Like I talk about being an Abolitionist a lot and believing in the intrinsic value of life/only seeing death/murder/etc. as an absolute last resort
However, to be clear, I am NOT a pacifist and in the words of Nina Simone, I ainβt bout to be non-violent honey.
Theyβre killing trans women, particularly Black trans women, as they always have and will keep doing in increasingly horrific ways. No amount of protests will keep us safe. Cops definitely ainβt gonna keep us safe - over in Philly they beat and arrested 15 people at a pride event in the Gayborhood while the βofficialβ city pride event was apparently costing $10 per person minimum.
Theyβre abducting racialized people off the streets and occupying entire US cities like DC and Memphis with the explicit goal of disappearing as many of us as they can, regardless of βcitizenshipβ, visas, or anything else.
Black people are being actively lynched. Black CHILDREN in particular have been found lynched after being βmissingβ. I can literally go on Twitter or Facebook for less than a minute and discover a new lynching or murder of a trans woman.
We are especially being taken when we are alone, when others leave us alone, when others do nothing.
We have to be willing to protect ourselves and each other if and when needed. We need to get a lot more comfortable with ACTION not just words, with not turning away when we see something happening before we get caught up in it.
Will the person you saw and turned away from go missing?
Will they be dead next, or worse?
Even if you canβt stop it, can you get their name? Can you record it? Find their families?
It cant just be us fighting always, especially as things get worse. You have to start moving too.
Punch a white supremacist, but donβt let it stop there. Donβt keep turning away just because itβs hard. You have to be willing to act.