Four councilmembers joined about 50 members of the community to commemorate Transgender Day of Visibility.
Councilman Adam Bazaldua took the lead and issued a city proclamation. He sid Dallas is committed to building a city where everyone is seen. Openly and proudly, he said, we celebrate our transgender community.
He also delivered some disturbing news.
On a number of occasions during the year, partners throughout downtown light their buildings up in a variety of colors to honor holidays or guests in town. One of those days is March 31, International Transgender Day of Visibility. He said that while the number of buildings that have markedthe day have been dwindling, this year not one building will participate.
More disturbing news for the LGBTQ+ community is that Megan Sykes position as LGBTQ+ police liaison has been eliminated. Sykes continues to work for DPD in the office of community relations. She said that she’s still seeking clarification and Bazaldua said he was working to have to position restored.
The liaison position was created in the early 1990s after settlement of the Mica England discrimination case against the Dallas Police Department.
And while the city promised to respect and embrace Dallas’ transgender community, the day began with a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that state bans on anti-gay and anti-trans conversion therapy are unconstitutional.
As Rachel Hill, Resource Center’s Advocacy and Policy Manager, said, 10 percent of all violent transgender deaths in the U.S. since 2017 have taken place in Texas and almost half of all transgender people have experienced discrimination in the last year.
— David Taffet