Notices by Cait the Autocorrected Carrot (oldladyplays@wargamers.social)

@fabi

I found mine in a box of 3.5" floppies. it took me hours to install it.

I'll tell you this much - I never (in 1992) thought I'd see a day when hundreds of people in my community would gather at 9am on a Wednesday to defend the rights of trans kids to transition safely.

Never could have imagined it.

In 1994, when I attempted to get the gender marker changed on my passport, I was quite literally laughed out of the office by the staff, who were telling each other what a joke I was in the broad hearing of everyone in the room.

That was in this town.

In 1993, when I was jumped by a group of fascists and beaten senseless.

That was in this town.

In 1992, when I'd transitioned, I was kicked out of my housing by my landlord, no notice, just get your stuff and get out. I was merely fortunate to find an apartment nearby that I could afford within a couple of days.

That was in this town.

So I am deeply moved by the number of people who showed up yesterday, not all of them queer themselves, to help defend trans kids.

People spreading the message of trans joy and trans life and trans love.

It makes me again #ProudToBeTrans.

Welp. It's #TransDayOfVisibility.

I'm pretty visibly trans all the time, thanks to my wardrobe choices and my hairstyle. Oh, and my choice to live as a public trans person all the time, so trans kids know they can do it in this city, and cis people know we're already here, and have been here for many years.

I want to take a moment and shout out my #TransMasc and #Nonbinary people too - too often, while we are hypervisible as trans women, they are invisible as trans men and nonbinary people. Cis people reading along, remember that transness comes in several flavours, and they're all valid and brilliant and wonderful.

Cis people...if you see a trans person being harassed, step into that if you're safe to. Walk confidently to the trans person, say "Hi, remember me? We met last week at that work function." Or some similar pattern of words that makes it clear you know who the person is, and yet you're new enough to maybe need a reminder on name.

Just seeing a cis ally step in will help a lot, both with being the trans person under attack, and with deterring the bullies from continuing. You can ask, for instance, "Sorry, did I interrupt a conversation?"

Sound risky? I know. But imagine you're the trans person facing it without an ally. Feel much, much riskier? Yeah.

We need you, right now. We need to know you have our backs, in real life, even when it's risky for you some. It's a risky time. It's accomplice time.