Major!

What do we want?

Justice!

When do we want it?

Now!

What do we want?

Justice!

When do we want it?

Now!

What do we want?

Justice!

I think she's so many people's

only safety net.

There's been times where

I went hungry and she

brought over food for me,

you know, she would go

to the store and buy food.

And I could call Miss Major

and she always picked up

the phone when I called,

no matter what time it is.

We get to call her things

like sage, right?

Wise.

Even though she's cussing

folks out and spitting tacks.

I know mama

she's a dirty little vixen.

She really is.

She plays innocent

but she's not.

Not by the least.

She's a phenomenal woman.

When she was in her 30s

and her in 20s

she was advocating

for transgender rights.

And to this day

she still does that.

Major's told me she really

doesn't care whether

you call her he, or she.

She's a mother, she's a father,

she's a grandmother,

a grandfather.

She's a little bit of everything

and she's really doesn't care.

Her methods and her legacy

is frightening

to the powers that be.

She is our leader!

She is showing us

how to do this work,

so thank you so much Miss Major.

I don't know why

I'm still here.

I guess I still have stuff

to complain about,

b*tch about, and try to change

as much as humanly possible.

And wake people up

to who my community is.

We have to look out

for one another

because we're all we've got.

The rest of the world

really doesn't give a sh*t

whether we live or die.

And the thing is,

when the dust settles,

I want a whole bunch

of transgender girls

to stand up and say

I'm still f***ing here.

I met Angela Davis years ago,

so I'm excited to talk

with her again on

an even more personal level

since this is for the TGIJP.

So I think it's going

to be really exciting.

This brunch, I'm so nervous.

But I can't afford

to be nervous

or they're drive me

really crazy.

These Mama.

So I have to... uh, no.

But that one is really pretty.

Those make too much noise.

No.

These are my girls,

they work with me,

they're my daughters.

They're Janetta and Melenie.

So it's been good.

They got here a little bit

earlier than I was expecting,

so we've been running around,

puttering ever since then.

Hand me the pill thing

up on the top shelf.

Oh god these damn pills.

These are for my heart

and my kidney because

I'm a transplant person.

I got a new kidney in '08

from a dear friend of mine

from Los Angeles, Thom.

And so now

I'm on these forever.

But that's okay,

as long as we have you forever.

She had one of those

Batman Cadillacs with

the fly wings in the back,

and we all went out to eat

and she takes off on Howard

and 6th Street

like a bat out of hell.

And we're just flying down

the street, and I'm like

oh my God, so Shania said

"Hold on girl!

Mammy be driving!"

I think a lot of people have

a lot to say about

how Major drives.

My current take on it is

I try to close my eyes

as much as possible...

although she has slowed down

a little bit some.

But prayer is really

what I've found is

the most successful thing

in dealing with her driving.

Hey Beck!

Hi Mama's driving right now.

OK, are you on your way

there too?

OK we'll see you soon.

OK, love you sweetie.

No driving and talking

on your phone!

Hi everybody,

I'm Melenie Eleneke, I'm one

of the Program Coordinators

at TGI Justice.

And my name is Janetta Johnson,

I'm one of the Program

Coordinators at TGI Justice.

And I'm going to talk

a little bit about

what we do at TGI Justice.

We do political education,

we empower transgender people,

gender queer, gender variant,

intersex people to advocate

for their selves

within the criminal

justice system.

Our mail nights are

a couple times a month,

we get people to come over

and help us read the mail

and then answer it

and send them what they need.

Mail night was primarily set up

to just send information

and resources.

We've become a surrogate family

to a lot of people in prison.

You know, they constantly

when they write us

they're like "hi family,

how are things going,

give everybody

in the office a hug."

And no matter what we send them

they always respond back

and say thank you.

Even just one sentence,

hi how are you, means a lot

to the girls that are in there,

that doesn't get anything

from their family.

The work TGI does is

very important because

no body else does it.

The girls in prison,

the boys in prison,

they take a lot of sh*t.

You know, they take sh*t

from the corrupt guards,

they take sh*t from the inmates,

they take sh*t from every angle

and it's nice to have

somebody in your corner.

And ladies and gentlemen,

it is my esteemed and privileged

honor to introduce Angela Davis.

So, good afternoon everyone.

It is really wonderful

to be here at this gathering,

and when I was asked to

participate I said absolutely.

Because this is one

of the most important

organizations in the country

that addresses issues

of trans women in prison,

largely trans women of color,

but that of course

is the disproportionate

there's a disproportionate

number of trans women

of color behind bars.

But in the process,

shedding light on so many

aspects of the prison system

and the p

that we would otherwise

not be aware of.

We're at the office at TGIJP,

Transgender Gender Variant

and Intersex Justice Project.

Well what we do is that

we work on trying to get rid

of the abuses and the suffering

that transgender women

of color go through

in the prison system.

It started with Alex Lee,

he saw and noticed the abuses

that were going on when

he was going to law school,

and then he started TIP

and then from that it evolved

into this, as things

went on and changed.

I came along pretty early

and just worked with him a lot.

When he left I became

the executive director.

So the exciting thing

for us was,

we were the first Black

transgender ran organization

that was involved

with social justice.

Don't many trans women

once they're released

from prison actually come

into an agency that advocates

for prisoners.

So it's a challenge trying

to get people involved.

But Major is very persistent.

Very nagging.

And every time she see you:

Queen!

We need to talk girl.

I know you just got out,

you're trying to get

your life together,

stuff's going on for you

and all that, but you need

to come back over here,

help read some of these letters,

talk to some people

who are still there.

So prisons are basically

a concentrated torture situation

for a lot of trans women.

I was ridiculed.

I was raped by the inmates

and the officers

who worked the penitentiary.

If other inmates see

the prison

then they feel like

its carte blanche that

they can disrespect us too.

People will pass you around,

people will buy you

and sell you, without

you even knowing it.

I myself, I've never been

to prison, but I've been

in jail a few times.

And once that doors slams,

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