Both Latine/x Heritage AND LGTBQ+ History Month mean honoring the legacy and resilience of our queer and trans ancestors. Today, we honor Lorena Borjas and her legacy of radical, compassionate care.
Lorena Borjas was a trans Latinx s*x worker and activist in Queens, New York, focusing her work on supporting trans and queer folks on the streets. Since the 90s onwards, Borjas worked to protect transgender victims of human trafficking (which she herself had experienced) and systemic violence.
She hosted trans women who had been ostracized from their families in her own apartment until they were able to support themselves. She would be out in the streets, handing s*x workers condoms and making sure they were being safe. She worked without pay to facilitate access to HIV testing and hormone therapy for trans s*x workers, including setting up a weekly HIV testing clinic in her home, and providing syringe exchanges for women taking hormone injections.
When s*x workers were faced with “prostitution” charges, Lorena helped bail them out and eventually founded the “Lorena Borjas Community Fund” to help transgender people who were embroiled in the arrest-jail-deportation cycle.
Borjas passed away last year due to COVID-19 complications. She left behind an incredible legacy of building community in the streets, rooted in resilience and an abundance of care for the people around her.
Thank you to our wonderful community collaborator, @maitexnazario for creating this beautiful mural! This is the final piece of the mural, celebrating three different queer and trans Latine/x ancestors.
