Unpacking the Numbers
Racism, Poverty and the Response to Anti-LGBTQ Hate Crimes in D.C.
by Sadie Ryanne Baker
Published on January 21, 2010, 5:59am
http://www.metroweekly.com/news/opinion/?ak=4817As a survivor of violence and a lesbian trans woman in a world that treats my identity as delusional or deceptive, I understand fear. I also understand the growing concern about the rise in reported hate crimes in D.C. Despite the Metropolitan Police Department's failure to track anti-trans violence, it's safe to say that many such incidents target trans people.
The numbers upset me, and they don't even include cases that police fail to report, or that survivors fear reporting: undocumented immigrants who fear they'll be deported, sex workers who fear they'll be arrested, trans people who fear what the police might do when they find out that their ID card and appearance don't match.
