In recognition of Transgender Day of Visibility, LGBTQ youth in all 50 states and Washington, D.C., plan to take part in coordinated events in what they believe will be one of the largest youth-led protests in history.
From NBC News:
The protests and classroom walkouts are part of a coordinated “March for Queer and Trans Youth Autonomy” on Transgender Day of Visibility, which is an annual awareness day dedicated to celebrating the accomplishments of trans people while still acknowledging the violence and discrimination they continue to face.
The events, organized by Queer Youth Assemble, a nonprofit that serves LGBTQ people under 25, are a response to the wave of state legislation introduced by Republican lawmakers over the last three years that seeks to limit what sports teams transgender students can play on at school, restrict minors’ access to transition-related care and prohibit the instruction of LGBTQ-related topics in schools.
The organizers of the events have one central message: Instead of talking about queer youths, talk to them.
Perfect.
In response to state legislation targeting LGBTQ people over the last three years, young members of the community plan to demonstrate in all 50 states and Washington D.C. in what some say will be one of the largest youth-led protests in history.https://t.co/5oDNVWvRxw
— NBC News (@NBCNews) March 31, 2023
I’m sad to report that, so far, 43 states have had anti-transgender bills filed in 2023.
NBC News also shares this round-up of transgender trailblazers that reminds us how trans people – like everyone else – serve up incredible contributions to society.
The list includes:
• Reed Erickson – mechanical engineer and successful businessman
• Christine Jorgensen – U.S. Army veteran and the first American woman to publicly announce her gender-affirming surgery
• Renée Richards – professional tennis player
• Miss Major Griffin-Gracy – Longtime trans activist
• Marsha P. Johnson – an outspoken transgender rights activist and reported to be one of the participants in the historic Stonewall uprising of 1969
• Sylvia Ray Rivera – “The Rosa Parks of the Modern Transgender Movement”
• Dr. Rachel Levine – Assistant secretary for health at the Department of Health and Human Services
• Andrea Jenkins – the first openly transgender Black woman elected to public office in the U.S.
• Kansas State Rep. Stephanie Byers – the first transgender person elected to office in Kansas and the first trans Native American elected in the United States
• Elliot Page – star of “Juno” and the Netflix series “The Umbrella Academy”
• Maia Kobabe – nonbinary author whose award-winning memoir, “Gender Queer,” is one of the most banned books in the U.S.
• Mj Rodriguez – the first transgender performer to pick up an Emmy nomination in a major acting category and the first trans Golden Globe winner
Read their stories here.
From Renée Richards to Elliot Page, transgender people have blazed trails for the community across a wide variety of fields.
On Transgender Day of Visibility, here are 12 people to celebrate: https://t.co/HNRkTkF4Sm – @NBCOUT
— NBC News (@NBCNews) March 31, 2023