Finding affirming therapists, endocrinologists, and surgeons remains a nightmare for many trans people. While gay men and lesbians historically fought for HIV treatment and mental health access, trans people are currently fighting for basic gender-affirming care, which is under legislative attack in many countries.
During the AIDS epidemic, trans women—particularly those involved in sex work—were among the most vulnerable. The broader LGBTQ culture’s response to AIDS (buddy systems, direct action via ACT UP) was heavily informed by trans activists who understood that healthcare discrimination was a matter of life and death. shemale destroy guy
Takeaway: To be educated in LGBTQ history is to know trans history. Erasing trans people from the narrative of Stonewall or the AIDS crisis is to lie about where LGBTQ culture came from. The broader LGBTQ culture’s response to AIDS (buddy
The most famous birth of the modern LGBTQ rights movement was led by trans women of color. Figures like Marsha P. Johnson (a self-identified drag queen and trans activist) and Sylvia Rivera (a Latina trans woman) were central to the riots against police brutality at the Stonewall Inn. While history long credited white gay men with the uprising, modern scholarship has corrected the record: the vanguard of Stonewall was trans and gender-nonconforming. The most famous birth of the modern LGBTQ