NYPD's Hidden Agenda Behind The Brutal Dehumanizing Stop and Frisk Policy of Trans POC

FIERCE held a press conference at the courthouse where the NYPD are on trial for their unlawful Stop and Frisk policy. The NYPD is intent on erasing of transgender people from the city by targeting trans youth of color with continuous public humiliation, threats and assaults ultimately forcing them to make a choice.

As a white trans person, if I was faced with this intolerable life and death situation I would have two options. Conform to the rigid gender binary or leave the city. Trans and queer people of color are left with one choice. The NYPD under the direction of their masters are committed to erasing trans people of color from the city and failing that, gendercide.

Transcript from the FIERCE video:
"...but whose quality of life are they protecting? The reality of our lives as queer and transfolk of color speaks truth to the fact that we are excluded from the 'us' we speak of and the NYPD has no interest in serving and protecting our communities. It excludes us when trans bodies cannot walk down Christopher St. w/o being profiled for being sex-workers b/c they have a condom in their pocket; when a group of queer POC standing on a corner is easily mistaken for being a gang; when black and brown bodies are viewed as violent just b/c of the color of our skin; when we see and hear about our people being killed due to state violence."



"The NYPD has used their power to try and erase us, to keep us silent and to keep our stories from being talked about and heard. Ours are the stories that go unheard and we have been hidden in the statistics for far too long. I'm here today to not only share my story with you, but to tell all of you that these are the stories of many black and brown queer and trans."



"To let everyone know that walking while trans, queer, black and or brown is not a crime."

"I am not the first from the community to be targeted and mistreated by the NYPD and I surely won't be the last. And that is exactly why FRIECE fights everyday to make sure the West Village, a historical safe space for the LGBTQ community remains a safe space for LGBTQ POC."

"In the W. Village we've experienced years of gentrification which has meant the pushing out of our community, policing and more profiling of trans youth and decreased access to public space."

"We believe that the Floyd case is a step in the right direction but is not where our work ends. We know that the NYPD is rooted in institutionalized racism, transphobia and homophobia. These systems of oppression won't stop and neither will we. When this case is done we will remain on the front lines of this fight for justice. We will continue to hold police accountable. We will continue [??]-watching. We will continue to create our own systems of safety that are rooted in community power and resilience. From Amadou Diallo, Cece McDonald to Kimani Gray we will not stop raising our voices, we will not be silenced, we will not lose hope. And we as a whole will continue to fight and expose the systematic oppression projected by the NY Police Dept."

Medicaid Has Withdrawn It's Proposal To Cover SRS While Appeals Board Considers Challenge To "Experimental" Status

Thursday morning Medicare and Medicaid Services (CSM.gov) unilaterally began asking for public comment on changing its policy for Gender (sexual) Reassignment Surgery with the goal of possibly having Medicaid fund those surgeries. It seems the good people at Medicaid realized their rational for disallowing SRS was irrational.

Presently GRS is not covered by the ancient CMS.Gov policy because:

Transsexual surgery for sex reassignment of transsexuals is controversial. Because of the lack of well controlled, long term studies of the safety and effectiveness of the surgical procedures and attendant therapies for transsexualism, the treatment is considered experimental. Moreover, there is a high rate of serious complications for these surgical procedures. For these reasons, transsexual surgery is not covered.

But the link to the comments didn't work and we assumed it was just SNAFU, but thats not what happened...

Just hours after beginning the 30 day comment period Medicaid changed there minds about asking for public comments and took the link down.

one RED HOT haters POTATO to the Medicade comment section.

Mara Keisling of the NCTE messaged me moments after the last post went up and said there is a better process in place now.

The Hill reports:

"a spokesperson said Friday evening that the proposal has been withdrawn. HHS pulled information from its website Friday after various news media outlets reported on the issue."

"The controversial decision to consider using taxpayer money to cover sex changes was sure to attract criticism from Congress."

"An HHS spokesman said HHS' Departmental Appeals Board is weighing a challenge to the department's ruling that sex-change procedures are experimental and should not be covered by Medicare and Medicaid. While that challenge works its way through the system, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services has withdrawn its proposal to reconsider the coverage policy on its own."

Read more: The Hill.