Mexican-born Lorena Borjas has died in New York due to COVID19-related illness. She has been a staunch activist for the transLatinx sex worker community in NYC for the last 30 years. She started the Lorena Borjas Fund to bail folks out of jail, as well as Colectivo Intercultural TRANSgrediendo. Although the collective is not part of NSWP, I wanted to recognize her tremendous work for trans, migrant, and sex worker rights. There was a virtual memorial for her last night on Zoom with over 240 attendees. The community is devastated by the loss of their leader and mother.
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Queridos todos,
Solo quería compartir la terrible noticia de la muerte de Lorena Borjas, nacida en México, ayer en Nueva York debido a una enfermedad relacionada con COVID19. Ella ha sido una acérrima activista de la comunidad de trabajadoras sexuales transLatinx en Nueva York durante los últimos 30 años. Ella comenzó el Lorena Borjas Fund para sacar a la gente de la cárcel, así comoColectivo Intercultural TRANSgrediendo. Aunque el colectivo no es parte de NSWP, quería reconocer su tremendo trabajo por los derechos de las personas trans, migrantes y trabajadoras sexuales. Hubo un memorial virtual para su última noche en Zoom con más de 240 asistentes. La comunidad está devastada por la pérdida de su líder y su madre.
Here are some articles:
https://time.com/5813045/lorena-borjas-trans-activist-coronavirus/
https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2020/03/31/transgender-advocate-lorena-borjas-dies-from-coronavirus
https://www.democracynow.org/2020/3/31/headlines/beloved_nyc_transgender_advocate_lorena_borjas_dies_after_contracting_covid_19
https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/coronavirus/lorena-borjas-pioneering-transgender-latina-activist-in-nyc-dies-from-covid-19/2351601/?fbclid=IwAR1kHMGCkRznMTcHTTR62cPRAPUlkhBePYEUXTfU1lGBl3hX_L-3VtWOtac
This video was done before she died and is a nice bio of her life: https://qptv.org/content/queens-stories-story-lorena-borjas-transgender-latina-activist?fbclid=IwAR1kWS_PcW92MzcGOUZ80R-oYCHE19GK74JSeZZlr-5TTgzeWJ7pdm9-tUk
Love and solidarity,Heidi Hoefinger(she/her)