T1866 when Frances Thompson, a formerly enslaved, disabled, Black trans woman, became a trailblazer in the fight to end sexual violence against women.hey also reportedly raped at least five women, including Thompson herself. One night, she and Lucy Smith, a 16-year-old girl in her care, were home in bed when seven white rioters broke into their dwelling. Two of the men wore uniforms with stars, which signified they were police officers. Thompson and Smith were targeted because they were believed to be affiliated with union soldiers. The men demanded that they get up and prepare a meal for them. The ladies complied, making the intruders biscuits, eggs, ham, and coffee. After they took in their fill, the terrorists expressed the desire to have sex with Thompson and Smith. When they refused their advances, the men brutally beat and raped them both before robbing them of their valuables.
 

In 1876, a decade after her testimony, rumors that she was assigned male at birth began circulating throughout the South. She was brought into custody and examined by four physicians, who declared her anatomically male. Conservative media used the story to discredit her testimony and accusations of rape, and even went so far as to say the Memphis Massacre was a political ruse. They dubbed Thompson a liar, used every racially inflammatory epithet to defame and dehumanize her, and accused her of being an agent of reconstruction propaganda.

She was also fined a $50 penalty, more than $800 today, for being a “cross-dressing man in women’s clothing,” because trans identity was billed as high fraud. Unable to pay the fine, and with no support from those who benefitted from her bold advocacy, she was sentenced to a men’s chain gang. Despite the fact she was on crutches and had been previously diagnosed with cancer of the foot, Thompson endured so much abuse that she had to be transferred to a medical facility, where she died of dysentery months later. Frances Thompson was a pioneer and a hero, and we should all know her name.