In a press release sent via e-mail, the District of Columbia installed ‘Trans Pride’ crosswalks in the city after a petition to do so gathered 12,000 signatures:
D.C. Installs Rainbow, Trans Pride Crosswalks to Honor LGBTQ Community Following Successful Care2 Petition Campaign
***http://www.thepetitionsite.com/785/509/267/***
The Care2 petition by a transgender resident was successful after gathering over 12,000 signatures; D.C. to install eight rainbow crosswalks and become first U.S. city to install a transgender pride crosswalk
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A Care2 petition asking D.C. to install rainbow and trans pride crosswalks to honor the LGBTQ community for Pride month has been successful after gathering over 12,600 signatures. Today, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser joined Care2 petition author Kelly Wright, a transgender woman who lives in Alexandria, Virginia, in installing the first of eight LGBTQ pride crosswalks on 17th Street NW. A transgender pride crosswalk – which may be the very first in the country – will also be painted to signify the important role trans women played in the vanguard of the Stonewall Riot, specifically Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera.
The crosswalks will be completed and unveiled at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Saturday, June 10 at 1:30 p.m., hours before the Capital Pride Parade marches down that region of 17th Street.
VIEW THE CARE2 PETITION HERE: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/785/509/267/
“I am so grateful to all of those who signed my Care2 petition calling for LGBTQ+ pride crosswalks in Washington D.C.,” Wright told Care2. “This is a big win for the LGBTQ+ community in D.C., and really it’s just the beginning of what we’ll achieve in the years ahead.”
Most of the paint for the installation was donated by DC Plaza Art Materials. Although Wright’s Care2 petition asked for the crosswalks to be permanent, these will be temporary and are made with chalk-based paint. Wright says she is satisfied with the outcome, but will keep her Care2 petition open in the hopes permanent crosswalks will be installed in the future.
“As a transgender individual, I know what it’s like to be fearful to be your authentic self in a society that hasn’t yet accepted folks whose gender experience and presentation doesn’t fit neatly into our cisnormative society,” Wright told Care2 when she started her petition in April. “Growing up in rural Ohio, I would have loved to see such a visual and public display of support for people like me.”
A separate Care2 petition asking Atlanta to rainbow crosswalks permanent was signed by City Council President Ceasar C. Mitchell this month.
San Francisco unveiled its rainbow crosswalks in 2014, with Philadelphia following in 2015. Atlanta installed rainbow crosswalks in October 2015, but they were never meant to be permanent and faded after two weeks. Another Care2 petition is asking Milwaukee for rainbow or trans pride crosswalks.
# # # # #
Care2 (www.Care2.com) is the world’s largest social network for good, with over 40 million standing together, starting petitions and sharing stories that inspire action. People, nonprofits and mission-based brands are making world-changing impact with Care2, helping individuals, animals and the environment. A pioneer of online advocacy since 1998, Care2 is a B Corporation, or social enterprise, using the power of business as a force for good.
Comments
Comments are turned off for this article.