REMEMBERED, MOURNED, AND HONORED

Hollaback! Baltimore is deeply concerned about the street harassment the LGBTQ community faces and this time of year we’d like to shine a spotlight on the harassment of our local transgender community. The month of November is a special month to remember the lives we have lost due to this gender based violence/trans* hate.  It is unfortunate that these individuals have lost their life because of their gender identity. We are involved with the local Transgender Response Team which organizes the annual Transgender Day of Remembrance, this year being held at First Unitarian Church November 20th at 6:30pm. We pledge to continue to fight harassment in our cities and work to make the cities we live in safer for members of the LGBTQ community. We hope you’ll join us.

The TDOR 2012 update has revealed a total of 265 cases of reported killings of trans people from November 15th 2011 to November 14th 2012:

The 14th International Transgender Day of Remembrance is being held on November 20th 2012: Since1999, the Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR), on which those trans people who have been victims of homicide are remembered, takes place every November. The TDOR raises public awareness of hate crimes against trans* people, provides a space for public mourning and honors the lives of those trans*people who might otherwise be forgotten. Started in the USA, the TDOR is now held in many parts of the world. In the past, the TDOR took place in more than 180 cities in more than 20 countries in North America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania. Sadly, this year 265 trans* persons have been added to the list to be remembered, mourned and honored according to the results of Transgender Europe’s Trans Murder Monitoring project.

In comparison to the TDOR updates of the last few years (162 reports 2009, 179 reports in 2010, 221 reports in 2011), we are witnessing a significant increase, which points to the extreme level of violence many trans people continue to be exposed to.

The update shows reports of murdered or killed trans people in 29 countries in the last 12 months, with the majority from Brazil (126), Mexico (48), and the USA (15), followed by Venezuela (9), Honduras (8),Colombia (6), Uruguay (6) and Guatemala (5). In Asia most reported cases have been found in India (6),Pakistan (5) and the Philippines (4), and in Europe in Turkey (5).  Of course we assume that the violence is actually under-reported due to the lack of identity recognition from the families of trans and gender-queer folks. (Some victims might be buried under their name and gender assigned at birth, instead of their chosen name and actual gender)

IN TOTAL, THE PRELIMINARY RESULTS SHOW 1083 REPORTS OF MURDERED TRANS PEOPLE IN 51 COUNTRIES SINCE JANUARY 2008.

Sources: Hollaback! RVA and http://www.transrespect-transphobia.org/en_US/home.htm

UPDATE 11/20/12: Here is footage from yesterday’s Mayoral Press Conference observing Transgender Day of Remembrance.

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