Justice Won for Lateisha Green

Today, a jury convicted Dwight DeLee of manslaughter in the first degree as a hate crime in the Nov. 2008 murder of 22-year-old Lateisha Green, a Syracuse transgender woman. You can read more about the trial from our post yesterday and on TLDEF's website. You can also learn about the implications of this important trial from our statement issued when the trial began on Monday.

Lateisha's murder raises awareness of the need to pass the Gender Expression Non-Discrimination Act (GENDA) in New York State in order to include gender identity and expression in the State hate crimes and human rights laws. However, during this tragic time, it's important that we do more than call for legislative action--we need to provide support to Lateisha's family as well. Lateisha's mother, Roxanne, and her family had always been supportive of her, and since her death have been outspoken in their tireless efforts to ensure that the public learns as much as possible about Lateisha's life and the tremendous violence that transgender people continue to face.

Please take a moment to write a note to Lateisha's family expressing your sympathy, thanking them for their support of our community, and pledging your commitment to fight for GENDA. It would mean a lot to us here at the Pride Agenda, and we're sure it would also mean a lot to Lateisha's family to know that you care about their loss and their efforts.