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Marriage Equality

Here's How Trans Folks on Twitter Are Reacting to Marriage Equality

Here's How Trans Folks on Twitter Are Reacting to Marriage Equality

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The consensus? Great news; now let's refocus on transphobic discrimination and violence, especially against trans women of color.

This morning the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that same-sex couples have a constitutional right to legally marry.

In a 5-4 decision, SCOTUS ruled that the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution protects same-sex couples all over the country from discrimination and that all states must now afford legal marriage to all couples.

The decision has been greeted with much celebration from transgender activists and their allies, due in part to the fact that many trans people identify as gay, lesbian, or bisexual.

But marriage equality has always been a more complex issue for trans people, who often must jump through medical hurdles in order to have their gender legally recognized -- a reality that previously rendered marriage impossible for trans folks without identification that reflected their gender identity.

SCOTUS's historic ruling has also removed a second unique barrier many trans folks: They can get divorced without their marriage being invalidated entirely on the grounds that their union was an "illegal" same-sex marriage.

Such marriage-related concerns, however, are taking a backseat today as the trans Twitterverse continues to react to marriage equality. As many trans activists have argued, the movement for trans equality has seemed to be deprioritized within the larger LGBT rights movement as marriage took center stage. Trans Filipina-American writer Meredith Talusan explained:

And so the overwhelming message among trans activists has quickly become now that we have marriage equality, let's repurpose the energy formerly devoted to marriage to address the rampant inequalities facing the U.S.'s trans citizens, and especially trans women of color.

Black trans and intersex rights activist Cherno Biko summed up the sentiment simply:

Trans actress Julie Rei Goldstein reminded folks that trans women of color have been leaders in the LGBT rights movement since the beginning:

Meanwhile, trans activists drew attention to specific issues, with a particular focus on the epidemic of fatal violence against trans women.

And one more fact didn't go unforgotten by many trans advocates: today is the 11th annual Transgender Day of Action, as the Audre Lorde Project declared prior to SCOTUS's marriage equality ruling.

As celebrations and calls for action continue to roll out, the project has reminded the Twitterverse of very specific steps that LGBT rights activists can pivot to right now.

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Mitch Kellaway