“Caring for transgender patients has a lot of societal, political baggage that comes with it, but if we can just think of trans care as caring for any other patient that we have, addressing their medical and physical needs, it’s not that difficult or convoluted.”
– Dr. Sonya Haw of Emory University’s endocrinology department
Here’s your breakdown of what’s happening this week in the #LGBTsouth:
CSE Community Organizer Britney Nesbit interviewed Daroneshia Duncan, founder of TAKE (Transgender Advocates Knowledgable Empowering) peer support group, and member of CSE’s Trans Leadership Initiative and Southern Equality Fund Advisory Committee. Read an excerpt from their conversation below, and read the whole piece on our blog.
As a self-identified female illusionist, pageant expert, HIV treatment and prevention specialist, Daroneshia Duncan is a one-of-a-kind southern force to be reckoned with. After experiencing a wide range of barriers on her path to coming into her own, she wanted to create a place where others like her could truly feel supported and accepted for being their authentic selves. After almost four years of strategic planning, Daroneshia founded TAKE (Transgender Advocates Knowledgeable EMPOWERING). Since 2013, TAKE has provided support services primarily focused on trans women in the South. In this conversation Daroneshia shares about how the organization is growing, and she gives some real talk about the resources TAKE needs to provide or more programming and compensate trans women volunteers.
Can you describe to those unfamiliar with TAKE, what your organization does?
TAKE is a support service. TAKE provides any and everything to meet the needs of trans people, especially trans women that are especially trans women of color. We help them on the job hunt, find housing, get HIV testing, get an ID, help them with name changes. Whatever we can do to help improve the quality of life of trans people, we want to play a major role in it.
What is life like for the transwomen in your community of Birmingham, Alabama?
It’s simple. It’s a struggle, it’s a lot of negativity, it’s a lot of hate. They have experienced so many bruises, abuse, neglect. They don’t even know if I am sincere when I am offering them a service. It’s all about shade, the tea, and readin’, but there comes a time in life when [we] need to be loved and helped. We want to be people that have pride and have our own ground to stand on.
What keeps you motivated when building community seems so hard?
If I can help only one person, I am content. That one person will go and tell other people. The good word will get out, and other ladies will come, and they’ll want services, and it will continue like that.
For more information about TAKE, check them out on Facebook, and support their work by checking out their GoFundMe campaign.
WHAT THE CAMPAIGN FOR SOUTHERN EQUALITY IS UP TOAcross the South right now LGBTQ people are scared, have questions about their legal rights and often face considerable barriers to accessing clear information, resources, and support to protect their rights. That’s why the Campaign for Southern Equality is hosting a series of free LGBTQ Legal Clinics across North Carolina, South Carolina, and Mississippi through December and January.
This series of free legal workshops, led by volunteer attorneys and transgender leaders, will cover issues such as name changes for trans folks, health care power of attorney documents for LGBTQ youth, how to obtain a passport for gender marker changes and second parent adoptions to help protect LGBTQ families.
As a self-identified female illusionist, pageant expert, HIV treatment and prevention specialist, Daroneshia Duncan is a one-of-a-kind southern force to be reckoned with. After experiencing a wide range of barriers on her path to coming into her own, she wanted to create a place where others like her could truly feel supported and accepted for being their authentic selves. After almost four years of strategic planning, Daroneshia founded TAKE (Transgender Advocates Knowledgeable EMPOWERING). Since 2013, TAKE has provided support services primarily focused on trans women in the South. In this conversation Daroneshia shares about how the organization is growing, and she gives some real talk about the resources TAKE needs to provide or more programming and compensate trans women volunteers.
