#freecece

“This isn’t about getting the government to say we’re good. It’s about ending capitalism and white supremacy.” Dean Spade at 24:39 This quote forms the basis of my analysis of episode 6 and this week’s readings.

The article “Kids in South Dakota have spent most of their youth fighting anti-trans bills” by Kate Sosin debunks one of the myths about respectability politics: if we prove we’re just like them, if they just get to know us, they’ll let us into the club. When the “club” is built on white supremacy (which is straight supremacy), why would we want into the club? I think the article talks about this, too. It talks about the harm done when people in the “club” (politicians, doctors, soldiers, police) make decisions about us, they cause direct and lasting harm. One example of this is the anti-trans bill mentioned in the article that bans trans girls from sports. Even after spending 8 years lobbying his legislature, transgender teen activist Elliot James Vogue was unable to prevent his state Senator Wayne Steinhauer from signing the anti-trans bill. Another example is in the episode of “Pride” where Dean Spade is violently arrested by a police officer in the bathroom.

What type of activism works? Capitalism seems to be a way to influence some of South Dakota’s decisions, particularly large-scale boycotts of the state. But that’s extremely hard to promote. It’s also like sweeping the sea back with a broom—we might get some sort of concession, but it doesn’t seem to stop the tide.

Spade earned a degree to help him in his activism and has focused on bathroom accessibility. Yes, because bathrooms are about physical safety and about acceptance. But this goes back to the same discussion we’ve been having—acceptance is not enough, and, as Spade says, “It’s not enough to pass laws.”

Chase Strangio similarly argues that hate crimes laws “just puts more people in prison and it doesn’t actually deter violence.” (32:12) Dr. Lourdes Hunter concurs, saying that anti-hate laws don’t prevent violence against trans people. In fact, when trans women defend themselves (like CeCe McDonald did), the woman is the one who is charged. This is the intersection of color and gender. Black trans women are repeatedly punished just for being alive.

This, then, is my question:

How do we make large, systemic change when neoliberal capitalism has a way of bouncing back? If passing laws doesn’t work (including the Respect for Marriage Act likely to be passed soon), and boycotts are extremely difficult to manage long term, what do we do to end systems of oppression that consistently position the most harmed people at the bottom of the white patriarchal hierarchy?

FreeCeCe premiered at the LA Film Festival on June 2.

"McDonald is the subject of the documentary Free Cece, which had its world premiere on Thursday night at the Los Angeles Film Festival. The 28-year-old transgender woman served 19 months in a men’s prison for killing a man who violently attacked her."

"'the system figured that this would be a good fit for me because the program was more confined, so I wouldn’t have to deal with more people.'

McDonald was also forced to wear baggy, extra large clothing. '[They’d say,] "Oh, you have a woman’s body, you have a woman’s parts" or "You look like a woman, so we have to micromanage you for your safety,"’ she said, adding that she never had any issues with other inmates.

Because McDonald resisted those dress code requirements, she was kicked out of the drug rehabilitation program and served an additional 30 days in prison.

While Cox believes that men’s prisons are 'inherently dangerous for trans women,' McDonald doesn’t feel she would have fared much better if she had served her time in a women’s facility.