Actress Laverne Cox was the target of a transphobic attack in Griffith Park over the weekend.
What We Know:
- Briefly after the attack on Saturday, Cox went live on Instagram to share details of the triggering assault. She said that she went for a “social distanced” walk in the Los Angeles park with a friend; she chose to keep his identity anonymous. As a man passed by them, he aggressively asked for the time. Despite his hostile manner, her friend still checked his watch and told the man. The stranger then said to Cox’s friend, “Guy or Girl?” to which he replied, “F— off’. At this point, Cox says the man began to attack her friend physically. Before she was able to call 911, the assault ended, and the attacker was gone.
- The Emmy-nominated star and LGBTQ+ advocate believes the man was “looking for trouble.” On the live stream now posted to her IGTV, she explains the guy probably used the question of time as a way to get Cox to speak so he could “spook” whether or not she was trans. Still in shock, she added, “I don’t know why it matters. At the end of the day, it’s like, who cares? I’m in a hoodie and yoga pants, I’m completely covered up, I’ve got my mask on. Who cares if I’m trans? How does this affect your life?”
- The trans community rarely experiences the liberty of openly being themselves in public without fear of persecution. The incident served as a formidable reminder to Cox that “it’s not safe in the world.” She recalled her long history of street harassment in New York and facing bullies all of her life. Although she tries not to dwell on it, Cox accepts, “it’s the truth, and it’s not safe if you’re a trans person.” It does not matter who you are, she says, “You can be Laverne Cox, you know, or whatever that means. If you’re trans … you’re going to experience stuff like this.”
- The 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey showed 46% of respondents were verbally harassed in that year for being transgender, while 1 in 10 were victims of physical attacks. Transgender people are often the target of hate crimes and mistreatment. This survey necessarily reveals the alarming patterns of discrimination and violence against individuals within their community.
- In the US this year, the Human Rights Campaign reported around 40 transgender, and gender non-conforming people have suffered violent deaths, including Chae’Meshia Simm, a black trans woman shot last week in Virginia. Many of their deaths go unreported, or they are misgendered in the report, so the exact number is difficult to know. HCR also mentioned the death of Skylar Heath, a black transgender woman in Florida whose friends say was also shot. Like many, her death has received no media coverage and has yet to be reported by authorities.
Cox concluded with a reminder to her followers: “When these things happen, it’s not your fault. It’s not your fault that people are not cool with you existing in the world… We have a right to walk in the park.”
