DCTC Recommends Priorities for District Government

Last week, newly-elected Mayor Gray’s Director of the Office of GLBT Affairs, Jeffrey Richardson, attended a DC Trans Coalition meeting. Members of DCTC educated the Director about the needs of trans communities in the District, and we were assured that trans people (along with youth and aging LGBT people) would be among the administration’s top concerns.

For the occasion, DCTC prepared a list of priorities for the Gray Administration, and shared this with the Director. We broke it down by agency and listed the most pressing and achievable goals for each. Among our list were:

• End the Prostitution Free Zones and move toward decriminalizing sex work;
• Nominate one or more trans people to serve on the Commission on Human Rights;
• Enforce the gender-neutral bathroom provisions of the DC Human Rights Act;
• Restore funding to vital trans-sensitive social services like HIPS and T.H.E.;
• Develop plans to address unemployment in the trans community;
• Expand the Dept. of Corrections and MPD trans policies to include other criminal justice agencies in the District;
• Fund the DC Trans Needs Assessment

..and much more. You can read the comprehensive list here.

News and events from DCTC

Upcoming Events

• Thursday, April 14, 6:30pm:  Hate Crimes Town Hall with MPD, the Mayor’s Office of LGBT Affairs, and the DC Attorney General — Community Room @ Reeves Center, 14th & U Streets NW
• Tuesday, April 19, 7:30pm:  Bi-monthly DCTC Meeting — Austin Center @ Whitman Walker Clinic, 14th & R Streets NW
• Thursday, April 21, 12:00noon:  Rally for a Bully Free DC — Front Steps @ The Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
• Tuesday, April 26, 7:30pm:  Needs Assessment Working Group — Soho Coffee, 22nd & P Streets NW
• Tuesday, May 3, 7:30pm:  Bi-monthly DCTC Meeting — Austin Center @ Whitman Walker Clinic, 14th & R Streets NW

What we’ve been up to

As always, we value your input and your help!  If you want to get involved in a project, write to dctc@dctranscoalition.org or call us at 202.681.DCTC (202.681.3282), or better yet, come to a meeting!

Jail Campaign.  The DC Department of Corrections is currently taking applications for trans community representatives on the DOC’s transgender housing committee.  It’s super important that lots of folks apply!  The transgender housing committee determines where trans inmates are safely housed.  To apply, please send a resume and cover letter explaining why you’re a good fit for this role to Carolyn Cross, Deputy Director of the Department of Corrections, at 1923 Vermont Avenue NW, Suite 112 North, Washington, DC 20001 or by email at sylvia.lane2@dc.gov.

Police Liaison.  Last month we submitted testimony to the DC Council about the work of the MPD over the past year.  Check out one of the things we talked about! We also continue to train officers in the Gay and Lesbian Liaison Unit.  Be sure to come to the Hate Crimes Town Hall this Thursday (details above) to make your voice heard!  If there’s something you want to say to the police department, this is a good time to say it!

Anti-Bullying Law.  We’re now a part of the DC Safe Schools Coalition and are working hard to get a strong anti-bullying law passed by the DC  Council.  Show your support at the rally on April 21 (details above there too), and make sure the Council and the Mayor know how important it is to keep youth safe in school.

Needs Assessment.  We’ve nearly completed our community roundtable meetings!  Our goal is to explore and document many issues facing members of the trans community, and we’re currently holding roundtable discussions with trans communities throughout DC as the first phase of the project.  If you would like to participate in a roundtable or volunteer to help plan phase two (launching a survey), please write to dctransneeds@gmail.com.

Trans Pride.  Our friends at Capital Trans Pride are gearing up a day of exciting events on Saturday, June 4.  Check out their page on Facebook!

Help us make the next DC Trans Needs Assessment happen.

As we head into a busy week of events, we’d like to remind all of our friends and supporters that the hard work of creating trans justice does not end once Trans Awareness Week and the Trans Day of Remembrance are over. For us at DCTC, it means getting back down to work on some huge, exciting projects like our Needs Assessment.

Along with local allies, we are launching the first trans-specific research project in over a decade. The information we obtain will help us identify and understand barriers to justice in our lives. It will also be a way to ensure that the voices of all DC’s diverse trans communities are able to influence decision-making, whether here at DCTC or over at the Wilson Building.

“Phase One” will consist of a series of ten round table meetings, and we’re really hoping that you will join us — as a volunteer, a participant, or both. (Note: participation is limited to trans and gender non-conforming people who live in the District only.) Be sure to read more about the project by clicking this link.

As a reminder, we are an all-volunteer, entirely member-support organization, and that means we are in desperate need of time and money commitments to make sure this project comes to fruition. If your organization would like to endorse the needs assessment or help us with raise funds to support the work, please write to us at dctranscoalition@gmail.com.

Three Important Events This Week!

Tuesday August 24th

Our Needs Assessment Working Group will be meeting from 7:30 to 9:00pm at SoHo cafe (2150 P St NW, at the corner of 22nd).  Click here for a map!  It’s within a couple of blocks of several metro stops: Dupont Circle, Farragut North and Farragut West.

This group will be working to design a new needs assessment for trans people in the DC Metro area. This is an open meeting, please feel free to attend if you would like to get involved! Contact dctranscoalition@gmail.com for further details.

Thursday August 26th

Forum on Recent Violence against the LGBT Community:  Marking the Anniversary of the Death of ‘Na Na Boo’ Mack and the 15th Anniversary of the Death of Tyra Hunter
In light of recent incidents of violence, GLOV in partnership with Transgender Health Empowerment, Latinos en Accion, and other LGBT organizations, will hold a special Town Hall Meeting on Thursday August 26th at 7:00 PM at the DC Center for the LGBT Community, 1318 U Street NW.

We will also be marking the one year anniversary of the death of “Na Na Boo’ Mack and the 15th anniversary of the death of Tyra Hunter.  We hope to get updates on the investigation into the murder of Na Na Boo.

Please join us for this meeting and come with your ideas, energy, and commitment to respond to the violence against our community. For more information, please contact contact@thedccenter.org or dctranscoalition@gmail.com or check out the event’s facebook page.

Friday August 27th

“Don’t Make Me Take Off My Earrings” A Stand Up Comedy Show & Benefit Event

A Stand Up Comedy Show featuring Sampson with special guest Dawn Henderson. Tickets are $15 and a portion of the proceeds will benefit The Wanda Alston House (an LGBT youth shelter). Please come and and show your support!  The event is from 10:00 to 11:30pm at the DC Arts Center  in Adams Morgan, 2438 18th Street NW.  For more information, check out the event’s facebook page.

Tomorrow morning Ursula and company will call you at 8:30/2:30 to discuss the inside higher ed piece.  Your one on one with Jill will follow, and she has sent background materials for that meeting.

Two Ways YOU Can Help Remedy the Lack of Trans Research in DC!

First, come out NEXT TUESDAY (July 13th, 7:30pm) and join us for a meeting to discuss our plans for creating the second-ever DC Trans Needs Assessment Survey! This exciting project will take a lot of time and effort, so from now on we will be meeting every other Tuesday, on the off-week of our normal planning meetings, at “the DCTC house” (email us at dctranscoalition@gmail.com for location details). All are invited, even first-timers!

Second, NEXT WEDNESDAY (July 14th, 2pm), the DC City Council Committee on Aging and Community Affairs is hosting a public oversight round-table in Hearing Room 123 at the Wilson Building (1350 Penn. Ave NW). Councilmember Yvette Alexander has called this meeting in order to ascertain why trans communities were left out of the recent Report on “GLBT” Health released by the Mayor’s Office on GLBT Affairs. So let’s make our voices heard and demand that the City commit to including us in the future! If you wish to testify at the hearing, or provide written testimony if you can’t come in person, contact us at dctranscoalition@gmail.com.