by Randy Ford, she/her/Goddess
Director of Development

Hello lovely community,

WHAT A WEEK IT HAS BEEN. Last Monday, LRP's Black Trans leadership returned from the Black Trans Advocacy Conference in Dallas, Texas, and we are more rejuvenated than ever! For context, BTAC (Black Trans Advocacy Coalition) is the oldest national social justice organization led by Black Trans and GNC people. This annual conference, now in its 10th year, brings together Black Trans leaders from all over the nation to share knowledge through workshops, networking, and connection.

Over the course of seven days, we were met with so much love as our staff deepened relationships with Black trans elders, Black trans youth, and Black trans people throughout the United States. The experience we had could only be described as a family reunion. There was an energy felt amongst all who were there that “we are home.” We even had some peers from Washington State present, which also made the conference so powerful. All and all, it was an incredibly moving experience—we learned so much about what’s happening on the ground to protect Black trans lives AND how much we have been, and still are, contributing to the movement for our collective liberation.

One of the most affirming and iconic moments of the trip was when our very own Executive Director, Jaelynn Scott, took the stage to accept the 2023 Monica Roberts Advocacy Award! We thought we were cute nominating her as both a surprise and token of gratitude. But then when Diamond Stylez said, "Let's talk about the Lavender Rights Project," our whole table exploded with joy and tears realizing that our little plan worked. It meant the world to see Jaelynn talk about our work at BTAC. It put away all of the stresses about our staff’s endless labor, long weekends, isolation, imposter syndrome. We were actually able to look at ourselves as whole, and not just our daily tasks. 

If you want a peek at our gala experience, just watch this video of Jaelynn's acceptance speech. Everyone in the room was gagged at how much love we have for our ED. Please send her congratulations on behalf of all her love, care, and work she's put into this organization and the staff. She really deserves all the flowers!

In Other News……

Make sure you’re coming to our 2nd annual Black Trans Comedy Showcase on June 10th at SIFF Cinema Egyptian! We’ll have the icon TS Madison hosting and bringing to the stage KJ Whitehead, Beyonce Black St. James, and Mx Dahlia Belle. There will be raffle prizes to buy tickets for the day of, too! They include 2 pairs of Alaska Airlines tickets, a pair of Seattle Seahawks tickets, tickets to see Jynx Monsoon, and a chiropractic package from Marconi Chiropractic. For more event information, visit bit.ly/transcomedy23. And to donate on your behalf if you can’t make it, visit bit.ly/donatetolrp.

We just wanted to keep you updated on how we’re doing behind the scenes. Our staff are going to be kicking it into high gear leading up to our Pride event. Please share our event if you can! Hope to see you there!