Trans Day of Visibility is taking on new meaning for Black trans and gender-expansive Americans as they navigate the political resurgence of President Donald Trump, who has made anti-trans and anti-DEI policies major features of his administration’s agenda.
Black trans and gender-expansive individuals find themselves at the intersection of communities that are being impacted after a slew of actions taken by the Trump administration, including moving to ban the existence of trans-Americans from sports, government websites, the U.S. military and even passports. Trump similarly eliminated diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility programs and policies throughout the federal government and has sought to pressure private companies to do the same.
The actions taken by Trump, advocates argue, have systematically sought to block transgender and people of color from access to everyday parts of life, including employment, health care, housing, and even access to clean water and air.
Despite the actions by the Trump administration, Black trans women leaders who spoke with theGrio say they remain “inspired” and even more determined to fight for visibility.
“It’s even more fuel for those of us who are part of the trans and gender-expansive community to really be more visible and vocal today and really every day of the year,” said Tori Cooper, director of Community Engagement at Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ advocacy organization.
“Our lives shouldn’t be political points,” she told theGrio. “The fact that we have a president and administration that is prioritizing our existence over the price of eggs or the price of gas or a living wage or even employment, I think, really says a lot about the power that our community holds.”
Jay Jones, who was elected Howard University’s first transgender student body president, told theGrio that looking to the past, trans and gender-expansive people have…
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