HRC Deja Vu At SCC 2014?

When I was on a New York vacation in May 2000, I had a chat with a wise trans Latina that lasted so long, I ended up spending the night at her Brooklyn crib before I headed back to Yonkers where I was staying the next morning.  

She gave me not only the chapter and verse history about what had transpired with transpeeps since Stonewall, she also gave me some advice about what GL organizations were a help and a hindrance to the trans liberation struggle.  She also gave me some advice about one of those GL orgs that I have followed to this day.

So who was that wise trans Latina giving a neophyte TransGriot the advice?   None other than the late Sylvia Rivera.  And what organizations did she advise me to never trust?  HRC. 

My memories of that Transy House conversation with Sylvia got triggered again because of some interesting news I heard yesterday afternoon. 

When the Southern Comfort Conference kicks off in suburban Atlanta September 3-7, one of their three keynote speakers will be none other than HRC President Chad Griffin.  The other 2014 SCC keynoters will be Christina Kahrl and Jamison Green.

Have mad love for both Christina and Jamison.   They will make wonderful SCC keynote speakers and I met Jamison during the  2000 SCC event. 

But before being advised of the jawdropping news that Griffin was going to be one of the keynoters this year, my attention was focused on another missed opportunity by SCC to lift up the work of ATL area trans POC leaders.

What's up with that SCC?   You have Dee Dee Chamblee, Cheryl Courtney-Evans, Tracee McDaniel, Xochitl Bervera, BT and several other prominent trans POC's in your Georgia backyard, and yet you've missed another opportunity to highlight their work.

That oversight led me to once again recall the words an African-American SCC attendee I chatted with during my last SCC visit in 2004. "SCC is definitely Southern and not very comfortable."

That missed opportunity is why Black Trans Advocacy Conference in Dallas on April 27-May 3, 2015, the Philadelphia Trans Health Conference and the upcoming Transgender Faith And Action Network conference in Charlotte August 29-31 continue to exist, grow, and draw diverse crowds . 
 
But back to the news that after a seven year absence, an HRC president will speak at the Southern Comfort Conference. 

The last SCC appearance in 2007 saw then HRC president Joe Solmonese misspeaking lying at the then largest trans conference on the planet about his organization's support of a trans inclusive ENDA and stating they would oppose a non-trans inclusive one.  At that 2007 Solmonese SCC speech they collected $20K in T-bills from the suckers transfolks in the room that went out of our community and straight to HRC bank accounts, then reneged on that promise. .

We got cut by former Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) out of a transgender inclusive ENDA as HRC sat in mute silence about it, then as the rest of the LGB community was coalescing along with a majorly upset trans community behind the United ENDA effort, threw transpeeps under the civil rights bus and supported the trans-free ENDA.

When Griffin does speak at SCC next month, I hope my white trans sisters and trans brothers don't fall for the HRC okey doke again and are smart enough to keep their checkbooks and debit cards in their purses and wallets until they see what HRC is selling.

We'll see in three weeks if my white trans brothers and transsisters remember their 2007 SCC history lesson and proceed accordingly.

I will also be paying attention along with much of Trans World to that speech.  I'm curious about what Griffin has to say just in case he and his org are serious about forging a new path with the trans community. 

This will be a pivotal speech for HRC.  Depending on what happens after it is delivered, it will either start HRC on the road to redemption in the trans community or if handled badly as they are prone to do, set back their efforts to overcome their negative trans oppressor past another generation.  

SNaP Coalition Statement On ATL MARTA Trans Hate Attack

Solutions Not Punishment is a broad based coalition in the City of Atlanta with close to a hundred organizational and individual members.

The Coalition is anchored by the Racial Justice Action Center, La Gender and (Trans)forming and works to build the power of people targeted and profiled by the Atlanta Police Department – especially Trans* and gender non conforming people of color, current and former street level sex workers, and formerly incarcerated people.   SNaP Co works to transform the city into a vibrant, inclusive Atlanta that ensures the safety of, and holistically meets the needs of all the city’s stakeholders and residents.

They issued a statement concerning the recent arrests of Luther Thomas and Frederick Missick in the ugly May 20 MARTA anti-trans hate attacks on Janell Crosby and Tyra Woods.

Here's a taste of SNaP Coalition's statement: :

Trans people of color suffer as much harassment and abuse at the hands of the police and inside our jails as we do on the streets or on the train. It is too easy for the City of Atlanta and MARTA to say they have solved this issue by arresting and prosecuting the men who initiated this attack. But let’s be real - that actually will not make us safer. The City should model treating trans people with respect and dignity by first ending the abuse perpetrated by their own police department. The trans community needs jobs, housing, health care and to be treated with respect by the police department - the city can take leadership in these matters. - Solution NOT Punishment Coalition

The City of Atlanta should be deeply disturbed by the acts of harassment and violence endured by trans* women both at the hands of the Atlanta Police Department and by the general public on trains, buses, and on the streets. Our lives matter, trans* lives matter and we will no longer be silent or swept aside. Enough is Enough!
Solutions Not Punishment Coalition will be hosting a June 3 town call concerning his issue at the Phillip Rush Center,   It's scheduled to start at 5:30 PM EDT for those of you in the ATL area wishing to attend .

Click this link for the complete SNaP Co statement: http://bit.ly/SNaPCo2

Perps Busted In ATL MARTA Trans Hate Attack

The two wastes of DNA who were caught on video attacking two African-American trans women on a MARTA train in Atlanta as people cheered and did nothing to halt it have been arrested.

34 year old Luther L. Thomas and 35 year old Frederick L. Missick have been arrested by MARTA police, charged with disorderly conduct (you're kidding, right?) and are chilling in the Fulton County Jail on $2,500 bonds apiece for attacking Janell Crosby and Tyra Woods.   

Both perps were Atlanta residents.  Thomas was arrested on Thursday while Missick was picked up by MARTA police yesterday.

The May 20 incident started when Crosby and Woods were walking to the Five Points MARTA station in downtown Atlanta to catch a southbound train to Oakland City Station.  They were confronted by a group of men, harassed, and had photos taken of them while enduring homophobic and transphobic slurs..   

Thomas and Missick persisted in continuing the abuse during the train ride as Crosby repeatedly told them to stop.   Thomas then physically attacked Crosby as Missick attacked Woods, who was trying to help her friend and stripped her of her clothing.

Thomas and Missick have also been suspended from riding MARTA.   

The ugly incident has incensed the ATL trans community and our local allies, and Mayor Kasim Reed through spokesperson Melissa Mullinax had this to say about it on Thursday.

"The mayor condemns hate crimes of any kind and is committed to the equal rights and equal treatment of Atlanta’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender residents, workers and visitors. The City’s non-discrimination laws were recently amended with the Mayor’s full support to include gender identity as a protected class," said Mullinax.

"The incident on the MARTA train is disturbing. We understand that MARTA is conducting a thorough investigation and we look forward to the authorities bringing those accountable to justice," she adds.

Two town halls are planned in the Atlanta area to discuss the incident.  One town hall is being facilitated by the group Solutions Not Punishment Coalition on June 3 at the Phillip Rush Center that will start at 5:30 PM EDT.   The second will be facilitated by Restoration Inclusive Ministries at its Decatur, GA church on June 4 and start at 7:30 PM

In the meantime, as justice is being sought in this case, Crosby decided to move back to New York as a result of this incident and Woods is staying with relatives in Cleveland, OH.

As to what outcome Crosby wants to see from this case, she replied, “I really want an apology from them and I really want the law put on them.”      

And your transsisters around the ATL, the nation and the world want the same just outcome.

Whose Beloved Community? Conference In ATL This Weekend

Those of you in the ATL will have the opportunity to attend this conference at Emory University  from March 27-29 entitled Whose Beloved Community? Black Civil and LGBT Rights..

It brings together TBLG and civil rights scholars activists and other community stakeholders as they spend what promises to be an interesting weekend advancing a more comprehensive and expansive view of justice.

The conference is sponsored by Emory University's  James Weldon Johnson Institute for the Study of Race and Difference, and the Emory Women's Center along with many other university divisions, and the Arcus and Ford Foundations.

Atlanta is the perfect venue for this conference because it is the historic cradle of the African-American civil rights movement combined with the fact that the ATL is considered the mecca of the Black SGL, trans and bi community.   More Black LGBT people live in the South than in any other region of the country, and Atlanta is the hub city for it.      

A keynote conversation to open the conference with longtime civil rights leader Julian Bond, African-American lesbian social-justice activist Mandy Carter, and activist Alexis Pauline Gumbs, co-founder of the Mobile Homecoming Project, will take place in Glenn Memorial Auditorium starting at 7:30 PM EDT on Thursday, March 27.   The location is 1660 N. Decatur Road and the keynote event is free and open to the public.

Conference sessions will be held at the Emory Conference Center beginning on Friday, March 28 at 9 AM and will feature panels on topics including religion, scholarship, LGBT and civil rights history, marriage equality, activism and literature. On Saturday, panel sessions begin at 8:30 AM and the conference will conclude with a closing reception from 4-7 PM.

Upcoming 'Whose Beloved Community?' Conference At Emory

Definitely wish I could b in the ATL for this one, but I'm already committed to an event on the HCC-Southeast campus on one of the dates for this conference..

Emory University is hosting an international conference entitled 'Whose Beloved Community?  Black Civil and LGBT Rights Movements that is right up my activist alley. 

It is taking place on the Emory U.campus from March 27-29 which support from the Arcus Foundation  and I posted the Call For Proposals on TransGriot last March.

The role of Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people in both race-based and sexuality-based civil rights movements is frequently rendered invisible as a result of prevailing national narratives that present (presumed white) LGBT communities and (presumed straight) Black communities as opposing forces. 

In recent years, however, an increasing number of scholars and activists have produced work seeking to make visible the vital points of intersection and contention among the U.S. Civil Rights movement, the LGBT equality movement, and Black LGBT communities.  This work is shaped by questions related to identity formation, intersectionality, tokenism, marriage equality, the role of religion and “respectability” in African American communities, the emergence of the South as a center of Black LGBT life in the U.S., HIV/AIDS and its continuing effect on African American communities, the proliferation of a prison-industrial complex unprepared for its LGBT population, and the appropriation of the civil rights movement by the right. 

This conference seeks to make visible and critically engage the points of convergence and divergence between these two historic, overlapping, yet distinct social movements that continue to transform civil society, law, and the academy.

Should be an informative and lively discussion, and I hope it doesn't turn out to be a monoethnic event.   

Another Reason Why Non Discrimination Laws To Protect Trans People MUST Have Public Accomodations Language In Them

Those of you who have read this blog know that I will go straight the hell off if I hear any hint of a suggestion that in order to pass a non-discrimination law that protects trans people, we trans folks must drop public accommodations language from them.  

Bull feces.  You gay and lesbian peeps didn't drop public accommodations language from the local and state non-discrimination laws that cover sexual orientation only, so not no, but hell no will I even entertain that thought or publicly support a trans rights bill with no public accommodations language.   

If you want to know why I'm so militant about that point, ask the folks in Massachusetts who are honest enough to do so about the problems they are having adding that missing public accommodations language into their no prize winning public accommodations language free trans rights law elements of their community  trumpeted as a win back in 2011.

Hate to say I told you so, but ....

The reason why public accommodations language is a must for any trans human rights law and I'm so insistent upon it was demonstrated once again in this videotape of a November 8 incident outside an ATL Latino bar.

Alissah Brooks was denied entrance because of her trans status, and the manager ignorantly asserting that since it was a private club they had the right to do so. 

FYI, the City of Atlanta's non-discrimination ordinance passed in 2000 and updated by a unanimous vote back in July covers trans people.  But you'll find that out soon enough Don Pollo when y'all either get hauled into municipal court or in front of the Atlanta Human Rights Commission.

In the meantime, this video is evidence why public accommodations language is necessary in non-discrimination laws with this disturbing video taken by Alissah Brooks of Don Pollo personnel engaging in anti-trans discrimination.

The Assault On The ATL Trans Community Continues

Our trans elder Cheryl Courtney-Evans continues to be on the case watching Peggy Denby AKA 'The Queen of Mean' and her acolytes in the MPSA (Midtown Ponce Security Alliance) continue to attack, denigrate and harass the ATL trans community and push for a draconian (and probably unconstitutional) ordinance that would banish people from Atlanta for a second prostitution arrest.

The MPSA is now enlisting conservative leaning blogs to help with their 'fear and trans smear' campaign aimed at the ATL trans community in order to drum up support for their unjust ordinance.

Here's Cheryl breaking it down for you and her previous posts about the ongoing drama.

***

With these meetings going on, all the while Peggy and her MPSA continue their campaign against the transgender community via constant media attacks in so-called "finger on the pulse of the community" blogs  and online communications through their web site. Following is one such example from a local blog called the "Midtown Patch" which professes to keep the Atlanta community informed of the 'happenings of midtown Atlanta'. Titled "MPSA Gives Update on Midtown's Trans-Prostitute Gangs", posted by Marc Richarson (Editor), it supposedly details the actions of  'trans-prostitutes'. To give an indication that the MPSA uses strongly derogatory terms in reference to our trans* community, the editor begins the publication of the article with this disclaimer:

The original article written by the MPSA that is below contained language that I believe was inappropriate for Midtown Patch.  We decided to delete the word and replaced it with something else more appropriate that we placed in parentheses to note the edit.

Notice the air of fear-mongering utilized in the piece, as well as the inclusion of the photo (most likely used from some totally un-related incident).

Notice how this author tries to give the impression that he (or she) has done an indepth 'study' of the "trans-prostitute situation"...as if he knows something about "walk-in" versus "drive-ins" and three different types of "johns"...

And what would an MPSA stalker know about "prostitute traffic shifting to Stone Mountain, GA." [which is miles away from 'midtown' Atlanta]?? The MPSA is a half step above a neighborhood watch group, however with some its members being off-duty Atlanta police officers [who really try to intimidate]; there's not suppose to be any "connection" with the Atlanta Police Department [officially], so how would they be privy to information/records from the Stone Mountain area?? Their "jurisdiction" doesn't extend nearly that far!

You can read the rest of Cheryl's post at her abitchforjusticeblog

The Draconian ATL Banishment Ordinance-Still Pushing The Pig Of A Law

Cheryl Courtney-Evans' latest update from her A Bitch For Justice blog about the ongoing efforts of Atlanta's 'Queen of Mean' Peggy Denby and elements of the Atlanta Police Department to push a proposed anti-prostitution ordinance that would banish sex workers from the ATL.

Cheryl tells us in this latest post entitled "Atlanta Banishment UPDATE; Still Pushing the "Pig", about the ATL efforts to fight this unjust law and how a recent meeting transpired. 

And here's a taste of that post:

Our SNaP Co representative on the WGRP, Ms. Xochitl Bervera, then presented the proposal we're pushing, which provides for offenders to be given a choice of arrest or diversion to programs that will prepare them for alternatives to prostitution (i.e., job training/preparation, education [GED], housing, etc.). This is the "Pre-Booking Diversion Program", modeled after the successful program that has been implemented in Seattle, WA., and the only program presented that offered a diversionary option for prostitutes as opposed to arrest and jail. We feel that this system, that provides feasible alternatives to street work has the greatest chance of reducing recidivism (prostitutes would most likely prefer this option to the danger of the street, and jail).

After each presentation, during the period that possible questions are asked of the presenters from other WGRP members about their proposals, a Mr.  Bill Cannon, "concerned community citizen" [and colleague of Peggy Denby] would ask, "And how will this reduce prostitution...we must remember, we're here to figure out how to reduce prostitution." Those of us with SNaP Co knew that all he's interested in (as well as Peggy) is doing more arresting and locking up [and feel that perhaps the "john's school" would reduce the demand and therefore reduce prostitution (HA, as if that's a finite number of men; remember this is "the oldest profession in the world" we're talking about, right?)].

You can read the rest by clicking on this link. 

The Draconian ATL Anti-Prostitution Banishment Law Is Back

Back in April I signal boosted a post from Cheryl Courtney-Evans' A Bitch For Justice blog calling out the proposed draconian anti-prostitution law that has a controversial and probably unconstitutional banishment from the city of Atlanta provision  

It generated much outcry in the ATL and went away for a minute due to the intense scrutiny it got. 

Cheryl kept warning people that this unjust proposed ordinance wasn't dead yet and not allow the tranquilizing drug of complacency to divert their attention from what was going on with this unjust proposed ordinance. 

It turns out that Cheryl's repeated blog warnings were well founded, because the ATL's 'Queen of Mean' Peggy Denby along with some allies in the ATL's police force are making another attempt to galvanize support and put lipstick on this pig of an unjust ordinance.

Here's what Cheryl had to say about it:

This is such a ridiculous plan! First, it would not solve the "problem", but merely shift it to other parts of the city. Secondly, it would quite probably create another "crime", in that someone who actually lives in an "area of prostitution", could be arrested again JUST FOR GOING HOME (if they've been banned)...or are they expected to have found the money to just up and move outside of the "banned area"?? And finally, when the rubber meets the road, if individuals have been made to feel [experience] no other alternatives to survival, banishment or no banishment, arrest or no arrest, they will be back...what do they plan to do, build a wall or erect a fence around these areas [or Atlanta]? This will not solve anything; an improved system with services would be more logical, positive AND progressive.

You can read the rest of Cheryl's post along with her action suggestions to kill the unjust proposed ordinance here.

President Obama's Morehouse Commencement Speech

There are some peeps in the African-American community and on Black Twitter who have voiced concerns about his commencement speech, but it doesn't take away from the history that was made Sunday afternoon. 

President Obama is the first sitting US president to do a commencement speech at Morehouse College and was given an honorary degree from the school. 

Draconian Anti-Prostitution Law Proposed In The ATL

'The City Too Busy to Hate' as the ATL likes to call itself sometimes forgets that motto when it comes to trans women.

I never forgot it when in 1991 trans pioneer Caroline Cossey, who lives in the ATL area, had a key to the city rescinded by then mayor Maynard Jackson after her trans status was revealed.

Jackson said in a statement at the time he would not have granted the honor had he known her "claim to fame" was being transsexual. 

That incident came back to haunt him a decade later when Jackson tried to become the chair of the Democratic National Committee in 2001.  Now another ATL mayor in Kasim Reed has to grapple with a contentious issue that has a trans flavor to it.

Cheryl Courtney-Evans in this guest post talks about a draconian proposed anti-prostitution ordinance spearheaded by trans bigot Peggy Denby, the 'Queen of Mean' president of the Midtown-Ponce Security Alliance (MPSA) that calls for banishment from the city of Atlanta for a second prostitution arrest. 

The group of prostitutes that this ordinance is aimed at just happens to be predominately made up of girls like us. 

In addition to the straight up problematic constitutional questions about this proposed ordinance, a better way to address the prostitution issue would be to spend some of the money you'd be wasting trying to enforce this and target it into a jobs program so these women wouldn't have to walk a Midtown Atlanta street in the first place to get paid.   

Here's a sample of the post.

Ms. Denby, on two occasions, made it a point to tell the gathering that her main "issue" was with "male prostitutes in the Midtown area" and that "there are no longer any female prostitutes in Midtown; they're all males"...this despite the fact that we all know that the majority of the street trade in this area is conducted by transgender women [and we know from previous experience that Ms. Denby has referred to ALL transgenders as "men in dresses" and "transvestitutes"]...so after her second reference to us in this manner (saying all of  Midtown's prostitutes are men), I had to speak up before she could finish putting on her jacket to leave the meeting (and give the rest something to think about for the next meeting) and urge everyone to "evolve past a state of mind that fuel such statements that 'all of Midtown's prostitutes are male', when we know that population is a transgender woman majority...this state of mind is the same one that's results in their presence there in the first place, as it pushes the discrimination that keeps them out of the workplace" (of course, every time I mentioned this "state of mind", I looked pointedly at Ms. Denby, who definitely did not meet my eye).

You can read the rest of Cheryl's post at her abitchforjustice blog.

Creating Change 2013 Starts Today In The ATL

In a few hours the 2013 edition of Creating Change will kick off in the ATL (and nope, won't be there for it.) at the Hilton Atlanta hotel.  

This latest edition of the conference will start later today and run until January 27.  If you are in the Atlanta metro area and can attend, I highly recommend you do so.

The 1999 Creating Change conference I attended in Oakland that year jump started my development as an activist. It was a great place to meet many of the people inside and outside the rainbow community human rights rights movement that I collaborated with for various projects over the years.


And it was a lot of fun, too. 

It's also one of those TBLG conferences in which you will see a cross section of people from 18-80 all in one spot.  Creating Change is so packed full of amazing seminars, workshops and panel discussions your toughest decision will be which ones to attend.

One workshop you may consider attending will be conducted by the National Black Justice Coalition, which is celebrating its 10th anniversary year . NBJC will be conducting two workshops on January 25 and 26. 

The ATL also has some amazing attractions away from the hotel to visit such as the MLK Center, the Carter Presidential Center, CNN headquarters, and the World of Coca-Cola just to name a few.

Wish the Task Force and the local organizing committee much success.    

The Trans Racial Political Divide Shows Up At SCC 2012

While I was owning my power inside I-495 AKA the Capitol Beltway, I thought about during some OUT on the Hill downtime that the Southern Comfort Conference was also going on in the ATL.   I've attended the 1999, 2000 and 2004 editions of SCC and it was undeniably a part of my trans activist evolution. 

Because at one point it was the largest trans gathering in the United States convention hierarchy, SCC has also been the backdrop of major trans political intrigue and drama.  The 2007 SCC convention was a major case in point of that . 

With its dates conflicting with OUT on the Hill and the increasing need for me to be in Washington DC for that event, it's highly unlikely I'll be back at another SCC unless I'm invited to do a keynote speech.

I've written SCC posts in 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 but didn't this year.   I've talked about the irony of an overwhelmingly vanillacentric conference smack dab in a city considered the Black GLBT mecca.  I've noted the sincere attempts of the SCC board to diversify their attendance and one of their awkward moments brought on by that lack of diversity in 2008..  

My distinguished trans elder Cheryl Courtney-Evans attended the 2012 edition of SCC and reported in her abitchforjustice blog some of her observations about the sharp racial political divide that permeated this year's event over the looming presidential election.

So needless to say I was surprised, even shocked to find the reactions I got to my flier distribution...virtually every African American transgender person I offered one to, took it (some with the smile & "Obama in '12" comment). But I found that many of the Caucasians in attendance would refuse with a shake of the head (one telling me, "I'm not a fan of Obama's"), or just lay them down and leave them somewhere. It was during one of my 'smoke breaks' that I witnessed and heard comments from some Caucasian trans who were discussing a flier that was lying on a table between us from one of these "lay it down & leave it" occasions. "I really don't see what difference it's gonna make," she said, "they're both the same; they're gonna say one thing and do another after they're elected..."  WHAT??! Where have they been the last four years?? Hadn't they heard what one of their own had just said at lunch? (Also, I could see they were old enough to have seen at least three different presidents and their actions with regards to transgenders.)  Then I had to stop and think about who was talking...

Once again people, race matters, even in our little trans subset of society.  It's one of the reasons why NBJC and TPOCC exist.   Here's the rest of Cheryl's post for y'all to peruse.. 

NBJC's Je-Shawna Wholley To Keynote State Of Black Gay America Summit

I've had the pleasure of meeting and spending some quality time with this remarkable lady who is now a senior fellow with the National Black Justice Coalition

I'm ecstatic to hear that Je-Shawna Wholley will be the keynote speaker September 1 for the upcoming State of Black Gay America Summit that is one of the events for the highly anticipated Atlanta Black Gay Pride.

I met her during last year's Out On The Hill, and this Spelman alum was the president of Afrekete, the LGBT student group on campus.  In 2009 she helped organize the university's first LGBT Pride Week with the help and support of Morehouse College's Safe Space organization and for her work was invited to the White House to meet with President Barack Obama.

She's also included in the movie "Legalize Gay" about gay and straight activists combating homophobia.

The Summit will have the theme of  'Embracing Our Collective Power To Embrace Change' and will start at 11:00 AM-4;00 PM EDT at the The Melia Atlanta Hotel & Resorts.

The address is 590 W. Peachtree Street, N.E. in Atlanta, GA 30308

So if you peeps in the ATL get a chance, you may wish to take some time to check out that summit and hear one of our powerful young rainbow community leaders speak.

Score One For The 99%

A Deutsche Bank branch in the ATL foreclosed on the home of 103 year old Vita Lee and her 83 year old daughter that they had lived in for 53 years and requested they be removed from it.. 

Both women had no idea where they would go if the eviction notice was executed and were terrified of what would happen.  Ms. Lee's daughter was so stressed out and fearful over it she ended up at the hospital.

But an interesting thing happened when the movers and the sheriffs arrived at the home to execute the eviction notice.   They decided not to go through with it.


 

Score one for the 99%
.

TransGriot Ten Questions Interview-Cheryl Courtney-Evans

Cheryl Courtney-Evans is another one of our trans leaders this community and others need to get to know and show some love to.  

The Kansas City, MO born college educated and now Atlanta based activist moved there in 1979 and worked for the transgender support group LaGender, Inc. While there she received her certification as a transgender peer counselor through a United States Conference of Mayors grant program.

Seeking a better way to serve the ATL's trans community, she co-founded on September 27, 2007 with Minister Lisa Newson TILTT, Inc (Transgender Individuals Living Their Truth), the first transgender support and advocacy organization in the Atlanta area to include trans men.  

In addition to her TILTT, Inc.duties, Cheryl participated in a 2009 NCTE Lobby Day in Washington, DC and facilitates workshops and sensitivity trainings.  Her most notable ones were with the Audre Lorde Leadership Conference (ZAMI, July 2009) and at the University of Georgia-Athens in March 2011 when she presented 'The Black Transgender Experience in America' at both venues.  

Cheryl is a tireless supporter of human rights issues with a focus on the rights of transgender people and increasing our political and civic participation.

And now it's time for Cheryl to answer the TransGriot's Ten Questions..

 

1. How long have you been transitioned and who were your trans role models at the time you did so?

CCE-I began my transition when I was 16 (1968), with a 2 and a half year "break" while I attempted to attend college (at that time 'transsexualism/transgenderism' was UNHEARD of, and to do it openly at school was instant "death" of my then aspirations); I had no real 'role models at that time. Locally, there were show,  pageant girls I admired, but didn't see myself in that space. I heard and read about Christine Jorgensen and ; Renee Richards, but only dreamed I might get to where they were, never actually believing I could become as affluent and well known.


2. If you had the power to change one aspect of the Black trans community, what would it be?

CCE- I would make it possible for them all to have housing they would not have to worry about losing. I feel that the very foundation of being able to navigate or facilitate some sort of success, is to have a "base of operations" so to speak. It cuts down considerably on the amount of brain power used primarily for SURVIVAL, leaving one able to concentrate more on means of upward progress & mobility.


3.Who are the up and coming trans leaders in your area that have gotten your attention?

CCE- I'd have to say for some years now, Dee Dee Chamblee (the founder and Executive Director of LaGender, Inc.) has gotten some attention. She has, in the past, done some great things with regards to the transgender community; I don't know exactly what LaGender, Inc. is doing these days, but she herself has been asked to the White House as part of the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force's "Movement for Change" initiative (I think that's the name of it). I think that's all I'll say about her, as we haven't spoken for some time (we haven't seen 'eye to eye' for some time, lol).

Tracee McDaniel (founder of Juxtaposed Center for Transfomation, Inc.) is getting some attention; her organization works to try helping trans folks find jobs and refer them to food resources. I'm not absolutely what else they do. She has some great connections, and manages to put together trans events like the annual Sylvia Rivera event every June during 'Stonewall Week' (the weekend of the Stonewall Riots) & an annual Transgender Day of Remembrance. She also happens to be a TILTT, Inc. member. I suppose one might say I'm beginning to be a transgender woman of note, as TILTT, Inc. (which I founded and am executive director of), becomes more well known (you may visit www.tiltt.org to see what we do; we're a support & advocacy organization).


4. What are the major differences in the Black trans community now and when you first transitioned?

CCE- The younger girls are the biggest difference; they are taking concrete steps toward transition at earlier ages; hormone therapy, implants, etc., than we were even capable of doing. When I was young and coming up, the closest most of us black girls could do was talk our various bio girlfriends out of their birth control pills, hoping to get enough estrogen to develop breasts. Another difference is that there seem to be more young trans women who don't care anything for the "traditional" male/female sexual roles we followed (and are quite open about it).

5. What are some of the projects or things you are currently working on?

CCE- One of the projects I am working on is trying to influence, motivate or otherwise inspire other folks to become committed around establishing a transgender focused homeless shelter or transitional housing; meanwhile trying to work on the existing establishments to make changes to accommodate the transgender community.


6.What are the things you believe we need to do as Black trans leaders locally, statewide and nationally?

CCE- Become involved in politics as well as make sure our voices are present "in the room" whenever any public policy or issue in the greater community is at stake.  Public transportation fares, taxes, rent increases, et cetera affect ALL of us. We don't exist in a "transgender bubble".

7. Do you believe that race and class issues are far too often left for African-American and other POC transpeople to tackle?

CCE- Yes. Too often whites (and many times other races, who are generally treated better by the very virtue of their origins, having not been slaves here at one time), operate from a space of privilege, so they are not as concerned with it.


8. If you could have dinner with five transpeople past and present, who would they be and why?

CCE- Sylvia Rivera; when I was graduating, I was watching the news about the Stonewall riots, wishing I could be there and silently rooting for them. I would love to talk to her about what it was actually like being there. Marsha P. Johnson; so she could tell me where she drew the strength to do all the trans-positive work she did. (And this is not a "suck up", lol) I'd love to have a dinner with you, as I've grown to love/respect your knowledge expressed in your postings, as well as your willingness to participate in the political process (and I see that as a must for us). Tracee McDaniel and Lisa Newson (I've mentioned Tracee already; Lisa is very instrumental in transgender HIV/AIDS testing and prevention here, although she hasn't become a "public figure" yet); I'd love both of these ladies to be present just because I like them very much and appreciate what they do for the transgender community.


9. What's the one misconception about you that you want to set the record straight on? 

CCE- I can't think of any; my life is pretty much an "open book", so anyone that would look at me and my life with an objective eye wouldn't have any. They'd pretty much get the correct idea right away.


10. Where do you see the African American trans community ten years from now?

CCE- Monica, to tell you the truth, unfortunately, unless we're able to motivate the younger African American trans women and men to step up much more and take part more in the world around them (politics, social change, et cetera), I don't see us being much further than we are right now.


Thank you, Cheryl for your time and hope you TransGriot readers enjoyed this Ten Questions  interview.