Jowelle De Souza-Trini Trans Pioneer

If you haven't heard of Jowelle De Souza, it's past time that you got to know this remarkable lady.   She's a businesswoman who owns a beauty shop in San Fernando that Trinis flock to in addition to being a civil rights warrior and animal rights activist in Trinidad and Tobago.  

In 1993 at age 19 she became the first person in Trinidad to have SRS and is also believed to be the first person in the Caribbean region to do so.

De Souza also became the first trans person to sue the Trinidadian state for a violation of her constitutional rights.

The story begins in March 1997.   A photographer that knew about her trans past was taking pictures of her without her permission and got overly invasive of Jowelle's personal space.   When she pushed him away, she was arrested by the police and charged with assault.

She was taken to a nearby police station by Officer Eric George and taunted for hours about her sexuality.  Despite her appearance and identification clearly pointing in the female gender direction, the male po-po's were intent on strip searching her.  The only thing that stopped the boys from doing so was the intervention of a female officer.

De Souza later stated about it, "There was no legal right to search," she said. "I pushed (the photographer). I didn't assault him with a deadly weapon."

She was eventually released from custody without having to endure a humiliating strip search, but it was on like Donkey Kong.  Most TBLG people in the Caribbean fear police reprisals if they press charges, but not De Souza.    She sought legal representation and ended up getting as her attorney one of Trinidad's most prominent lawyers, Lynette Maharaj, the wife of the then attorney general of Trinidad.   .    


In May 2001 she won her unlawful arrest and harassment case when Eric George, one of the accused officers in the case killed himself and his wife before the case went to trial.   She was awarded a $30,000 cash settlement that she donated to charity.

Since then she has continued her activism on a variety of fronts, been outspoken on civil rights issues, and is considering running for political office in Trinidad and Tobago.

She said in a 2002 interview, “I want to get into that arena and do more for people who are different. I am prepared to take on that. I want to make our presence felt. I have reached where I want to reach now. I want to help other people.”

She is a role model and an inspiration for other transpeople in not only Trinidad, but the entire region.     

This Ain't Stayin' In Vegas-Cosmopolitan Hotel Has Trans Bathroom Issues

It is becoming increasingly clear as we see transpeople getting attacked, hassled or arrested for simply using the bathroom that the 'bathroom predator' meme needs to be utterly attacked, debunked, ridiculed and destroyed before we end up having to memorialize a dead transperson at a TDOR near you.

The latest episode of cis people gone wild over transpeople using the restroom happened at the Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas and first becomes known to us due to a hotel review website.

This transperson known as Stephanie is in Vegas for a conference.  She's enjoying a few hours at the hotel's bar and feeling the need to answer nature's call.  She uses the restroom at 4 AM Vegas time and as she exits it finds herself met by security guards, hassled and barred for life from the just opened hotel for doing so.

Of course once the word of what happened gets out to a community already in high pissivity and fed up over the revelations of other bouts of bathroom transphobia breaking out , the Cosmopolitan's FB page gets lit up with complaints to the point in which the hotel has to release a statement about it.

"The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas is committed to maintaining a community that recognizes and values the inherent dignity of every person, by fostering sensitivity, understanding and mutual respect of our guests and employees.We sincerely regret any misunderstanding or inappropriate actions that any member of our staff may have taken. And to ensure increased sensitivity within this area, the organization will focus on continued training and on-going awareness initiatives. In addition, we apologize to the individual guest and welcome her back to the resort anytime.Again, we would like to apologize to the LGBT community and anyone concerned and hope to demonstrate our firm dedication to fair and unbiased treatment of all." - The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas

Umm hmm.   Well, y'all need to write that into the security guards post orders.. 

And while you're at it, are you amenable to doing some training on TBLG issues for your staff?.   Because in an age of instant communications and the mood this community is in right now, what's transphobic in Vegas won't stay in Vegas for long.

Dallas County Commissioner Maurine Dickey Compares Transsexuality With Being Overweight

The Dallas County Commissioners Court continues to debate adding gender identity/expression  language to their recently passed sexual orientation only policy for Dallas County employees and is developing into a textbook case as to why we transpeople despise incrementalism.

County Judge Clay Jenkins and Commissioner Dr. Elba Garcia, are both Democrats who support adding transgender protections for county employees.  Democratic Commissioner John Wiley Price is still undecided about it.    Dr. Garcia, like John Wiley Price, once served on the Dallas City Council and is a longtime TBLG community ally.


Republican Commissioner Maurine Dickey, whose district covers part of the Oak Lawn gayborhood in Dallas was thought to be the possible decisive third vote that would help the policy pass for the 7000 Dallas County workers.

Dickey blew up that fantasy when she arrogantly came out against it in a Dallas Voice Instant Tea blog interview..

While she believes the recent decision of the Dallas County Commissioners Court to add sexual orientation to the policy was long overdue, Dickey said she thinks adding gender identity/expression to the policy could lead to adding “overweight people” or “people with diabetes.”

WTF? 

“I won’t be voting for a special protected class,” Dickey said. “You’ve got to stop somewhere. … It becomes a legal nightmare.”

Spoken like a true Republican.   

FYI  Commissioner Dickey, gender identity/expression is not a 'special protected class' and you need to stop peddling those GOP weasel words.   Everyone has a gender identity that they express, including you.

And as Carla stated on my FB page when we were discussing this issue, "Ms Dickey not only shows she has no clue when it comes to trans issues, she also shows her total insensitivity to those of us who struggle with issues around food and weight. What a poor representative of the people she is.

Judge Jenkins and Commissioner Garcia are still working hard to get that third vote, and Judge Jenkins will not put the issue on the Commissioners Court calendar until they have secured the third vote.

“I really feel confident,” Garcia said. “You have to hope.”

In the meantime TBLG advocates have addressed the court about the need to do the right thing and protect Dallas County's trans workers for the fourth consecutive week.

Time for you Dallas area transfolks to become agents of your own liberation.   If you want to speak to the court, Rafael McDonnell of Resource Center Dallas is coordinating the speaker's list and would love to hear from you.

If you're a do it yourself kind of person, here's the contact info for all five Dallas County commissioners.
Remember, be nice and respectful while doing so.

County Judge Clay Jenkins – 214-653-7949
Email: Clay.Jenkins@DallasCounty.org
Dist. 1 Maurine Dickey – 214-653-7552
Email: Maurine.Dickey@DallasCounty.org
Dist. 2 Mike Cantrell – 214-653-6100
Email: MCantrell@DallasCounty.org
Dist. 3 John Wiley Price – 214-653-6671
Email: John.Price@DallasCounty.org
Dist. 4 Dr. Elba Garcia – 214-653-6670
Email: Elba.GarciaDDS@DallasCounty.org