When the trans community rises, the entire LGBTQ culture rises. When trans people are erased, the rainbow fades to gray. To honor the legacy of Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, to build a future where a child can grow up to be a gay cisgender man or a straight transgender woman with equal dignity, we must understand one simple truth:

LGBTQ culture, at its best, is learning to listen. The trans community’s emphasis on pronouns (introducing oneself with "she/her" or "they/them") is now standard practice in many queer spaces, encouraging a culture of consent and intentionality that benefits everyone.

: Lack of educational and employment opportunities contributes to high rates of poverty and homelessness. Transgender women of color, in particular, face staggering rates of housing instability—over five times that of the general U.S. population in some cases. Safety and Mental Health