Kulah Love Massaquoi

Discussion # 6

The reading is about the mistreatment that befell CeCe McDonald, a transgender and a woman of
color, after being attacked by a group of homophobic white people. The ensuing attack made her
result into self-defense with the main attacker dying in the process. McDonald’s arrest and the
manner in which she was treated pointed out to a societal problem on the violence often directed
to people like her that are transgender, poor or working class, and persons of color.
The scenarios that played out on the case of McDonald, which was fairly recent, is also seen as a
common occurrence that has affected the American society. An example is seen in the film “The
Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson,” that documents the life of Marsha, a trans woman, and the
circumstances leading to her death in 1992. As an instrumental figure that played a role in the
creation of the Gay Liberation Movement in 1969 through the riots at Stonewall in the West
Village, the film paints a picture of violence against trans women, which Victoria Cruz believes
was the cause of Marsha’s death. Although the official police report indicated that Marsha had
committed suicide, the investigations documented in the film points a different picture as she was
actively involved in the gay movement activities. She is reported to be in fear of the mafia that
were hunting out transgender people. It is such information, together with the wrongful
conviction of Cece McDonald, that formed part of what informed Johnson Julia to advocate for
the need to include transgender studies in intercultural communication.
The investigation into Marsha revealed that she had not committed suicide, but someone had hit
her head with an object, something she could not have done to herself before drowning in the

river. As is the case for Cece McDonald, the police did not take into consideration Schmitz’s
violent history or the swastika tatoo that reinforced the same. As argued by the author, including
transgender studies into intercultural communication will allow for the understanding of the
criminalization of trans people, especially women. Although the author of the article
acknowledges the existence of scholars that have examined transgenderism, he points out on the
need to enhance intercultural communication because of its focus on material and
representational practices of trans subjects. The key concepts that need to be extensively included
in the scholarship include cissexism, cisprivilege, and cicgenderism with the intention of re-
educating people on intersectionality. He also highlights how trans people are increasingly
targeted by violence with women of color suffering the most. The arrest of McDonald was a
culmination of the history of discrimination of trans people of color and their experience within
the prison system. The reeducation on sexuality is an important step to aid in stopping
discrimination against people whose gender and identity to not conform to the ‘norm’.

Works Cited

Johnson, Julia R. "Cisgender privilege, intersectionality, and the criminalization of CeCe
McDonald: Why intercultural communication needs transgender studies."