Advocates pressure Mayor Wilson to declare transgender ‘refugee crisis’

Advocates warn that a new kind of crisis is hitting Seattle. They said hundreds of people are fleeing laws and culture in red states that are increasingly hostile to transgender-identifying and queer people.

Some are now pushing the city to recognize it as an official “civil crisis” and put money towards resettlement efforts.

Part of the push is coming from a city advisory group. Earlier this month, Seattle’s LGBTQ Commission sent a letter to Mayor Katie Wilson that was first reported by Seattle Gay News.

“Many IDPs [internally displaced persons] have relocated from states such as Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Kansas, and Idaho due to anti-trans legislation, threats to personal safety, and barriers to healthcare and legal recognition,” the letter reads.

Wilson signals openness to working with the LGBTQ Commission

In a response letter obtained by Hannah Krieg with The Burner Seattle, Mayor Katie Wilson said she’s committed to working with the Commission on a solution.

“I share your view that a coordinated, citywide approach is needed to evaluate immediate needs, fortify critical services, and chart a longer-term path forward for us. At this juncture, I believe the most effective and substantive next step is to convene a team alongside the Seattle Office for Civil Rights to work directly with the LGBTQ Commission, the City Council, City agencies, community organizations, and regional partners,” Wilson wrote.

While Seattle Gay News reported the city is “on the cusp” of declaring an emergency, a spokesperson for the Mayor did not immediately return a request for comment.

Specific numbers on trans migration to Seattle haven’t been studied. But during an interview with Chron in Texas, a volunteer with Traction — an organization that serves transgender people — said they have at least 500 people in communication to move to the Seattle area. The Gender Justice League also has a published guide for relocation.

That same volunteer is also a transplant from Texas. Victoria Scott told Chron she quit her job with NASA and moved to Reno, Nevada, before ultimately settling in the northwest with her wife.

“It’s done more for my day-to-day lived experience and mental health as a trans woman than basically any other thing I’ve ever done,” said Scott. “Trans people here are normalized to a degree they’re not elsewhere.”

Community groups stretched thin as advocates plan rally to push city for action

Community organizations have said they’ve borne the brunt of the support but now are stretched thin with so many new arrivals who need emergency food, shelter, and help navigating state resources.

With no additional word from the city, a group called the Mutual Aid Network for Trans and Intersex individuals in Seattle (MANTIS) is organizing a rally to apply pressure. That will take place at Cal Anderson Park on Saturday May, May 23 at 3 p.m.

Read more of Jillian Raftery’s stories here.