In 2021, we've seen a record number of anti-trans bills introduced in over half of the state legislatures in our nation. These bills not only come as a result of willful ignorance of medical science, the majority, by design, specifically target the health and safety of vulnerable children (specifically trans girls). Over the past year, the spike in anti-Asian violence has also been disproportionately targeted at another vulnerable population within a population--AAPI elders. As an adult trans man myself, I recognize that some of the social and legal threats towards my communities exist as more of a signal to me than a personal threat. But interpersonal violence and legislative attacks aren't the only ways that my communities are underprivileged, and because many of them overlap with one another, I see great opportunity for collective action and advocacy.

"While there is enough total wealth to inflate the AAPI community's average overall, that wealth is extremely concentrated at the top, leaving many more to live in unrecognized poverty."

Despite stereotypes to the contrary, people often assume that Asians are wealthier than other racial minority groups in the US. However, the term "Asian", as we use it, covers an extremely broad and diverse range of national identities, and when you break down income data (which has also been heavily influenced by decades of racist and classist immigration policies) further, you'll find that while rich Asians do have some of the highest average incomes in the country, the gap between upper and lower Asian earners is actually the largest of any racial group in the nation. This means that while there is enough total wealth to inflate the AAPI community's average overall, that wealth is extremely concentrated at the top, leaving many more to live in unrecognized poverty. Similarly, the LGBTQ+ community faces higher risks of economic disenfranchisement in many key areas when compared to cisgender heterosexuals, especially trans people.True justice and liberation will require each of us, those within an affected community and those outside, to stand in solidarity with one another in demanding and creating a better world for all of us.

"True justice and liberation will require each of us, those within an affected community and those outside, to stand in solidarity with one another in demanding and creating a better world for all of us."

Jordan Blisk (he/him) is an Associate Director of Chapters at the American Constitution Society. He also serves as the Executive Director and Board Chair for the Colorado Name Change Project, the President-Elect for the Colorado LGBT Bar Association, and as a Board Member-At-Large for the Minority Veterans of America. In 2021, the National LGBT Bar Association selected Jordan as one of the "40 Best LGBTQ+ Lawyers Under 40". He received his B.S. from Ball State University and became the first openly transgender student to earn a Juris Doctor from the University of Colorado Law School in 2018. Prior to his legal career, Jordan served in the United States Air Force as an Aircraft Fuel Systems Journeyman on the KC-135(R) Stratotanker.