Houston City Hall Vigil For Shante & Willie

As many of you TransGriot readers are aware of, a certain blogger y'all know along with many of my Houston area trans family, allies, and supporters gathered at the steps of City Hall to remember the people we just lost Sunday night in Shante Thompson and Willie Sims.

The vigil in addition to honoring Shante and Willie, also honored the Texas trans people we have lost in 2016.  It also called attention to the jacked up transphobic media coverage of the Thompson-Sims murders by ABC 13 and KPRC 2 in addition to issuing a call for Houston media to do better when it comes to respectfully covering trans issues.

Let me emphasize respectfully, since it seems that respect for trans Houstonians has been sorely  lacking in our local media ranks since HERO was first proposed back in April 2014.

And it's too bad my comments about the piss poor coverage got cut and didn't make the 10 PM news,  But hope those stations got the message I was happy to deliver that the Houston trans community is tired of their failure to adhere to the 2001 AP Stylebook guidelines for covering trans people.

We're also beyond sick and tired of trans Houstonians getting demonized by Houston media without a chance to properly respond to their problematic coverage.

That also extends to the men like Willie Sims who love us.  It's past time that the men who openly love us and don't give a rat's anus what you think are recognized inside and outside the trans community for having the courage to live in that truth.    We also need the men and women who love trans people to also be unapologetic in expressing their love and support of their trans partners, and with our human rights under attack, we need that to happen ASAP...

We were also pleased and proud to have Mayor Sylvester Turner say a few words before the vigil started to drive home the point that the lives of all Houstonians matter in the H-town he wishes to lead.

It was also nice to have members of Shante's family, HPD's assistant chief, Pastor Freedom Gulley, Precinct 1 Constable Alan Rosen, Harris County DA candidate Kim Ogg (D), Caucus president Fran Watson and other clergy and organizations there.      

The ceremony lasted just under an hour, and in addition to short speeches by Reagan White, myself and a family friend of Shante's, Pastor Gulley read a resolution on behalf of the TransSaints ministry calling for love and acceptance of trans people, along with a spoken.word dramatic performance by Dee Dee Watters, and a lantern release by Nikki Araguz Loyd and William Loyd to close out the vigil.  

Thanks not only to the organizers of this vigil, but I thank you for the opportunity to be a part of another opportunity to spend some quality time with my Houston trans family and the allies who love and support us.

I just wish it had happened under different circumstances.

Rest in power and peace Shante and Willie.  We will not rest until the perpetrators of this heinous crime are brought to justice.

Candlelight Vigil For Shante & Willie Friday

As the Houston Police Department talks to trans woman Serenity Colquitt, who turned herself into the police yesterday afternoon in the Shante Thompson-Willie Sims murder case, the planning continues for an upcoming vigil Friday evening to honor the victims of this heinous crimes.

Some of the eight people who viciously attacked are trans themselves, and HPD detectives are seeking a person of interest in the Thompson-Willis case.  .

The vigil will take place at Houston City Hall starting at 6 PM, and in addition to honoring the memory of Shante and Willie, it will be a call to action to end anti-trans violence.

In addition to speakers, it will also have a moment of silence for the person we have lost so far in 2016 to anti-trans violence.

Hope you can make it to Houston City Hall Friday night for this event.

 

Houston Trans Woman Murdered

Been wondering how long it would take before all the anti-trans hate peddled during the HERO repeal last year by the Republican Party, Rev. Ed Young, Steve Riddle, Steven Hotze, Dave Wilson, and the Baptist Ministers Assn of Houston and Vicinity would start negatively affecting my community.

The answer was last night.

34 year old Shante Thompson and her friend Willie Sims were fatally shot and killed in Midtown Houston late last night at the corner of Dennis and Fannin Streets.  .It appears Thompson and Sims were hit with a crowbar or tire iron before being shot. According to a KHOU-11 report the motive for the killing is still under investigation.

The blood of Shante Thompson is on your hands Harris County GOP, Max Miller, Steve Riddle, and Ed Young.  Your faux faith based spreading of transphobia for political gain has finally manifested itself into the death of this trans woman.   You cannot spread anti-trans hatred as you did for years and think it won't have real world societal consequences.

And as you probably guessed, the initial news report on ABC-13 misgendered and deadnamed Thompson before it was corrected thanks to Nikki Araguz Loyd and other community allies calling them out about it.

Nikki Araguz Loyd

2 hrs · Houston · 

Another Trans woman named "Chante" was murdered last night in Houston..... And the media led with her dead name and then said known to friends as.....‪#‎ABC13‬

Hey ABC-13 and other Houston media outlets,  there is something you need to familiarize yourself with called the AP Stylebook.  It has had since 2001 guidelines on how the respectfully cover trans people.  So does GLAAD and the NLGJA.  But then again if you have been reading it from the beginning, we'd still have HERO on the books.

Ahem.  From the AP Stylebook:Transgender: Use the pronoun preferred by the individuals who have acquired the physical characteristics of the opposite sex or present themselves in a way that does not correspond with their sex at birth. If that preference is not expressed, use the pronoun consistent with the way the individuals live publicly.

And one other thing.  It's transgender person, not transgendered.

Thompson is now the seventh trans person we have lost to anti-trans violence in the US in 2016 and the third one  we have lost in Texas.   All the Texas trans people lost have unfortunately been trans people of color.

The opening stages of planning for a vigil  have started, and I'll pass on the time and date for that event once it's finalized.  Houston Police are still looking for the perpetrator of this killing and if you have any information about what happened that will lead to the capture of the person or persons who did this, please call Crimestoppers at 713-222-TIPS (8477)

As I get more information about Shante's murder, I'll pass it on to you in subsequent TransGriot post.

Rest in power and peace, sis.   We won't rest in H-town until your killer is captured and brought to justice.