HAND OVER THE KEYS

"Where many cisgendered activists may have good intentions but ultimately steal the stage from the trans folks they're trying to help, Zenaida-Cohen says Rodriguez Merrill is different. 

"She was very, very, clear from the beginning, 'Y'all belong here; this is your space. I don't know what trans liberation looks like. You do," Zenaida-Cohen said. "I think that's what we all have to do as organizers—hand over the keys to people who have less power than us in day-to-day-life and say, "OK, my name's on it, but this is for you, and you let me know if there's a problem." 

—"Reviving the Feminist Bookstore," Scalawag Spring 2016