VICE (2013) s06e19 Episode Script
Trans in Texas and Nicaragua Déjà Vu
1 SHANE SMITH: This week on Vice fighting the anti-trans laws in Texas.
KIMBERLY: They've left it up to a six-year-old to explain what "transgender" means, because this school district's too afraid of actually having the adults teach the children.
OFFICER: Attention! DEE DEE WATTERS: Up until the day that laws are changed, people are gonna always kill trans people and feel like they can get away with it, because it's being justified.
SHANE: And then, a return to revolution in Nicaragua.
VIKRAM GANDHI: Are you saying the police are shooting at you? PROTESTER: Yeah! - (SPEAKING SPANISH) - (GUNSHOT) VIKRAM: Three months ago, did you think that something like this could happen here in Nicaragua? (SPEAKS SPANISH) (THEME MUSIC PLAYING) (CROWD SHOUTING) They're saying that right now, it's time for change.
(INDISTINCT SHOUTING) Last season, we filmed with transgender youth across the country as they transitioned and coped with that change.
My mom thought I was a boy and dressed me like a boy.
I did not like it.
So, I And I already thought she, um, knew I was a girl.
She But she didn't know, so I had to tell her when I was old enough to say it.
Now, since that piece aired, federal support for trans rights has eroded, with President Trump demanding a ban on transgender people serving in the military and a full reversal of Obama's bathroom guidelines for students.
Gianna Toboni traveled to Texas, where the battle over trans rights is in full swing.
(DOLLY PARTON SINGING "COAT OF MANY COLORS") Back through the years I go wandering once again Back to the seasons of my youth (KAI SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY) Hi, Kai! - How you doing? - Good! GIANNA: Good to see you.
Can I have a hug? Yeah.
How's everything? Good.
GIANNA: Kai is now seven years old and living in Pearland, Texas, with her younger brother and her mom, Kimberly.
KIMBERLY: What jacket do you want? Do you want your coat that Uncle David made? KAI: Uh-huh.
Mama sewed the rags together Sewing every piece with love She made my coat of many colors That I was so proud of GIANNA: So, tell me about this sweater you're wearing.
(SPEAKING) - You like Dolly Parton? - Mm-hmm.
(GIANNA LAUGHS) Why? Do you listen to her too much? Uh GIANNA: Do you wanna grow up to be like them? Mama says I might grow up to be the president.
- Yeah? - Mm-hmm.
What would you change about the world if you were president? Um Let trans people be free and go to the bathroom they want to go to.
Are you able to use the girls' bathroom at school? No.
And now, they just put security guards up for the bathroom security or whatever.
Kai, I can tell you're getting a little emotional.
What's making you sad? I don't know.
Is it sometimes hard to be brave? It's very hard.
Sometimes it's very hard.
GIANNA: Kai is, obviously, a tough cookie.
But how is she affected by the staff removing her from the girls' bathroom? This has been even more challenging than her kindergarten year was.
She comes home crying a little bit more often.
You know, she told me that she was going to use the girls' bathroom, and I told her that whatever she decided was the right thing to do, that she could do it, and, um, that she would definitely not get in trouble at home if she got in trouble at school.
She's just not backing down.
KIMBERLY: Don't kick that, okay? Kick.
(GIGGLES) KIMBERLY: Her challenges this year are different, of course.
Her desk at school had her birth name on it.
She's constantly being outed, and constantly, she has to re-explain.
How have discussions with the school board evolved over the last year since we were here? KIMBERLY: When the first episode with you guys aired, it showed the superintendent got up and walked out while I was speaking and didn't return until I was finishing.
A high school senior at Pearland ISD saw that segment and it encouraged him to run for school board, and he won.
An 18-year-old just pulled off an upset win to get a seat on the Pearland school board.
GIANNA: Looking ahead to future elections, Mike Floyd is now organizing more like-minded candidates to run on a platform for a more inclusive school district.
MIKE: This board has not just discriminated against trans kids, but they've gone after Muslim kids.
- We saw that very recently.
- Mm-hmm.
They have gone after African-American kids.
We saw that as well, so It's really time to flip this board.
We have a lot of different pieces of the community represented.
Pearland is ground zero for the bathroom bill, that kind of thing, a lot of that emanates from here.
We need to come together - MAN: Right.
- and vote together.
GIANNA: But until voters elect a more inclusive board, Pearland is ultimately losing a family in its community.
As you may know, Kimberly Shappley has found a new job and is moving her family to a school district that will put the needs of her children before the politics of religious extremism.
We have taken a brilliant, friendly and completely harmless little girl, and driven her and her family from our city.
You are on the wrong side of history on this, and you are embarrassing our city.
There are many other transgender students in Pearland ISD some that you know about and some that you don't.
This issue is not going away.
Thank you.
GIANNA: So how have the last few days been? KIMBERLY: Lots of emotions.
I feel like we're in a position now where, you know, it's just not safe.
This is my child.
Like, I have to look at her at night, and say, "Please, Lord, protect her.
" Like, she's in the highest, most likely rate to be murdered in a hate crime in our country.
She's in the highest risk group for committing suicide in our country.
She's not at higher risk because she's trans.
She's at higher risk because we're allowing this bigotry and prejudice to continue.
GIANNA: This trend is spreading across Texas, where both local and statewide elections have become a battleground for LGBTQ protections.
Last year, Texas, home to the second-largest transgender population in the country, introduced more anti-LGBTQ bills than any other state.
We spoke to the former mayor of Houston, who, in 2015, experienced firsthand the powerful backlash against trans protections.
When you were mayor of Houston, you attempted to pass an anti-discrimination ordinance.
What happened there? I worked with the LGBT community, and others, to bring forward a comprehensive non-discrimination ordinance.
But unlike every other major city in America, we were writing an ordinance from scratch.
Houston had no non-discrimination ordinance that protected anybody.
This was about providing protections for all Houstonians.
And all the opposition was directed strictly at the transgender community.
WOMAN: Any man at any time could enter a woman's bathroom simply by claiming to be a woman that day.
Even registered sex offenders could follow women or young girls into the bathroom.
Protect women's privacy.
Vote "No" on the Proposition 1 bathroom ordinance.
They had started a steady drum beat of "This is about predators attacking our women and our children.
" And the voices got louder and louder, and so when it came time to be on the ballot, that just erupted in this spew of pus across the community.
I don't want men going in the restroom with women, period.
NEWSMAN: Voters overwhelmingly rejected HERO 61 to 39 percent.
GIANNA: In the fall of 2015, the people of Houston voted on whether they were in favor of HERO, which prohibits discrimination based on 15 characteristics, including sex, race, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
The sick homophobic right was empowered by the win in Houston, and they use it to spread the infection in other places.
GIANNA: In the years since, this rhetoric has become the playbook for anti-trans bills across the country.
To find out what it's like to live without local protections, we spoke to Dana, who came out as a trans woman in her workplace in 2015.
GIANNA: How long have you been taking the bus? I've been riding the bus, more or less regularly, since February of 2017.
People give you weird looks? - Sometimes.
- Yeah.
I don't exactly pass for a biological female.
(SNIFFLES) GIANNA: For more than 40 years, Dana was known at work as "Woody," a successful, well-paid technician for engineering in construction companies.
Who were you before you were Dana? That's hard to answer, because I really don't know who I was.
GIANNA: I don't know the best way to say it, but, like, this person is like a guy's guy carrying a big gun, wearing camo.
I lived most of my life trying to be what people expected me to be.
I was a six-foot-two, 200 pound, outside linebacker.
And so, yes, I was guy-guy.
Have you ever been discriminated against for being a trans woman? I am recovering from a stroke.
I have had my car repossessed.
I have almost no money.
I live on social security, and I can trace that back to one decision.
I I I came out at work.
The chief operating officer, the head of human resources, they said, "We're gonna meet with the principal partners, and they're gonna decide whether you can come out or not.
" - And what did they decide? - Five said okay, two said no.
GIANNA: Dana claims that some members of her team weren't comfortable with her transition and that that's the main reason she was fired the following year.
And I admit it.
It was my fault.
I I blew a deadline.
But that was like I gave them an excuse.
GIANNA: Dana's former employer said they couldn't comment because of privacy concerns, except that their recollection of events was different.
If I hadn't come out, I'd still be there, and I'd still have a car, and I'd still have my medication.
I would never have had a stroke, and we wouldn't be having this conversation, 'cause my story really wouldn't be all that interesting.
How would your life be different if the HERO ordinance was law in Houston today? The whole point behind the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance was there was a city agency to which you could file your complaint and they would investigate.
I went from being on the top rung of the privilege ladder, to being one from the bottom.
The only person below me in the privilege ladder is a trans woman of color.
GIANNA: We're in Dallas at the biggest black trans conference in the country to talk to people in this community about what they're dealing with day to day, which in many cases, are issues that go way beyond the bathroom debate.
Longtime trans rights advocate, Monica Roberts, talked about their recent fight against SB-6, a state bill that would have required people to use the bathroom that matches the gender on their birth certificate.
We beat back SB-6 twice.
We are tired of the debate being about bathrooms, period.
We're wanting employment.
We're wanting the discrimination to stop.
We're wanting the murders of black trans people to stop.
GIANNA: In 2017, a reported 28 trans people were killed, most of them were trans women of color.
So far this year, that death toll is already up to 16.
Dee Dee Watters organizes vigils to raise awareness about anti-trans violence.
You hosted the first Day of Remembrance for the transgender community in Texas.
Why did you start that day? My goal was to make sure that people understood the sadness that was needed, and know that, you know what, yes, there is a possibility that I could be murdered because I'm trans.
Yes, there is that possibility, but at the end of the day, before I am murdered, those that were murdered before me, I wanna make sure that they have a voice still.
- Do you know anybody who's been killed for being trans? - Mm-hmm.
I know multiple people that have been killed for being trans, um, and a prime example would have been one of my really good friends, which was Nay Nay.
Back here is where, uh, Nay Nay was murdered, inside the fence, behind the dumpster.
She was shot in the head.
That's pretty much all that we knew.
GIANNA: Police publicly identified Nay Nay using her birth name and described her as a man who dressed and lived as a woman.
Court documents later revealed that the perpetrator murdered Nay Nay after discovering that she was trans.
What is the life expectancy for a trans woman of color? (SCOFFS) The average life expectancy for a trans woman of color is anywhere in-between around about 30 and 35.
GIANNA: While there are no official estimates, that's the average age range for trans women of color who are killed.
- How old are you? - I'm 32.
- Wow.
- And every single day, I have to worry about whether or not I'm going to make it to see the next day.
Up until the day that laws are changed, um, people are always gonna kill trans people, and feel like they can get away with it, because it's being justified.
GIANNA: One of the most critical areas where the trans community struggles to find allies is in law enforcement.
When Brandi Seals was murdered last year, Houston Police Department was criticized for misgendering her and for mishandling the case.
WATERS: The fact that we've got a young man who's clothed in women's clothing, you know, the speculation is that he's out here walking the street.
OFFICER: Attention! GIANNA: Houston's police department is attempting to fix this problem with a new sensitivity training for their officers and cadets.
At the Montrose Center, a local LGBTQ organization, community organizer Kennedy Loftin, teaches them Transgender 101.
KENNEDY: The queer community has a very interesting history with HPD.
So, we had a cross-dressing ordinance, and that was a way our transgender community was criminalized.
The highest criminalized population by percentage is transgender women of color.
LGBTQ institutions, like the Montrose Center, are kind of tucked back, kind of hidden away in neighborhoods.
The reason why is because of a history of bombings and other issues.
Do you feel any differently about the bathroom bills than you did before the presentation? As a police officer, we can't have personal opinions, and that's just, like, 'cause we have to do whatever policy and general order is.
Like I said, I've never had a problem with transgender people, but I can see how some people would have a problem problem with it, and some people not.
GIANNA: While the Houston Police Department is taking a pragmatic approach to law enforcement, lawmakers nationwide put forth 115 anti-LGBTQ bills this year, that's on top of the 129 bills introduced last year.
And as we approach the midterms, some candidates are adopting the identical rhetoric, that was used to take down the HERO ordinance.
But this year, the other side has a fierce response.
LGBTQ candidates are running for office in record numbers.
More than 50 candidates threw their hat in the ring in Texas alone.
What happens in November will have a dramatic effect on the lives of trans people across the country.
We've been filming with a seven-year-old transgender girl, - prevented from using the girls' bathroom at her school.
- Right.
Do you think she'll face discrimination when she grows older? Absolutely.
I grew up in a time where even though segregation was not legal, it was still happening.
The kids are the most vulnerable ones, and when you make a kid go in "You can't go into that restroom, you gotta go to this one, way over here, and you're the only one that goes there," you're putting a brand on them that says, "Other.
" "Different.
" GIANNA: So how are you gonna decorate your room? Palace, tiaras, um roses, um, um my bed beautiful bed.
Mommy said it might be king-size or queen.
KIMBERLY: Kai! I have something for you.
Yay! My new birth certificate.
I don't know what the heck that is.
KIMBERLY: Check it out.
What does that say? - I'm a female.
- It says you're a female.
What do you think about that? GIANNA: By filing a petition in court, Kimberly was able to get Kai a new birth certificate, officially changing both her gender and her name, marking a new day for their family to celebrate.
Happy name day! (CHUCKLES) The fifth birthday, we went to Chuck E.
Cheese.
I searched all over Target, and the only boy thing was the wizard outfit, so I got the wizard outfit.
And she goes, "I wanna give you a hug, 'cause you bought me my first dress.
" - Mm.
- So ever since then, I'm not I'm not gonna buy her anything else that is even considered a boy toy.
GIANNA: Some of Kimberly's family has slowly come around to accepting Kai, even though they sometimes find themselves on opposite ends of the political spectrum.
- Did you vote for Trump? - DAVID: Yes, I voted for Trump.
There's no way in God's green Earth, I would have voted for Hillary Clinton, but when it gets down towards you know, gay rights and all that stuff, yes, I think Kai should She has every right that everybody else does.
And it is right now, to me, in the Constitution.
GIANNA: As the trans community holds out hope for federal support, Kai is enjoying a new school, with a new bathroom policy.
How is this school different from your old school? Well, here treats me better.
Lets me use the girls' bathroom.
They actually make everything that says my name "Esther Kai Shappley" 'cause I changed my birth certificate.
GIANNA: How does that make you feel? KAI: Happy! Kai is just a kid here.
Even people knowing that she's transgender, doesn't make a difference.
I'd rather her just to enjoy the privilege of living in a land where she's just a person, with basic, human rights.
In 1979, a guerrilla army swept into Nicaragua's capital, pushing past the National Guard, and taking down an American-backed dictator.
Power eventually fell to rebel leader, Daniel Ortega.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) SHANE: But now, Ortega's facing an uprising against his leadership, and he's taking extreme steps to stop it.
Hundreds of people have been killed since April when demonstrations began.
So we sent Vikram Gandhi to learn how a revolutionary became a dictator and what comes next for Nicaragua.
(HORNS HONKING) (MORTAR FIRES) (SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: We're in Managua, Nicaragua.
This is the biggest uprising in over 40 years since the Sandanista revolution.
And the people here are fed up with the leadership of Daniel Ortega, who they said went from a revolutionary to a dictator.
(PEOPLE CHANTING IN SPANISH) There's been mounting frustration with President Daniel Ortega, who in 2014, changed the Constitution to do away with term limits, securing his hold on power.
On April 18th, his government announced a tax increase and cuts to social security benefits.
The people responded with protests.
Ortega deployed police and paramilitary forces to crack down on the protesters.
Three people were killed.
Young people across the country inspired tens of thousands to take to the streets, demanding Ortega's removal.
They were met by more violence.
According to the Nicaraguan Pro-Human Rights Association, in the first four months of the uprising, almost 500 people have been killed.
(PEOPLE CHANTING IN SPANISH) (CHANTING CONTINUES) (SIRENS WAILING) (WOMAN SHOUTS) (MAN SHOUTING IN SPANISH) - (HORNS HONKING) - (MORTAR SHELLS EXPLODE) (SPEAKING SPANISH) (BOTH SPEAKING SPANISH) Are are you saying that - Are you saying the police are shooting at you? - Yeah! - (GUNFIRE) - It seems like a sniper's behind this wall.
Some protesters went in.
(INDISTINCT SHOUTING) There was also another kid who was shot and they were taken away by motorcycles.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: In the 1970s, the same Daniel Ortega was a young, socialist rebel and helped lead the Sandanista revolution, which toppled, then-US-backed dictator Anastasio Somoza.
But over the years, Ortega bought up media channels, took over all branches of the government, and even installed his wife as vice president.
And as this once revolutionary leader moves closer to autocratic rule, a new generation of young revolutionaries are aiming to remove Ortega from power.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) (WOMAN SHOUTING) (CROWD CHANTING IN SPANISH) VIKRAM: We went to the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua, where the students have taken over the campus in protest.
We're right now in the university UNAN.
The reason we're wearing bulletproof vests is that last night, there were snipers that killed two people.
And it actually looks a lot more like a military base.
The gate's completely barricaded, they've put out cobblestone walls that they've created.
And this is the entry point where the paramilitary were shooting at people.
One of the students gave us a tour of the occupied campus.
VIKRAM: What what is this area we're at right now? Some of the students sleep right there, like, in the rooms.
They cook outside, and they basically live here.
I work Monday through Friday - and after - And you do revolution - Friday through Sunday? - Yes.
You know, like, the term "weekend warrior," like, this is actually the real weekend warrior.
(MAN SPEAKING SPANISH) Was there was there shooting here yesterday? (SPEAKS SPANISH) - (GUNSHOTS) - (ALARM CLANGING) - (GUNSHOT) - VIKRAM: We just heard gunshots.
The paramilitary is actually shooting into the university.
They don't even have guns here.
They have homemade mortars.
And most of these guys are they couldn't be more than 17 or 18 years old.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: You can see these guys are running out.
There's sniper fire in the distance.
This is a homemade militia, fighting the paramilitary.
We're in a pretty open, exposed area right now, and the military's been shooting at these guys.
All right.
This is kind of a shitshow.
(WOMAN SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: Over there, there's some bishops there.
That's a good sign, because there's a symbol of peace in the middle of the war zone.
So normally, during university, all of these things, which are bars, would be full of students drinking, having fun.
And now the whole thing is shut down, because they're in the middle of a battle with the government.
This is like a shotgun but handmade, you know what I mean? - VIKRAM: Yeah.
- Uh, but this this is like a toy.
They are professionals, and this is bad for us because we are just college students.
What were you studying in university? Uh, tourism.
- Tourism.
- Yeah.
(WOMAN SPEAKING SPANISH) (MEN SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: Two of the students came with a truck last night.
They brought it down here to attack the paramilitary, but the paramilitary came, they grabbed them, took them out of their truck, and shot them over here.
And the woman behind me, her son, who's 17, was kidnapped by the government.
Paramilitary officers came while they were watching a movie on a laptop and kidnapped her son.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) Three months ago, did you think that something like this could happen here in Nicaragua? (SPEAKS SPANISH) (SOBBING) VIKRAM: We're standing outside El Chipote Prison, and all around me are the family members of people who have been detained for political action.
Since the government never gives any information about when people are released, they've been coming here every day, just waiting.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) (SPEAKING SPANISH) (WOMAN SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: Despite the detainments and killings in the stronghold of Monimbo, the protestors continue to fight, defending their barricades from police and paramilitary attacks.
We're walking towards Monimbo, which is the heart of the resistance.
And all around us, they've ripped the streets up to protect themselves from the police.
Monimbo is a stronghold of the revolution, just as it was 40 years ago for the Sandanista revolution.
You can see this statue over here.
It commemorates a Sandanista victory over the dictator Somoza.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) (MORTAR FIRES) So, this is one of those mortars that announces, uh, people coming.
They make it out of fences, and almost everybody seems to be making one of these.
This is what they're shooting out of the mortar.
At the bottom, there's gunpowder and the rest is filled with sand and gunpowder.
Then they light the fuse and they launch it in the air.
That just shot out some sand and some rocks, but none of these toys are gonna do anything against the police, the military, or the paramilitary.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) (SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: And in fact, he was right.
Days after our visit, police and paramilitary stormed Monimbo, killing at least 10 people in the operation.
And at least two protesters were killed when the paramilitary raided UNAN university, taking the school back from the students.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: With the crackdown escalating, an unprecedented number of Nicaraguans are fleeing the country, setting the stage for an immigration crisis.
We're standing outside the immigration office.
As you can see, there are hundreds of people here waiting on line.
All of these people are getting new passports in anticipation that they may have to leave the country.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) (SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: How have you been personally affected by what's gone on in the country in the last couple of months? (SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: Protest leaders have been forced into hiding.
Twenty-year-old Lesther Aleman, runs a social media campaign coordinating student protests across five universities from a secret location.
Where are we right now? And why are we here? (SPEAKING SPANISH) What is the biggest sacrifice that you're making right now? (SPEAKING SPANISH) (CROWD CHANTING) (LESTHER CONTINUES IN SPANISH)
KIMBERLY: They've left it up to a six-year-old to explain what "transgender" means, because this school district's too afraid of actually having the adults teach the children.
OFFICER: Attention! DEE DEE WATTERS: Up until the day that laws are changed, people are gonna always kill trans people and feel like they can get away with it, because it's being justified.
SHANE: And then, a return to revolution in Nicaragua.
VIKRAM GANDHI: Are you saying the police are shooting at you? PROTESTER: Yeah! - (SPEAKING SPANISH) - (GUNSHOT) VIKRAM: Three months ago, did you think that something like this could happen here in Nicaragua? (SPEAKS SPANISH) (THEME MUSIC PLAYING) (CROWD SHOUTING) They're saying that right now, it's time for change.
(INDISTINCT SHOUTING) Last season, we filmed with transgender youth across the country as they transitioned and coped with that change.
My mom thought I was a boy and dressed me like a boy.
I did not like it.
So, I And I already thought she, um, knew I was a girl.
She But she didn't know, so I had to tell her when I was old enough to say it.
Now, since that piece aired, federal support for trans rights has eroded, with President Trump demanding a ban on transgender people serving in the military and a full reversal of Obama's bathroom guidelines for students.
Gianna Toboni traveled to Texas, where the battle over trans rights is in full swing.
(DOLLY PARTON SINGING "COAT OF MANY COLORS") Back through the years I go wandering once again Back to the seasons of my youth (KAI SPEAKING INDISTINCTLY) Hi, Kai! - How you doing? - Good! GIANNA: Good to see you.
Can I have a hug? Yeah.
How's everything? Good.
GIANNA: Kai is now seven years old and living in Pearland, Texas, with her younger brother and her mom, Kimberly.
KIMBERLY: What jacket do you want? Do you want your coat that Uncle David made? KAI: Uh-huh.
Mama sewed the rags together Sewing every piece with love She made my coat of many colors That I was so proud of GIANNA: So, tell me about this sweater you're wearing.
(SPEAKING) - You like Dolly Parton? - Mm-hmm.
(GIANNA LAUGHS) Why? Do you listen to her too much? Uh GIANNA: Do you wanna grow up to be like them? Mama says I might grow up to be the president.
- Yeah? - Mm-hmm.
What would you change about the world if you were president? Um Let trans people be free and go to the bathroom they want to go to.
Are you able to use the girls' bathroom at school? No.
And now, they just put security guards up for the bathroom security or whatever.
Kai, I can tell you're getting a little emotional.
What's making you sad? I don't know.
Is it sometimes hard to be brave? It's very hard.
Sometimes it's very hard.
GIANNA: Kai is, obviously, a tough cookie.
But how is she affected by the staff removing her from the girls' bathroom? This has been even more challenging than her kindergarten year was.
She comes home crying a little bit more often.
You know, she told me that she was going to use the girls' bathroom, and I told her that whatever she decided was the right thing to do, that she could do it, and, um, that she would definitely not get in trouble at home if she got in trouble at school.
She's just not backing down.
KIMBERLY: Don't kick that, okay? Kick.
(GIGGLES) KIMBERLY: Her challenges this year are different, of course.
Her desk at school had her birth name on it.
She's constantly being outed, and constantly, she has to re-explain.
How have discussions with the school board evolved over the last year since we were here? KIMBERLY: When the first episode with you guys aired, it showed the superintendent got up and walked out while I was speaking and didn't return until I was finishing.
A high school senior at Pearland ISD saw that segment and it encouraged him to run for school board, and he won.
An 18-year-old just pulled off an upset win to get a seat on the Pearland school board.
GIANNA: Looking ahead to future elections, Mike Floyd is now organizing more like-minded candidates to run on a platform for a more inclusive school district.
MIKE: This board has not just discriminated against trans kids, but they've gone after Muslim kids.
- We saw that very recently.
- Mm-hmm.
They have gone after African-American kids.
We saw that as well, so It's really time to flip this board.
We have a lot of different pieces of the community represented.
Pearland is ground zero for the bathroom bill, that kind of thing, a lot of that emanates from here.
We need to come together - MAN: Right.
- and vote together.
GIANNA: But until voters elect a more inclusive board, Pearland is ultimately losing a family in its community.
As you may know, Kimberly Shappley has found a new job and is moving her family to a school district that will put the needs of her children before the politics of religious extremism.
We have taken a brilliant, friendly and completely harmless little girl, and driven her and her family from our city.
You are on the wrong side of history on this, and you are embarrassing our city.
There are many other transgender students in Pearland ISD some that you know about and some that you don't.
This issue is not going away.
Thank you.
GIANNA: So how have the last few days been? KIMBERLY: Lots of emotions.
I feel like we're in a position now where, you know, it's just not safe.
This is my child.
Like, I have to look at her at night, and say, "Please, Lord, protect her.
" Like, she's in the highest, most likely rate to be murdered in a hate crime in our country.
She's in the highest risk group for committing suicide in our country.
She's not at higher risk because she's trans.
She's at higher risk because we're allowing this bigotry and prejudice to continue.
GIANNA: This trend is spreading across Texas, where both local and statewide elections have become a battleground for LGBTQ protections.
Last year, Texas, home to the second-largest transgender population in the country, introduced more anti-LGBTQ bills than any other state.
We spoke to the former mayor of Houston, who, in 2015, experienced firsthand the powerful backlash against trans protections.
When you were mayor of Houston, you attempted to pass an anti-discrimination ordinance.
What happened there? I worked with the LGBT community, and others, to bring forward a comprehensive non-discrimination ordinance.
But unlike every other major city in America, we were writing an ordinance from scratch.
Houston had no non-discrimination ordinance that protected anybody.
This was about providing protections for all Houstonians.
And all the opposition was directed strictly at the transgender community.
WOMAN: Any man at any time could enter a woman's bathroom simply by claiming to be a woman that day.
Even registered sex offenders could follow women or young girls into the bathroom.
Protect women's privacy.
Vote "No" on the Proposition 1 bathroom ordinance.
They had started a steady drum beat of "This is about predators attacking our women and our children.
" And the voices got louder and louder, and so when it came time to be on the ballot, that just erupted in this spew of pus across the community.
I don't want men going in the restroom with women, period.
NEWSMAN: Voters overwhelmingly rejected HERO 61 to 39 percent.
GIANNA: In the fall of 2015, the people of Houston voted on whether they were in favor of HERO, which prohibits discrimination based on 15 characteristics, including sex, race, sexual orientation, and gender identity.
The sick homophobic right was empowered by the win in Houston, and they use it to spread the infection in other places.
GIANNA: In the years since, this rhetoric has become the playbook for anti-trans bills across the country.
To find out what it's like to live without local protections, we spoke to Dana, who came out as a trans woman in her workplace in 2015.
GIANNA: How long have you been taking the bus? I've been riding the bus, more or less regularly, since February of 2017.
People give you weird looks? - Sometimes.
- Yeah.
I don't exactly pass for a biological female.
(SNIFFLES) GIANNA: For more than 40 years, Dana was known at work as "Woody," a successful, well-paid technician for engineering in construction companies.
Who were you before you were Dana? That's hard to answer, because I really don't know who I was.
GIANNA: I don't know the best way to say it, but, like, this person is like a guy's guy carrying a big gun, wearing camo.
I lived most of my life trying to be what people expected me to be.
I was a six-foot-two, 200 pound, outside linebacker.
And so, yes, I was guy-guy.
Have you ever been discriminated against for being a trans woman? I am recovering from a stroke.
I have had my car repossessed.
I have almost no money.
I live on social security, and I can trace that back to one decision.
I I I came out at work.
The chief operating officer, the head of human resources, they said, "We're gonna meet with the principal partners, and they're gonna decide whether you can come out or not.
" - And what did they decide? - Five said okay, two said no.
GIANNA: Dana claims that some members of her team weren't comfortable with her transition and that that's the main reason she was fired the following year.
And I admit it.
It was my fault.
I I blew a deadline.
But that was like I gave them an excuse.
GIANNA: Dana's former employer said they couldn't comment because of privacy concerns, except that their recollection of events was different.
If I hadn't come out, I'd still be there, and I'd still have a car, and I'd still have my medication.
I would never have had a stroke, and we wouldn't be having this conversation, 'cause my story really wouldn't be all that interesting.
How would your life be different if the HERO ordinance was law in Houston today? The whole point behind the Houston Equal Rights Ordinance was there was a city agency to which you could file your complaint and they would investigate.
I went from being on the top rung of the privilege ladder, to being one from the bottom.
The only person below me in the privilege ladder is a trans woman of color.
GIANNA: We're in Dallas at the biggest black trans conference in the country to talk to people in this community about what they're dealing with day to day, which in many cases, are issues that go way beyond the bathroom debate.
Longtime trans rights advocate, Monica Roberts, talked about their recent fight against SB-6, a state bill that would have required people to use the bathroom that matches the gender on their birth certificate.
We beat back SB-6 twice.
We are tired of the debate being about bathrooms, period.
We're wanting employment.
We're wanting the discrimination to stop.
We're wanting the murders of black trans people to stop.
GIANNA: In 2017, a reported 28 trans people were killed, most of them were trans women of color.
So far this year, that death toll is already up to 16.
Dee Dee Watters organizes vigils to raise awareness about anti-trans violence.
You hosted the first Day of Remembrance for the transgender community in Texas.
Why did you start that day? My goal was to make sure that people understood the sadness that was needed, and know that, you know what, yes, there is a possibility that I could be murdered because I'm trans.
Yes, there is that possibility, but at the end of the day, before I am murdered, those that were murdered before me, I wanna make sure that they have a voice still.
- Do you know anybody who's been killed for being trans? - Mm-hmm.
I know multiple people that have been killed for being trans, um, and a prime example would have been one of my really good friends, which was Nay Nay.
Back here is where, uh, Nay Nay was murdered, inside the fence, behind the dumpster.
She was shot in the head.
That's pretty much all that we knew.
GIANNA: Police publicly identified Nay Nay using her birth name and described her as a man who dressed and lived as a woman.
Court documents later revealed that the perpetrator murdered Nay Nay after discovering that she was trans.
What is the life expectancy for a trans woman of color? (SCOFFS) The average life expectancy for a trans woman of color is anywhere in-between around about 30 and 35.
GIANNA: While there are no official estimates, that's the average age range for trans women of color who are killed.
- How old are you? - I'm 32.
- Wow.
- And every single day, I have to worry about whether or not I'm going to make it to see the next day.
Up until the day that laws are changed, um, people are always gonna kill trans people, and feel like they can get away with it, because it's being justified.
GIANNA: One of the most critical areas where the trans community struggles to find allies is in law enforcement.
When Brandi Seals was murdered last year, Houston Police Department was criticized for misgendering her and for mishandling the case.
WATERS: The fact that we've got a young man who's clothed in women's clothing, you know, the speculation is that he's out here walking the street.
OFFICER: Attention! GIANNA: Houston's police department is attempting to fix this problem with a new sensitivity training for their officers and cadets.
At the Montrose Center, a local LGBTQ organization, community organizer Kennedy Loftin, teaches them Transgender 101.
KENNEDY: The queer community has a very interesting history with HPD.
So, we had a cross-dressing ordinance, and that was a way our transgender community was criminalized.
The highest criminalized population by percentage is transgender women of color.
LGBTQ institutions, like the Montrose Center, are kind of tucked back, kind of hidden away in neighborhoods.
The reason why is because of a history of bombings and other issues.
Do you feel any differently about the bathroom bills than you did before the presentation? As a police officer, we can't have personal opinions, and that's just, like, 'cause we have to do whatever policy and general order is.
Like I said, I've never had a problem with transgender people, but I can see how some people would have a problem problem with it, and some people not.
GIANNA: While the Houston Police Department is taking a pragmatic approach to law enforcement, lawmakers nationwide put forth 115 anti-LGBTQ bills this year, that's on top of the 129 bills introduced last year.
And as we approach the midterms, some candidates are adopting the identical rhetoric, that was used to take down the HERO ordinance.
But this year, the other side has a fierce response.
LGBTQ candidates are running for office in record numbers.
More than 50 candidates threw their hat in the ring in Texas alone.
What happens in November will have a dramatic effect on the lives of trans people across the country.
We've been filming with a seven-year-old transgender girl, - prevented from using the girls' bathroom at her school.
- Right.
Do you think she'll face discrimination when she grows older? Absolutely.
I grew up in a time where even though segregation was not legal, it was still happening.
The kids are the most vulnerable ones, and when you make a kid go in "You can't go into that restroom, you gotta go to this one, way over here, and you're the only one that goes there," you're putting a brand on them that says, "Other.
" "Different.
" GIANNA: So how are you gonna decorate your room? Palace, tiaras, um roses, um, um my bed beautiful bed.
Mommy said it might be king-size or queen.
KIMBERLY: Kai! I have something for you.
Yay! My new birth certificate.
I don't know what the heck that is.
KIMBERLY: Check it out.
What does that say? - I'm a female.
- It says you're a female.
What do you think about that? GIANNA: By filing a petition in court, Kimberly was able to get Kai a new birth certificate, officially changing both her gender and her name, marking a new day for their family to celebrate.
Happy name day! (CHUCKLES) The fifth birthday, we went to Chuck E.
Cheese.
I searched all over Target, and the only boy thing was the wizard outfit, so I got the wizard outfit.
And she goes, "I wanna give you a hug, 'cause you bought me my first dress.
" - Mm.
- So ever since then, I'm not I'm not gonna buy her anything else that is even considered a boy toy.
GIANNA: Some of Kimberly's family has slowly come around to accepting Kai, even though they sometimes find themselves on opposite ends of the political spectrum.
- Did you vote for Trump? - DAVID: Yes, I voted for Trump.
There's no way in God's green Earth, I would have voted for Hillary Clinton, but when it gets down towards you know, gay rights and all that stuff, yes, I think Kai should She has every right that everybody else does.
And it is right now, to me, in the Constitution.
GIANNA: As the trans community holds out hope for federal support, Kai is enjoying a new school, with a new bathroom policy.
How is this school different from your old school? Well, here treats me better.
Lets me use the girls' bathroom.
They actually make everything that says my name "Esther Kai Shappley" 'cause I changed my birth certificate.
GIANNA: How does that make you feel? KAI: Happy! Kai is just a kid here.
Even people knowing that she's transgender, doesn't make a difference.
I'd rather her just to enjoy the privilege of living in a land where she's just a person, with basic, human rights.
In 1979, a guerrilla army swept into Nicaragua's capital, pushing past the National Guard, and taking down an American-backed dictator.
Power eventually fell to rebel leader, Daniel Ortega.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) SHANE: But now, Ortega's facing an uprising against his leadership, and he's taking extreme steps to stop it.
Hundreds of people have been killed since April when demonstrations began.
So we sent Vikram Gandhi to learn how a revolutionary became a dictator and what comes next for Nicaragua.
(HORNS HONKING) (MORTAR FIRES) (SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: We're in Managua, Nicaragua.
This is the biggest uprising in over 40 years since the Sandanista revolution.
And the people here are fed up with the leadership of Daniel Ortega, who they said went from a revolutionary to a dictator.
(PEOPLE CHANTING IN SPANISH) There's been mounting frustration with President Daniel Ortega, who in 2014, changed the Constitution to do away with term limits, securing his hold on power.
On April 18th, his government announced a tax increase and cuts to social security benefits.
The people responded with protests.
Ortega deployed police and paramilitary forces to crack down on the protesters.
Three people were killed.
Young people across the country inspired tens of thousands to take to the streets, demanding Ortega's removal.
They were met by more violence.
According to the Nicaraguan Pro-Human Rights Association, in the first four months of the uprising, almost 500 people have been killed.
(PEOPLE CHANTING IN SPANISH) (CHANTING CONTINUES) (SIRENS WAILING) (WOMAN SHOUTS) (MAN SHOUTING IN SPANISH) - (HORNS HONKING) - (MORTAR SHELLS EXPLODE) (SPEAKING SPANISH) (BOTH SPEAKING SPANISH) Are are you saying that - Are you saying the police are shooting at you? - Yeah! - (GUNFIRE) - It seems like a sniper's behind this wall.
Some protesters went in.
(INDISTINCT SHOUTING) There was also another kid who was shot and they were taken away by motorcycles.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: In the 1970s, the same Daniel Ortega was a young, socialist rebel and helped lead the Sandanista revolution, which toppled, then-US-backed dictator Anastasio Somoza.
But over the years, Ortega bought up media channels, took over all branches of the government, and even installed his wife as vice president.
And as this once revolutionary leader moves closer to autocratic rule, a new generation of young revolutionaries are aiming to remove Ortega from power.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) (WOMAN SHOUTING) (CROWD CHANTING IN SPANISH) VIKRAM: We went to the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua, where the students have taken over the campus in protest.
We're right now in the university UNAN.
The reason we're wearing bulletproof vests is that last night, there were snipers that killed two people.
And it actually looks a lot more like a military base.
The gate's completely barricaded, they've put out cobblestone walls that they've created.
And this is the entry point where the paramilitary were shooting at people.
One of the students gave us a tour of the occupied campus.
VIKRAM: What what is this area we're at right now? Some of the students sleep right there, like, in the rooms.
They cook outside, and they basically live here.
I work Monday through Friday - and after - And you do revolution - Friday through Sunday? - Yes.
You know, like, the term "weekend warrior," like, this is actually the real weekend warrior.
(MAN SPEAKING SPANISH) Was there was there shooting here yesterday? (SPEAKS SPANISH) - (GUNSHOTS) - (ALARM CLANGING) - (GUNSHOT) - VIKRAM: We just heard gunshots.
The paramilitary is actually shooting into the university.
They don't even have guns here.
They have homemade mortars.
And most of these guys are they couldn't be more than 17 or 18 years old.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: You can see these guys are running out.
There's sniper fire in the distance.
This is a homemade militia, fighting the paramilitary.
We're in a pretty open, exposed area right now, and the military's been shooting at these guys.
All right.
This is kind of a shitshow.
(WOMAN SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: Over there, there's some bishops there.
That's a good sign, because there's a symbol of peace in the middle of the war zone.
So normally, during university, all of these things, which are bars, would be full of students drinking, having fun.
And now the whole thing is shut down, because they're in the middle of a battle with the government.
This is like a shotgun but handmade, you know what I mean? - VIKRAM: Yeah.
- Uh, but this this is like a toy.
They are professionals, and this is bad for us because we are just college students.
What were you studying in university? Uh, tourism.
- Tourism.
- Yeah.
(WOMAN SPEAKING SPANISH) (MEN SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: Two of the students came with a truck last night.
They brought it down here to attack the paramilitary, but the paramilitary came, they grabbed them, took them out of their truck, and shot them over here.
And the woman behind me, her son, who's 17, was kidnapped by the government.
Paramilitary officers came while they were watching a movie on a laptop and kidnapped her son.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) Three months ago, did you think that something like this could happen here in Nicaragua? (SPEAKS SPANISH) (SOBBING) VIKRAM: We're standing outside El Chipote Prison, and all around me are the family members of people who have been detained for political action.
Since the government never gives any information about when people are released, they've been coming here every day, just waiting.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) (SPEAKING SPANISH) (WOMAN SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: Despite the detainments and killings in the stronghold of Monimbo, the protestors continue to fight, defending their barricades from police and paramilitary attacks.
We're walking towards Monimbo, which is the heart of the resistance.
And all around us, they've ripped the streets up to protect themselves from the police.
Monimbo is a stronghold of the revolution, just as it was 40 years ago for the Sandanista revolution.
You can see this statue over here.
It commemorates a Sandanista victory over the dictator Somoza.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) (MORTAR FIRES) So, this is one of those mortars that announces, uh, people coming.
They make it out of fences, and almost everybody seems to be making one of these.
This is what they're shooting out of the mortar.
At the bottom, there's gunpowder and the rest is filled with sand and gunpowder.
Then they light the fuse and they launch it in the air.
That just shot out some sand and some rocks, but none of these toys are gonna do anything against the police, the military, or the paramilitary.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) (SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: And in fact, he was right.
Days after our visit, police and paramilitary stormed Monimbo, killing at least 10 people in the operation.
And at least two protesters were killed when the paramilitary raided UNAN university, taking the school back from the students.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: With the crackdown escalating, an unprecedented number of Nicaraguans are fleeing the country, setting the stage for an immigration crisis.
We're standing outside the immigration office.
As you can see, there are hundreds of people here waiting on line.
All of these people are getting new passports in anticipation that they may have to leave the country.
(SPEAKING SPANISH) (SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: How have you been personally affected by what's gone on in the country in the last couple of months? (SPEAKING SPANISH) VIKRAM: Protest leaders have been forced into hiding.
Twenty-year-old Lesther Aleman, runs a social media campaign coordinating student protests across five universities from a secret location.
Where are we right now? And why are we here? (SPEAKING SPANISH) What is the biggest sacrifice that you're making right now? (SPEAKING SPANISH) (CROWD CHANTING) (LESTHER CONTINUES IN SPANISH)