Resistance, Resilience, and Reality: The Fight for Trans Equality

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      "details": "Morgan Jada Walker (she/her) is Counsel at Lambda Legal, the oldest and largest national legal organization committed to achieving full recognition of the civil rights of lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender people and people with HIV.\r\rMorgan is a seasoned trial lawyer, appellate attorney, and public advocate, with more than two decades of experience in federal, state, and territorial courts, and the court of public opinion. Morgan has completed more than 50 jury and bench trials, six appellate court oral arguments before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and Alaska Court of Appeals, and resolved dozens of cases by negotiation.\r\rMorgan’s first case at Lambda was in 2025, when she joined a trial team that successfully fought for the Constitutional rights of an incarcerated transgender woman in Alaska who needed gender-affirming surgery.\r\rBefore joining Lambda, Morgan served longer than eight years as an Assistant United States Attorney in the District of Alaska, where she investigated and prosecuted a wide variety of cases, including civil rights, environmental, national security, white-collar and transnational crimes, and child exploitation. Morgan’s special projects include serving as coordinator of the Anti-Terrorism Advisory Committee, Civil Rights Coordinator, and mentor for other attorneys.\r\rIn 2022, Morgan was detailed to the American Embassy in Sri Lanka and U.S. Mission to Maldives, where she designed and delivered capacity-building programs for prosecutors and judges regarding counterterrorism, international financial crimes, digital evidence, and trauma-informed victim engagement. In her capacity as Justice Department leader at the mission, she served on the Embassy’s emergency-action committee during a political and economic crisis. In 2024, Morgan became one of the few (if only) transgender lawyers to prosecute a jury trial before transition and, later, after socially transitioning, defend the same conviction on appeal.\r\rEarlier, Morgan served as a state prosecutor for eight years, when she handled cases in urban and rural communities. Morgan focused on special-victims cases, involving minors and adults, and empowered dozens of survivors to testify. Morgan served as the deputy director of the Alaska Medicaid Fraud Control Unit, during which time she secured one of the largest contested restitution judgments in state history.\r\rMorgan’s prior legal work took her to American Samoa, where she served as both prosecutor and public defender, and to private practice in Seattle. Morgan earned her Juris Doctor in 2004 from the University of Minnesota Law School, where she was on the Dean’s List and participated in immigration and prosecution clinics. Morgan studied philosophy in politics at Earlham College.",
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      "details": "Indigo is an educator and activist who has been advocating for trans Texans for more than 5 years. They graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in May of 2024 with a bachelors degree in psychology. In their time at UT, they founded a student organization dedicated to providing volunteering opportunities to LGBTQ+ students, and served on the leadership board for three years as president, vice president, and communications officer. Since 2021, Indigo has testified before the Texas legislature against dozens of bills targeting transgender youth and has spoken out in support of trans kids in DFPS meetings, panel discussions, media interviews, and rallies. Currently, Indigo works as an educator in the Special Education department at a Texas public elementary school as well as the executive assistant to the director of Parents of Trans Youth, a social impact business providing learning and support to caregivers of gender-diverse kids. They also serve as the Chair for Alumni Service on their high school's alumni board. In their free time, Indigo can be found playing Dungeons and Dragons, crocheting huge blankets, and cuddling with their cats Tofu and Sesame.",
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      "details": "Mo Jenkins is a Black trans woman, a proud Texan, and a political strategist who has spent her life turning struggle into purpose. From navigating the foster care system and housing instability to rising through the ranks of Texas politics, her journey is defined by resilience, clarity, and an unwavering commitment to community.\n\nMo currently serves as Deputy Chief of Staff to State Representative Jessica González and as Executive Director of the Texas House LGBTQ Caucus, working at the intersection of policy and lived experience. Inside the Texas Capitol, her work is focused, strategic, and unapologetically people centered, grounded in the belief that the best policy is shaped by those closest to the pain.\n\nHer political journey began as a trailblazer when she became the first openly trans person elected to student government at Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi, later serving as Student Body President. That same vision now guides her legislative work, where she has helped advance critical policies including the sickle cell disease registry and the burn pits registry fund, and played an instrumental role in the 2023 defeat of school vouchers through her work with Representative Abel Herrero on the landmark Herrero Amendment.\n\nWhat drives Mo’s work is both memory and vision. Hearing elders say they “already took on this fight” as the same battles resurface fuels her determination to keep pushing for equality and justice, so the next generation will not have to fight these same wars again.",
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      "details": "Sofia (she/her) is the Field Director at Equality Texas. She has over a decade of experience organizing for healthcare and environmental justice in San Antonio. She is the co-founder of Trans Power San Antonio and organizer of the inaugural Women’s March in San Antonio, as well as co organizer of the march of us, the March for Trans visibility. She sits on the board of Healthcare-Now, the Transgender Education Network of Texas, and the Community Advisory Board for CentroMed in San Antonio. In her free time you might find her doing yoga, hiking, cooking or spending time with her dog Maggie and her cat Hunty.",
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  "description": "In the wake of a steep rise in anti-trans legislation and hostile rhetoric, how can we protect our communities and fight for a better future? Join leading trans advocates as they report from the frontlines—a teacher navigating classroom censorship, a lawyer challenging discriminatory laws, and an organizer educating the public while building community. Moderated by a long-time legislative staffer, this panel will explore what it takes to fight from the inside and survey the political realities in Texas. How is anti-trans legislation reshaping the lives of trans folks and the broader community? What does the path to equality look like, and what can we do to move in that direction? Get the facts and leave with actionable steps.",
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