Black Trans Lives Matter protesters hit the pavement in Brooklyn, New York City, following a series of discriminatory events that have unfolded over the last week.
More than 15,000 people gathered in Brooklyn on Sunday in an effort to raise awareness about transgender inequality, discrimination, and the murders of two black trans women — Dominique “Rem’Mie” Fells, 27, of Philadelphia, and Riah Milton, 25, of Cincinnati, Ohio.
During a brief interview with CNN, Eliel Cruz and Fran Tirado — both co-organizers of the event — weighed in to explain the importance of the rally, what it signifies and the message they want to convey.
Cruz noted the importance of taking proactive action to create a safe space for transgender people.
“We can’t just talk about trans people when they’re dying,” Cruz said. “But what are we doing actively and intentionally to create space for them to be safe and well?”
The #BlackTransLivesMatter protest in Brooklyn right now is stunning. pic.twitter.com/glDticAc4o
— Read Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler (@JoshuaPotash) June 14, 2020
Protesters wearing white marched in silence for the first part of Sunday’s march. Tirado noted that the decision to wear white and partake in a moment of silence was an acknowledgment of black history and the NAACP’s silent march of 1917.
That march, which also attracted more than 10,000 protesters was considered one of the first Civil Rights demonstrations organized by black Americans.
“We felt that was a really powerful way to think about our action in relation to a lot of others and how thinking on the metaphor of like silence equals death and how everything comes together,” Tirado told CNN.
Thousands gathered in front of the Brooklyn Museum in NYC for a Black Trans Lives Matter rally and march. https://t.co/QjYg7wmQH1 pic.twitter.com/pwrTY1E4Qn
— ABC News (@ABC) June 14, 2020
From the steps of the Brooklyn museum: everyone who’s showed up for Black trans lives today pic.twitter.com/htqjF5tWtn
— Shannon Keating (@skeatings) June 14, 2020
The Black Trans Lives Matter protest also came as the LGBTQ community reflected on a similar tragedy that took place four years ago. In June 2016, a mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida, claimed the lives of 49 victims. An additional 53 victims suffered injuries during the shooting.
On the fourth anniversary of the Pulse nightclub shooting, President Donald Trump also faced criticism for reversing former President Barack Obama’s executive order on health protection for transgender people.
1 in 3 transgender individuals in the US report experiencing discrimination in health care.
— ACLU (@ACLU) June 12, 2020
In states around the country, we at the ACLU are fighting to prevent trans and non-binary people from being turned away from health care.
The order, which was included as part of the anti-discrimination section of the Affordable Care Act, prohibited hospitals, doctors and health insurance providers from discriminating against transgender people.
