Last week, a former Chicago police officer was sentenced to one year in prison after sexually assaulting a transgender sex worker. Not only is this a heinous violent crime, but it was done against one of the most marginalized communities in Chicago. One could look at this case from multiple angles. One could look at the fact that this abuse of power only landed him a year in prison despite the lifelong trauma he caused.
Tarnished Profession
One could also look at the fact that he just tarnished police-community relations even further because of his disgusting crime. However, what sticks out the most is that this cop did this to a Trans sex worker because he knew they are an under-protected class. He knew there would be fewer consequences for the abuse of trans women and he took advantage of that.
Dark Crime
The crime itself happened on the west side of Chicago. The 65-year-old highly decorated police officer saw the woman as she walked by the cop car and stopped her. He then told her to get in the car and threatened her. He locked the car and then exposed himself.
She refused, and he threatened her again then proceeded to sexually assault the woman. She spat the semen into a bottle and her friend brought her to a hospital. Her name is Tyshee Featherstone. The crime happened in 2019 and he will only receive a year in prison.
Trans Violence
Trans women, and trans people in general are an under-protected class in America. They face the threat of severe violence, are generally looked down upon, and are disrespected on a daily basis. “Transgender people (16+) are victimized over four times more often than cisgender people. In 2017-2018, transgender people experienced 86.2 victimizations per 1,000 people compared to 21.7 victimizations per 1,000 people for cisgender people.” according to the Williams Institute.
Transgender people experience copious amounts of violence as a community. The reason why is because they are an under-protected class. For example, women in general face high amounts of hate crimes because they too are an under-protected class. James Sajdak was a man of power, and he used that power to exploit one of the most marginalized communities in Chicago. He inflicted harm and took advantage of her unprotected marginalized status and he sexually assaulted Tyshee Featherstone.
Written by Kenneth Mazerat
Sources
CBSNews: Former CPD officer sentenced to 1 year in prison for sexually assaulting transgender woman by Todd Feurer
ChicagoSunTimes: Former Chicago cop charged in kidnap, sex abuse case by Jon Seidel
Flores, A. R., Meyer, I. H., Langton, L., & Herman, J. L. (2021). Gender identity disparities in criminal victimization: National crime victimization survey, 2017–2018. American Journal of Public Health, 111(4), 726–729.
Featured and Top Image Courtesy of Office of Public Affairs’ Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
First Inset Image Courtesy of Thomas_H_foto’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
