{"id":104636,"date":"2019-10-31T18:25:29","date_gmt":"2019-10-31T22:25:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/honoring-the-resilience-of-the-transgender-community\/"},"modified":"2019-10-31T18:25:29","modified_gmt":"2019-10-31T22:25:29","slug":"honoring-the-resilience-of-the-transgender-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/honoring-the-resilience-of-the-transgender-community\/","title":{"rendered":"Honoring the Resilience of the Transgender Community"},"content":{"rendered":"

Honoring the Resilience of the Transgender Community<\/b>
\n<\/p>\n

As a transgender man<\/a> working in social justice in the nation\u2019s capital, Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen<\/a> knows visibility is more important now than ever.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a stereotype that trans<\/a> people always knew they were trans<\/a> since they were kids. That\u2019s true for some of our community, but not everyone. Personally, I always knew that something didn\u2019t fit, that something was off, but I didn\u2019t know what, and the lack of visibility is a big part of that,\u201d Heng-Lehtinen told HRC. \u201cIt took me meeting other trans<\/a> masculine people to realize that\u2019s who I was. Once I learned about transmasculinity, I immediately understood why I had been struggling for so long. That\u2019s the power of visibility. We all need to see ourselves in the world around us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Heng-Lehtinen, the deputy executive director at the National Center for Transgender Equality<\/a>, said the increased visibility of transgender people in the media \u201cblows his mind.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was growing up, not only were there very few trans<\/a> people on TV, but those few trans<\/a> people were portrayed disrespectfully\u2026I never dreamed we would see so many positive, complex portrayals of our community,\u201d he said. \u201cThis progress is a testament to the power of activism. I\u2019d like to see this continue. The best stories are inspired by the diversity of real life. There are still a ton of powerful trans<\/a> stories out there waiting to be brought to life for audiences around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n

Allies could help raise those powerful stories by ensuring that all social justice issues are intersectional with transgender issues and that transgender people have a seat at the table.<\/p>\n

With the epidemic of violence against transgender people, this allyship remains immensly important. More than 150 transgender people have been killed in the U.S. in recent years \u00a0\u2014 most were Black transgender women<\/a> and most were victims of gun violence.<\/p>\n

We must not only say their names, but honor their memories with action. That\u2019s why HRC recently launched a major expansion in the fight for transgender equality and justice<\/a>, which will address the urgent needs of the transgender community, with specific attention to community members deeply impacted by racism, sexism and transphobia. This major effort will include a focus on economic empowerment; capacity-building programs; targeted task forces in communities hardest hit hard by the epidemic of anti-trans<\/a> violence; and expanded public education campaigns.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cFight for change \u2026 Vote for trans<\/a>-affirming candidates that will improve policy so that trans<\/a> people, especially Black trans<\/a> women<\/a>, are protected,\u201d Heng-Lehtinen said. \u201cSupport the decriminalization of sex<\/a> work so people aren\u2019t put in such dangerous situations. And donate to trans<\/a> organizations, including local ones, fighting on the front lines to make everyone safe.\u201d<\/p>\n

To learn more about HRC\u2019s work around transgender issues, including our newly-launced<\/em> expansion for transgender equality and justice<\/em><\/a>, visit <\/em>hrc.org\/transgender<\/em><\/a>.\u00a0 <\/em><\/p>\n

www.hrc.org\/blog\/honoring-the-resilience-of-the-transgender-community?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Honoring the Resilience of the Transgender Community As a transgender man<\/a> working in social justice in the nation\u2019s capital, Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen knows visibility is more important now than ever. \u201cThere\u2019s a stereotype that trans<\/a> people always knew they were trans<\/a> since they were kids. That\u2019s true for some of our community, but not everyone. Personally, … Continue reading Honoring the Resilience of the Transgender Community<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2466,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[107],"tags":[845,779],"class_list":["post-104636","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-hrc","tag-tv"],"yoast_head":"\nHonoring the Resilience of the Transgender Community - GAYFRIENDSCHAT.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/honoring-the-resilience-of-the-transgender-community\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Honoring the Resilience of the Transgender Community - GAYFRIENDSCHAT.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Honoring the Resilience of the Transgender Community As a transgender man working in social justice in the nation\u2019s capital, Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen knows visibility is more important now than ever. \u201cThere\u2019s a stereotype that trans people always knew they were trans since they were kids. 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