Community Protests Human Rights Violations against Transpeople in California Prisons

 

Join the silent protest at the courthouse, make calls to Attorney General Jerry Brown and Federal Receiver Robert Sillen to support a transgender woman rape survivor.

When: 8:00am – 9:30am Monday July 30th, 2007.

Where: Civic Center Courthouse, 400 McAllister Street @ Polk St, San Francisco.

Clothing: Wear RED, as Alexis has chosen the color as a symbol of the hurt and pain caused by the violence and discrimination against our communities, as well as a way to express power in loving solidarity.  If you are planning on going into the courtroom, please bring other articles of non-RED clothing as the judge has asked us to stop this practice in the courtroom.

The Trans/Gender Variant In Prison Committee (TIP) will hold a silent protest outside the courthouse to support Ms. Alexis Giraldo, a Latina transgender rape survivor who is suing the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation for failure to protect her despite her requests for help.  TIP members and supporters will also make calls to Attorney General Jerry Brown and Federal Receiver Robert Sillen throughout the day.

“This case seeks to mandate the state to develop new and better measures to protect transgender people in prison.  Prisons do not make us safer.  The elements of male and white supremacy central to sexual violence are also intrinsically linked to the strength of the prison industrial complex,” says TIP member Jayden Donahue.

The trial has been marked by repeated attacks on Ms. Giraldo’s credibility by the State Attorney General, claiming that Ms. Giraldo not only lied about being raped but also failed to report the assaults despite her ample paperwork documenting the contrary.  Lawyers continue to refer to Ms. Alexis Giraldo as “he” and “him,” clearly disrespecting her in the courtroom.

Valerie Jenness, a University of California, Irvine, criminologist who recently studied sexual assaults in California prisons, testified that 59% of the state’s transgender prisoners have reported being sexually assaulted, compared with 4% of the general prison population (Associated Press, “Transgender Inmate Sues California over Prison Policy That Placed Her in Male’s Cell,” International Herald Tribune, July 20th, 2007).

SILENT PROTEST

Ms. Giraldo has repeatedly told us that community support gives her the strength and courage she needs, as she puts herself on the line to make a better world for all of us.

TIP is requesting community presence at a silent protest to take place outside the courthouse.  Attendees will hold provided signs and cover their mouths to demonstrate the daily violence all transgender prisoners face.  Our cries go unheard and unheeded, or we are retaliated against for raising our voices.

Please let TIP know how many individuals from your organization will be able to attend the protest by calling Miss Major or Nat Smith.

Contact: Miss Major, Trans/Gender Variant In Prison Committee (TIP) 415-252-1444, cell: 510-712-3331

Nat Smith, TIP, Critical Resistance, 415-314-0867

TIP is a project of the Transgender and Intersex Justice Project (TGIJP).


PHONE BLAST TO THE ATTORNEY GENERAL AND FEDERAL PRISON HEALTH CARE RECEIVER

We ask all interested community members to call the Attorney General’s and Federal Prison Health Care Receiver’s offices to demand policy change in California’s prison system, and an end to the antagonistic and discriminatory treatment of Ms. Giraldo.

Please use the scripts and phone numbers below to contact Jerry Brown and Robert Sillen on Monday, July 30th.  Transgender prisoners who are members of the TIP Committee will also be calling from a Bay Area prison!

Thank you, the TIP Committee

For calls to Attorney General Jerry Brown:

Phone: 916.322.3360
Toll free: 1.800.952.5225

Hello, my name is ___________ and I am from ___________ (city).

I am calling to express my outrage over your office’s handling of the Alexis Giraldo case.  I demand an end to the bullying tactics and harassment against Alexis that you have been relying on to win the case.  The abuses suffered by transgender people in the prison are human rights violations.  Rather than defending the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s wrongdoings and cover-ups, I call on you and the CDCR to create new policies to protect all people, especially transgender people, from sexual assault in prison.

THANK YOU, ___________ (your name).

For calls to Federal Health Care Receiver Robert Sillen:

Phone (San Francisco): 415.522.4067, San Jose (Headquarters): 408.436.6800, Sacramento: 916.323.1221

Hello, my name is ___________ and I am from ___________ (city).

I am calling to express my outrage over the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s handling of the Alexis Giraldo sexual assault case.  I demand an end to the violence faced by transgender prisoners in the California prison system.  The abuses suffered by transgender people in the prison are human rights violations and are completely unacceptable.

I call on you and the California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation to create new policies to protect all people, especially transgender people, from sexual assault in prison.  I call on you and the Federal Health Care Receiver’s office to provide adequate counseling, resources, and medical care for survivors of sexual violence in prison.  These systems should be responsive and supportive and should not villainize people in prison.

THANK YOU, ___________ (your name).


The TGI Justice Project‘s (TGIJP) mission is to challenge and end the human rights abuses committed against transgender, gender variant/genderqueer and intersex (TGI) people in California prisons and beyond.



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