Transgender Law Center : A Movement in Motion

Forty years after the transgender community stood up to police harassment at Compton’s Cafeteria in the heart of San Francisco, the Transgender Law Center (TLC) brings community members, allies, clients, and policy makers to the Tenderloin on September 5th to celebrate our own four years of creating social change for transgender civil rights.

Hosted by Crash Nightclub, San Francisco’s newest hipster ultralounge, A Movement in Motion is TLC’s annual fundraising event. Recognizing that the seeds of TLC were planted at the Compton’s Cafeteria Riot and nurtured since then by thousands of transgender people throughout California, the event celebrates that past and energizes attendees for the work yet to be done.

A Movement in Motion comes at an important time for the transgender civil rights movement in California. From the dedication of a permanent plaque commemorating the Compton’s Riot on the street corner where it happened, to the adoption by the City and County of San Francisco of the Comprehensive Transgender Employment Initiative, to a nationally recognized conference on violence against transgender women and gay men, to the most transgender inclusive Pride parade in the country, the Summer of 2006 marks a turning point in the momentum of the movement.

As always, TLC will take time at the event to recognize individuals and organizations for the work they’ve done in getting the movement to this critical juncture. TLC is thrilled to feature Sister Mary Elizabeth as our Vanguard Awardee. Sister Mary Elizabeth was a driving force in establishing California as one of the most progressive states in the country in recognizing transgender people’s ability to get birth certificates and driver’s licenses that reflect their true identity. TLC will also be honoring Judy Van Maasdam, the Horizons Foundation, the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office, the Ark of Refuge, the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, and Equality California.