Transgender rights activists and their allies gathered at Wright House of Fashion in Iowa City on Thursday, March 14, for a news conference following the acquittal of Tara McGovern on charges stemming from an Oct. 16 protest at the Iowa Memorial Union.
McGovern was one of seven protesters arrested by the University of Iowa Police Department more than a month after the protests on charges of Disorderly Conduct and Interference with Official Acts. Johnson County Attorney Rachel Zimmerann-Smith eventually offered plea deals to the seven – in exchange for pleading guilty to the lesser charge, the more serious one would be dropped. McGovern was the only one to reject the deal and take the risk of going to trial. McGovern is clear that they support the decision of their protesters to take the deal, but felt it was important to take their case to a jury to defend the right to peacefully protest.
It took the jury less than four hours to return not guilty verdicts on both charges.
On Thursday night, McGovern and other members of the JoCo7, as they have been dubbed, spoke about feeling harassed and targeted by law enforcement, specifically the UIPD and the Johnson County Attorney’s Office, because they are transgender. Out of the approximately 200 people who protested at the IMU, only seven were arrested. All seven identify as transgender.
Speakers also talked about their experiences after being booked into the Johnson County jail following their arrest, describing treatment that violated the guidelines established for the jail. They also discussed the stress and anxiety caused by living and working in a state where anti-transgender policies and politics are embraced by the governor and leaders of the legislature.
The news conference focused on the next steps going forward after McGovern’s acquittal. The activists have drafted a set of demands.
The first one calls for abolishing the UIPD. They acknowledge this is unlikely, since the department is locally-controlled but instead answers to the Iowa Board of Regents, but shared stories of abusive behavior by UIPD officers, especially in how they treat trans and other social justice activists.
Other demands involve pushing Iowa City and Johnson County officials to resist transgender policies created at the state-level, and assist transgender individuals who feel unsafe elsewhere in Iowa to relocate to Johnson County.
They also talked about the importance of mobilizing as voters to hold elected officials like Rachel Zimmermann-Smith accountable.
An important first step, the speakers agreed, is transgender resident is to speak out publicly and make sure their voice is heard.
