Kansas City LGBT Outrage Transitions Into Police Community Outreach

Two things about this note . . .

Context . . . The trans person in question was involved in a midst of a racially charged assault on two Asian store owners . . . That detail is part of the court record and it DOES NOT justify any extreme use of force BUT it should be part of the conversation in order to accurately report the situation.   

Less importantly . . . 

We're not certain how much trans people speak for the Latino or Black community overall. Certainly there is a need for advocacy for trans "people of color" but there is also legit debate about priorities over all . . . It's messy stuff but ignoring it allows for people to claim "representation" far outside their sphere of influence.  

To be fair . . . Here's the word . . .

“There’s a much larger system in place with KCPD not listening to Black and Latino community members,” said Merrique Jenson, the founder and executive director of Transformations KC, which supports and advocates for trans women of color.

Police officials told The Beacon they are taking steps to build trust with the LGBTQ+ community, including elevating a liaison position from part-time to full-time and reviewing the department’s policies dealing with transgender and nonbinary citizens to see if they should be updated.

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .

Trans women of color and the KCPD's rocky, violent history

Four years ago, a viral video showed two Kansas City police officers slamming a Black transgender woman, Brianna BB Hill, onto the sidewalk, kneeling on her in the face, torso and ribs and forcing her cuffed hands above her head.