A bus with a transphobic message painted on it visited Boston this week, and the mayor responded by raising the transgender flag outside City Hall.
The bus, a project of the National Organization for Marriage (NOM) and Spanish organization CitizenGo, reads:
Boys are boys… and always will be.
Girls are girls… and always will be.
You can’t change sex. Respect all.
The bus started its tour of the East Coast in Manhattan last week outside the United Nations headquarters. Yesterday, it rolled into Boston where protestors met it.
“Free speech bus. Hate speech bus.” pic.twitter.com/lFdUMnJW9b
— Abbi Matheson (@AbbiMatheson) March 30, 2017
Boston mayor Marty Walsh spoke in support of transgender rights at City Hall.
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Boston stands with transgender community. pic.twitter.com/kTXYWcRlzr
— Abbi Matheson (@AbbiMatheson) March 30, 2017
After the mayor’s speech, the transgender flag was raised.
“Now go back to work.” @marty_walsh pic.twitter.com/DAAIaJPWCp
— Abbi Matheson (@AbbiMatheson) March 30, 2017
The bus got spray-painted with the words “trans liberation” in New York City, and at some point yesterday it got vandalized in Boston with the words “#HATE SPEECH.”
I gotta sign off and work but please keep making fun of the Party Bus of Precious Boys for me #FreeSpeechBus pic.twitter.com/S0QP3OUIZs
— Faine Greenwood (@faineg) March 30, 2017
Freedom Massachusetts, a transgender organization, released a statement about the bus.
As members of the transgender community ourselves, it’s downright frightening to see this bus invade our home community with lies attacking and undermining our basic humanity. This bus is the embodiment of the kind of harassment and discrimination that study after study documents our community combats on a daily basis. We are thankful to Boston Mayor Walsh for raising the transgender flag today on City Hall Plaza to remind us that Boston is a fair and welcoming city and to all the first responders who are keeping all of us safe during this toxic invasion of our city and state.
