The intersections/connections between the struggle for trans liberation and #BlackLivesMatter.

We'll be talking with Melissa Vollono about the intersections/connections between the struggle for trans liberation and #BlackLivesMatter.  This would include the importance of disrupting everyday society, and the power that comes from mobilizing a working-class movement for black and trans liberation.  This is the subject of Meliss'a talk at PSU last week, titled "From Ferguson to Leelah Alcorn: Re-Examining the Roadmap to Black and Transgender Liberation."     By framing the discussion around the history of trans activism - beginning with the Compton Cafeteria Riots in 1966 and the effort of trans women of color activists Marsha P. Johnson and Slyvia Rivera in the early days of the gay liberation movement, up to the death of Leelah Alcorn - we can come to see the vital importance of civil disobedience in the name of transgender visibility and civil rights.  For modern context,  Melissa speaks to the revolutionary importance of CeCe McDonald, Lourdes Ashley Hunter, Laverne Cox, Janet Mock, and Leelah Alcorn, as well as the long-terms effects of "cis-gatekeeping" and trans erasure on trans consciousness, identity, health and political power (or lack thereof). 

Melissa Vollono is a transgender activist, writer and community organizer in Portland.