A conversation near uptown Charlotte before Charlotte Pride this past weekend brought to light how some members of the Latino and gay communities are handling the current political onslaught.
“Presente and Proud” highlighted three speakers’ opinions. They claimed that because of raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and initiatives to deprive people of their identities, panic had spread throughout their communities. Among the speakers was Tania Jimenez, a trans woman from Mexico. Even if people are worried about the political atmosphere, she continued, they still need to attend Pride.
Despite our fear, we must fight back. Jimenez stated, “We need those spaces, so we have to come out.” “We must raise our voices. Up there, they must hear us. We are people.
An executive order defining sex as exclusively male and female was signed by President Trump in January. Jimenez is in charge of Asheboro Latinx Services, which provides health services and assistance to LGBTQ+ individuals.
Races Latino Arts and Lariza Garz of the Hispanic Federation assisted in organizing the event. According to Garzn, the purpose of hosting the conversation was to close the gap.
“People sometimes think that the Latinx and queer communities are mutually exclusive, but in actuality, we are all part of the same community and are greatly impacted by intersecting oppressive systems,” Garzn stated.
Another speaker was Daniel Valdez from Charlotte Pride. The conversation was also a celebration of the Latino queer community’s existence, he said. According to Valdez, we hope to expand this type of event so that more individuals may take part and realize they’re not alone.
Rainbow flags were waved and danced as “Presente and Proud” came to a close.
