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Identity

The Most Significant Moments for Trans Rights in 2016

In 2016, the forces for and against transgender equality collided with greater force than ever before.
Illustration of Chelsea Manning by Julia Kuo

Transgender people in the United States face injustice across all areas of their lives—from family rejection to housing discrimination to prejudice in the workplace. Discrimination is common, and it regularly is committed by people who are in political positions of power. The former Republican governor of North Carolina, Pat McCrory, and the Attorney General of Texas, Ken Paxton, are two glaring examples of political leaders who have tried to legislate discrimination, offensively suggesting that transgender rights impede upon the rights of others. At the same time, trans culture is more vibrant than ever before, and the movement for equality has gained stronger allies, such as civil rights organizations like the ACLU, which has led the legislative battle for trans rights.

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This year, these opposing forces collided with greater force than ever before. So, we've compiled some of the most significant moments in trans rights from 2016.

Photo by Luke Gilford

Beyond the Tyga Sex Scandal: The Real Life of Trans Porn Star Mia Isabella

Mia Isabella became the subject of controversy when media began reporting in 2015 that she'd had an affair with the rapper Tyga. Tabloids and news outlets presented her as a scandalous plot twist, while capitalizing off of old and harmful stereotypes about trans women. In an interview with Broadly, Isabella opened up about her life and shared her experience as a trans woman who has given her love to high profile heterosexual men who have kept her secret. Her story provides a clear, personal view on a widespread cultural problem.

Photo by Leah James

The Trans Lawyer Fighting to Keep His Community Alive

Legislative action is one of the most powerful and important aspects of the movement for transgender equality. It is clear that people who want to legally oppress trans Americans are more than happy to criminalize transgender people for simply being themselves. Chase Strangio is a transgender man and a lawyer at the ACLU who is involved in legislating transgender rights across the nation. He has been part of the most significant legal cases in the transgender civil rights movement, including the case of trans whistleblower Chelsea Manning and trans student Gavin Grimm, whose case is scheduled to be seen before the Supreme Court in 2017. In an interview with Broadly, Strangio told us about his life as well as the importance, and limitation, of legal reform for liberation.

Photo by Trent Lanz via Stocksy

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The Shocking, Painful Trauma of Being a Trans Prisoner in Solitary Confinement

Although the UN considers the practice torture, 85 percent of LGBT prisoners say they've been placed in solitary confinement, for months and often years. Issues facing trans prisoners highlight intersectional injustice, and the way that one's trans identity can be used against them. For inmates like Daisy Meadows, a trans woman incarcerated in a men's prison, isolation is used both as punishment and "protection."

Photo by Kim Raff

Meet the Trans Woman Running for Senate in a Mormon State

Transgender Americans are generally not represented in government. We have relied on outside advocates and sympathetic politicians to make real change for trans people in the United States, but there is a clear and galling lack of transgender politicians. We've seen a handful of trans women running for office in 2016; one of them is Misty Snow, who made history as the first trans woman nominated to a major political party in the US senate. We visited her campaign headquarters in Utah to learn about her work.

Illustration by Julia Kuo

'It's Hard to Show the World I Exist': Chelsea Manning's Final Plea to Be Seen

In 2010, Chelsea Manning leaked thousands of classified documents in an attempt to shed light on the "true cost of war" in the Middle East. But while other whistleblowers continue to attract media attention and concern, Manning is locked in a maximum-security prison, six years into a 35-year sentence. While in prison, Manning has experienced extreme injustices and continues to fight for proper medical care. On the heels of a final appeal to President Obama for clemency, Manning tells Broadly about her struggle for visibility and justice.

Illustration by Jennifer Kahn

How Society Let This Happen: The Transgender People Killed in 2016

Extreme violence is regularly committed against transgender women in the United States. This year, we saw trans killings increase again, and many of their stories share similarities with the stories of those who have been killed in previous years. In honor of the transgender men and women who lost their lives to violence and suicide this year, Broadly took an in-depth look at the social institutions that deny trans Americans simple opportunities that many people take for granted. We attempted to name some of the core problems that endanger trans women.