• ELIXHER
• On August 29, 2014

Trans Progress Needed at Both Atlanta Pride Fests

When asked my take on the juxtaposition of being an African-American transgender woman, Black Pride Weekend and living in Atlanta, my mind has a tendency to bounce all over like a ball in a pinball machine, considering all the aspects and possibilities of what I could say. Here I’ll try to organize them into a cohesive, chronological order that will make sense.

When I think of Pride, and not necessarily the Black one, I can’t help but look back to the Stonewall Rebellion, and I’m proud of the trans women of color, like Sylvia Rivera and Miss Major, who were instrumental in that action, and I’m proud to think we were a part of that catalytic event for change. Even so, it pains me to think of how our transgender voice and visibility in the intervening years faded into the background and very nearly disappeared.

But with the ascendance of Gay Prides nationwide, the transgender community as a whole, even though basically relegated to the entertainment segment of the community by and large, tagged along in what has been generally considered a “GAY rights” movement—let’s be real here—and carved out a more open place for ourselves in the community at large.

Continue reading at The Georgia Voice.

‘These Murders Are A Steady Drumbeat’: A Year After Trans NYC Murder, Community On Edge

It’s been a year since Dolores Nettles rushed to the hospital and listened to her daughter’s heart beat for the last time. Since then, she has been waiting for the results of an investigation into her daughter’s death. Police say they’re on the case, but Nettles is skeptical. “What’s taking so long?” she asked. “I’m not really understanding what’s really going on.”

Nettles is the mother of Islan, the transgender woman who died on Aug. 17, 2013, after a group of men allegedly fought with her outside a police precinct in Harlem, a New York City neighborhood. The police initially brought assault charges against Paris Wilson, who allegedly delivered the blows that would eventually kill her. But authorities later dropped the charges, saying they intended to pursue the case as a homicide investigation.

More over at the Huffington Post.

Local Government Isn’t the Most Welcoming Place for LGBT Politicians, But It Can Be One of the Most Effective

Over the past few years in LGBT politics, “expand the map” has almost exclusively meant one thing: increase the number of states with LGBT-friendly policies. That usually means marriage equality, but protecting people from workplace and housing discrimination have had their moments as well. On August 12, the Gay and Lesbian Victory Fund began a campaign to expand the map in a different way—specifically, increase the number of LGBT representatives in state legislatures.

Four states that currently lack LGBT representatives (Arkansas, Idaho, Kentucky, and Michigan) have had LGBT reps in the past. Although few in number, they were typically legislative movers-and-shakers while in office—or have been since leaving it. Among former representatives, Ernesto Scorsone was one of the founders of Kentucky educational nonprofit Just Fund KY; Kathy Webb is now executive director of the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance; Chris Kolb is president of the Michigan Environmental Council; and Nicole LeFavour has been leading the protest group Add the Words, Idaho. What’s clear is that LGBT representatives tend to get involved in community efforts in the private sector, usually around issues that got them elected in the first place.

Read more at dot429.