After transphobic harassment, activist Sarah McBride shares powerful call to action

Sarah McBride, national press secretary of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) and a Delaware native, remained perfectly calm as two women barged in on a private meeting and openly harassed her on Wednesday, shortly after she and HRC’s Parents for Transgender Equality Council had met with members of U.S. Congress.

The two women, identified by Gay Star News as Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminists (TERFs) activists Posie Parker and Julia Long, repeatedly misgendered McBride — a trans woman — and badgered her as they broadcasted the incident on Facebook Live. (For context: TERF activists believe the inclusion of trans women in female-only spaces is equivalent to allowing men into them.)

McBride, a graduate of Cab Calloway School of the Arts, was the first transgender person to address a major national political convention when she spoke at the 2016 Democratic National Convention. Currently, she is campaigning for the approval of the Equality Act, which would amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to add the prohibition of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in the United States.

Her response to the transphobic harassment by the two women — who are connected to an anti-trans protest at London Pride last summer — has garnered thousands of interactions on social media, and may ultimately go more viral than the video of the harassment itself:

The sad truth is that this kind of harassment is the reality for far too many transgender people, particularly trans women of color, across the country and around the world.

— Sen. Sarah McBride (@SarahEMcBride) January 30, 2019

Throughout the incident, I thought about the trans youth who have to experience their hostility and bullying day-in and day-out in the United Kingdom.

— Sen. Sarah McBride (@SarahEMcBride) January 30, 2019

Today I stand in solidarity with all those who face harassment for merely seeking their rights: women, both trans and cis, workers, immigrants, LGBTQ people, people with disabilities, and Black, Latinx, Asian and indigenous people.

— Sen. Sarah McBride (@SarahEMcBride) January 30, 2019

And I ask that you take a moment to amplify the powerful and moving meeting we had just concluded with so many inspiring parents of trans youth: https://t.co/bLdCKjY3zP

— Sen. Sarah McBride (@SarahEMcBride) January 30, 2019

The U.S. Congress, civil rights activists and celebrities, including Laverne Cox and Natasha Lyonne, were some of countless people and institutions to show support for McBride in the wake of the incident.

HRC is campaigning for the Trump administration to pass the Equality Act, which would provide better legal protections for LGBT+ people in the U.S.