#freecece

[queerwoc]

URGENT: Read, Donate, and Share CeCe McDonald: The Girl Who Lived. Ask yourself this question: are you really living if none of your basic needs are met? That's exactly what CeCe is dealing with, RIGHT NOW, in this very moment. CeCe is currently homeless, unemployed, and uninsured with a laundry...

[queermediastudies]

Question and Response

“This isn’t about getting the government to say we’re good. It’s about ending capitalism and white supremacy.” Dean Spade at 24:39 This quote forms the basis of my analysis of episode 6 and this week’s readings.

The article “Kids in South Dakota have spent most of their youth fighting anti-trans bills” by Kate Sosin debunks one of the myths about respectability politics: if we prove we’re just like them, if they just get to know us, they’ll let us into the club. When the “club” is built on white supremacy (which is straight supremacy), why would we want into the club? I think the article talks about this, too. It talks about the harm done when people in the “club” (politicians, doctors, soldiers, police) make decisions about us, they cause direct and lasting harm. One example of this is the anti-trans bill mentioned in the article that bans trans girls from sports. Even after spending 8 years lobbying his legislature, transgender teen activist Elliot James Vogue was unable to prevent his state Senator Wayne Steinhauer from signing the anti-trans bill. Another example is in the episode of “Pride” where Dean Spade is violently arrested by a police officer in the bathroom.

What type of activism works? Capitalism seems to be a way to influence some of South Dakota’s decisions, particularly large-scale boycotts of the state. But that’s extremely hard to promote. It’s also like sweeping the sea back with a broom—we might get some sort of concession, but it doesn’t seem to stop the tide.

Spade earned a degree to help him in his activism and has focused on bathroom accessibility. Yes, because bathrooms are about physical safety and about acceptance. But this goes back to the same discussion we’ve been having—acceptance is not enough, and, as Spade says, “It’s not enough to pass laws.”

Chase Strangio similarly argues that hate crimes laws “just puts more people in prison and it doesn’t actually deter violence.” (32:12) Dr. Lourdes Hunter concurs, saying that anti-hate laws don’t prevent violence against trans people. In fact, when trans women defend themselves (like CeCe McDonald did), the woman is the one who is charged. This is the intersection of color and gender. Black trans women are repeatedly punished just for being alive.

This, then, is my question:

How do we make large, systemic change when neoliberal capitalism has a way of bouncing back? If passing laws doesn’t work (including the Respect for Marriage Act likely to be passed soon), and boycotts are extremely difficult to manage long term, what do we do to end systems of oppression that consistently position the most harmed people at the bottom of the white patriarchal hierarchy?

Bryn Brody

[thepsychicsister]

Big thanks to @olympiafilmsociety for helping us bring the documentary Free CeCe to Olympia. Today we donated to her fundraiser and encourage you to do the same! Here is the info and update on her situation. Thanks for helping us raise awareness and funds for her life and work. https://www.youcaring.com/cecemcdonald-1003185 “CeCe McDonald: The Girl Who Lived Ask yourself this question: are you really living if none of your basic needs are met? That's exactly what CeCe is dealing with, RIGHT NOW, in this very moment. CeCe is currently homeless, unemployed, and uninsured with a laundry list of other things that she needs in order to have the basic necessities to live and continue fighting for Black people. Luckily, a few of her family are relieving some of this stress and trauma by letting her sleep in their homes while she looks for something permanent. That being said, we are fundraising for housing (at the very least, a security deposit along with first and last month’s rent) and other basic needs (food, transportation, cell phone). Make sure when sharing, share to all your networks: college students and campuses, friends and family members who can spare some money, work and job connections etc. It is our responsibility to take care of Black trans women because historically the only people that have been there for Black trans women have been Black trans women. Black trans women are always on the front lines and always under attack and this is just a small way we can help CeCe feel more loved and secure in a world made to kill her. We know that CeCe's situation is something many black trans women are dealing with so even if you don't donate to CeCe, please give money and resources to black trans woman in your community.” We love you, Sis! XO #psychicsister #freecece #givingtuesday

[tracelysette]

That light is bright as shit but this is a really important point. Thank you to #RichGirlTV for asking pertinent questions beyond the silly stuff like "who are you wearing" etc... I'm over sharing today in the hopes that it helps someone. Most trans women are involved with sex work as means of survival. I know this to be true because I was in it for over a decade. When I lost my job while I was transitioning I found community amongst my fellow trans women who showed me the ropes and how to survive in NYC with no family and no college degree. Thankfully I invested in myself, I got off the streets and out of the working girl trans bars and when I became "passable" enough I used my passing privilege to work in strip clubs all over Manhattan and Queens for over 8yrs. That life had a cap out for me though and I wasn't happy. One night I left the strip club and slit my wrists with a broken bottle in an alley behind a bodega. My unsuccessful suicide attempt was a was a wake up call that I wasn't healthy or happy. When I was released from Bellvue Hospital psych ward I invested in myself again, this time on the inside and I began to take acting classes. It took me 5 years of auditioning to land my first job on Law & Order and at that time I was living stealth both on set and in the strip club. Fast forward to now, I'm living out and free. Free from sex work, free to be me. It's been over a year since I cleaned out my locker at the club, hung up my thong and got off the pole. I want this so badly for my sisters still stuck in the game. Not just my trans sister but my cisgender ones too. So if you are stuck I'm talking to you. Invest in yourself, don't throw your money into drugs or clothes or material things that don't really get you anywhere. Invest in a skill or a dream so you can get up and out and to a better, safer plateau in life. I've met some amazing women on my journey and some of the realest most sincere ones were caught up just like I was. I believe in you and I know you can do it. Keep going and keep your eyes on the prize. ✊🏽❤️ #transisbeautiful #LAfilmfest #freecece #BluntTalk #TransparentTV #girlslikeus #houseofmizrahi #filmindependent (at Arclight Cinemas)

[bossybroads]

Documentary ‘Free CeCe’ explores the injustices trans women of color face in their daily lives.

FreeCeCe premiered at the LA Film Festival on June 2.

"McDonald is the subject of the documentary Free Cece, which had its world premiere on Thursday night at the Los Angeles Film Festival. The 28-year-old transgender woman served 19 months in a men’s prison for killing a man who violently attacked her."

"'the system figured that this would be a good fit for me because the program was more confined, so I wouldn’t have to deal with more people.'

McDonald was also forced to wear baggy, extra large clothing. '[They’d say,] "Oh, you have a woman’s body, you have a woman’s parts" or "You look like a woman, so we have to micromanage you for your safety,"’ she said, adding that she never had any issues with other inmates.

Because McDonald resisted those dress code requirements, she was kicked out of the drug rehabilitation program and served an additional 30 days in prison.

While Cox believes that men’s prisons are 'inherently dangerous for trans women,' McDonald doesn’t feel she would have fared much better if she had served her time in a women’s facility.

'It doesn’t matter which prison I was in, because I would have been in a prison, and that’s not fun for anybody,' she said. Since being released, McDonald has become an outspoken advocate for the prison abolitionist movement, which works to reduce and eliminate the system entirely rather than reform or improve prisons."

[tracelysette]

#LAfilmfest tonight supporting sisters @lavernecox and @freececedoc @secret_life_of_bea #freecece (at LA Film Festival)

[bi-trans-alliance]

Free Cece world premiere: Thursday, June 2 at 6:45 pm at the LA Film Festival  (tickets)

[chernobiko]

Third year in a row being able to bless this beautiful face with #BeautyByBiko. She is and will always remain THE GIRL WHO LIVED! #BlackGirlMagic #MrsBikoWorldTour #FolksLikeUs #FreeCeCe #CeceMcDonald #CC16 #BlackTransLivesMatter