A project focusing on the needs of transgender women will host a job fair for all transgender individuals at the Magic City Acceptance Center in Birmingham next month.

At least eight employers, from banks to life insurance companies to cellular retailers, will be accepting applications and conducting on-site interviews during the event. Project Recruiter Destiny Clark said three volunteers will be helping job seekers build their resumes during the job fair.

T-HEAL, a Birmingham Aids Outreach project that stands for Transgender Help, Empowerment Affirmation and Learning, will host the event on August 6 from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m.

The event is only open to trans people and Clark, who is a transwoman, was clear about why.

"This is Alabama. We can easily be fired before any other person," Clark said.

Clark said T-HEAL is responding to a need in the community. While federal law protects workers from discrimination based on a person's national origin, race, color, religion, disability and sex, Alabama doesn't have a statewide law that extends those protections to the LGBTQ community.

Clark said trans individuals face unemployment due to discrimination. When they are employed, they are harassed, teased or threatened because of their identity.

Clark, who is also the president of Central Alabama Pride, has heard multiple stories concerning discrimination in Alabama. One of the most recent stories involved a trans woman who was offered a day shift position as a front end manager at a store. While the manager who hired the trans woman was supportive of her gender identity, Clark said things changed when upper management found out their new hire was a transgender woman. Clark did not name the store.

"When the upper management found out, they rescinded the original job offer from front end manager to an overnight stocker - when their business is closed and their clientele will not see her," Clark said. "It was kind of an insult. Your credentials are great but when upper management finds out, it's as if you're credentials don't matter."

When Clark started her transitioning journey, she said she had a boss who called her by her preferred pronouns and worked in a harassment-free environment. She wants to make sure all trans people have the same experience, no matter their race. Transgender people of color are three times as likely as the general U.S. population to be living in poverty, according to a national survey conducted by The Williams Institute, UCLA Law School and the LGBTQ Poverty Collaborative.

"I have white privilege and that's something my trans sisters of color don't have," Clark said. "Because I am white, it is easier for me but they have to work harder and they have to prove themselves more. Which is really horrible because they are qualified."

Clark says T-HEAL has space for four more businesses who can provide safe and secure work environments for trans people. If your business would like to participate, please email Clark at destiny@birminghamaidsoutreach.org.