Monica Roberts, Founder of TransGriot and Trailblazing Trans Journalist, Has Died

According to a Houston-based news outlet, pioneering trans journalist Monica Roberts has passed away. Roberts is best known for her GLAAD award-winning blog TransGriot, which she started in 2006 as a platform to cover issues relevant to the trans community, specifically violence against trans people.

“I got tired of them being disrespected in death,” she once said, speaking about the misgendering of trans murder victims. Roberts began writing about trans issues years before more mainstream outlets, and her work appeared in a wide variety of publications over the years.

In an interview with Out last year, Roberts spoke about the significance of her work to the trans community:

“My blog is of vital importance, not just to me but to this entire community,” she adds. “I can’t tell you how many times I’ve run into some trans millennial who tells me that my blog inspired them to do this or inspired them to do that. At least five people have told me that reading my blog posts is what kept them from committing suicide. So every time I sit down and start writing a post, I keep that in mind — that what I’m writing may inspire someone who does not want to persevere.”