Also.Also.Also: Giving All Our Flowers To Monica Roberts

Well friends, I am coming to you today while being unbearably sad, just to be honest. News broke early this evening (on the East Coast that is, late afternoon for those of you out West) that trans pioneer and groundbreaking journalist Monica Roberts has died. I’ll have more about that in the link round up, but I also couldn’t bring myself to write a different kind of intro.

I’m sad today. And you know what? Sadness sometimes happens. I hope you’re finding peace, wherever this message may find you.

Queer as in F*ck You

Monica Roberts, TransGriot Creator and Pioneer in Trans News, Has Died. Last year, in an interview with Harron Walker, here’s what our now at rest elder had to say: “I have a long history of telling TERFs where to go and what bus route to take to get there.You can quote me on that.” Quote 👏🏾 Me 👏🏾 On 👏🏾 That!

In the same interview, she also shared the following:

“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve run into some Black trans millennial who tells me that my blog inspired them to do this or inspired them to do that… So every time I sit down and start writing a post, I keep that in mind.”

I’m mourning Monica Roberts this evening, but I also first and foremost want to lift up some of those Black trans millennial writers and media makers that she wrote for.

Imara Jones, activist and producer of TransLash Media

Tre’Vell Anderson, Journalist, Critic, Writer and Editor

Raquel Willis, activist, writer, director of communications for the Ms. Foundation and former Executive Editor of Out Magazine

May she rest in Power.

Please read this entire series from The Guardian (US): Trans Freedom Fighters. Here’s the latest addition, ‘PTSD Is Real, I Wake up Crying’: The Activist Who Stood up To Prison Guard Abuse.

Measuring Greatness: A Look Back at Sue Bird’s 17-Year Career With the Storm (Can a sports gay tell me, is this Sue Bird’s last season playing ball? Everyone keeps talking like it’s her last one!)

Saw This, Thought of You

Remember Fat Bear week? Well, All Hail Our New Fat Bear King

Emily Gorcenski Is the Data Scientist Exposing Us White Supremacists: ‘This Is How You Fight Nazis’

How Trump Exemplifies Our Ableist Culture

The Unrelenting: Most Powerful Women in Sports (Heather promises that this has the “standard array of lesbos”)

We Can Celebrate Cardi B’s Divorce. HELL YES WE CAN. My only hope is that she dates Megan Thee Stallion next.

Political Snacks

If you’re going to read literally any coverage of last night’s Vice Presidential debate at all, please let it be Natalie’s work on this very website: The Vice Presidential Debate Offered More Civility, but Kept the Familiar Side of Misogyny

I’m not even kidding when I say it’s some of my favorite writing of hers, ever. (And I’ve been reading Natalie’s work for three years now, so I know of which I speak.) Just listen to this stunner:

The most Page could do was repeat, “Thank you Vice President Pence,” until he got the message and moved on. The most Harris could do was forcefully respond to his interjections by saying, “Mr. Vice President, I’m speaking,” as if his actions weren’t willful. Occasionally Harris shot back a wry smile, a dismissive laugh or a side-eye. He deserved more — he deserved to be told to “shut up” as Biden told Trump last week — but society does not afford Kamala Harris that privilege.

She could not be angry, so Harris delivered some sass. As Brittney Cooper writes in Eloquent Rage, “When it comes to Black women, sometimes Americans don’t recognize that sass is simply a more palatable form of rage. Americans adore sassy Black women… These kinds of Black women put white folks at ease.”

And so, in conclusion:

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Carmen Phillips

Carmen Phillips is Autostraddle's former editor in chief. She began at Autostraddle in 2017 as a freelance team writer and worked her way up through the company, eventually becoming the EIC from 2021-2024. A Black Puerto Rican feminist writer with a PhD in American Studies from New York University, Carmen specializes in writing about Blackness, race, queerness, politics, culture, and the many ways we find community and connection with each other.  During her time at Autostraddle, Carmen focused on pop culture, TV and film reviews, criticism, interviews, and news analysis. She claims many past homes, but left the largest parts of her heart in Detroit, Brooklyn, and Buffalo, NY. And there were several years in her early 20s when she earnestly slept with a copy of James Baldwin’s “Fire Next Time” under her pillow. To reach out, you can find Carmen on Twitter, Instagram, or her website.

Carmen has written 716 articles for us.

2 Comments

  1. Sue Bird has not announced her retirement but she’s been in the league 17 years so the questions are bound to arise. I think sports reporters just want to scoop the story which is why they hound athletes with these questions.

    I, also, think it has to do with her accomplishments. There’s nothing else to do. She’s a Goat. And people want to see the greats go out on top.

    Considering that pro athletes, depending on the sport, are typically in their prime from mid 20s to early 30s, it’s a pretty fair question. Although, I do think what Sue, Serena, Roger Federer, Tom Brady, and others are proving is that you can extend your career with proper training, medical intervention, and nutrition.

    Hope that helps.

  2. I’m truly heartbroken over the loss of Monica Roberts. She was such an incredibly beautiful soul who was committing to uplifting her trans brothers and sisters. Every interaction I had with her via her blog or social media left me feeling more informed and committed to the righteous cause of true inclusion. She made me a better person.

    It’s so hard to find comfort in this news…particularly since Monica was a true member of the K-Hive and was so excited about the prospect of voting for Kamala Harris later this month…

    It hurts, it just hurts. My condolences to all her friends and family.

Comments are closed.