Hey, maybe they’re just overcompensating for the so-called “wage gap.”
Up to 100,000 people participated in the feminist march against President Donald Trump. After the event, however, alliances between activist groups broke down, in a Game-of-Thrones-like power struggle between supposedly like-minded social justice warriors.
One of the organizers, Margaret Jacobsen, took to Facebook to air her grievances over the missing money. In one post, Jacobsen directed her anger at Rebekah Brewis, a transgendered woman, and executive director of Portland Trans Pride.
PTP says on its Facebook page that the group is “a 501 (c)(3) fiscally sponsored non profit organization” started to ensure equal rights and [to improve] the quality of life for all transgender LGBTQIA+ Oregonian peers and members statewide and nationally through direct action, policy development, legal advocacy, peer support, and social justice organizing.”
Jacobsen argues that while she and PTP didn’t “have a written agreement,” she nonetheless expected some cut of the t-shirt sales and funds raised from the march. According to Jacobsen, $22,000 was raised from (appropriately unisex) t-shirts alone. Jacobsen goes on to accuse Brewis of avoiding her phone calls and alleged the transgender group didn’t properly follow federal non-profit laws.
In response to the allegations, Brewis denied any misuse of funds and accused critics of “transphobia” and jealousy.
Video of Brewis speaking at the event can be seen below:
Both Jacobsen and PTP didn’t immediately return calls to comment.
According to Genderidentitywatch.com Brewis is the same individual who sued the Oregon state prison system in 2011 after he (now she) used nail clippers to castrate himself following a 70 month prison sentence for robbery. Brewis did not end up winning the case. A search of Brewis’s past reveals several violent incidents and arrests.
Another pro-trans group, Great Portland Trans Unity, accused Brewis of “a long history of contentious and harmful interactions with individuals and organizations in our communities” as well as “racist attacks.” To the best of our knowledge, the other six transgender support groups in Portland haven’t yet weighed in on the controversy.
This isn’t the first time Portland’s feminists have ran into issues with the transgender community. Before Jacobsen took the reins on the event, many accused the original organizers of not addressing “the concerns” of “trans people and people of color.” The controversy led the NAACP to withdraw its support for the march, saying they “didn’t want to be part of the march if it was going to be a white-woman kumbaya march.”