Maybe because their
names and faces get lost in the grim glut of crime reporting. Maybe because no one knew their story—or their secret. Maybe it’s because the Guardians at the gate want to protect our tender sensibilities. Maybe it’s because outside of “those people” no one
cares. Or maybe it’s because some see a kind of rough justice acted out on the streets and prefer to let it go on
as they used to whistle-by-the-graveyard-in-the-dark
at lynchings that kept Black folk in their place.
But someone must
remember these Transgender people murdered every year simply
because of who they are. According to transrespect.org
:
… a total of 369 cases of reported killings of
Trans and gender-diverse people between 1st of October 2017 and 30th of
September 2018, constituting an increase of 44 cases compared to last year’s
update and 74 cases compared to 2016. The majority of the murders occurred in
Brazil (167), Mexico (71), the United States (28), and Colombia (21), adding up
to a total of 2982 reported cases in 72 countries worldwide between 1st of
January 2008 and 30th of September 2018.
The actual numbers are
likely higher. There is no uniform reporting of crimes against
trans and gender-diverse people ranging
from those who have completed surgical
reassignment, those who identify with
a gender other than the one assigned at
birth, those who embrace gender
ambiguity, cross dressers, and drag performers who may be perceived as
trans regardless of their orientation.
Many police reports identify victims only by their genitals and, especially in urban,
crime plagued areas, most murders
not involving children, multiple victims, or white, or prominent
victims are not poorly covered by the press.
Levels of violence
have risen in the United States but there is antidotal evidence that the general rise of intolerance and hate crimes
fostered by Donald Trump, his Republican Party, and semi-hysterical right wing Evangelicals has
disproportionally affected those who are identified as Transgender, especially Blacks, Latinos, and other minorities
due to the double-whammy of the rise of White
Nationalism.
Haters
respond
to none-to-subtle cues from the Administration and Republican state legislators. For
example The
Trump administration tried to define transgender identity “out of
existence” and erase civil rights protections for LGBT people.
According
to a horrifying report from New York Times the Trump
administration tried to narrowly define gender
as a biological, immutable condition
determined by genitalia at birth.
The
Justice Department rescinded Obama era protections for Transgender
individuals in prison despite irrefutable evidence that placing
prisoners in general populations
based solely on birth genitalia is an open invitation
to assault, rape, and even murder—precisely
the outcome recently former Attorney General Jeff Sessions had in
mind.
Meanwhile those red state legislatures worked over-time on their own attacks
including ludicrous Bathroom Bills, removing
protections of trans students in schools, and blocking or stripping out
existing inclusion in hate crime laws.
Black Trans women are over represented by
percentage of the population among American
victims. Often tenuous and sometimes
strained relations between activists
in the Trans, Black, Gay, and feminist communities have sometimes
stood in the way of common action and
protest.
Perhaps ironically the
International Transgender Day of
Remembrance had its origin with
the murder of Rita Hester,
transgender African-American woman
murdered in Allston, Massachusetts on November 28, 1998
Like so many memorial days do, an outpouring of community grief and anger led to a candlelight vigil held the following Friday, December 4 with 250
people in attendance.
That vigil inspired
the Remembering Our Dead web project
and the International Transgender Day of Remembrance. Gwendolyn
Ann Smith, a transgender graphic
designer, columnist, and activist helped organize the first public vigil in
honor of all victims the next year in San
Francisco in November of 1999.
Since then, the
observation has spread across the world. By 2010, the occasion, now held
annually on November 20, was observed in over 185 cities in more than 20
countries. Many more are observed every
year although the raging Coronavirus
pandemic will limit public gatherings and memorial many of which will move on-line.
Many local, national,
and international organizations now participate in and promote the Day of
Remembrance. I am proud to say that the Unitarian Universalist Association has
played a leading role. Many UUA congregations include some part of
their services this time of the year to the memorial. And this year the UUA and its signature Side With Love campaign will host a Transgender
Day of Remembrance Chapel Service
featuring Jaelynn Scott and Rev. Mykal Slack today, November 20
from 1 to 2 pm Central Standard Time (CST.)
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