Rantings of a deranged mind

socialismartnature:

Keegan O’Brien reports on the case of CeCe McDonald, an African American transgender woman who fought against her attacker—and was charged with murder.

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IMAGINE BEING outnumbered and brutally attacked. Now imagine facing most of the rest of your adult life in prison for the crime of protecting your life.

This is the living nightmare endured by CeCe McDonald, an African American transgender women who was charged with second-degree felony murder for defending herself against a hate crime.

After international pressure, an ongoing campaign of public protests and more than 15,000 petition signatures, on May 2, McDonald and her attorney were able to negotiate a plea agreement and get the charges against her reduced to second-degree manslaughter. McDonald is set to be sentenced to 42 months in prison on June 4, and her sentence will be reduced to one-third of that for good behavior.

McDonald’s case demonstrates the power and necessity of struggle in achieving justice for oppressed people, and the obscene racism and transphobia at the core of America’s criminal injustice system.