Today is Trans Day of Visibility #TDOV, aptly falling on the last day of Women’s History Month #WHM2021. This year we’ve seen an unprecedented push from right-wing extremist lawmakers to legislate us out of existence, strip us of our right to autonomy over our bodies, and shove us into invisible and dangerous marketplaces to be policed, hypercriminalized, and stigmatized. The comrades @chasestrangio and @raquel_willis have gone to great lengths to remind us that visibility alone isn’t enough—we deserve accountability, justice, and liberation for every last trans person. Go to their pages to learn more about this. We’ve also reached an unthinkable landmark with the COVID-19 pandemic, and with many states now opening vaccine registration to the general population, I can’t help but think that Black communities, Black queer folks, and Black trans folks, who already experience heightened precarity and vulnerability during this pandemic, were never truly centered in the state’s efforts to halt the spread and inculcate our communities with vaccines. It’s a disturbing reminder that the only ones checking for us is us. We keep us safe, we care for us. Trans folks, particularly Black trans women, have been targeted with violence at record rates throughout this past year. Rachel Crandall-Crocker, who is widely credited with popularizing Trans Day of Visibility said in a recent conversation with @them that visibility has been a “double-edged sword”—with visibility comes targeting. Black liberation organizers know this better than anyone. The more our demands for justice reach the mainstream, the more likely they are to be coopted, misinterpreted, and make us the subject of violence. This must end. Our lives literally depend on it. All this to say and to remind everyone who has read this far, this page is and always will be for me and my Black queer and trans siblings. I love us so much and I’m so honored and privileged to be able to capture images of this incredible and loving community. Here’s to many years to come building and creating together. So much more to come. 🏳️‍⚧️🖤