Big Changes Coming to Trans Way, One of the Main Groups for the Trans Community
By Tara Murtha
Posted Jul. 20, 2011
http://www.philadelphiaweekly.com/news-and-opinion/Prejudice-Allegations-Trans-Way-William-Way.htmlMuch like the membership, big changes are under way at TransWay, the weekly meetup for trans folk held at the William Way LGBT Community Center at 1315 Spruce St. After running steady since 2008, the founding leadership stepped down last month under allegations of discrimination within the group. Now, TransWay is rebuilding from the ground up, including looking for a new facilitator who will steer the group into the future.
So what happened? Turns out, even the most marginalized groups are not immune to prejudice within the ranks. Members allege the discrimination manifested along the lines of "passing privilege."
"Basically what happened was we had a clique of trans women who became very classist, very size-ist, very discriminatory of what they think trans people are and aren't," says 25-year-old Ahuviya Harel, who has been a part of the group since last year. Identifying as gender-queer male-to-female, Harel, donning camo pants when we met, says she felt discriminated against for not presenting herself as feminine enough.
