DC Trans Coalition

Check out our op-ed on continued problems with MPD

dctranscoalition — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:14:53 +0000

We’ve got a new op-ed in this week’s issue of Metro Weekly, focusing on the “Chief Problem” in dealing with DC’s Metropolitan Police Department. At its core are Chief Lanier’s continued pattern of victim blaming, and her failure to recognize that MPD’s current efforts are insufficient towards curtailing anti-trans violence.

A brief snippet:

We ask that Mayor Vince Gray direct Lanier – after nearly six years of failing to do so on her own – to outline concrete steps to solve anti-trans crimes, address police bias, and formalize and fund the training program run by LGBT community groups. The increases in anti-trans violence, reports of profiling of trans women of color in prostitution enforcement, and blatant police bias can no longer be overlooked.

Read the whole thing here.

Our Testimony in Opposition to Permanent “Prostitution Free” Zones

dctranscoalition — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:40:38 +0000

We’re at the DC Council’s Judiciary Committee today voicing our strong opposition to proposed permanent “Prostitution Free” Zones. These zones are currently limited to ten days, and since they came into effect in 2006, have effectively been Trans Profiling Zones. Their impact is to banish trans women of color from particular spaces in the city, and to endanger trans lives by forcing people into less safe areas.

Two DCTC members are testifying today in opposition to this bill. A few higlights are below.

From Alison Gill’s testimony:

Since passing the laws allowing for the creating of prostitution free zones in 2006, these zones have been used to harass and criminalize trans people and shatter trans communities. Although both the police orders implementing prostitution free zones (PFZs) and on transgender people prohibit profiling, we know from community experience that profiling trans people as sex workers is a prevalent occurrence. This attitude is reflected in both the violence committed by police against the trans community, and in some cases, even expressed directly (see attached). Due to the lesser burden of proof required by PFZs, police are able to turn general suspicions that trans women are prostitutes into arrests. In effect, trans women are banished from given areas of the city at the police chief’s discretion. Many of this past year’s violent attacks on trans women have happened in or near these profiling zones. The simple fact is that rather than eliminating prostitution, PFZs facilitate bad or lazy police work and lead to the harassment of trans women.

From Nico Quintana’s statement:

Sex work is employment. When other forms of employment are not accessible to someone due to transphobia, employment discrimination, education inequities, etc., sex work can be an employment opportunity. Instead of punishing working people, and further marginalizing transgender communities, I recommend the District government continue its efforts to address poverty and employment inequities in the DC transgender community, like it is doing through Project Empowerment.

UPDATED: Our friends at HIPS sent out an update about the hearing that sums it up pretty nicely:

We want to let everyone know about the tremendously positive outcome of the hearing. Hopefully, the proposed PFZ expansion will be voted down! Organizations from the ACLU to the DC Public Defender Service came out to express their concern about the constitutionality of PFZs. Most strikingly, Assistant Police Chief Peter Newsham testified against expanding PFZs, saying that “we cannot arrest our way out of the problem” and that “at the end of the day, there’s got to be a better approach.” He suggested increased mental health and substance treatment programs.

Ariel Levinson-Waldman, who is senior counsel to the Attorney General for the District of Columbia, said that PFZ laws in their current form are of questionable constitutionality and practicality and that this would only heighten if they are expanded. He suggested that the District would be litigated against if MPD tried to arrest anyone under these laws.

For more about the hearing, check out the Washington Post and Metro Weekly.

Take Action! Join us in opposing Prostitution Free Zones

dctranscoalition — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 16:51:18 +0000

Tomorrow the DC Council is holding a hearing on Bill 19-567, which would allow the police chief to create permanent Prostitution Free Zones, which we call Trans Profiling Zones. We will be testifying with a large coalition of groups opposed to this bill, but we need your help!

Please take a moment to sign this petition to the DC Council adding your voice in opposition to this bill. You can also learn more about how these zones endanger trans people’s lives in the video here and in the findings from our needs assessment here. We need to take a stand against criminalization and police bias, and encourage our lawmakers to start thinking about real solutions to the many injustices trans people face.

If you would like to attend the hearing yourself, it will be held at 11am on Tuesday, January 24 in room 412 at the Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue NW. You can also watch online here.

DCTC Files Brief Urging Respect for Trans Inmates’ Constitutional Rights

dctranscoalition — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 06:36:22 +0000

On Friday, December 16, 2011, DCTC filed a friend of the court brief in the case of De’Lonta v. Johnson urging the Richmond-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit to find that the Virginia Department of Correction’s housing policy for transgender inmates violates the Equal Protection, Due Process and Cruel and Unusual Punishment clauses of the U.S. Constitution. VDOC’s current policy is to assign inmates to male or female facilities based solely on their genitals, without taking into consideration where they would be safest. The failure to treat transgender women in the same way that non-transgender women are treated is discriminatory, the brief argues. Further, the brief alleges that automatic placement of transgender women into facilities where they are at high risk of being sexually abused is cruel and unusual punishment and the lack of availability of an appeal procedure deprives inmates of due process. Many jurisdictions, including the District of Columbia, have implemented policies that are more flexible and sensitive to the needs of transgender inmates, according to DCTC’s brief. The federal Bureau of Prisons is expected to follow DC’s lead by mandating individualized determinations of where to house transgender inmates and detainees when Department of Justice regulations implementing the Prison Rape Elimination Act are finalized.

You can read our brief in full below:

View this document on Scribd

Friendly reminder! Our Annual Town Hall + Lunch is Tomorrow!

dctranscoalition — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 16:45:57 +0000

We really hope to see everyone in the local transgender, transsexual, and gender non-conforming communities tomorrow, December 3 from 12:30-3:30pm for food and discussion at the Columbia Heights Community Center at 1480 Girard Street NW, just a few blocks from the Columbia Heights Metro station.

What’s in store:

We’ll start off with a social hour so we can all share a meal and get to know each other. We’ll then provide a very brief update on our recent work, including issues like police and violence, securing employment opportunities, and our really important needs assessment project. After that, we want to hear from you. Raise your most pressing concerns with us, and we’ll break out into groups to discuss needs and strategies. We’ll then wrap-up as a group, with some clear priorities for the coming year.

Added bonus:
Free food and drink will be provided, as well as a limited number of transportation vouchers and door prizes. Plus, you’ll be in a vibrant space with lots of wonderful, friendly people.

Please bring your friends, colleagues, clients, or constituents, or just yourself. We hope to see as many of you from the trans community as possible on December 3! You can also RSVP on Facebook here.

Announcing our 2011 Trans Town Hall Meeting

dctranscoalition — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 20:47:38 +0000

We’re tremendously excited to announce our annual town hall forum, complete with tasty lunch!

We invite members of the local transgender, transsexual, and gender non-conforming community in the DC area to join us on Saturday, December 3 at 12:30pm for food and discussion at the Columbia Heights Community Center.

We want to know what you’ve been experiencing over the past year and what DCTC can do to help improve your lives. Plus, we’ll give you an update on some of the exciting projects that we have going on these days.

Free food and drink will be provided, as well as a limited number of transportation vouchers and door prizes.

More information is available on the attached flier. Please refer to it yourself; forward it to your friends, co

lleagues, clients, or constituents; and/or hang it up somewhere prominent!

We hope to see as many of you from the trans community as possible on December 3! You can RSVP on Facebook here.

Trans Awareness Week 2011

dctranscoalition — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 17:51:59 +0000

This week we’re raising awareness about trans rights, demanding justice for all trans people, and remembering those we’ve lost to anti-trans violence. Here’s how you can take part:

Tuesday, November 15
DCTC will host its bi-monthly meeting at 7:30pm in the Austin Center at Whitman-Walker Health, 14th & R Streets NW. Get updates on our needs assessment project, our work regarding the police and jails, and help us create our upcoming community forum on December 3 (stay tuned for details). Plus much, much more! Anyone who wants to fight for justice is welcome to attend.

Thursday, November 17
We’ve teamed up with TLGB Police Watch and a number of other local organizations for Trans Day of Action. Join us at 1:00pm for a rally in front of Metropolitan Police Department Headquarters, 300 Indiana Avenue NW. We’ll proceed from there to the US Attorney’s Office, at 555 4th Street NW. Check out our goals and demands for the mayor, the police chief, and the US Attorney, and feel free to share details with your friends on Facebook.

Sunday, November 20
Please join us for the annual Transgender Day of Remembrance service, organized by Transgender Health Empowerment, at 5:00pm at the Metropolitan Community Church, 474 Ridge Street NW. We’ve lost at least two members of our community to violence this year, and many more have been injured. Help us to honor their memories.

Today! DC Council Hearing on Hate Crimes

dctranscoalition — Wed, 02 Nov 2011 14:50:04 +0000

This afternoon at 2pm, the DC Council’s Judiciary Committee is holding a hearing on hate crimes in DC, with a particular focus on crimes against trans people this summer. The hearing is in room 412 in the John A. Wilson Building, located at 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, and the public is welcome to attend.

Several trans activists will be testifying this afternoon, including representatives from DCTC. Following up on our letter sent to the Council last week, we have submitted extensive testimony so that’s there no question as to the scope and severity of violence against trans people in DC.

A few highlights from our statement:

Summary of the most violent attacks against trans women this summer — including two murders — only one of which has resulted in an arrest.
Critical overview of police response to this violence, noting repeated failures to properly investigate and prevent crime against trans people.
A discussion of the roots of violence against trans people, with a particular focus on the violent consequences of DC’s anti-sex work laws.
Recommendations to both the Metropolitan Police Department and the U.S. Attorney’s office for DC.

Our ultimate conclusion is that transphobic bias in the police department and other elements of the legal system make it impossible for that system to properly investigate and prosecute bias-motivated crimes against trans people.

You can read our full testimony and supporting materials here. If you can’t attend the hearing in person, you can watch it live on cable channel 13, or stream online here.

Letter Sent to DC Council on Anti-Trans Violence, Hearing Next Week

dctranscoalition — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 15:59:14 +0000

Next Wednesday, November 2, the DC Council’s Judiciary Committee will be holding a hearing on hate crimes, with an emphasis on looking at violence committed against trans folks this summer. In preparation for the hearing, yesterday we sent a letter to Councilmember Phil Mendelson, chair of the Judiciary committee, with questions we would like to see him ask Metropolitan Police Chief Cathy Lanier, and U.S. Attorney Ron Machen. We’ve raised the issues in our letter with both MPD and U.S. Attorney representatives in meetings this summer (and for years, really), and have thus far gotten unsatisfactory answers. Our hope is that by raising our questions in advance, we might actually get something resembling real answers.

We’ll of course be testifying at the hearing next week. If you’ve been a victim of violent crime in DC and are willing to speak publicly about your experience, please feel free to get in touch with us over the weekend to learn how to participate. You can email us or call 202.681.3282. Check back here next Wednesday for a copy of our testimony.

Finally, be sure to save the date for the following super important events:

Thursday, November 17, 1pm: Transgender Day of Action — Rally Against Violence. Outside MPD Headquarters, 300 Indiana Avenue NW.
Sunday, November 20, 5pm: Transgender Day of Remembrance. Metropolitan Community Church, 474 Ridge Street NW.

Stay tuned for many more details, and be sure to get involved!

Friday: Transgender Law Symposium

dctranscoalition — Wed, 19 Oct 2011 21:58:01 +0000

Members of DCTC will be presenting at the Transgender Law Symposium this Friday at Georgetown University Law Center (600 New Jersey Ave NW, Hotung Room 2000. Metro: Judiciary Square). Check out the program!

10:00-10:30: “Injustice at Every Turn” – Jack Harrison, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force

A short presentation on the findings of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force’s National Transgender Discrimination Survey.

10:30-11:30: Panel 1: “Transgender Issues 101” – Danielle King, NCTE; Alex Garnick, University of Maryland School of Law Student; Jack Harrison, Task Force; and Jaan Williams, NCLR

A discussion of the most pressing issues that trans people face on a day-to-day basis.

11:30-11:45: Coffee break – Hotung Lobby (adjacent to Hotung 2000)

11:45-12:45: Panel 2: “Transgender Policy Issues” – Mara Kiesling, NCTE; Maya Rupert, NCLR; Sadie-Ryanne Vashti, DCTC; and Masen Davis, TLC

A discussion of the key policy issues currently being advocated including, housing, homelessness, housing, employment discrimination (ENDA), and agency regulations.

12:45-1:30: Lunch – Hotung Lobby (adjacent to Hotung 2000)
Lunch will be provided.

1:30-2:30: Panel 3: “Transgender Law in the Courts” – Harper Jean Tobin, NCTE; Jeff Light,
DCTC; Kylar Broadus, Professor, Lincoln University; Lucy Nichols, VA family law attorney

A discussion of the current status of transgender law, including Title VII discrimination protection, the “trans panic” defense, and the benefits of using a disability model in employment discrimination cases.