 |
 |
Peggy Denby of the Midtown Ponce Security Alliance said she simply wants prostitutes off the streets of neighborhoods, regardless if they are transgender or not. (Photo by Dyana Bagby)
|
|
|
| | |
| |
|
|
| | |
HOME > NEWS > LOCAL
By: ERIC ERVIN
COMMENTS |
| 
Members of the Midtown Ponce Security Alliance got a lesson in the discrimination faced by transgender people during the group’s Nov. 13 monthly meeting.
Gay and transgender activists who attended the meeting, held at Mary Mac’s Tea Room, included Dee Dee Chamblee, executive director of LaGender, a transgender resource agency; Monica Helms, president of Transgender American Veterans Association; and Queer Progressive Agenda members Joanne F. DeMark and Deepali Gokhale. The meeting included an ongoing discussion about an Atlanta Police Department crackdown on transgender prostitution in the area surrounding Piedmont Park and Ponce de Leon Avenue.
Around 50 residents attended the meeting, including Atlanta Police Department GLBT liaison Officer Darlene Harris. Transgender activists have expressed to Midtown residents that some transgender people turn to the streets as a last resort to make a living due to workplace discrimination.
Alliance members contend their concern is strictly safety and quality of life. They said they’re not singling out anyone because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.
“We just don’t want people prostituting on the street,” said Peggy Denby, alliance president.
Helms carried a picture of a deceased friend to the meeting. She said although her friend — a transgender woman — was highly educated, she ended up prostituting in Georgia after becoming unemployed. Her friend later committed suicide.
“This is what happens when discrimination takes somebody,” Helms said. “The transgender community has a difficult time trying to make it in this community because discrimination is alive and well in Georgia.”
During the meeting, Helms expressed her discontent with the word “transvestitute,” which has been commonly used by alliance members in e-mail blasts.
“Transvestitutes’ is a derogatory term. It’s almost as good as using the ‘N’ word for African-Americans. We just need a little understanding,” Helms said.
Midtown resident Ray Benitez said prostitution as a whole should be the topic of discussion, not just acts committed by transgender women and men.
“I just want to make sure that they don’t talk about only transgender people because it’s all prostitution that’s a problem,” Benitez said.
Officer Harris said she’s working with transgender activists to establish job training and workshops to get the sex workers off the streets. She said they are seeking corporate sponsors to realize the effort.
Harris also said one of the key elements to ending the problem is bringing all sides together.
“We’re definitely trying to work on communications with APD and the transgender community,” Harris said. “We make it known that prostitution, regardless of who you are, is not tolerated. The Atlanta Police Department is not going to stand by it and as a liaison I’m not going to condone it and say it’s OK.”
Activists and Harris said many factors contribute to becoming a prostitute.
“The problem is deeper than them standing on the corner,” Harris told the alliance members. “The problem goes with the transgender community not being able to get jobs because they are transgender. So what does that mean? They have to feed their families still.”
Harris believes establishing the job training programs will stop a revolving door situation where the prostitutes are arrested and then return to the streets once released.
“It’s not just about going out there locking them up,” she said. “You can lock them up all day long, they’re going come back out there in hours because they still got to eat.”
Chamblee, the LaGender director, wanted to know what authority the alliance’s security patrol, who are also APD officers, has to make arrests. She’s previously accused patrollers of harassment against transgender people.
Harris said although the security patrol workers are not being paid by the city at the time, they’re still police officers. She encouraged attendees to report any harassment claims.
Eric Ervin can be reached at eervin@sovo.com.
| 
