Following a year of continued attacks on our community, we are working to mobilize and build power for trans and gender non-conforming (TGNC) folks here in NYC and beyond. Here is a recap of what SRLP’s Movement Building Team has been up to recently: Leadership Development and Movement Building Our Trans Healthcare Town Hall, “What’s […]
Protective Custody & The Right to Work – A Former PAC Member’s Letter on the Lack of Safe Housing and Job Accessibility for Transgender Women in Prisons
Today, we’d like to share a letter from one of our former PAC members, Victoria Rodriguez, who wrote to us earlier this year while she was housed in the Transgender Housing Unit (THU). The THU is a specialized unit for transgender women currently stationed at the Manhattan Detention Center (MDC). With the exception of the […]
Meet the Advisory Committee for It’s War in Here!
By Sylvia Rivera Law Project on December 11, 2017 in It’s War in Here, News, Prisoner Rights Project, SRLP Prisoner Advisory Committee
As part of the relaunch of “It’s War in Here,” we asked some of our incarcerated members to join an Advisory Committee for the project. These members have helped us to generate questions and edit the surveys, and they will help us to review data and edit drafts of the report later on. They are […]
“What’s Up with Trans Healthcare?” Town Hall Event Recap – A Night of Community Bonding, Building Power, and Creating Alliances
On Thursday, November 9th, the Sylvia Rivera Law Project (SRLP) teamed up with the LGBT Community Center at West 13th to create an affirming and community-driven space to discuss trans healthcare and to learn about the work being done by our allies around the city. During our “What’s Up with Trans Healthcare?” Town Hall, the […]
Writing to Folks on the Inside
“I didn’t know I needed community until it was offered to me.” – James, member of SRLP’s Prisoner Advisory Committee Trans, gender non-conforming, and intersex (TGNCI) folks experience significantly increased interaction with police, police violence, and incarceration. This heightened state of policing and discrimination is even more acute for folks who are of color or […]
Celebrating the Prisoner Justice Project’s Accomplishments in 2017
By Sylvia Rivera Law Project on December 4, 2017 in It’s War in Here, Legal, Newsletter, Prisoner Rights Project, SRLP News, SRLP Prisoner Advisory Committee
As with all of Sylvia Rivera Law Project’s (SRLP) legal work, the Prisoner Justice Project (PJP) seeks to address the immediate needs of our incarcerated community members and connect them with opportunities to engage more fully in our work. Most people initiate contact with PJP in a state of crisis, often reporting physical and sexual […]
“What’s Up with Trans Healthcare” Town Hall
By Sasha Alexander, SRLP Director of Membership on November 6, 2017 in Events, Get Involved, Membership
The Sylvia Rivera Law Project is re-launching our Trans Health Campaign to address the many problems, concerns, and issues that trans, gender non-conforming, and intersex (TGNCI) New Yorkers have had to face. Our goal is continue to mobilize, educate, and support our communities in putting pressure on the institutions and policymakers who are impacting our […]
Tell New York to Remove Barriers to Gender-Affirming Healthcare
By Sasha Alexander, SRLP Director of Membership on November 4, 2017 in Action Alert, Get Involved, Membership, Policy Advocacy, Survival and Self Determination Project
In spite of the Sylvia Rivera Law Project’s victory in ensuring healthcare access for low-income trans, gender non-conforming, and intersex (TGNCI) New Yorkers, and Governor Cuomo’s directive that private insurers allow gender-affirming care, many members of our community continue face barriers to care. From wrongful denials of coverage to red tape to outdated, transphobic policies […]
What is the Sylvia Rivera Law Project’s Prisoner Advisory Committee?
By Sylvia Rivera Law Project on November 2, 2017 in Membership, Prisoner Rights Project, SRLP Prisoner Advisory Committee
The Sylvia Rivera Law Project’s Prisoner Advisory Committee (PAC) is a committee of incarcerated trans, gender non-conforming, and intersex (TGNCI) individuals who seek to share their voices with those on the outside about the injustices they have faced both in and out of prison. PAC began from a proposal by former SRLP staff member Gabriel […]
NYC Board of Corrections Issues New Resolution to Protect Incarcerated TGNCI Individuals from Sexual Assault
In 2003, Congress passed the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA), which sought to address and reduce sexual assaults in prison, as well as to develop resources to educate institutions on this issue and to protect those most vulnerable. Unfortunately, many prisons across the country have failed to uphold the standards set by this law for […]