Center Blog

The Center is reposting two blogs with permission from our friends at GLAAD. The blogs call the New York Times to task for its recent sensational coverage of the death of Lorena Escalera, a transgender woman who died in a fire this past weekend in Brooklyn. We join GLAAD in criticizing the extremely problematic article and urge The Times to acknowledge its mistake and take steps to ensure this kind of faulty coverage does not happen again. We also join the community in mourning the loss of Lorena Escalera

NY Times Trans Exploitation Completely Unacceptable

Update: NY Times Does Not Retract Dehumanizing Coverage of Trans Woman Who Died in FireThis weekend, the New York Times published an extremely exploitative article about a transgender woman who had died in a fire. The article, about Lorena Escalera, only mentions that she was killed in a fire after telling readers that she was “curvaceous,” that she “drew admiring glances” in her “gritty Brooklyn neighborhood,” that she “was known to invite men for visits to her apartment,” that Lorena was “called Lorena” (as opposed to saying she was “named Lorena” or that she simply was Lorena) and that she “brought two men to her apartment” sometime between late Friday night and early Saturday morning.

The article by Al Baker and Nate Schweber treats Escalera completely disrespectfully, later describing a pile of debris outside the burned apartment which “contained many colorful items. Among them were wigs, women’s shoes, coins from around the world, makeup, hair spray, handbags, a shopping bag from Spandex House, a red feather boa and a pamphlet on how to quit smoking.”

Take the word “transgender” out of the equation.

Would the New York Times ever describe a woman who is not transgender, who had died in a fire, as “curvaceous” – in the first sentence, no less? Would it carefully note that her apartment contained makeup and “women’s shoes?” Would it say that she was “called” whatever her name was – especially if police later identified her by that name?

Janet Mock, Autumn Sandeen and other noted leaders in the trans advocacy movement have been speaking out about this article online. Colorlines.com also wrote about the problematic coverage. Thank you to all of you who submitted incident reports about this article, or alerted us to it through Twitter. We are reaching out to the Times to discuss the many incident reports we received, and to ensure that exploitative pieces like this don’t get printed in the future.

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NY Times Does Not Retract Dehumanizing Coverage of Trans Woman Who Died in Fire

Tuesday, May 15, 2012 – 3:57pm by Aaron McQuade, Director of News and Field Media at GLAAD

In response to criticism from the LGBT community and allies over its coverage of a fire that killed a transgender woman this weekend, the New York Times released a statement that reveals a lack of understanding of how serious this problem is.

New York Times Metro Editor Carolyn Ryan stated: “We typically try to capture the personal stories of those whose lives are lost in a fire, and we sought to do so in this case. We certainly did not mean any disrespect to the victim or those who knew her. But, in retrospect, we should have shown more care in our choice of words.”

Unfortunately, the problem with the Times’ article on the death of Lorena Escalera, a transgender woman of color, is bigger than their “choice of words” or with their attempt to “capture” her story. It’s their failure to recognize trans women as women.

The decision by writers Al Baker and Nate Schweber to call her “curvaceous” in the first sentence was not a poor choice of words. It was a poor choice of focus. The way this entire article is framed comes directly from an idea that transgender women are curiosities. That they’re other. That they should be treated differently than other people. Saying that Lorena was “called” Lorena, even though that is exactly how police identified her, was not a poor choice of words. It was a disrespectful jab at her identity as a trans woman, by implying that she wasn’t really Lorena.

Lorena was a daughter. She was a friend. She was a beloved member of a community. But the only elements of her story that writers Al Baker and Nate Schweber seemed concerned with were; what she looked like, what her neighbors thought she looked like, and whether any items that would typically belong to a woman were in her apartment when it burned. Very little of this is relevant to the actual personal story of Lorena Escalera’s life. It seems very clear that this personal information was included in order to “spice up” the story by exploiting Lorena’s status as a transgender woman – not to actually inform readers about her life.

“As my city’s and our nation’s paper of record, I would expect the New York Times to treat any subject, regardless of their path in life, with dignity,” said trans advocate and journalist Janet Mock. “In Lorena Escalera’s life she was so much more than the demeaning, sexist portrait they painted of girls like us. It goes beyond a ‘choice of words.’ According to the Times’ limiting, harmful portrait of Lorena, she was nothing more than a ‘curvaceous’ bombshell for men to gawk at. That is not the ‘personal’ story of any woman, and until we treat trans women like human beings – in life and death – with dignity, families and struggles, our society will never see us beyond pariahs in our communities.

Unfortunately, many Americans, including members of the media, do view transgender people – and trans women of color in particular – as curiosities at best, or not deserving of basic human dignity at worst. And very few Americans know any trans people in their day-to-day lives, so this viewpoint is never dispelled. This is why extra care must be taken when reporting on a story that involves a transgender person, especially if that person is no longer able to speak for themselves, as is the case here. Writers and editors alike must be made aware of how common this underlying bias is, and make a conscious effort to remove it when they see it.

This is where the Times’ statement truly fails. Not only does it not show an understanding of what the problem with the original article was, it also makes no assurances to the community that it will educate its writers and editors about how to report on transgender people in the future. There’s nothing forward-looking in the Times statement.

GLAAD did ask the Times to detail what steps will be taken in the future to ensure this doesn’t happen again. We were told that this statement “will be all there is from us on this.”

But this statement is not good enough. The New York Times has highlighted the personal and inspiring stories of transgender people in the recent past, including an article on Harmony Santana, Laverne Cox and other transgender actresses, a piece on triathlete Chris Mosier and one on classical pianist Sara Davis Buechner. We can be almost certain that the New York Times does understand the problems with its piece on Lorena, and is embarrassed that it ran. Now it’s time for them to say so publicly, and to tell its readers that steps are being taken to ensure that an article like this won’t be printed again. We thank members of the LGBT community, including trans leaders like Janet Mock, Autumn Sandeen and Laverne Cox, as well as Colorlines and Feministing, for bringing attention to this story. We hope to continue putting pressure on the Times until they offer assurances that changes will be made.

On Thursday, May 24 the Center and several other agencies are co-sponsoring a community forum on HIV criminalization featuring a screening of a short film, HIV is Not a Crime followed by a panel discussion.

Panelists include Robert Suttle, Assistant Director of The Sero Project, who was convicted and incarcerated in Louisiana for HIV non-disclosure, Attorney Beirne Roose-Snyder from The Positive Justice Project, and Sean Strub of Poz Magazine and Executive Director of The Sero Project.

Partner organizations include the Positive Justice Project, ACT UP, SERO, Queerocracy and the Center.

The event is from 6 PM to 9 PM at the Center on 208 West 13^th Street in Room 101.

For More Information call: 646-556-9300

Dear Center Volunteers,

Last Monday, President Barack Obama issued a proclamation declaring April 15 – April 21, 2012 National Volunteer Week. In his statement, the President emphasized the power of service to unite individuals, strengthen communities, and transform our collective future.

At the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, we are privileged to witness this power of selfless service every day, in all areas of our work. Volunteers work alongside Center staff and interns in every program at the Center: supporting Pride events, facilitating yoga classes for Youth Enrichment Services participants, caring for the Center’s garden, and staffing over 150 Center events annually. Several Center institutions – the National Archive of LGBT History, the Pat Parker/Vito Russo Library, and the David Bohnett CyberCenter – are sustained entirely by volunteers.

In these and countless other ways, volunteers contribute 14,000 hours annually to nourish and enrich our home for New York’s vibrant Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender communities. (To learn more about volunteering at the Center, visit our website.) 

In his National Volunteer Week proclamation, President Obama noted that “our Nation has always been at its best when individuals have come together to realize a common vision.” We are honored to work with hundreds of volunteers every year envisioning a better New York, and proud of your impact in the service movement.

Thank you for volunteering at the Center!

Yours in service,

Glennda Testone
Executive Director

Read the latest information about our Center Ride here:

MEDIA ADVISORY

April 3, 2012

Contact:

Cindi Creager, Director of Communications & Marketing

(646) 358-1703, ccreager@gaycenter.org 

Center Gears up for 18th Iconic AIDS Ride

Boston to NYC Center Ride Set for September 21-23, 2012

Kick-Off Rally April 16; New Ride Producer and Manager Named

New York, NY April 3 , 2012 — The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, the world’s second largest LGBT Center, today further revealed plans for our 2012 AIDS ride, the annual event that has been raising critical funds for the Center’s HIV/AIDS related programs and services for 18 years, beginning in 1995. As shared in March with riders and crew, this year’s Boston to New York cycling journey is set for September 21-23. (Registration info here)

The Center is hosting a kick-off rally on Monday, April 16th from 6:30-8:30 PM, providing an opportunity for the community to meet our new producer, new and past riders and crew, and the HIV/AIDS clients we serve. The nationally syndicated Derek and Romaine Show will also broadcast live during the event on Sirius XM Radio. Last year the show raised over 40-thousand dollars for the ride.

“After a great deal of research, due diligence and thoughtful consideration, we are thrilled to announce the selection of LeadDog Marketing Group, Inc. as our 2012 Ride producer,” said Executive Director Glennda Testone. “An event production and marketing agency headquartered in New York, LeadDog has a passion for, and extensive experience in, logistical support and production for run, walk, and bike events across the country.”

In addition the Center is thrilled to welcome Michael Beck as its 2012 Center Ride Manager. Michael joins the Center following a successful affiliation with the Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center as a cyclist, fundraiser and most recently, the recruitment coordinator for AIDS Life Cycle.

“Our clients are our number one priority,” Testone said. “Government funding for HIV/AIDS has fallen drastically, while the vast need for our programming continues to climb. Growing and improving our AIDS ride is a vital step to ensuring we have enough resources to sustain and enhance the programs and services we provide to the people who need us most. We’re extremely excited about Center Ride and eager to work with our new production partner, LeadDog Marketing Group, Inc.”

WHAT/WHO: Center Ride Kick-Off Rally! Meet our ride producers, LeadDog Marketing Group, Inc., our new ride manager Michael Beck, Center Staff, HIV/AIDS Clients, Past and Current Riders and Crew, and more! The Derek and Romaine Show will broadcast live throughout the event! 

WHEN: Monday, April 16, 2012, 6:30-8:30 PM

WHERE: The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center

208 West 13th Street, New York City

CONTACT:  Press should RSVP to: Cindi Creager, Director of Communications & Marketing
(646) 358-1703, ccreager@gaycenter.org 

About the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center
A beacon of hope for 29 years, the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center builds and supports our community through arts and culture, wellness and recovery, HIV/AIDS services, family services and life-saving youth programs designed to foster healthy development in a safe, affirming environment. The Center envisions a world where LGBT people will no longer face discrimination or isolation because of who we are or who we love. We offer a welcoming home to 300,000 visitors each year and we are committed to serving all LGBT people through a variety of programs, services and activities that are designed to meet existing and emerging needs. The Center is many things to many people. We invite you to experience our home at 208 West 13th Street in person and online at gaycenter.org.

Photo by Simon Shimshilashvili

Guest Post by Paul Reed

On Tuesday, March 20^th, The LGBT Center hosted the premiere installment of their new intergenerational “live talk show” series,  Q & Gay: Sex from the 70’s to Scruff.  I arrived quite early to notice that many of the seats were already full of people of many ages, proving that sex does indeed sell. During the opening cocktail reception, I also felt a strong sense of jubilation and reunion in the air, witnessing several long lost friends reconnecting all around me.

Ashley Brockington, a striking and statuesque theatre professional, proved to be a highly engaging facilitator, beginning the session by introducing the audience to the four members of the panel. Ashley first introduced Johnny Skandros, the co-founder of Scruff, a gay social smartphone app, and thus one of the most important people in the modern age of gay digital media. Next up was Joseph Lovett (Joe), producer of the celebrated film, Gay Sex in the 70’s. Following Joe, we met Rob Zukowski, talented photographer and in my opinion, the most delightfully salacious panelist. Rounding up the panel was Francis Sheehan (Frank), an influential New York artist originally from Ireland.

Photo by Simon Shimshilashvili

After establishing the house rules for the discussion, Ashley asked the panel a series of 25 questions all within the framework of gay sex from the 70’s until the current time. Questions, and thus answers, ran the gamut from the comical, (Question #5) “What’s the most embarrassing place you’ve ever woken up?”, to the reflective, (Question #7) “Where were you when you first heard of AIDS?”, and to the educational, (Question #2) “How do you define safe sex?” It wasn’t long into the discussion before the theme of age began to show its influences on the different perspectives within the panel.

One of the best questions that displayed this overreaching theme of age was (Question #3) “Describe yourself at twenty-one.” Joe’s long-time friend told him that in 1966 he was “desperate.” Frank reminisced about his times at The LGBT Center of Dublin in 1978. Johnny, the youngest member of the panel by far, reflected that in 2004 he was naïve and fed into gay stereotypes. Rob gave the fascinating picture of the West Village in 1988 as a colony of AIDS “lepers” trapped within the fabulous illusion the neighborhood tried to uphold. These answers provided a window to explore how the interactions of place and time create our self-identity of what it means to be a gay man.

A question that evoked much discussion was (Question #10) “How has technology changed the sex scene?” The audience had the privilege of hearing this question answered first by Johnny, the co-founder of Scruff, a mobile application utilizing GPS allowing one to view other gay men globally and to physically meet gay men within the immediate area. Johnny bypassed the seemingly obvious answer, which is that the application allows for more frequent and easier hook-ups, and dove more into the other benefits of his application. According to him, Scruff also is a way for gay men without a visible gay community to connect with other gay men, lessening the oppressive isolation that is the reality for many outside of metropolitan cities.

Scruff also is a venue to spread education and awareness about safer sex practices and important LGBTQ causes. Joe took the question in a different direction, speaking about how technology affects his relationship with his partner in negative ways. Technology’s ability to keep one connected to work can become a stressor and invasive to personal space. Rob had an incredibly insightful answer, speculating that technology has allowed rejection to become more prevalent, sometimes based on one’s race or perceived masculinity.

Guest Post by VC August on behalf of the American Cancer Society’s Diversity Initiative; ACS is a friend of the Center’s Lesbian Cancer Initiative

You don’t usually think of a party and cancer in the same sentence. But the American Cancer Diversity Initiative is fighting the prevalence of cancer, as well  as the reluctance toward early screening for cancer, in the LGBT community in a variety of ways. One way is with the upcoming February 13^th Encore for Hope Bash.  “Our view is to raise money for the ACS diversity initiative – and all the important work we are doing — and have a great time while we’re doing it,” says Erica Blum, Manager, Distinguished events. 

The American Cancer Society is full of ideas for helping the LGBT community. Myrna Duarte and Erica Blum, both tireless advocates of the American Cancer Society (ACS) Diversity Initiative, are working hard to minimize the spread of cancer in the LGBT community.  These initiatives will be celebrated (and supported) at this pre-Valentine’s day party at Club 57, Providence NYC, 311 West 57^th Street, 6:30-10:30 PM.

The Encore for Hope Event will be fun filled with cocktails, and hors d’oeuvres flowing, while supporters take in stellar performances donated in support of the American Cancer Society’s efforts within the LGBT Community. Comedienne Judy Gold will be the emcee and Joey Aries, singer, comedian, performance artist and drag queen will be a starring act. Other notable celebrities and entertainers are The New York City  Gay Men’s Chorus, The Ben Allison Band, Sherry Vine, 2 To Fly Aerial, Manila Luzon, Sahara Davenport and celebrity DJ Choimatic.         

Lung cancer turns out to be one of the high risk cancers for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. “The smoking statistics for the LGBT population are staggering,” explains Myna Duarte, Director of Diversity Initiatives for ACS. LGBT youth have tobacco use rates as high as 59% vs 35% of non LGBT teens. “It is critical that we get to the teens before they become lifelong smokers,” says Duarte.

The American Cancer Society has launched QuitBuddy-a texting tool to help smokers kick the habit. Smokers who feel the need to light up simply send a text to their QuitBuddy and receive a text back with a tip to help them fight the urge to smoke. “Our hope is that together with our partners, we can get this tool out to the community and help lower those statistics. We need to communicate the same way the teens do. By text.” You can sign up here. 

Another challenge for the ACS diversity team is stressing the importance of early detection and screening to the LGBT community. Duarte explains, “ Lesbian and bisexual women often do not have health insurance that covers unmarried partners. Another issue is that gay and bisexual women fear discrimination and insensitivity by healthcare providers.”  With lower screening rates, cancer is often detected at later stages when it is much more difficult to treat. A common misconception by gay women and often their physicians, is the that Human Papillomavirus, HPV, which is one of the causes of cervical cancer, is not a necessary screening test for gay women.  HPV can be spread from woman to woman just as with heterosexual contact.

Many gay  and bisexual men have the same fear of discrimination as lesbians and bisexual women, and therefore they also tend not to seek consistent screening.

Transgender people have the highest incidence of lack of insurance, and therefore screening. The New York City department of health reported in a study done in 1999 that 21% of transgender people had no health insurance of any kind. To make things worse for this population, health insurance does not cover appropriate cancer screening. Transgender people have a high rate of an array of cancers — from Lung to liver cancer. The risk becomes even higher if HIV is in the mix.

American Cancer Society’s mission aims to ensure that nobody is left behind. They offer everything from survivors helping other survivors, treatment transportation funding, wig programs and more. All of these offerings are available to the LGBT community and you can learn more about it at the event, while having a great time. Don’t miss this important way to support the community and give greater meaning to the word “love” this Valentine’s Day.

VC August is the Author of The Healing Hour, a book “about love, hope and healing the heart, soul, and spirit when faced with life-changing struggles,” including Cancer.

Breaking equality news from California today.  As reported by Metro Weekly’s Chris Geidner:

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit today affirmed the August 2010 decision by U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker that California’s 2008 amendment banning same-sex couples from marriage is unconstitutional, deciding the case on narrow grounds relating to the facts of the amendment’s impact, which the court notes was to “eliminate the right of same-sex couples to marry in California..

The case, Perry v. Brown, was brought by the American Foundation for Equal Rights and featured a contrasting team of lawyers — the conservative Ted Olson and liberal David Boies — who waged a high-stakes trial in January 2010 and a high-profile public campaign to advance the cause of marriage equality.In today’s decision, Judge Stephen Reinhardt writes for the court:

“We consider whether that amendment violates the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. We conclude that it does.”

You can read more about this historic ruling in favor of full equality for same-sex couples by linking to The American Foundation for Equal Rights.  The Center congratulates all of the people who worked tirelessly to make this a reality and looks forward to further efforts to keep this ruling in place!

Guest Post By Jeff Adams

When I signed up to blog the Center’s January Second Tuesday Lecture Series featuring author Michael Schiavi disusing Celluloid Activist: The Life and Times of Vito Russo, I knew two things about Russo. First, the Center’s library was co-named after him. Second, he wrote the book The Celluloid Closet, which I had read portions of and had seen the film.

What I did not know was that he also co-founded Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) as well as ACT-UP. He was a constant, and key, fighter for the gay community from shortly after Stonewall until is death in 1990. The Celluloid Closet was a sizeable part of his activism as he documented the effect of the horrible way Hollywood portrayed gays was having on the gay community.

Schiavi’s biography looks at Russo’s life from his days growing up in East Harlem through his years researching and giving Celluloid Closet lectures and into the era of AIDS and his death.

Schiavi said that Russo was very out of place in East Harlem since he was “very intelligent, very articulate, often effeminate and shy. He suffered a lot at the hands of bullies.” It’s no surprise with that going on that he escaped into movies.

“There is no bigger film queen in history than Vito Russo,” said Schiavi.

Russo spent high school and college in New Jersey, but he escaped back to NYC as soon as he could after his graduation in 1968. The following year he witnessed the Stonewall Riots from a spot above the confrontation, in a tree. Schiavi said that violence scared Russo, but he wanted to see what was happening since gay people fighting back was unheard of at the time.

It was another incident, the raid on The Snake Pit, a West Village gay bar, on March 8, 1970, that brought Russo fully into activism. He joined up with the Gay Activists Alliance (GAA) after talking with a GAA member at a vigil for a young man who was impaled on a fence trying to escape from a police station.

According to Schiavi, Russo loved the GAA because it was loud and theatrical, staging “zaps,” demonstrations that targeted homophobes. While at GAA, Russo created both a Cabaret Night, where singers could sing love songs to their own gender, and Film Night.

Film night showed mainstream movies, as well as gay cinema. Russo thought he could make movie night into a lecture tour discussing how Hollywood treated gay characters. The Celluloid Closet was born as a twenty-minute lecture he gave to college groups. He knew he needed more material than that though. The twenty minutes grew to more than three hours by the time of his death in 1990.

“Vito would see a film and know why his life on the street was hell because of how the gay characters were portrayed,” said Schiavi.

From the lectures, the first edition of the book was published in 1981. Between 1973 and 1981 he was all over the world giving the lecture. There was such a demand that the book went to a second printing. However, the book quickly became dated as the first news story about AIDS broke the same week The Celluloid Closet was released.

In the wake of AIDS, Russo watched gay portrayal at the moves deteriorate further, especially in teen movies which became increasingly homophobic. He pointed to an almost mandatory use of the word “faggot” that taught teens that it was okay to use that language and to hate.

In the wake of how society was reacting to AIDS, as well as his own diagnosis, Russo took on three projects. He co-founded GLAAD to battle how gays were represented in the media. He revised The Celluloid Closet to discuss how movies portrayed AIDS (that edition was released in 1987). Also in ’87 he joined with Larry Kramer and others in the formation of ACT UP.

For Russo, GLAAD was a way for all instances of homophobia in the media to be met with a loud response. Meanwhile, ACT UP was a way to get laws changed. According to Schiavi, Russo gave one of the most, if not the most, famous of the ACT UP speeches in October 1988 at the headquarters of the Food and Drug Administration in Washington, DC.

Words from that speech still resound today: “Someday, the AIDS crisis will be over. Remember that. And when that day comes — when that day has come and gone, there’ll be people alive on this earth — gay people and straight people, men and women, black and white, who will hear the story that once there was a terrible disease in this country and all over the world, and that a brave group of people stood up and fought and, in some cases, gave their lives, so that other people might live and be free.”

Schiavi showed a clip of Russo giving the FDA speech. It was emotional for some audience members as there were some of Russo’s friends, people who had worked with him at various organizations, and some who had heard him speak. It shows the impact Russo’s words and actions carry more than 20 years later.

LGBT people often avoid medical treatment because they have been treated poorly by health practitioners in the past or because they fear stigma and marginalization because of who they are. Many studies confirm the harsh treatment LGBT people experience in health care settings.

Lesbian Cancer Initiative (LCI) Coordinator Cristina Moldow, Gender Identity Project Community Prevention Coordinator Cristina Herrera, and LCI Intern Kaz Mitchell

At a recent joint City Council hearing held by the Committee on Civil Rights and Committee on Health, two Center staff members and an intern testified in favor of strong LGBT cultural competency training in New York City’s public hospitals. Gender Identity Project Community Prevention Coordinator Cristina Herrera, Lesbian Cancer Initiative (LCI) Coordinator Cristina Moldow, and LCI Intern Kaz Mitchell all urged the City Council to support and bolster efforts by New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation (HHC) to require trainings that ensure all LGBT people are treated with the utmost respect in city hospitals, and develop robust standards to evaluate the progress of such endeavors.

As Herrera, Moldow and Mitchell all noted:

“LGBT people underutilize care largely due to fear of, and past experiences of discrimination and mistreatment.  A long-standing community history of violence and abuse has left many community members mistrusting, especially where physical contact is concerned. Oftentimes it’s difficult for people to find a medical provider who has experience working with LGBT patients, let alone a comfort level.”

Our Center advocates stressed the vital need for respectful, patient-centered and culturally competent healthcare services for the thousands of LGBT patients served by public hospitals and community health centers every year; they also offered the Center’s continued expertise and resources to help make this a reality.  The Center is pleased to help the city in its efforts to make New York City public hospitals safe, welcoming settings for all LGBT people.

This week our Director of Center Wellness Andres Hoyos, joined two Center clients in testifying before New York City Council’s Committee on Immigration. The legislative body was specifically looking into how NYC immigrants are treated in detention centers and considering two resolutions. 

One resolution “urges the United States Department of Homeland Security to investigate abuse allegations and take action to ensure the safety of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender immigrants in the custody of the United States Department of Homeland Security.” The other “calls upon the 112^th United States Congress to pass, and the President to sign, the Immigration Oversight and Fairness Act (H.R. 933), to reform immigration detention procedures and help ensure more just detention policies and procedures.”

Hoyos pointed out the often brutal conditions facing LGBT immigrants in custody:

The LGBT immigrants that seek services at the Lesbian Gay Bisexual & Transgender Community Center tell us stories of the abuse they have suffered at detention centers. Their complaints span from verbal abuse, to excessive force, to sexual assault by fellow detainees and prison officers. Denial of adequate medical care is also widespread and includes medical treatment for detainees living with HIV, and hormone therapy for transgender immigrant detainees. The lack of enforceable regulations providing required care to LGBT immigrant detainees is obvious. Both, the federal and the local administrations have failed to adequately address LGBT immigration detention conditions.

Two clients we have served at the Center also testified about the poor treatment they encountered in detention centers.

Cecilia Gentili is a transgender immigrant from Argentina who faced both physical and verbal abuse in correctional facilities before she was ultimately granted asylum after being in this country for 10 years.

In January 2001 I came to the US from Argentina escaping from oppression, discrimination and stigma against transgender people. At that time I had already developed an unhealthy mechanism to cope with all the abuse experienced in my country of origin: drugs.

The uncertainties about my legal situation in this country, the very low self-esteem, and the inability to deal with my past didn’t help and my problem escalated.

I was arrested for drug possession four times and each arrest  was a very painful experience. Police officers made fun of me and I was verbally abused in the precincts. One time, before facing the judge, I was forced to have sex with an officer. When I tried to report it to my lawyer, she totally overlooked it and talked me into “taking care of getting me released,” instead.

After my last arrest I was sent to Rikers Island, where things did not go any better. A transgender woman already in the process of transition, I was placed with men and experienced physical and verbal abuse by other inmates that was absolutely ignored by the guards. It seemed more like an amusement for them.  I also received no treatment for heroine withdrawals for several days.

During those days my legal situation came up and I was sent to the Immigration Detention Center on Varick Street in Manhattan. I was put in isolation. My emotions and mental state where severely compromised.

Luckily Ms. Gentili has been able to overcome the immense obstacles she faced, but many LGBT immigrants are not as fortunate.  She urged the the City Council committee not to forget her harrowing story.

Another Center client, David Williams relayed the poor conditions he encountered at the Buffalo Federal Detention Facility (BFDF), in Batavia, New York

There was inadequate rationing of clothing and hygiene supplies; poor quality food; constant toilet privacy violations; ‘double bunking’ with newly sentenced or pending sentencing federal prisoners (who usually started violent fights); freezing cold water in the showers; no proper medical treatment or availability; and cell blocks that contained segregated prisoners who required round the clock transport back and forth to their cells.

During his testimony Andres Hoyos gave the committee his recommendations for fixing the current system:

1.    Provide funding for awareness campaigns that inform LGBT immigrants about their rights and connect them to services as soon as they arrive in the United States.

2.    Ensure that voices of LGBT immigrants are heard within the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant Affairs (MOIA). Encourage the creation of a LGBT immigrant committee within the MOIA whose job will be to ensure that all literature created by the MOIA is inclusive of LGBT immigrants.

3.    Assist the Center in expanding funding opportunities that will address the need for continued emotional support services and advocacy for LGBT immigrants at the Center.

4.    Enact and enforce protocols that take in consideration and safeguard the emotional and physical well being of the LGBT immigrants.

5.    Establish collaborations with community based organizations and other agencies to expand the pool of options beyond detention centers. These options should ensure that immigrants stay within the geographical area where he/she is based and not removed out of state as is currently the case in many instances.

6.    Establish collaborations with community based organizations and other agencies to increase education among the immigrant community about their rights,  and alternatives to detention, how to file complains and who can advocate on their behalf regarding any irregularity that may happen in while under the care of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

7.    Establish clear protocols as to how the immigrants that are under the care of DHS will have access to HIV medications, anti-depressants, hormone treatment and other mental or physical needs.

8.    Solitary confinement should never be the first option for LGBT immigrants but an alternative to detention, since this causes severe negative emotional impacts.

The Center is thankful that the City Council had this vital conversation and looks forward to collaborating to develop new programs that address the needs of the LGBT immigrant community.