Double The Trouble

Sometimes we forget that the struggles faced by Black and Latino trans communities are not just different—they’re often far more severe, rooted in compounded systems of marginalization that go beyond what many others experience.

Grantee Partner Spotlight: Trans Women of Color Healing Project

For Women

by Toi Washington-Reynolds

April 30, 2024

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, a time to raise public awareness about sexual violence and promote preventive measures within communities. The stark reality is that an American is sexually assaulted every 68 seconds, affecting individuals across all gender identities. Transgender and gender-diverse individuals, especially those of color, are disproportionately impacted, experiencing higher rates of sexual violence and more complex, often unmet, service needs post-assault. 

As this month comes to a close, we’re lifting up the work of the Trans Women of Color Healing Project, a Ms. South grantee partner aiming to combat the erasure of trans peoples’ lives, narratives, and contributions to society. They speak truth to power and uplift stories that center trans women of color, their families, their communities, and their movement. The organization has also created programs that support Black trans women who are survivors or at risk of sexual assault. 

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We’re also particularly proud of our “Healing Through Sexual Assault” program. This initiative addresses the unique challenges faced by Black transgender women, both survivors and those at risk of sexual assault, by bridging rural care barriers and linking them to trans-specific services. The program also tackles medical mistrust and discrimination stemming from the intersection of gender, sexuality, race, and social class. By understanding these intersectionalities, the program has created a state-of-the-art therapeutic space and essential resources to support the healing of survivors.

The goal of the project is to support Black trans women who are survivors or at risk of sexual assault by providing culturally-specific support through in-person and virtual events, retreats, transportation, personal care packages, emergency crisis support, and educational and healing sessions. It aims to assist those in rural areas with difficulties accessing care by improving transportation and telehealth options, and enhancing direct access to trans-inclusive care. Additionally, the project focuses on increasing linkage to transgender services through the creation of a Health Access Resource Guide specifically designed for Black trans women, which will be available in 2025.

The Center for American Progress writes that,

LGBTQI+ people experience discrimination and hardships in many areas of life. Bias and discrimination can affect individuals’ ability to access housing, find employment, and even be safe at school. According to survey findings, these barriers can be heightened for disabled LGBTQI+ people and LGBTQI+ people of color. Discrimination can lead to higher rates of homelessness and health disparities. Because LGBTQI+ people are at greater risk for isolation and violence, access to safe housing and health care is even more crucial.

Science Direct reports that...

Persons of color experience are disproportionately impacted by poor mental health compared to White individuals, as are gender diverse populations relative to cisgender individuals. Yet, few studies have assessed differences in common mental health disorders at the intersection of race and gender identity.

Being Black or Latino and trans is a tough load to bear, with race discrimination coupled with discrimination because we are trans or LGBTQ+ is sometimes too much to bear. In an article from 2017 in Psychology Today,

It’s no secret that being different than other people — whether it means your race, gender, or sexual orientation — is often a source of stress in our society. People of minority sexual orientations often feel that stress most acutely. And it’s no surprise.

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Challenges such as the stigma associated with sexual minorities, discrimination, family disapproval, social rejection, and violence are among the factors that can lead to mental health problems, said Janis Whitlock, a research scientist in the Bronfenbrenner Center for Translational Research and Director of the Cornell Research Program on Self-Injury and Recovery.

“It is increasingly clear that sexual orientation and identity are important factors in understanding health and other well-being outcomes," she said. "Although the reasons for this are unclear, sensitivity to the relationship between these are critical for protecting vulnerable people and populations."

The Science Direst article The rise in extreme mental distress among LGBT people during Trump’s rise and presidency writes,

Highlights

• President Trump’s administration was widely viewed as hostile to LGBT people.
• This study compares extreme mental distress among LGBT and non-LGBT people from 2014–2020.
• Extreme mental distress among LGBT people increased during Trump’s rise and presidency.
• The increase in extreme mental distress among LGBT people was larger in states where Trump won.
• There is little evidence that physical distress increased among LGBT people in the same period.

Abstract

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) advocates argue that President Donald Trump’s 2016 election victory and his administration's agenda raised concerns about changes to legal rights and discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. Using data on more than one million randomly sampled people during 2014–2020, this study estimates event study and difference-in-differences models to examine whether the prevalence of extreme mental distress (the percentage who reported major mental and emotional problems in all 30 of the last 30 days) increased among LGBT people relative to non-LGBT people after Trump became the Republican presidential frontrunner in early 2016. The difference-in-differences estimate indicates that the extreme mental distress gap between LGBT people and non-LGBT people increased from 1.8 percentage points during 2014–2015 to 3.8 percentage points after Trump’s presidency became a real possibility in early 2016.

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Conclusions

Before he became President of the United States, Trump was widely considered as an anti-LGBT presidential candidate, who would roll back critical legal protections if he was elected president. Since taking office, the Trump administration adopted a broad anti-LGBT agenda that threatened the rights of LGBT people. Based on the hypothesis that anti-LGBT sentiments and policies might have led to higher levels of mental distress among LGBT people, this study has examined whether exceptional levels,,,

When you are trans and another minority you have many time more stress and they face many times more discrimination than White trans people. The HRC said;

Since 2013, Black transgender women account for around 63% of all known victims of fatal violence against transgender and gender non-conforming people in the U.S.