Speak Out

By speaking out we can make a difference: This news article quoted in part is from the Palm Beach Post September 7, 2016.  

 Luis Rijo De Los Santos pleads guilty

Luis Rijo DeLos Santos gets plea, 15 years in cross-dresser murder.

Daphne Duret

Just days before what would have been his second trial in the death of Tyrell Jackson, Luis Rijo De Los Santos accepted a 15-year prison sentence as part of a last minute plea deal.

The sentence, which Circuit Judge Glenn Kelley imposed Wednesday, ends the case where he once faced a possible death sentence for killing the cross-dresser he said he thought was a woman when he picked him and another man up in 2012.
[Judge] Kelley in June 2015 declared a mistrial on the first degree murder charge and two counts of attempted murder in the shootings that killed Jackson and injured Michael Hunter and Terence Chatman after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict on those charges.

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I applaud the final outcome however this is unfortunate at many levels. I feel the sentence to be not enough.  My reason for bringing this is up is to mention the Palm Beach Post staff writer Daphne Duret's correct terminology.

How did this happen?

In all articles prior to May of 2015, the victims were referred to as “transvestite prostitutes.” As we all well know, this is a socially loaded expression. After reading, several articles referring to the three victims this way, I decided to write to the newspaper. My e-mail opened this way:

What were you thinking? Why did you use the term transvestite? Did you not realize that 'transvestite' or the short version 'tranny' is as offensive to the gender community as the N-word? Why not just call the accused Mr. Rijo De Los Santos, ‘a N... man’? That is how offensive I see the term 'transvestite' and it all but suggests that the transgender prostitutes deserved what they got. What difference did it make how they were dressed? A murder happened.

All articles that followed used the better expressions “cross-dressed.” All previous on-line articles were changed. Ms. Duret remarked back to me in an e-mail, “After I got your first email it sparked a 15 minute conversation in the newsroom. Thank you."

Speaking out - We can make a difference.

Note: Part of this was discussed on Stanna's Femulate Blog back in 2015.