Post a Comment On: TransGriot

[Image]Been a while since I posted one of these, but had another FB run in with someone in a trans group no less named Jocelynne Valeta who failed to understand that 'anti-racism' doesn't mean you don't talk about racism and doing so is 'being a victim.'

This is the comment that started the thread that I wrote the post about transpeople of color not having the luxury of separating race and ethnicity from our trans status that far too many white people don't (or refuse to) understand.     

im offended when ppl add race, ethnicity, or gender restrictions to anything, Trans in itself is enough of a minority i personally don't feel we need to break up anymore... hey maybe its just me; im not trying to be rude.

My immediate response to her was- Transpeople of color do not have the luxury of separating our race from our trans status. They are inextricably part of us.

She made some comments that she subsequently deleted before I had a chance to copy the thread for posterity before she jumped back in it later.    Here's the thread  
Black Transmen Resources No Restrictions:) Hope you can benefit from the core of our intent: [Image] Black Transmen Resources Our conference theme this year is "One Earth. One People. One Love." inviting trans and gender non-conforming individuals and our family, friends and community allies to gather, educate, learn, build and grow together in unity.
[Image] Monica Roberts Transpeople of color do not have the luxury of separating our race from our trans status. They are inextricably part of us. [Image] Monica Roberts Jocelynn...you may not like the fact that we have Black, Latina and Asian trans groups, organizations and conventions, but they didn't come out of a vacuum.

As Kwame Ture said, 'in order to become a part of the greater society, you must first close ranks.

People of color face anti POC hatred whether we are trans or not and being trans only magnifies that. And some of the worst manifestations of that anti-POC hatred are in our own TBLG ranks.

What we do have, if the trans community will seize that opportunity, is to lead by example in eradicating racism in its subset of society
[Image] Monica Roberts Sadly, yes, it is is and has been for over 4 centuries...
[Image] Monica Roberts You're not even paying attention to what I'm trying to point out. Your lived experience doesn't trump the lived experience of someone who has taken the brunt of the white supremacist attitudes since birth,, much less her people's 400 year history of living in the Americas..
[Image] Monica Roberts FYI some of the worst race riots during the civil rights movements happened in NORTHERN cities

After this comment, here's where she jumps back into the thread after hastily running from the conversation in the first place and decides to start flinging insults that I ignored  [Image] Jocelynn Veleta the bottom line is this is a support group your so caught up in playing the role of the victim you cant see here and now... you cant see that racism and hate no longer is a problem for just a minority; we all face this problem as a whole society and all are victims. we can all stop being victims and stand up TOGETHER or we can stay divided and poke at other minorities.

Now the group admin jumps in: 
[Image] Barbara Barrett ADMIN: Being trans AND a person of colour brings it's own special brands of problems, and only the oppressed can define oppression - would you like a Cis person deciding what's transphobic? If I see one more HINT of racism here I shall be very angry!
[Image] Monica Roberts You're the one that posted this Jocelynn

im offended when ppl add race, ethnicity, or gender restrictions to anything, Trans in itself is enough of a minority i personally don't feel we need to break up anymore... hey maybe its just me; im not trying...See More
[Image] Jocelynn Veleta thank you for saving that i am offended when u break up a support group to argue race
[Image] Jocelynn Veleta this time im really done replying ill leave it for moderators and if ya want to boot me for being all anti-racist go ahead 45 minutes ago · Like [Image] Monica Roberts And I'm offended Jocelynn when you make such a knee jerk reactive clueless statement on the comment of a Black trans group promoting their upcoming Dallas trans conference open to all, you failing to see how problematic that was, and then running when you get called on it.
[Image] Aleka McAdams Intersectionality, yo. We aren't trans in a vacuum. It's not about dividing the community. It's about recognizing that different people within the community have different challenges. Just look at the statistics of violence against trans women of color versus white trans women.
[Image] Monica Roberts Race and class and how it affects trans people of color is an issue worthy of discussion in a trans group too. Who told you that lie it wasn't?
[Image] Jocelynn Veleta never said it wasnt, what you were trying to do was break apart the trans community by race while i said if we all stuck together we would work more things out
[Image] Jocelynn Veleta also you dont need to be attacking me you also took a comment on a black trans group and used it to further YOUR argument with me about race
[Image] Monica Roberts anti-racist? Jocelynn, you aren't even close to being that if you can't openly acknowledge the point that racist attitudes permeates American society, still affects POC's in the second decade of the 21st century, can't see past your own unacknowledged white privilege and how it has shaped your thinking (as the playing the victim conservacomment demonstrates) and that racism= prejudice plus systemic power.
[Image] Jocelynn Veleta i never once argued about race, i argued that adding a race label to a Trans group does not make it a safe atmosphere for all trans, it does the opposite of uniting us
[Image] Barbara Barrett bloody hell, look luvs it is really really simple - only people who experience something are able to explain it to those who do not experience it - these groups serve that function because from them the rest of the community learns! That is not racist, nor is it trying to break the community.
[Image] Monica Roberts and as I said simply earlier in the thread and will expand on.

Transpeople of color do not have the luxury of separating our race and ethnicity from our trans status. They are inextricably part of us and affect how we experience a gender transition.
[Image] Jocelynn Veleta you can quote half my text but not the other then leave out the other and use your context to say i didn't acknowledge what i actually did so your insulting yourself by sounding stupid not me. i never minimized oppression i did the opposite and pointed out that everyone has struggles instead of them seperating us they should unite us
[Image] Monica Roberts Girlfriend, better hit Google before you step to me. I lecture colleges on these issues.
[Image] Barbara Barrett THIS STOPS NOW
[Image] Barbara Barrett 5. This is a no-hate zone. Personal attacks will not tolerated.
[Image] Barbara Barrett 3. Content intended to evoke hate against others will be removed and the person that posted it will be banned.
[Image] Barbara Barrett These rules are in the Pinned Post at the head of the page
[Image] Barbara Barrett I do not _want_ to ban anyone, I'd much rather everyone took a deep breath and let it go; and try to see it from the other side - you might even grow
[Image] Black Transmen Resources No worries friends. The topic of racism and appreciating difference is a long term task. It is a plus for us to have dialogue around these issues so that we may overcome them and to fully love all of who we are. This is also great headway in topics being discussed at our conference. "One Earth. One People. One Love." I see no need to ban. If we do that then we miss the opportunity of growth.
[Image] Barbara Barrett I'd like to be kept apprised of these efforts because I believe they're important to the whole community so I've sent you a friend request Black Transmen Resources which I hope you'll accept

*** And that's when I jumped out of it because had I said anything else I probably would have set off another round and probably been banned from the group 

But it's just another day of a Black person saying something white person doesn't like or that doesn't fit their vanillacentric privileged worldview and getting insulted for it.

Sigh.