Safety in Community - California’s transgender Latinx people find refuge and empowerment in community.

Written and photographed for High County News with the Support of the USC/Annenberg Center for Health Journalism Domestic Violence Impact Fund. March 2024. 

Transgender people in America experience significantly higher rates of domestic violence than their cisgender peers. The California Violence Experience Survey found that last year, trans people experienced physical violence seven times more frequently, and sexual harassment or assault five times more often, than cisgender people did, while 87% reported experiencing intimate partner violence at some point in their lives — the highest rate of any group surveyed.

California is home to the nation’s largest population of trans Latinos and nearly a quarter of the nation’s trans immigrant population. Frida Fierros was seeking refuge from both the threats she’d faced as a trans woman and the domestic violence she’d experienced throughout her life. She found safety in the TransLatin@ Coalition which helped pave the way for her new life. 

The TransLatin@ Coalition is a cornerstone in California, pioneering new methods beyond the traditional legal system to combat domestic violence. In the past few years, it has partnered with the California vs Hate 211 hotline to document and respond to acts of hate against the TGI community.

Historically, reaching out to law enforcement has been the first “official” response to domestic violence. But researchers have found it’s not always effective. Arrests do little to prevent repeat offenses.