Houston (Texas) based LGBTQ+ activist and trans pioneer Monica Roberts has been pronounced dead at 58; the cause of her death has not yet been confirmed. Roberts was best known for her blog TransGriot where she described herself as “a proud unapologetic black trans woman speaking truth to power and discussing the world around her since 2006”. The blog became well known in the trans community and won multiple awards, including a GLAAD 2018 media award for Outstanding Blog. Roberts also wrote for other outlets including The Huffington Post and Advocate.
Roberts told Out in 2019 that she started her blog because there was little online content for the trans community. She continued: “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve run into some trans millennial who tells me that my blog inspired them to do this or inspired them to do that. At least five people have told me that reading my blog posts is what kept them from committing suicide.”
Tributes have poured in for Roberts, with Janet Mock – director of LGBTQ+ show Pose – tweeting “I would not be where I am without her” and thanking her for her contributions to the trans community. Activist Raquel Willis also shared her thoughts on Roberts, saying “she was such a powerful force for black trans journalism.”
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