“Trans People Will Always Exist”: Responses to the Censorship of Queer History
Last week, the National Park Service (NPS) removed all references to “transgender” and “queer” individuals from its Stonewall National Monument website. The community was quick to respond with outrage on social media, and more than a thousand protestors gathered at the Stonewall monument to speak out against the blatant attempt to erase transgender and gender-nonconforming folks from history. Many have pointed out the absurdity of this, especially considering that the Stonewall Riots of 1969 were predominantly led by transgender women of color, including Marsha P. Johnson, Sylvia Rivera, Zazu Nova, and Miss Major Griffin-Gracy.
The National Park Service Staff’s Response
According to posts from the Alt National Park Service’s social media accounts, including Bluesky and Facebook, the changes to the NPS website were not made by NPS staff.
(Screenshot retrieved from Tumblr)
The post reads:
The removal of a transgender reference from the National Park Service’s Stonewall website wasn’t done by NPS staff. Elon, care to elaborate?
With the following comment:
Why all the pettiness? We are proud supporters, and many in our coalition are LGBTQ.
When asked why the staff couldn’t reverse the changes, the account replied:
Access has been denied to those who previously had it. This is getting ridiculous.
The Alt NPS accounts have continued to be vocal in their criticism of the actions from the administration, as well as the mass firing of thousands of federal employees and the removal of data that does not align with the administration’s political ideology.
What We Can Do
Like the folks operating the Alt NPS accounts, people should be loud with their criticisms of what’s happening right now. Post on social media. Express concerns in person. Call or email local representatives.
Like the people who participated in the protest at the Stonewall monument, connect with your community and organize demonstrations. Make art. Write blog posts.
Also: Educate yourself. While the attacks on transgender and queer people are horrible in general, it’s worth keeping in mind that, according to a report from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, 85 percent of transgender homicide victims in the USA are people of color, with Black trans women comprising nearly half of the deaths.
As a white trans person, I recognize that, while I’m being targeted by these decisions, my Black trans sisters and gender-nonconforming siblings of color are the most at risk. I urge folks with privilege to use that when the opportunity arises to protect the most vulnerable in our community, and to research the most effective ways of doing so. ARCC offers some resources through blog posts, articles, and the ARCC of Change podcast if you need help getting started.
And, if you’re one of the people directly impacted by these actions, be kind to yourself. Times are scary right now, but if there’s anything to take solace in, remember you are not alone.
We are in this together.
(Image from martinjosephq.bsky.social on Bluesky)
For peace and love,
Ash
