 #GovernorPatMcCory

The Transgender Liberation Front, as well as affiliate groups such as Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), waged a campaign against this bill. Activists attended every hearing on the bill and held press conferences, speak-outs and rallies to voice opposition against HB 583. Students and community members swiftly built a movement against the transphobic Republican politicians pushing the hateful bill.

The bill would be disastrous for transgender people in Florida. “We already face such high rates of unemployment, poverty and homelessness. We don’t need more trans people in prisons, we need liberation,” said Katherine Draken, president of Students for a Democratic Society in Tallahassee.

Despite growing opposition from groups across the state, such as Equality Florida, HB 583 managed to get through two subcommittees. First it passed the Civil Justice Subcommittee, and then the Government Operations Subcommittee. However, it failed to pass through the Judiciary Committee, which is necessary for it to pass through to the House of Representatives. The Senate’s version of the bill, SB 1464, was scheduled for the Criminal Justice committee but was never heard, ending the ‘Bathroom Bill’ threat.

“This isn't over,” said Naomi Bradley, one of the leading organizers of the Transgender Liberation Front. “While this bill may be dead, there's no reason to believe similar bills might not be on the way. Transmisogyny is a larger problem than just Frank Artiles and his virulent hate bill. Transmisogyny is a wide, all-encompassing problem that we must continue to stand against until transgender liberation is absolute.”

There is indeed a possibility that this bill or similar bills will be brought up again next year. All bills discussed during previous sessions will be archived and can be reintroduced next session. If the bill is brought up again, Transgender Liberation Front states it will fight this bill and any other transphobic bills that the Florida Legislature has in store. In the meanwhile TLF will continue to fight systematic transphobia.

“While we are glad to see that this transphobic bathroom bill is dead, we must realize Transgender liberation goes beyond our right to pee freely,” said Shivaani Ehsaan, with the Transgender Liberation Front.

Ehsaan continues, “We hope to take action and address issues of unemployment, discrimination, lack of access to critical medical care, as well as the rampant homelessness that plagues Transgender communities around the world. We want an end to brutal trans misogynistic murders that occur every 29 hours.”

#TallahasseeFL #PeoplesStruggles #LGBTQRights #transgender #Florida

Organizers with Trans Lives Matter Tallahassee started the rally chanting, “We just wanna pee, end trans misogyny,” and “Trans lives mean, we got to fight back.” Organizers then held a moment of silence for the 11 Trans folk that have lost their lives since the beginning of 2015.

After the moment of silence, each speaker addressed how this would affect their daily lives and expressed their anger over the lack of attention those in power pay to Transgender issues. Burr Wilderbaby from Trans Lives Matter Tallahassee said, “It is imperative that we continue to fight for justice in all its facets, including the basic human right to release our bodily fluids in facilities that match our gender identities without fear of imprisonment, outrageous financial repercussions, emotional and bodily harm, or death.”

After impassioned speeches, the group marched into the capitol building to deliver a letter to Florida Governor Rick Scott. The letter called for Scott to stand with Trans Lives Matter and to veto the bill if it were to come to his desk. The protesters welcomed hundred of lobbyists and other attendees on the first day of session by collectively reading the letter out loud using a mic check. The group then marched into Governor Scott’s office to deliver the letter and to demand a meeting on the bill. The group was upset to hear that they were refused a meeting with the governor.

”We rallied today so that our voices could be heard. Even if the men in power didn't care what we had to say, the Trans people of Tallahassee now know that someone has got their back,” said Naomi Bradley from Trans Lives Matter Tallahassee.

“Every day Trans people everywhere face ridiculous amount of violence and transphobia while doing even basic things like using the bathroom and this bill will only increase that violence and put the law on the side of transphobes,” said Katherine Draken from Students for a Democratic Society.

On March 4, the House Civil Justice Subcommittee met to vote on the bill. Organizers spoke in front of the Civil Justice Subcommittee to voice their opposition to bill. Civil Justice Subcommittee passed the bill with a 9-4 vote. The bill now must go through two more committees before it goes to the house floor.

“Today’s passage in the committee has shown us that legislators care more about the most powerful in this society, rather than those who are the most oppressed and vulnerable amongst us. It is disgusting that more time was spent on how this would costs businesses and Fortune 500 companies extra money, than the fact that this would cost Transgender women their safety and livelihood,” said Shivaani Ehsaan in front of the Civil Justice Subcommittee.

Trans Lives Matter Tallahassee members were kicked out of the committee room for chanting, “Trans lives matter” when the bill was voted up. Organizers promised to continue to protest until the bill is stopped.

#TallahasseeFL #transgender #Florida #TransLivesMatter

“Trans oppression is a struggle faced all over the world, from the millions of Indian transgender people who face massive unemployment, homelessness, rape and torture, to the 40% of American trans people who attempt suicide each year. We must smash trans oppression to achieve true liberation,” said a transgender woman who spoke at the event.

Regina Joseph of Dream Defenders addressed the crowd, “Trans people, especially those of color, are more likely to be attacked by the police. We must come together to smash all systems of oppression because our liberation is linked together.”

“Every day trans people are violently oppressed simply for being who they are and we need to radically change society’s views of gender if we want trans liberation,” said Katherine Draken from Students for a Democratic Society (SDS).

The event educated people about the murder of Jennifer Laude by a U.S. Marine at Subic Bay in the Philippines. Laude’s murder falls under the U.S. Military’s Visiting Forces Agreement, so the Philippine government has little to no say in prosecuting the U.S. Marine. U.S. Marine Joseph Pemberton committed a hate crime when he choked Jennifer Laude to death for being transgender. The U.S. conducts aggressive war games and oversees a counter-insurgency war against Filipino revolutionaries, so U.S. forces are given special treatment for their crimes.

The recent suicide death of teenager Leelah Alcorn in Cincinnati, Ohio, after her parents attempt to force her into ‘conversion’ therapy, is inspiring protests and vigils as well.

Student organizers and many around the country hope that recent incidents will launch a new struggle for transgender rights. Protest movements from the Philippines and India are inspiring activists in other parts of the world, including the U.S.

The Center for Participant Education, Dream Defenders, Students for a Democratic Society and The F-Word called the vigil to speak out for transgender liberation.

#TallahasseFL #TallahasseeFL #StudentMovement #StudentsForADemocraticSociety #transgender #DreamDefenders #TransLivesMatter

Fight Back News Service is circulating the following press statement by GABRIELA USA, a grassroots-based alliance of progressive Filipino women's organizations in the United States:

Filipina-American women under GABRIELA USA are outraged by the news of the murder of Jennifer Laude, a 26-year old transgender woman from the Philippines. The suspected murderer, U.S. Marine Corp PFC Joseph Scott Pemberton, was last seen checking into a hotel with Jennifer in Olongapo City, Philippines. Jennifer was later found strangled to death with her head plunged in a toilet bowl. Reminiscent of Lance Corporal Daniel Smith and the historic 2005 rape case of Nicole, Pemberton, suspected of murdering Jennifer, is currently being held in detention aboard a U.S. Navy ship instead of being turned over to Philippine authorities for proper investigation. GABRIELA USA demands accountability and justice for Jennifer’s life, as a trans woman who has fallen victim to U.S. militarization!

“Jennifer’s death is not only a direct impact of U.S. military presence in the Philippines, but her brutal murder further exposes the daily vulnerability of trans women who regularly suffer systemic violence and hate crimes in a patriarchal-imperialist system,” says Pia Cortez, Co-Chairperson of GABRIELA’s San Francisco chapter.

Despite the long history of Filipinos opposing U.S. military occupation in the Philippines and the ever-increasing number of state-sponsored human rights abuses tied to U.S. military occupation, President Aquino continues to hand over Philippine sovereignty by allowing more U.S. troops to occupy Philippine soil through the Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) and the recent Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA). At a time when the Obama administration is heightening its position over the Asia Pacific region, more U.S. troops can only mean more cases of violence against women and children.

“Trans women like Jennifer are at a higher risk for violence because we live in a system that delegitimizes their lives,” says Irma Bajar of GABRIELA USA. “Just this summer in the U.S., 8 trans women of color fell victim to hate crimes and murders. Although there is an increase in violence towards trans people worldwide, little is ever done to protect their lives and hold perpetrators accountable. The murder of Jennifer is clearly a hate crime committed by U.S. military personnel, and he must be held accountable by the Philippine justice system!”

GABRIELA USA extends its sympathies to Jennifer’s family, and honors the lives of all trans people who have fallen victim to a system that does not value trans lives and perpetuates a culture of violence. GABRIELA USA will be holding an action in New York and a vigil in San Francisco this Wednesday, October 15th to condemn the murder of Jennifer Laude, and demand for the swift turnover of the U.S. Marine to Philippine authorities.

Justice for Jennifer Laude!

Trans Lives Matter!

U.S. Troops OUT of the Philippines!

JUNK THE VFA!

Scrap EDCA!

Join us to Demand Justice for Jennifer in New York and San Francisco:

New York Wednesday, October 15th, 5 PM

Action and Rally in front of the Philippine Embassy

556 Fifth Avenue, New York

Organized by: BAYAN Queer Caucus, GABRIELA New York, and Barangay New York- LGBTQ Pin@ys

San Francisco Wednesday, October 15th, evening vigil

Time and SF location TBA and posted on www.gabusa.org

Organized by: GABRIELA San Francisco and BAYAN Bay Area Regional Caucus

#Philippines #VisitingForcesAgreement #transgender #Gabriela #USMarineCorpPFCJosephScottPemberton #JenniferLaude #Asia

During the meeting, Freeman cited his office's three-hour staff training in 2010 and a lesbian employee to demonstrate his awareness of the issues facing LGBTQ people. Supporters cited a petition with over 14,500 signatures and letters from over 35 local and national organizations, including the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the National Coalition of Anti-violence Programs, and Outfront Minnesota, to demonstrate the international concern over his ongoing prosecution of McDonald.

Freeman's letter made special note of his office's longstanding relationship with LGBT organization Outfront Minnesota. Cheré Suzette Bergeron, who attended today's meeting as Outfront Minnesota's Anti-Violence Program Coordinator, told Freeman, “It is deeply troubling that you have not responded to our letter asking why charges are being pressed in this case when they have been dropped in similar cases,” and reiterated Outfront Minnesota's concern over Freeman's treatment of McDonald.

Freeman was adamant that gender, race, sexual orientation and class do not play into his prosecution decisions. Supporters repeatedly stated that these factors have been at play in every moment of CeCe's case, from the initial attack she experienced through her arrest and current incarceration. Lex Horan, a Support Committee member stated, “Freeman described the incident as a neutral conflict between two groups of people in the street. He refuses to acknowledge that CeCe was attacked because of her race and gender. Claiming colorblindness in this case doesn't make Freeman objective; it makes him ignorant of the reality facing transgender women of color.”

In a letter to Freeman, the National Coalition of Anti-violence Programs noted that they have responded to three murders of transgender women in April alone. McDonald supporter Billy Navarro Jr. made note of this statistic and said, “So many transgender women of color are attacked and violently killed. In this case, CeCe is basically being prosecuted for surviving.”

Rai’vyn Cross, McDonald's sister, closed the 30-minute meeting by saying, “We're not going to get justice.” Indeed, Freeman himself had acknowledged earlier in the meeting, “The criminal justice system is not built for, nor is it good at, solving a lot of society's problems.” Support Committee members agreed with this assessment of the criminal legal system, but contended that prosecuting McDonald condones violence against transgender women of color and makes problems plaguing society, including racism, sexism and transphobia, worse.

McDonald was scheduled to have a pretrial evidentiary hearing April 24, at 9 a.m. About 40 of McDonald's supporters arrived to demonstrate their support in the courtroom. However, the hearing was continued. McDonald's trial is scheduled to begin Monday, April 30.

#MinneapolisMN #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #CeCeMcDonald #transgender #HennepinCountyAttorneyMichaelFreeman

Community members from the Trans Youth Support Network, Minnesota Transgender Health Coalition, OutFront Minnesota and Communities United against Police Brutality joined together chanting, “If CeCe don’t get no justice, you don’t get no peace!” The rally is one of a number of actions highlighting Freeman’s implicit support of white supremacy by prosecuting McDonald for murder after she was the target of a racist, transphobic attack by a group of white adults outside of Schooner Tavern on Lake Street. earlier this year. One of the attackers, Dean Schmitz, had a swastika tattoo on his chest and died as the result of a stab wound inflicted during the attack.

Michelle Gross, president of Communities United Against Police Brutality (CUAPB), a local anti-police brutality advocacy and support group, told McDonald’s supporters: “We at CUAPB come to the Government Center for court watch regularly, and the vast majority of defendants are people of color and low-income people. CeCe’s case is the crystallization of everything that’s wrong with the so-called ‘justice system.’ But even though the deck is stacked against CeCe, us being down here makes a huge difference: it’s the only way that CeCe’s going to see justice. We need to keep reminding Freeman that we’re here, and we’re not going anywhere until he drops the charges.” CUAPB is one of many organizations from around the metro area and nation that have voiced support for McDonald as she continues to fight back against the retaliatory prosecution led by Freeman's office.

During the rally, supporters held posters and a large banner showing their support for McDonald, heard speeches by Gross and Lex Horan from the Support CeCe McDonald Committee, and chanted loudly to let Freeman know that community pressure will not let up on his office until he drops the charges against McDonald. After supporters began chanting, two representatives of Freeman’s office – Marlene Senechal, the Managing Attorney in the Adult Prosecution Division and Ashley Schweitzer, the Community Relations and Social Media Representative – came out to talk with the crowd. They listened to supporters concerns and promised to contact them with Freeman’s responses.

Supporters have planned a call-in day for Nov. 22 so that supporters nationwide can demand justice in McDonald’s case from Freeman’s office. The call-in campaign comes on the same day as a 3:00 p.m. hearing on McDonald's case in Room 1357 in the Government Center.

Visit http://supportcece.wordpress.com or email mpls4cece@gmail.com for more information.

#MinneapolisMN #LGBTQ #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #CeCeMcDonald #transgender #TransYouthSupportNetwork #CommunitiesUnitedAgainstPoliceBrutality

Rejecting the prosecution’s assertion that Ms. McDonald poses a threat to the community, Judge Daniel C. Moreno ordered her bail lowered from $150,000 to $75,000, a fraction of the $500,000 the prosecution originally sought.

Chrishaun McDonald is a young, African-American, transgender woman who was attacked by a group of white adults while walking by the Schooner Tavern on Lake Street in South Minneapolis. The attack occurred early on the morning of June 5, 2011. As Ms. McDonald and her friends walked past the bar on their way to Cub Foods, patrons of the bar attacked them with transphobic and racist slurs and bashed Ms. McDonald’s face with a glass beer mug, puncturing her cheek all the way through and lacerating her salivary gland. Although Ms. McDonald was the target of a hate crime; she was singled out and charged with second degree murder after one of the attackers died as a result of injuries sustained in the ensuing fight.

The bail reduction comes on the heels of Ms. McDonald’s release from solitary confinement last Wednesday. Ms. McDonald spent the first month after her arrest in solitary confinement against her wishes, although jail officials claimed that the classification was for her own protection as a transgender woman. On Sept. 15 she was returned to solitary confinement, with no explanation offered by the jail. After several days of phone calls to the jail from supporters, Ms. McDonald was returned to the psychiatric ward on Sept. 21. Ms. McDonald has consistently stated that she feels safer housed with other people, though she continues to be held in the male unit despite having repeatedly asserted her desire to be housed with other women.

Ms. McDonald’s supporters have drawn connections between her case and broader patterns of violence and discrimination that transgender women of color face at disproportionate rates. According to a Sept. 18 article on Truth-Out.org, “A recent report by the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs found that 50% of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) murders in 2009 and 44% of LGBT murders in 2010 were of [transgender women](http://www.avp.org/documents/NCAVPHateViolenceReport2011Finaledjlfinaledits.pdf).”

Since Ms. McDonald’s arrest, her family has experienced repeated harassment from people connected with Dean Schmitz. They have received threatening phone calls and have been harassed in public by people they recognized from the scene of the attack on Ms. McDonald. In one incident they had bottles thrown at them and a car followed them down the street, its passengers yelling racial slurs and telling them to “go back to Africa.”

Though DNA evidence is due back in December, Ms. McDonald’s trial isn’t scheduled to begin until Jan. 9 of next year; no other hearings are currently scheduled.

In the coming months, supporters say they will continue to fundraise for McDonald’s bail fund and generate publicity around her case. They have vowed to rally and pack the courtroom again on Jan. 9, to demand that the charges against Ms. McDonald be dropped.

Visit [http://supportcece.wordpress.com/](http://supportcece.wordpress.com) or email [mpls4cece@gmail.com](mailto:mpls4cece@gmail.com) for more information about the case and support campaign, or find supporters on Facebook at [http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002567181562](http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100002567181562).

#MinneapolisMN #LGBTQ #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #CeCeMcDonald #transgender