Transgender Day of Remembrance

[butch]

Are you honoring Transgender Day of Remembrance this year? This annual event happens around the world, and most of the events this year are on Friday. Alas, I should have posted this earlier, since some of the events have already passed. If you go to an event, could you post your experiences and thoughts here?

Check out the website below for more information.


http://www.transgenderdor.org/

[tankgirl]

Really? *curious*
What events inspired this day, you know? What people?
Who celebrates it, knowing what it is?
Any more info about this Transgender Day of Rememberance at all?

((just cause I've been around a bit doesn't mean I know everything yet....))



*too lazy to click and thinks a canned explanation would be nice*

[Teleute]

I very much appreciated this post, Butch, although I never quite had the motivation to respond here. I had heard about the TDOR before, but did not have a good sense of when it occurred. Thank you for sharing the info

Tankgirl, here's the list of people the TDOR is memorializing this year:

http://www.transgenderdor.org/?page_id=555

Note that this is only the list from 2008-2009; there are 393 people listed under "Statistics and other info" on the TDOR site. Here's the text from the "About TDOR" page:

About TDOR
By Ethan St.Pierre

The Transgender Day of Remembrance was set aside to memorialize those who were killed due to anti-transgender hatred or prejudice. The event is held in November to honor Rita Hester, whose murder on November 28th, 1998 kicked off the “Remembering Our Dead” web project and a San Francisco candlelight vigil in 1999. Rita Hester’s murder — like most anti-transgender murder cases — has yet to be solved.

Although not every person represented during the Day of Remembrance self-identified as transgender — that is, as a transsexual, crossdresser, or otherwise gender-variant — each was a victim of violence based on bias against transgender people.

We live in times more sensitive than ever to hatred based violence, especially since the events of September 11th. Yet even now, the deaths of those based on anti-transgender hatred or prejudice are largely ignored. Over the last decade, more than one person per month has died due to transgender-based hate or prejudice, regardless of any other factors in their lives. This trend shows no sign of abating.

The Transgender Day of Remembrance serves several purposes. It raises public awareness of hate crimes against transgender people, an action that current media doesn’t perform. Day of Remembrance publicly mourns and honors the lives of our brothers and sisters who might otherwise be forgotten. Through the vigil, we express love and respect for our people in the face of national indifference and hatred. Day of Remembrance reminds non-transgender people that we are their sons, daughters, parents, friends and lovers. Day of Remembrance gives our allies a chance to step forward with us and stand in vigil, memorializing those of us who’ve died by anti-transgender violence.

It's truly shocking how much anti-trans hatred there still is in the world. I had a sobering moment last night, actually - Cheekyjez and I were at a gay club in Seattle with some friends, and he was out with them on the dance floor. A moderately sleazy-looking guy who had been dancing with one of my friends came over and was talking to me, and after a while he said "I don't know about this place, it's too gay." I kind of rolled my eyes, because... what the hell did he expect at a gay club? But then he gestured toward a lovely trans woman at a nearby table and said "like this shit, how do you even know if that thing is a man or woman?" I told him I thought she was beautiful, and that he should stick to the bars in Pioneer square which were more his style... I wish I had told him to fuck off and die, but I was just kind of in shock at hearing that kind of hatred in A GAY CLUB. Ugh. Thankfully he gave me a weird look and left after I told him that, but I do wish I'd been more vicious with him.

[sammy1nz]

Nice reply Teluete. It's amazing the transphobic crap that emerges in places were one would think it was safe to be "gender-gifted". The barbs that trans people have to endure are endless. The best way, it seems, is to maintain decorum. It's very nice to have someone standing up and being counted.

I have a gorgeous BBW wife who is not at all aggressive. But the other day, as we left from a cafe, I saw her bend her head down and speak quietly to an old woman who was sitting with her friend. My wife was smiling, but the flash or her lovely white teeth near the wizened old ear made me realise it wasn't nice. Apparently, my wife said, they had it coming.

Being TG is like giving the whole world a stick to hit you with. Being trans makes the world a scary and dangerous place. But having people like you and my wife support us makes it all worthwhile.