Transgender Day of Remembrance is a day of mixed emotions.
We set aside this time to remember, celebrate, and mourn the transgender individuals who have died this year. We get to remember their smiles, how they helped our community, and how they lived their lives as everyday people.
One of the hard parts of this day is also acknowledging that some of these trans lives were cut short by violence and suicide.
But it’s important to talk about.
We live in a society that does not value transgender lives the same as cisgender lives. Our struggles with acceptance, mental health, and domestic violence are often overlooked and ignored.
We also need to acknowledge that the intersections of identity (often race, (dis)ability, and class) can increase the discrimination and potential violence a trans person can face. TDoR takes special care to also acknowledge that Black, Latinx, and Indigenous trans women and femmes are often the people who are most targeted with violence.
It’s important to talk about this, so we make people aware.
And with awareness, we can build a better society where this doesn’t happen. We use Trans Day of Remembrance to mourn our trans siblings and to call on our cisgender allies in and outside the LGBTQA+ community. We ask that they participate, mourn, and learn with us.
Trans people can’t fight this fight alone. We need cis allies to stand up, speak up, and show up.
You may have also heard this day called Transgender Day of Resilience.
When we talk about resilience, we’re talking about celebrating the trans community for thriving in spite of these challenges. We’re talking about giving trans people, especially Black, Latinx, and Indigenous trans women and femmes, flowers while they’re here.
Take time today to catch your breath. Honor those we lost. And recommit yourself to the fight.
Click here to read the names of lives lost to violence. (TW/CW list includes known cause of death)