- The history of New York's Meatpacking District told from the point of view of transgender sex workers who lived and worked there. They recount the violence, policing, and gentrification that lead to a movement for transgender rights.
- The history of New York's Meatpacking District told from the point of view of transgender sex workers who lived and worked there. Filmmaker Kristen Lovell, who walked "the stroll," reunites her sisters to recount the violence, policing, and gentrification that lead to a movement for transgender rights.
- When Director Kristen Lovell moved to New York City in the 1990s and began to transition, she was fired from her job. Like most transgender women of color from the era, she began sex working in the Meatpacking District neighborhood in lower Manhattan to survive. Trans women congregated in the area called "The Stroll" and forged a deep camaraderie to protect each other from harassment and violence. In THE STROLL, Kristen has reunited her sisters to tell this essential New York story, from the point of view of the trans sex workers who lived it.
Kristen's intimate narration and interviews bring an astonishing array of archival material of bygone New York from the 1970s through the early 2000s to life. As much as THE STROLL is a film about transgender life, it is also a startling account of gentrification. When Giuliani became New York's mayor, his so-called "quality of life" initiatives ramped up policing in the city, and wealthy neighborhood activists became emboldened to push trans women out of the Meatpacking District. But when one of the girls from The Stroll, Amanda Milan, was murdered, trans activist legend Sylvia Rivera (who, with Marsha P. Johnson, founded STAR - Street Transvestite Action Revolutionaries) helped lead the community to band together to demand their rights. Building bridges across generations of trans sex workers, a civil rights movement was born.
After September 11th, the fabric of the city was transformed. Kristen and her sisters didn't know how they were going to survive, as they faced homelessness and increased policing. To revive the city's economy, the newly elected billionaire mayor Mike Bloomberg shepherded luxury development and initiated a "three strikes and you're out" law that expanded incarceration. The city cleaned up the neighborhood by locking up the girls of The Stroll.
Despite the forces that threatened their survival, Kristen and her sisters fought back. They may no longer have The Stroll, but they are at the center of a movement to protect their rights. Activists recently reversed legislation dubbed "Walking While Trans," which enabled police profiling of sex workers for decades. In this new era of visibility, Kristen and her community remind us that trans women of color and sex workers paved the way, and through their resilience and sisterhood, they will continue to thrive.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content