Bella Lucente '21
During a year when the nation has been forced to confront the grim reality of violence against Black Americans, there has been more dialogue than ever about the importance of protecting people of color in the United States. These conversations are long overdue and vitally necessary. Yet they often leave out a critical piece of the story: the exceptionally high rates of violence against Black LGBTQ Americans.
By now, many of us are familiar with the disturbing statistics on the frequency of violence–by the police and others–against Black people in America; however, fewer of us know the terrifying reality of violence against Black LGBTQ Americans. According to the 2011 National Transgender Discrimination Survey (NTDS), “38% of Black trans and gender-nonconforming people who interacted with the police reported harassment; 14% reported physical assault, and 6% percent reported a sexual assault” (M4BL.org). Furthermore, a wildly disproportionate 78% of victims of hate violence homicides against LGBTQ Americans in 2013 were Black (AVP.org). Tragically, the Human Rights Campaign reported that 2020 saw “at least 44 transgender or gender non-conforming people fatally shot or killed by other violent means, the majority of which were Black and Latinx transgender women. We say at least because too often these stories go unreported -- or misreported” (HRC.org). In case it was not clear before, the issues facing Black LGBTQ Americans are critical; they are, quite literally, life-or-death.
Facing remarkably high rates of violence, the Black LGBTQ community is at the intersection of several marginalized demographics, not only racially and due to their LGBTQ identities, but also from the widespread poverty and homelessness in these communities. In fact, “Black trans people are more than eight times as likely as the general U.S. population, and more than four times as likely as the general Black population, to live in extreme poverty” (US Trans Survey). These high rates of poverty in the Black LGBTQ community often result from discrimination in the job hiring process and in the workplace, challenges which end up pushing many Black LGBTQ Americans into dangerous and highly criminalized areas of work, including selling drugs or trading sex, to make ends meet (M4BL.org). From there, Black LGBTQ folks face an increased risk of harassment and assault by police, as noted above, in addition to disproportionately high incarceration rates, which are often due to arrests that stem from police bias in the first place (M4BL.org). To make matters worse, once incarcerated, they are at an even greater risk for harassment and assault.
But before members of the Black LGBTQ community even enter the workforce, they are students. We all know how much our culture prizes education as a pathway to success in life, but it’s not so simple for all of our youth: nearly three-fourths of Black trans or gender non-conforming students experienced harassment at school based on their gender identity or expression, according to the 2015 US Transgender Survey. School as a means up the economic ladder is naturally going to be less of a guaranteed path to success when students face physical, verbal, and sexual harassment in the environment in which they are expected to learn.
The structures of homeless shelters and healthcare often fail to support members of the Black LGBTQ community, further worsening the problem. Discrimination in healthcare based on race, gender identity, and sexual orientation take a toll on both the health and economic outcomes of the community as a whole (lgbtqiahealtheducation.org). And, in homeless shelters, where those who are having the hardest time economically are supposed to receive help, Black LGBTQ people are frequently met with discrimination, harassment, and assault (M4BL.org). The systems that are supposed to help some of our society’s most disadvantaged groups are failing at their critical jobs.
So, what can we do to change this upsetting reality? There are several key actions that any American can take to uplift our fellow citizens. First, we can write letters to our elected representatives to urge them to support and pass a variety of legislation that protects against discrimination based on race, gender, and sexual orientation, prohibits conversion therapy, appropriates funds for affordable housing specifically for groups that need it, and other related issues. Second, if you can vote, vote for politicians who will prioritize the needs of our most marginalized populations and contribute to a diverse body of leadership in America. Third, if you are able to, donate to organizations doing important antiracist and pro-LGBTQ work, such as the Movement for Black Lives and the Human Rights Campaign, just to name a few. Fourth, have conversations with family and friends who may not yet be aware or supportive of this cause. Finally, use your First Amendment rights to protest and speak out when you see racism, homophobia, or transphobia, especially in our country’s established systems of power like the police and the criminal justice system.
The lived experiences of Black LGBTQ Americans are uniquely intersectional, and there are many different systems working together–those of education, labor, criminal justice, housing, and more–to oppress this group and that ultimately culminate in atrocious violence. It’s beyond time that we uplift Black LGBTQ voices in our conversations about race and educate ourselves on the true impact of intersectional systems of oppression.
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