Vice President Kamala Harris speaks during a campaign rally at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale on Aug. 9, 2024. Photo: Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK
Over 1,000 people, primarily trans folk, showed up in a “Trans Folks for Harris” Zoom call to express support for Kamala Harris, The 19th reports.
“A lot of times, elected officials have not really taken our issues seriously, in part because they think that we’re too small of a community to matter,” said Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen, executive director of Advocates for Trans Equality. “Now we’ve been able to prove that that is not true at all.”
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The call featured a who’s who of well-known trans people, particularly trans politicians. Co-organized by activist Charlotte Clymer, the meeting also put a spotlight on elected officials like the soon-to-be Congresswoman and current Delaware state Sen. Sarah McBride (D) and Hawaii’s first trans lawmaker, Kim Coco Iwamoto.
“We have so much power,” Clymer said. “We have way more power than they think, that’s for damn sure. And when we use that power, when we organize together and have each other’s backs, we can do great things.”
Over 2,600 more people have been screened for the fundraiser, with organizers still waiting to see just how much money has been raised.
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Some LGBTQ+ individuals still remain skeptical of Harris, however, based on her having denied a trans woman gender-affirming care while in prison. Harris, however, has since apologized for this and disavowed her previous position.
In an attempt to garner more support, she picked Minnesota’s pro-LGBTQ+ governor, Tim Walz, as her running mate. He passed several policies that helped trans people during his time as governor, including helping to make the state a refuge for trans folks.
Activists at the event show that a sizable portion of LGBTQ+ people support Harris, in large part because she has a record of opposing policies that former President Donald Trump has enacted.
“It’s a step forward to ensure that trans people, especially Black and Brown trans women, have the representation and the resources they need to live with dignity and pride,” said Zahara Bassett, CEO of Chicago-based trans advocacy organization Life is Work. “We need to make sure that our future is one of equity, justice, and liberation for us all.”
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