Human Rights Campaign and WarnerMedia Launch PSA Campaign Lifting Up the Stories of Transgender and Non-Binary People

by Madeleine Roberts

Today, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the educational arm of the Human Rights Campaign, announced a collaboration with WarnerMedia on a public service announcement campaign to lift up the voices and stories of transgender and non-binary people.

The campaign works to break the connection between anti-trans stigma and violence against the transgender and non-binary community by amplifying everyday stories of resilience, joy and humanity through a series of short PSAs featuring Dominique Jackson, Tori Cooper, Nakiya Lynch, Alexis Abarca, Sybastian Smith and Brandi Smith.

The PSA campaign aims to combat anti-trans stigma through stories about our community. Those featured in the campaign include Dominique Jackson, Tori Cooper, Nakiya Lynch, Alexis Abarca, Sybastian Smith and Brandi Smith.

“We’re proud to announce this new education campaign in collaboration with WarnerMedia. For too long, the overarching narrative about trans and non-binary people in the media, especially for Black, Latinx and trans people of color, has been a negative one. It’s time for us to dismantle that narrative and instead lift up the voices, stories and everyday lived experiences of transgender and non-binary people. With this video campaign, the Human Rights Campaign is working to break down the stigma that contributes to the often-fatal violence that transgender and non-binary people face every day. We hope that when people watch these videos, they will see themselves reflected in the humanity of these individuals.”

Alphonso David, HRC Foundation president

“The stories we tell, and who gets to tell them, matters. Invisibility only perpetuates vulnerability, which is why we are thrilled to collaborate with the HRC Foundation to help tell these powerful stories and amplify the voices within the transgender and non-binary community.”

Dennis Williams, SVP, corporate social responsibility, WarnerMedia

The PSA campaign will consist of short PSAs featuring transgender and non-binary people sharing their stories. Those featured in the campaign include Dominique Jackson, Tori Cooper, Nakiya Lynch, Alexis Abarca, Sybastian Smith and Brandi Smith. The short spots begin airing on WarnerMedia channels today, September 24, and will air throughout the fall.

Through their various brands, WarnerMedia has been a long-time supporter of the Human Rights Campaign and an advocate for the LGBTQ community overall. WarnerMedia signed onto an amicus brief for the Title VII cases heard by the U.S. Supreme Court, including Bostock v. Clayton County, arguing that sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination should be prohibited under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. WarnerMedia’s parent company AT&T has had a 100 percent score on HRC’s Corporate Equality Index (CEI) since 2005, earning it the distinction of being one of the “Best Places to Work for LGBTQ Equality,” and TimeWarner has hosted the annual CEI 100 awards for years. AT&T has also been closely involved with HRC’s work in recent years through various grants, such as their long-term commitment to HRC Foundation’s Time to THRIVE conference, and through additional support for events throughout the years.

Transgender and gender non-conforming people, especially Black transgender women, are currently facing an epidemic of violence. With at least 27 trans and gender non-conforming people violently killed so far this year, 2020 is likely to become the deadliest year for violence against trans and gender non-conforming people that HRC has tracked since we began collecting this data in 2013.

These victims, like all of us, were loving partners, parents, family members, friends and community members. They worked, went to school and attended houses of worship. They were real people -- people who did not deserve to have their lives taken from them. As HRC works to ensure that they are remembered with dignity in death, we will also continue to uplift the resilience and humanity of the entire transgender and non-binary community.

Contact Us

To make a general inquiry, please visit our contact page. Members of the media can reach our press office at: (202) 572-8968 or email press@hrc.org.

Topics:
Transgender