Abby Stuckrath

By Abby Stuckrath

This article was originally published in Tagg Magazine here.

Empowered by her community of Black trans women, Elle Moxley works to create space for all people to live authentically, including herself. She’s one of two trans women leaders we spoke to who are transforming the nonprofit and corporate industries.

“I feel celebrated when I get to go into every room, authentically myself without any compromise about who I am and what I want,” Moxley tells Tagg Magazine.

Moxley is a co-founding member of the Black Lives Matter organization and founder and CEO of the Marsha P. Johnson Institute, an organization created to protect the lives of Black trans women through racial, gender, reproductive, and gun reform advocacy.

“My work is to utilize my influence to create something different than what exists when most people want things to stay the same,” says Moxley.

For Moxley, she understands that as a Black trans woman, she doesn’t fit the stereotypical CEO image: “I don’t fit the trope that any of us have when we think about what a leader looks like or who a leader is,” she says.

In 2022, less than one percent of Fortune 500 companies had an LGBTQ+ CEO, with only two trans women on the list.

While the number of LGBTQ+ leaders is low, trans women have found a way to transcend norms. For example, in 2013, Martine Rothblatt was the highest-paid woman CEO in the United States, a monumental moment for trans women in the corporate business industry.

While there is still more work to do to create a diverse business field, Moxley notes how revolutionary her position and work are.

“Black trans women, CEOs, and leaders that exist now didn’t exist ten years ago or not even five years ago,” Moxley tells Tagg. “There’s been so much community and opportunity building within the past few years.”

Michaela Mendelsohn, founder of TransCanWork and businesswoman with more than 40 years of leadership experience under her belt, has witnessed both trans celebration and discrimination in the corporate industry.

“The support of corporate America has been, in my experience, the single most important part of LGBTQ+ growth,” Mendelsohn tells Tagg. “When I see corporations start to push back against political entities that are negative, it makes a positive difference.”

However, she said corporate leaders can still be hesitant to be trans-inclusive. Mendelsohn recalled when she asked Steve Sather, then CEO of El Pollo Loco, to install inclusive LGBTQ+ training in the workplace.

“He said, ‘No, don’t tell me how to run my company,’ and he basically ran me out of the office,” Mendelsohn recalls.

Mendelsohn and Moxley feel the most accepted and supported when companies put their money where their mouths are. “I feel celebrated when we are able to receive support financially and when we have the same opportunities for grants as other nonprofit organizations,” says Moxley.

Mendelsohn agrees: “There’s a lot of power in the almighty dollar.”

Support doesn’t only come in the form of money; family and friends play an integral part in their professional and personal achievements.

Mendelsohn hasn’t been fighting the corporate business world alone. She has built a loving family with her partner, giving her a brighter purpose and sense of self. “Raising my children has been the best part of my life,” Mendelsohn says.

Moxley’s found family and friends are the backbone of her success. She said that for any aspiring trans woman activist and leader, they must build a community of support.

“Build a network of friends who you know have your best interests at heart. You’re going to need people to hold you and love you,” Moxley advises . “When people tell you that you’re awful and that you’re doing a horrible job or that your identity is a disservice to humanity, you’re going to need that.”

By Abby Stuckrath

This article was originally published in News Is Out in partnership with Tagg Magazine here.

The suspect in the fatal stabbing of O’Shae Sibley reportedly turned himself in, according to the New York Police Department. The suspect, who is 17 years old, was charged with murder in the second degree with a hate crime enhancement and criminal possession of a weapon.

An impromptu voguing session in a gas station parking lot turned deadly when a prominent Black queer dancer was killed by a suspected teen yelling homophobic epithets, according to police.  

On Saturday night, O’Shae Sibley, 28, and friends stopped at Mobil Gas station in Brooklyn to refill on gas after a day trip to the Jersey Shore. While stopped, Sibley and his friends began jamming and voguing to Beyonce’s album “Renaissance,” according to media reports.

Security footage shows a group of men exiting the Bolla Market calling out to the group of dancers, reportedly shouting homophobic slurs and insults. Sibley approaches the men in defense, where the argument escalates when a man in black shorts pulls out a knife and stabs Sibley. 

Otis Pena, a witness and close friend of Sibley, held the stab wound near his heart until paramedics arrived. He was pronounced dead on arrival at Maimonides Medical Center. 

On Saturday, Aug. 5, the suspect in the fatal stabbing turned himself in, according to the New York Police Department. The 17-year-old suspect was charged with murder in the second degree with a hate crime enhancement and criminal possession of a weapon.

Voguing, especially in New York City, is deeply tied to the BIPOC queer community. The New York ballroom scene, starting in the 1960s, was the birthplace of ball and vogue competitions. It was a safe space for the socially ostracized Black and Hispanic queer community.

“Vogue has always been a celebration in resistance because of the lifestyles that we chose,” said Devon Webster, a ballroom artist known as Pony Zion, in an article with Insider. “Ballroom is the resistance, but voguing is a celebration. Voguing as resist? No, it’s irresistible. It’s about feeling good about who and what I am, and not because of something else.”

For Sibley, this innately queer act, voguing, a mere act of celebration, made him a target for violence. 

“They murdered him because he was gay because he stood up for his friends,” said Pena in a Facebook Live. “Just pumping gas, listening to Renaissance, just having a good time.” 

Violent, senseless acts against BIPOC LGBTQ individuals continue to be a prevalent global issue. Last month, an openly queer singer Josiah’ Jonty’ Robinson of Beaulieu, was strangled to death on Grenada Beach in the Caribbean. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and national LGBTQ organization GLAAD have reported more than 350 incidents of harassment, vandalism, and assault against LGBTQIA+ individuals from June 2022 to April 2023.

In response to the attack, Beyonce wrote, “Rest in Power. O’Shae Sibley” on the front page of her website. 

Her album “Renaissance” is widely accepted amongst the Black queer community. The album – dedicated to her late Uncle Johnny – a gay man and LGBTQ+ advocate who died of AIDS-related complications – is an amalgamation of ballroom vogue references and features artists like Big Freedia, Honey Dijon, Syd, Moi Renee and so much more. 

Sibley was deeply immersed in the ballroom and queer dance scene. As a professional dancer, he performed at the Lincoln Center in a digital media exhibit, “An Electric Dance to the Moment in Time”.  Director Kemar Jewel,  a close-found family member of Sibley, told NY Daily News about Sibley’s notable choreography work in his dance video, “Soft: A Love Letter to Queer Black Men.”

“He could sing, he could do hip hop, jazz, ballet, tap, and he was an incredible voguer! That’s how we became close,” wrote Jewel in a Facebook post.  

Sibley’s death has sent ripples across the queer dance community. 

“This news is absolutely heartbreaking, and we believe no one deserves to be targeted for simply being themselves and living in their truth,” said Philadanco!, Sibley’s old dance company, in a Facebook post. “We are keeping high hopes that Justice will be served.” 

“I’ll make sure that every Black Queer artist I meet knows that I am who I am because you poured into me and believed in me, even when no one else did,” said Jewel. 

This story was updated 8/7/23 with new information.