Trans Protection Party

Not Another Fucking Jail!

by Croatia Black & Hugo Teal

This is a special issue about why you should vote “NO” for renewing the public safety sales tax on April 8th.

Cover of this special zine: noT ANOThER FUckiNG JAIL! TRANS INCARCERATION AND WHY YOU SHOULD VOTE "NO" ON APRIL 8TH!

QUEER PEOPLE ARE NOT SAFE IN KANSAS CITY JAILS (OR ANY JAIL FOR THAT MATTER). THIS HAS ALWAYS BEEN SO, BUT IT IS ESPECIALLY CRUCIAL TO UNDERSTAND THAT THIS DANGER IS ESCALATING KANSAS CITY PLANS TO BUILD A NEW JAIL COMPLEX RIGHT OFF 40 HIGHWAY AND 31ST STREET, BY LITTLE BLUE RIVER. THIS PROJECT HAS ALREADY BROKEN GROUND AND BUILD SOME OF THE INTIAL STRUCTURES, BUT ADDITIONAL FUNDING IS NEEDED (CLOSE TO A BILLION DOLLARS!) TO FINISH THIS 10 YEAR LONG PROJECT. NOW, WHO'S GONNA PAY FOR ALL THIS? YOU, OF COURSE! THE TAXPAYER. THE TOPIC OF THIS PUBLICATION IS THE PUBLIC SAFETY SALES TAX RENEWAL, SOMETHING YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO VOTE NO ON COME APRIL 8TH. DETRANSITION: TRANS PEOPLE ARE IN CRITICAL DANGER OF STATE VIOLENCE IN AMERICA RIGHT NOW. WHEN TRANS PEOPLE ARE JAILED, WE ARE FORCELLY DETRANSITIONED; PUTTING OUR MENTAL (AND OFTEN PHYSICAL) HEALTH AT RISK. GENDER DYSPHORIA REFERS TO PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS THAT RESULTS FROM AND INCONGRUENCE BETWEEN ONE'S SEX ASSIGNED AT BIRTH AND THEIR GENDER IDENTITY. THIS OFTEN MANIFESTS AS ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, LOW SELF-ESTEEM, AND, IF LEFT UNTREATED, SUICIDE. GENDER-AFFIRMING CARE (SOCIAL TRANSITION, HORMONE THERAPY, SURGERIES, ETC.) IS MEDICALLY PROVEN TO ALLEVIATE GENDER DYSPHORIA. SIMPLY PUT, IT'S MEDICINE WHILE INCARCERATED, HOWEVER, GENDER-AFFIRMING CARE (PARTICULARLY HRT) IS INTENTIONALLY WITHHELD FROM TRANS PEOPLE, LEAVING THEM IN A PERPETUAL STATE OF CRISIS. IN JAIL, THE MEDICAL NEEDS OF TRANS PEOPLE ARE LEFT UNMET AND THAT IS BY DESIGN. THE GOAL IS FOR US TO SUFFER MORE. IF THAT'S NOT CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT, THEN I DON'T KNOW WHAT IS. TRANS MEN ARE PLACED IN WOMEN'S PRISONS AND TRANS WOMEN ARE PLACED IN MEN'S PRISONS WHERE THEY WILL ALMOST INEVITABLY BE ABUSED AND SEXUALLY ASSAULTED BY BOTH MALE INMATES AND CORRECTIONAL OFFICERS ALIKE [Picture of hormone vial] IN A PROCESS CALLED V-CODING, TRANS WOMEN ARE USED AS A BARTERING TOKEN BY CORRECTIONAL OFFICERS TO PLACATE MALE INMATES. 62% OF TRANS WOMEN IN CUSTODY REPORT BEING FORCED TO BE A SEX OBJECT FOR THESE INMATES. OFTEN DESCRIBED AS A "FORCED MARRIAGE" THESE WOMEN ARE RAPED AND FORCED TO PERFORM MANUAL LABOR FOR OTHER INMATES. IF THEY DON'T COMPLY, THEY CAN LOSE ELIGIBILITY FOR PAROLE, BE PLACED IN SOLITARY CONFINEMENT, AND ULTIMATELY, HAVE YEARS ADDED TO THEIR SENTENCE. IMAGINE IF THIS HAPPENED TO YOUR MOTHER, SISTER, DAUGHTER, FRIEND, OR GOD FORBID, YOU WE MUST FORM A QUEER VOTING BLOCK IN SOLIDARITY FOR OUR TRANS COMMUNITY ON THE GROUNDS OF ABOLITION. WE NEED TO BE UNIFIED IN THE FIGHT AGAINST STATE VIOLENCE. WE MUST ACT TOGETHER TO REPRESENT OUR QUEER STRUGGLE ON APRIL 8TH, BY VOTING "NO" ON THE PUBLIC SAFETY SALES TAX. [Picture of a frowning woman shackled to a smiling man's wrist] AT THE END OF THE DAY, THIS IS ALL OF OUR STRUGGLE. WE CANNOT CLAIM ALLYSHIP, OR EVEN PERFORM WHAT LOOKS LOOKS LIKE ALLYSHIP, IF WE DO NOT COMBAT STATE VIOLENCE AGAINST TRANS PEOPLE. BEFORE I CRITICIZE YOU, I WILL CONGRATULATE YOU. THANK YOU FOR PICKING UP THIS PUBLICATION; I THINK THAT IS IS PROVIDENTIAL THAT YOU DID SO- CONGRATULATIONS FOR BEING A MOST FORTUNATE QUEER. PLEASE CONTINUE YOUR GOOD FORTUNE BY INTERNALIZING THE CONTENT YOU ARE ABOUT TO CONSUME. THE SITUATION THAT PERSISTS FOR QUEER PEOPLE IN THE AMERICAN "JUSTICE SYSTEM" IS UTTERLY DEPLORABLE AND ALWAYS HAS BEEN. I THINK ANY PERSON CAN UNDERSTAND THAT WITH THE SMALLEST BIT OF CRITICAL ANALYSIS, BUT FROM WHAT HAS PROHIBITED THE QUEER COMMUNITY FROM BECOMING UNIFIED IN THE SENTIMENTS OF ABOLITION? I THINK THE ANSWER IS PRIVILEGE. YOU CAN OBSERV THE RISE OF PRIVILEGE IN WHITE GAY MEN IN THE FIFTY YEARS POST STONEWALL -- WHO I HAVE KNOWN TO WORK, THEMSELVES, AS AGENTS OF POLICE AND MILITARY VIOLENCE; AN ODD TYPE OF PRIVILEGE THAT HAS LEFT TRANS PEOPLE RECENTLY. THERE ARE CULTURAL CLUES YOU MAY HEAR AT A GAY BAR, AN ENTHUSIASM FOR HATE CRIME LAWS AND AN EAGERNESS TO CALL THE POLICE TO SOLVE CONFLICTS. I HAVE KNOWN MANY PRIVILEGED CIS-WHITES, GAY MEN AND LESBIANS, WHO HAVE AMPLIFIED -- INTENTIONALLY OR NOT -- THE CAUSES AND REQUIREMENTS OF STATE VIOLENCE INTO OUR SHARED REALITY, AND IT IS THEM THAT I ESPECIALLY WISH TO PULL INTO OUR SHARED CAUSE OF ABOLITION. [A picture of a smiling man standing over two women] "WHAT'S THE MATTER? I'M DOING JUST FINE!" I THINK THAT IT IS CRITICAL TO EDUCATE AND INSPIRE THOSE WHO DO NOT KNOW THAT JAILS, PRISIONS, AND POLICING ARE ISSUES INSEPARABLY CLOSE TO THEIR LIVELIHOODS AS QUEER PEOPLE, REGARDLESS OF THE PRIVILEGE THEY HAVE PREVIOUSLY ENJOYED, THE LAW AND ORDER SENTIMENTS THEY HAVE INHERITED FROM WEALTH ACCUMULATION, OR THEIR ABILITY TO AVOIDE CULTURE WAR DISCUSSIONS ABOUT THEIR LIVES. I BELIEVE THAT ALL QUEER PEOPLE WILL BE HIT WITH A SERIES OF REALITY CHECKS IN THE COMING MONTHS OF THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION. REALITY CHECKS THAT WILL ULTIMATELY BRING CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF SYSTEMS OF STATE VIOLENCE TO A HEAD IN OUR SHARED BROAD BRUSH CULTURE. [A picture of a MAGA hat with DANGER arrows pointing at it] We are all in grave danger, and always have been. The only thing that has prohibited some of us from understanding that is the small amount of privilege some of us have gained between when queer people where more equitably opressed, to now, when trans people are more specifically oppressed than all other queer people. We ask that you other queers share out struggle, because it is still your struggle as well (despite the forgetfulness of some to that fact). All queer privilege is being challenged, and will continue to be challenged by the forces that define the trans struggle. It is our task to bring all queer people back into the fight. [A picture of three trans symbols intersecting] THIS SMALL MAGAZINE IS DESIGNED TO ENCOURAGE YOU TO HOLD THE TASK WITH ENGAGING WITH YOUR LOCAL TRANS COMMUNITY AS A UNIFIED VOTING BLOCK, AND TO HALT THE BUILDING OF AND ADVANCED JAIL COMPLEX IN KANSAS CITY. IT WILL TAKE OVER A DECADE AND ALL OF IT WILL BE ON YOUR DIME! (that's a whole bunch of dimes...) FINANCIALLY SPEAKING, THE SALES TAX IS AN INCREASE ON SOMETHING THAT WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO PHASE OUT IN APRIL. IT WOULD TAKE A QUARTER OF EVERY CENT YOU SPEND IN KC AND ADD IT ON THE END OF YOUR BILL AS AN ADDITIONAL SALES TAX, INCREASING THE FINANCIAL PRESSURE THAT QUEER PEOPLE ALREADY FACE IN A POLITICAL AND CULTURAL CLIMATE INCREASINGLY AIMED AGAINST THEM, ESPECIALLY TRANS AND GENDER-NONCONFORMING FOLKS. THE PROJECT IS DESIGNED TO BE PAID FOR BY THE RENEWAL OF THE PUBLIC SAFETY SALES TAX ON APRIL 8TH, WHICH WE ARE COMPELLING OUR QUEER COMMUNITY TO VOTE "NO" ON. YOU CARE ABOUT TRANS PEOPLE. YOU CARE ABOUT QUEER PEOPLE. SO CARE ENOUGH TO VOTE "NO" ON APRIL 8TH! VOTE "NO" ON THE PUBLIC SAFETY SALES TAX RENEWAL!!! AN ABOLITIONIST KNOWS NO GUILT. - CROATIA BLACK