o e GOP ta e aim at f ndin for ran atina Coalition

Republicans in Congress are attempting to chop approved funding for the Trans Latina Coalition, a community service organi ation in central Los Angeles, as part of what House Republicans are calling a bid to “Stop Woke-Waste.”

But the California Democrat who secured the $750,000 grant for Trans Latina says Democrats are standing up to protect much-needed funding for an underserved group.

Rep. Jimmy Gome (D-Calif.) was able to secure funding for Trans Latina Coalition as a community funding grant during last year’s budget process. This was possible after Democrats brought back the earmark process that allows members of congress to direct funding to specific projects in their communities.

With Republicans having retaken control of the House of Representatives in January, they’re now attempting to cut back these already-committed funds.

Last month, House Budget Chairman Jodey C. Arrington

(T -19) put out a statement with a fairly short wish list of cuts that he dubbed “Stop Woke-Waste.” The cuts include the grant to Trans Latina Collective, plus $1.2 million earmarked for LGBTQIA+ Pride Centers in San Diego, and $1 million for a coworking space for women and gender-expansive people of color in Columbus, OH.

“This is not a budget issue, it’s a straight up discrimination issue. They’re trying to use wokeism as a rallying cry for their base. If it were a budget issue, he’d have to cut almost two million programs of the same amount to have an impact on the national debt or deficit,” Gome says. “It’s almost a concerted effort nationally by the Republicans to go after the trans community.”

Because the money has already been appropriated, in order for the Republicans to cancel the grant, they would have to pass legislation to do so, either as a standalone bill or through the budget process.

Democrats control the Senate and the White House, so they have some power to prevent the cuts, but they will have to negotiate with Republicans to pass a budget this year.

“They can pass it in the House, but we’ve had conversations with Senator [Alex] Padilla’s [D-CA] office to stop it in the Senate,” Gome says.

The grant was meant to improve Trans Latina’s work to support employment skills development for members of the trans community.

Bamby Salcedo, president of Trans Latina, says that skills development is vital for trans women, who frequently face severe discrimination in the workplace and consequently suffer disproportionate rates of poverty, homelessness, and food insecurity.

“What we proposed was to have individual case management. Essentially hand-to-hand support, providing training to people and connecting them to employment directly,” Salcedo says.

Salcedo says the funding would have supported at least 50 people over the course of a year.

“Through that process, as they are being trained, we would provide them with rental assistance, food assistance and grocery cards,” she says.

ROB SALERNO