During a reception at the White House on Wednesday to celebrate June as “Gay Pride Month,” a speech by Barack Obama was cut off by an "undocumented" transgender activist who shouted: “President Obama, release all LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer) immigrants from detention!”
Not long after Jennicet Gutierrez -- a Latina member of the Not One More Deportation immigrant organization -- was removed from the event, she wrote an opinion piece for the Washington Blade gay newspaper, asserting: “There is no pride in how LGBTQ and transgender immigrants are treated in this country."
Entitled “I Interrupted Obama Because We Need to Be Heard,” the article began:
Pride celebrations of the LGBTQ community are taking place throughout the nation. The community takes great pride in celebrating our diversity and the progress we have made throughout the years.
However, for the immigrant LGBTQ community, progress has not been fully realized because of the continuous discrimination and violence we face in our daily lives.
“Last night, I spoke out to demand respect and acknowledgement of our gender expression and the release of the estimated 75 transgender immigrants in detention right now,” she stated, because “there can be no celebration with an administration that has the ability to keep us detained and in danger or release us to freedom.”
The undocumented immigrant also noted: “It is heartbreaking to see how raising these issues were received by the president and by those in attendance.”
She continued:
I interrupted his speech because it is time for our issues and struggles to be heard. I stood for what is right.
Instead of silencing our voices, President Obama can also stand and do the right thing for our immigrant LGBTQ community.
Apparently, the 'abuse' that ICE (the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency) is giving these transgenders is that they put the men pretending to be women in with the male prisoners. Oh, the outrage!
Gutierrez noted: “The violence my trans sisters face in detention centers is one of torture and abuse,” which “come from ICE officials and other detainees. I have spoken with my trans immigrant sisters who were recently released from detention centers. With a lot of emotional pain and heavy tears in their eyes, they opened up about the horrendous treatment they all experienced. Often seeking asylum to escape threats of violence because of their gender identity and sexuality, this is how they’re greeted in this country, at times misgendered, exposed to assault and put in detention centers with men.”
“I was fortunate to be invited to the White House to listen to President Obama’s speech recognizing the LGBTQ community and the progress being made,” Gutierrez wrote. “If the president wants to celebrate with us, he should release the LGBTQ immigrants locked up in detention centers immediately,” the activist stated, since “the White House gets to make the decision whether it keeps us safe.”
“I'm so hopeful about what we can accomplish,” Obama stated just before being interrupted. “I tell you, the civil rights of LGBT Americans – .”
At that point, the transgender woman cut the president off.
Obama responded by declaring: “Listen, you're in my house ... it's not respectful." The crowd tried to drown out the activist before the president noted that heckling is not the way to get a “good response” from him.
“Can we escort this person out?” he asked. “You can either stay and be quiet, or we’ll have to take you out.”
“Shame on you,” he continued. “You shouldn’t be doing this.” The crowd chanted the president’s name as the woman repeated “Not One More Deportation” over and over until she was removed from the room.
“I spoke out because our issues and struggles can no longer be ignored,” she stated. “Immigrant trans women are 12 times more likely to face discrimination because of our gender identity. If we add our immigration status to the equation, the discrimination increases.”
Whenever there's a Republican president, protesters are regularly praised as heroes. Apparently, many people have quite a different standard when a Democrat is in the White House.
