Black Transpeople Are Tired Of The Erasure, Too

I think there is a reason there is a separate growing Trans movement that exists outside of the LGBT and that's because it has to just to get anywhere. Transgender people (especially trans women) are highly under represented in LGBT orgs. This means their opinions are often not heard nor are they involved in decisions that directly affect them.

Jayna L-Pavlin May 30, 2010

I found this comment interesting in Jayna's post, because it mirrors exactly what we trans people of color have been saying for decades about the white dominated trans movement.

The frustration of African descended transpeople is growing. We are beautiful, intelligent people who demand and deserve an opportunity to use our talents to get paid fairly, control our destiny and contribute to our society.

That is why you're probably going to see in this decade more activity initiated by African descended trans people. We are not listened to by the white dominated trans movement and are not represented in the senior leadership of trans organizations.

Our issues and concerns are not reflected in or brought up neither in the policy initiatives drafted by these organizations or discussed in the general GL community discourse.

The racism within the trans community has not been acknowledged nor has sustained work been done to eradicate it.

Since we have attempted for two decades to work in partnership with the white trans community and gotten nowhere, it's time to heed the words of the late Kwame Toure.

'In order to participate in the greater society, we must first close ranks.'

Closing ranks means following the example of our parents, grandparents and great grandparents and following the principles of Black leadership to do things for ourselves.

If it calls for us to form our own independent organizations, and having our own dedicated conventions, we need to get busy doing so.

Compiling our history to counteract the whitewashing of trans people of color our of the general trans narrative of the last half century? Check.

Determining our own political destiny? Right on!

Encouraging more African descended trans people of color to come out, tell their stories, and work with our African-American cis brothers and sisters? Past time for that to happen.

If it scares white transpeople to hear that, well, you've had two decades to correct the problem. How much longer should we wait for y'all to do the right thing when it's our people and our Latina sisters who are taking the brunt of the anti-trans violence casualties, but are not even close to being represented in the leadership ranks of this community in significant numbers?

Much discussion needs to happen internally in the African American trans community about a unified program and strategy for doing so. We also need to be putting together a long term strategic vision of where we wish to see the African descended trans community ten, twenty, and fifty years from now.

One thing I'm certain all African descended trans people can say at this point is that the current situation isn't good enough.

We're not letting our own community off the hook either. The same thing needs to be forcefully said to mainstream and SGL African-American orgs.

The current status quo is not acceptable and we're beyond sick and tired of being sick and tired of the erasure on one level and the faith based Hateraid leveled at us on the other.

I am happy to see African descended transmen and transwomen of all ages stepping up, increasingly saying they're tired of the bull feces, and articulating with an increasingly loud voice that we want a meaningful role and voice in trans community affairs that goes beyond tokenism and denigration of our human rights.