HOUSTON — KHOU 11 News is celebrating the LGBTQ+ community this Pride Month, and that includes taking a closer look at the issues they face.
Advocates say anti-transgender violence is on the rise nationwide and, unfortunately, that includes Houston.
“In 2020, we saw there were 44 trans people murdered or subjected to some type of violence. In 2021, that number increased to 57. So far, we’re on pace to meet or surpass that in 2022,” said Austin Davis Ruiz, Communications Manager at the Montrose Center.
Ruiz says trans people are four times more likely to experience violence than cisgender people.
The Anti-Violence Program at the Montrose Center is working to change that, first by building trust between the transgender community and police. Ruiz says more than half of hate crimes against trans people go unreported.
“One of the things we do is work with HPD to offer cultural competency training to their cadets. We are one stop on multicultural bus tour all cadets have to take to learn what it means to be an LGBTQ person,” he said.
There’s also an HPD resource officer in the building at the Montrose Center at all times, so people can report crimes here if they’re uncomfortable at a police station.
However, Ruiz says real change starts with lawmakers.
“Once you have somebody in a position of power signaling to other people that it's ok to discriminate or hate other people, we then see that translate into real world effects,” he said.
He feels the only way to prevent anti-trans violence is to offer protection instead of attacks when it comes to federal and state legislation.
The Montrose Center's LGBT Switchboard of Houston at 713-529-3211 provides crisis counseling and intervention for Texas residents around the clock, including holidays.