Ruby Corado

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Ruby Corado
Ruby Corado, CASA Ruby (48273340127) (cropped).jpg
Born1970 (age 51–52)
San Salvador, El Salvador
OccupationActivist

Ruby Corado (born in San Salvador, El Salvador) is an activist who founded , a bilingual, multicultural LGBT organization in Washington, D.C.[1] Casa Ruby opened in 2012; it identifies its mission as "to create success life stories among Transgender, Gender Queer, and Gender Non-conforming Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual people."[2][3]

Early life[]

Corado immigrated to America at age sixteen to escape the civil war in El Salvador.[4] She settled in Washington D.C. on her own. As a member of the LGBT community as well as a young immigrant, Corado found it challenging to settle in her newfound community.[5] Her difficult arrival and settlement also led her to discover how few resources were offered for the LGBT community within Washington D.C. This was one of her first motivators to be a part of creating a welcoming community for transgender people and other members of the LGBT community.[5]

Though she first came out as a gay man, the label never felt comfortable for Corado. Eventually, she would come to terms with her identity as a transgender woman. After coming out as gay in her teens, Corado faced bullying from others for appearing to be a feminine male. In one incident, she was tormented in her school’s bathroom by boys her age who followed and attacked her for being a “feminine boy.” At home, she was ostracized by her own family. This experience motivated her later LGBT advocacy.

Due to setbacks because of her identity as a transgender woman – including homelessness, job firings, and physical violence – Corado did not begin transitioning until the 1990s, when she felt safe enough to transition and had been living in what she had considered a well-rounded neighborhood.[4] In 1995, the death of Tyra Hunter, a transgender woman who died of injuries sustained in a car accident after EMS personnel refused to treat her, motivated Corado to become involved in LGBT advocacy.[6] She started volunteering at Whitman-Walker Health, a health center focused on HIV/AIDS care for LGBT patients. A few years later, once she made the transition from male to female, she won a pageant, Miss Gay El Salvador, which came with an expectation of community service.

At one point, Corado worked as a sex worker to meet men without having to tell them that she was a transgender woman. She worked for an agency which would sell each encounter for $300, though this agency would take most of the profits she earned from her work as an escort. In 2008, her boyfriend at the time broke into Corado's house and raped her, leading to emotional trauma. Despite reporting the attack, police did not investigate or prosecute the culprit. In the same year, there was another fight between Corado and her then boyfriend that led to spending a night in jail. Corado was incarcerated with men rather than with women, despite her identifying as a woman. She was forced to strip in front of the other men in the jail’s housing unit for men, and had to use the bathroom in front of the men in her cell.

As a result, Corado left her day job and began heavily taking drugs, leading to becoming homeless. Corado struggled with suicidal thoughts while continuing her career as an activist. Corado sought help at a mental hospital around 2011.

Career[]

Transgender advocacy[]

Corado became widely known after the August 16, 2003, murder of Bella Evangelista, a 25 year old transgender Latina killed during a month that included the murder of another transgender woman in Washington, DC.[7] Corado helped organize daily vigils and a march to demand an end to the violence and recognition of human rights of transgender people.[8] Corado was part of the Coalition to Clarify the D.C. Human Rights Act (later renamed the D.C. Trans Coalition), which changed the D.C. Human Rights Act to include protections for gender identity or expression, a change that took effect in March 2006.[9][10]

Corado is a bilingual motivational speaker and sensitivity trainer who speaks about social justice issues pertaining to transgender people, gender-nonconforming individuals, and the rest of the LGBT community. She does motivational speaking and sensitivity training in both English and Spanish to educate members of the LGBTQ+ community who do not speak or understand English well.[11]

Creation of Casa Ruby[]

After enduring being a victim of the human sex trafficking industry, mistreatment from being transgender, homelessness, battles to change her gender on her identification card, an almost-fatal domestic violence, and a lack of support and resources for the LGBT community in Washington, D.C., Corado set out to create a space to support transgender people, and prevent hate crimes from happening to other transgender people as well as others within the LGBTQ+ community. Corado sought to create a movement led by people society deemed disposable.[12]

In June 2012, with the help of her friends and her community, Corado founded Casa Ruby, a bilingual LGBTQ+ center that helps house, treat, and support mostly LGBTQ youth.[11] The first building occupied three floors of a house in Park View on Georgia Avenue NW. The organization moved to Shepherd Park in 2018.[13]

While the center primarily aimed to serve the Latina-trans community, people of races and gender variants of the LGBTQ community have relied on Casa Ruby.[13][14] As of 2020, there were multiple establishments with approximately 50 employees and an outreach that affects the lives of over 6,000 people annually.[11] Casa Ruby provides services to marginalized groups who, due to language or immigration status, may not know what resources are available to them. Casa Ruby also provides services for violence, poverty, HIV risk and testing, as well as discrimination, with the goal of reducing exclusion, discrimination, and discouragement for being openly LGBTQ. Casa Ruby provides employment services, crisis intervention, support groups, English language lessons, and immigration services.[11] Another service that they offer a 24 hour drop-in/respite service to those who are either abandoned, homeless, or are in a need of a place to stay.[11]

Their housing placement program spans far beyond their 24-hour shelter policy as well. Ruby has organized multiple housing programs that span from 24-hour open housing services that are open during weather emergencies to prevent hypothermia and other weather-related injuries to the homeless community. Casa Ruby provides short term living placement which offers short term consistent housing services for three to six months at a time. This program is for 18 to 24-year-olds and is created to help people transition into permanent living situations. The transitional living program offers stable housing and support for up to 18 months, to help clients find educational and foundational backing before they pursue independent living.[11]

The “Support Services for Victims of Violence” program provides one-on-one counseling and aid to any victims that have suffered from physical, mental, or emotional abuse. Casa Ruby also offers Social Services which can connect people with Social Workers to help them attain government-issued identification and many other legal acquisitions.[11]

Corado often refers to residents as sons and daughters to emphasize the idea of a chosen family. She emphasizes the idea of a chosen family to make up for the fact that some families can be unaccepting.

Later work[]

Currently, Corado's work has the most presence in regards to the Trump Administration. In particular, she has spoken out against the administrations consideration to define one's gender based on the genitalia that individual was born with. In response, Corado would talk about the issue at hand to the media and generally anyone who would hear her. She would also be a part of a crowd holding signs along the lines of : Enough we will not be erased. She’s aware of the seriousness of the issue and strives to continue to bring awareness to the issue because it is one that is so important. Despite the hardship she has to overcome, she seems enthusiastic about the work recognizing that it has brought people together and emphasized the support that is present for the transgender community.[15]

In this particular case like many others, Corado uses her identity as a transgender woman, as well as her cultural and bilingual background to reassure others that everything will be okay despite the hardships they have to face. She uses herself as an example to highlight that transgender people can live successful lives, as well as dedicating her own life to the betterment of other transgender youths to help them lead their own successful future. Ruby is also still an active participant in Casa Ruby which is continuing to grow in size and client base. There are now currently fifty employees and the program reaches about six thousand clients annually.

Personal life[]

Corado married David Walker in 2014, and was walked down the aisle by D.C. mayor Vincent C. Gray.[16]

Awards and recognition[]

Corado's awards include: The Capital Pride Heroes 2005 by Metro Weekly, Trans America 2006, Latino LGBT History Project Heroes Exhibit 2007, 25 Most Influential Latino LGBT activists by Latino Voice 2009, Stein Democrats Heil-Balin Community Service Award 2011, Capital Pride Engendered Spirit Awards 2011, Gay And Lesbians Activists Alliance GLLA Distinguished Service Award 2012, The Activist Of The Year By the African American Prism Awards 2012, Ten LGBTQ Latin@s That Make us Proud By XQSi Magazine 2012, The DC Center Community Center Service Award 2013, and Gays And Lesbians Opposing Violence Community Service Award 2013.[17]

References[]

  1. ^ "Ruby Corado focuses on student engagement in Allied in Greek keynote address - Newsroom". Blogs.gwhatchet.com. 2015-02-19. Retrieved 2015-04-23.
  2. ^ "Casa Ruby Marks Second Anniversary – Metro Weekly". Metroweekly.com. 2014-05-23. Retrieved 2015-04-23.
  3. ^ "Mision". Casaruby.org. Retrieved 2015-04-23.
  4. ^ a b Sanchez, Erika L. (2013-05-30). "Transgender Latina creates safe haven for multicultural LGBT community". NBC Latino. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  5. ^ a b Artavia, David (2016-08-07). "Ruby Corado is #29 of Our Most Amazing HIV-Positive People of 2016". www.hivplusmag.com. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  6. ^ Rogers, Jenny (2013-06-05). "Ruby Can't Fail: How Ruby Corado Became One of D.C.'s Most Important Trans Activists". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  7. ^ Fahrenthold, David A. (August 22, 2003). "Transgender Community Alarmed by D.C. Shootings". Washington Post. Retrieved Jan 22, 2019.
  8. ^ Musuta, Selina (August 20, 2013). "Daily Vigils for Murdered Transgender Woman". Free Speech Radio News. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  9. ^ Greenspan, Deb (June 5, 2015). "Defy and Demand: A timeline of the transgender community's hard-fought victories in D.C." Washington City Paper. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  10. ^ "Trans-American – Metro Weekly". Metroweekly.com. 2006-03-29. Retrieved 2015-04-23.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g "Our Services". Casa Ruby. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  12. ^ TEDx Talks (2018-05-22). "Creating Casa Ruby -- a safe haven for DC's LGBTQ+ youth". YouTube.com. Retrieved 2020-02-23.
  13. ^ a b Vargas, Theresa (August 19, 2016). "A transgender force: 'The only thing that kept me alive was doing this work'". Washington Post. Retrieved January 22, 2019.
  14. ^ "The Work". Casa Ruby. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  15. ^ Vargas, Theresa; race (2018-10-24). "Trump may try to erase her identity, but nothing yet has destroyed Ruby Corado". Washington Post. Retrieved 2020-02-24.
  16. ^ "Vincent Gray walks Ruby Corado down the aisle at wedding". Washingtonblade.com. 2014-10-20. Retrieved 2015-04-23.
  17. ^ "who is ruby". Casaruby.org. Retrieved 2015-04-23.

External links[]

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