We Are People

Trinity Neal wanted this picture to be shown to remind you of something she wants to get out there as we go into this Independence Day weekend and beyond  

And when my beautiful little girl like us sis asks, I'm happily going to do so.

It's a simple message, but one that needs to repeated from now through the upcoming Texas Legislature Special Oppression Session starting on the 18th and beyond.

We are people.

Some of y'all have forgotten that simple fact that trans people are people.  We have 15 people that we have lost to anti-trans violence, a videotaped assault on a trans woman in Newark, NJ and Republicans at all levels of government gleefully peddling anti trans hatred and bigotry that are emphatic examples of society forgetting the fact that trans people are people.

15 names so far this year we've had to say this year and memorialize, and we are just halfway through 2017 as of today  

And of more infuriating importance to me, 13 of those 15 people share mine and Trinity's ethnic heritage, all of them are women of color (13 Black, 1 Latina, 1 Native American ) and 12 of the 15 are under age 40.

We are people.

We transpeople bleed the same red blood you do.  We are undeniably part of the diverse mosaic of human life on Planet Earth.   All we want is our humanity and human rights be respected and protected under the laws of the nations that we inhabit.

All our transkids want is the opportunity to go to school, get good grades, make friends, and not be harassed by school administrators or ignorant adults.

We are people 

Simple message.  Too bad some folks on this planet are too hateful and transphobic to understand and get it though their thick skulls that people includes trans people, too

And our lives matter as much as you presume your cis one does.