Press Release: City Council Proclaims September 12 to be ‘Protect Trans Kids Day’ in Pittsburgh

Responding to community organizing after the harassment of a local teen, Pittsburgh City Council unanimously declares Monday Sept 12 the FIRST “Protect Trans Kids” in the city of Pittsburgh. The proclamation was drafted and directed by a group of local transgender teens.  The project was launched by a group of teens with City Councilor Bobby […]

Haters Gonna Hate or the Latest Northsider Who Thinks It is Okay To Harass Trans Kids & Remove Yard Signs

The #ProtectTransKids campaign is still bursting with requests – we just placed another order for signs and the first batch of stickers went out in today’s mail. You are doing a solid job protecting trans kids, the one at the epicenter of this project, and all of the trans kids (of all ages) who see […]

Black Trans Ohio Woman Fatally Shot in Detroit

Dede Ricks

Dede Ricks, a 33-year-old Black trans woman, was shot to death in Detroit on August 27, 2022. Dede was from Ohio, possibly Cleveland. While police have identified, arrested, and charged a suspect in her murder, there is not much information known about DeDe (sometimes styled Dede) or her family. We do know that she did […]

Pittsburgh Woman Guilty of Harassment of Trans Teen Neighbor Files Appeal, Faces Further Civil Legal Actions

Darian Balcom TERF Pittsburgh

While not unexpected, news of yet another legal hurdle for the O’Donnell-Collar family arrived with notification that their neighbor has appealed her conviction of harassment. On July 26, 2022, District Magisterial Judge Duncan-Williams determined that 50-year-old Darian Balcom was guilty of one count of statutory harassment after two years of behavior targeting her next door […]

Donate a Candle to Support Trans Neighbors

Trans deaths

Pittsburgh LGBTQ Charities (PLC) is creating a project to honor trans neighbors whose lives have been lost to the terror campaign sweeping the nation. As of today, there are 26 individuals on that list. We will be creating a memorial at our booth at Netroots Nation to honor their lives and acknowledge their deaths. This […]

Video of Yard Signs from #ProtectTransKids Project

Request a sign bit.ly/ProtectsTransKidsSigns Donations can be made via GoFundMe bit.ly/YardSignsFund **Preferred Venmo @PittsburghLGBTQ Paypal bit.ly/PayPalPLC Checks made payable to ‘Pittsburgh LGBTQ Charities’ and mailed to 1439 W. North Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15233.

Marisela Castro, 39, Fatally Shot in Houston

Marisela Castro

Marisela Castro, 39, was born in Juticalpa, Olancho in Honduras. She spent most of her life in North Carolina where she attended Riverside High School, moved to Houston several years ago to be close to her sister and her nieces and nephews, She was a supporter of St. Jude’s Hospital and a fan of Bad […]

Black Trans Woman Hayden Davis, 28, Murdered in Detroit

Hayden Davis Detroit

Hayden Davis was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan. On Monday, July 25, she lost her life there as reported by Dee Dee Watters of TransGriot. In another horrific attack affecting the LGBTQ+ community, a transgender woman was shot and killed in Detroit on Monday evening. Her body was found on the city’s east side, in the […]

Q&A With Trans Neighbor About TERF/Transphobic Stickering in Pittsburgh’s East End

TERF stickers Pittsburgh

Content Note: transphobia, TERF, fascism, harassment, images I went back and forth on whether or not we should do this Q&A because I was worried about 1) unnecessarily freaking out other trans people who have been blissfully unaware of these stickers 2) giving this terf the attention they want, potentially leading others to their cause. […]

Two Black Trans Women Died This Week, in Milwaukee and in Augusta

The week started with a terrible loss on Saturday, July 16, in Milwaukee where 34-year-old Toi Davis, a Black trans woman, was found dead in a local neighborhood under suspicious circumstances. Details around her death are not clear at this point, but the impact of her death among her friends and family leave little doubt […]