Trans Day of Remembrance
Illustration by Nine Like The Number
On this Trans Day of Remembrance, we want to honor the lives of transgender people that have been lost to acts of violence. Violence that stems from the HATE of those who do not affirm or understand gender expansiveness. Hate from those who feel like trans existence is a threat to science and morality. Hate from those who want to infringe on the human rights of trans people for political gain.
We honor the lives of transgender people that have been lost to acts of violence that have stemmed from LOVE. Nearly half of transgender women killed between 2015 and 2020 died at the hands of an intimate partner. Partners or clients who are ashamed of being trans-amorous and would rather see someone dead than have people know how they truly feel. What does this stem from?
We honor the lives of transgender people that were lost to acts of violence that have stemmed from FEAR, especially as it relates to trans youth. Having ONE affirming parent reduces suicide in trans youth by 70%! We all need to invest in our youth and lean into uncomfortable conversations around intersectionality.
Transgender people are not safe in the streets, in school, in night clubs, in hospitals or even in their own homes. This has to change now!
Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, ca. 1989-1990. The Rudy Grillo Collection, Rudy Grillo / LGBT Community Center Archive
Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera, ca. 1989-1990. The Rudy Grillo Collection, Rudy Grillo / LGBT Community Center Archive
Today we also painstakingly honor the lives lost of our LGBTQ+ siblings at Club Q in Colorado Springs. What they did to our community last night they will do to you tomorrow if we all don't stand up in the wake of what feels like a rollback on our rights and freedoms. The groundwork has already been laid, especially by resilient Black trans femmes who have unwittingly laid down their lives for the struggle. Today we honor them as well as mothers of the movement like Marsha P. Johnson and Sylvia Rivera.
Celebrate the living! Like Miss Major who is also a mother of the movement and a veteran of Stonewall. She has created her own blueprint for Black trans joy, family and legacy.
What would our community look like if we only needed a Trans Day of Visibility?
What have you done for a Black trans femme today?
What have you done for a trans youth today?
Change starts with each and every one of us. Remember the part that YOU play in transgender equity and the dismantling of white supremacist culture and patriarchy.
