Transgender Day Remembrance

Press Release: 

Each year, on Nov. 20, people worldwide take time to remember those lost to anti-transgender violence. This year, GLOW OUT will host four ceremonies in all GLOW counties simultaneously. 

In a broad sense, the phrase “transgender” means anyone whose gender identity or expression is outside of the norms that society ascribes to the gender someone was assigned at birth. Some might take medication or have surgery to align their body with their gender, while others might not. 

In the US, transgender people are more likely to be bullied, become homeless, go to jail, or experience violence than their cisgender (non-trans) peers. For these reasons and others, transgender people are also more likely to consider or attempt suicide.

Genesee County’s remembrance ceremony will take place at Old Batavia Courthouse on Main & Ellicott streets; the Zion Episcopal Church in Avon will host Livingston County’s vigil; the ceremony in Orleans County will be at the Rotary Park on Main Street in Medina; and the event in Wyoming County will be held on the street corner of Main & Borden in Perry. All of the vigils will begin at 7 p.m.

First officially observed in 1999, the International Transgender Day of Remembrance is a day of mourning initiated by a group of US transwomen. It began with a memorial service for Rita Hester, a Black transwoman who was killed in her Boston apartment, a murder that remains unsolved. 

Annually, the remembrance ceremony is held in a somber acknowledgment of the friends and loved ones taken too soon because of anti-transgender violence. 

Anti-transgender violence happens nationwide, resulting in a troubling number of murdered trans people every year. As transphobia intersects with sexism and racism, a large proportion of victims (every single year) are trans women of color - specifically, Black and Latina. 

Overall, the number of those killed in the US has declined since 2021 (59, with 41 in 2022). As of this writing, at least 25 transgender Americans have been killed in 2023. Because the Remembrance period begins in November, those killed in the Club Q anti-transgender mass shooting in Colorado in November 2022 will be included in the list read at the vigils. This list is likely incomplete, because of the misreporting and underreporting of these crimes. Some have been disrespected in death by using their “dead name”, the name they were assigned at birth.

Since 2009, November 13-19 has been recognized as Trans Awareness Week. This observation creates the opportunity to uplift joys and successes for our trans loved ones as well. This week allows us to remind our transgender community that their lives are more than tragedy. 

After all, we cannot wait for someone to die to give them their flowers. We owe it to their memory and to our future to recognize the importance of supporting and celebrating our transgender loved ones, community members, and friends – remembering them in death, yes, and loving them while they are alive.

About a dozen people turned out Wednesday night for a local observance of Transgender Day of Remembrance.

The event is observed nationally every Nov. 20 but this is the first time a candlelight vigil has been held in Batavia.

Lauren Berger, who organized the event on behalf of Restore Sexual Assault Services, said the holding an event in Batavia was intended to raise awareness, remember transgender people who have been victims of violence, and support GLOW Out and the pride parade held in Batavia this past summer.

"We just wanted to bring that here so that folks come out, see what was going on, possibly get them connected with local efforts and let them know that even when we're out here and that we might be small, we're aware of what's going on," Berger said. "We support folks in our lives who we care about who might be at risk."