The theme of 2014 Pride, “Color Our World with Pride,” symbolizes the ongoing efforts to combat oppression and elevate the dignity and freedoms of LGBT people in the United States and throughout the world.
A Call to Action in El Salvador
Recently, through an internationally recognized fair and democratic election, the Republic of El Salvador elected new leaders from the FMLN party. These new government officials represent the will of the Salvadoran people to mark a change in their nation’s history and a departure from previous administrations’ indifference towards the blight of their nation. The platform on which the FMLN party was elected to government promises to uphold civil liberties and invest in local solutions to promote El Salvador’s social and economic development.
In the last five years, several advances have been made by the Salvadoran government, including the establishment of the Sexual Diversity Directorate, which works to promote the eradication of sexual orientation and gender identity-based discrimination, and supports the creation of public policies guaranteeing basic economic, social, civil and political rights for LGBT individuals. However, despite these advances, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender persons in El Salvador continue to face serious vulnerabilities and suffer discrimination based on their sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.
Many incidents of violence against LGBT Salvadorans are neither published by the media, nor reported by the victims or their families. Victims often do not report physical, verbal, psychological, religious and work-related violence they suffer because they are afraid of revealing their sexual orientation to their families or at work.
Because of the injustices that remain, I have urged the newly elected leaders to uphold the rights of, and increase protections for, the LGBT community in El Salvador. With this call to action for leaders in El Salvador, I am aware that, even in San Francisco, the civil rights struggles for our LGBT community still remain. As we look to provide guidance and encouragement to LGBT communities throughout the world, we must also hold ourselves accountable.
Transgender Rights:
The Next Civil Rights Frontier
Too often we gloss over the real struggles faced by our transgender community. Statistics relating to housing injustices show that 1 in 5 transgender people have been refused housing in the United States and 1 in 10 have been evicted because of their gender identity.
Governor Brown recently expanded anti-discrimination protections for transgender students in California’s public elementary and secondary schools, mandating that schools respect the gender identity of students and allow transgender students equal access to sports teams and programs. However, as demonstrated by the case of Jewlyes Gutierrez, transgender students are still being victimized and harassed for presenting themselves outside of rigid gender norms.
In May, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services repealed a moratorium, which prevented Medicare from covering transgender healthcare. The removal of this exclusion of coverage for Medicare recipients means that individuals will not automatically have claims of coverage for gender transition-related surgeries denied. Healthcare should not be denied to a specific population, and this significant step is the first to ensuring equal access to care.
I have stood with my transgender sisters and brothers and allies of the LGBT struggle as we have rallied for an end to transphobic violence and discrimination. I believe we must come together to fight for our shared values of equality and human dignity. Every person deserves equal rights and protections, and I am committed to ensuring that we move beyond just talk and implement meaningful solutions to the violence, harassment and discrimination that the transgender community faces all too often. The recent Time magazine cover featuring Laverne Cox announced to the mainstream that transgender rights is the next civil rights frontier, and I agree. The time is now.
Let 2014 Pride not only be a time of celebration, but also a time of reflection and renewal of our commitment to pursue the fight to end the discrimination against each member of the LGBT community in San Francisco and throughout the world.
David Campos is a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors representing District 9. This column for the “SF Bay Times” was inspired by Harvey Milk’s efforts to build a coalition of what Milk termed “us’es,” meaning communities that value diversity and attempt to leave no one behind. For more information about Supervisor Campos and his work, please visit http://www.sfbos.org/index.aspx?page=2117
Recent Comments