City Council recognizes Transgender Day of Remembrance

Transgender Day of Remembrance began in 1999 as a vigil to commemorate Rita Hester, a transgender woman and activist killed in 1998. Transgender Day of Remembrance is an annual observance to honor the memories of transgender people and gender non-conforming individuals lost to acts of anti-transgender violence, as well as to raise awareness about the pervasive discrimination, harassment, and disenfranchisement of transgender individuals.



The 2014 Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and HIV-affected Hate Violence Report from the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Projects shows that, of the victims murdered, 80 percent were people of color, 55 percent were transgender women, and 50 percent were transgender women of color.



Studies from the National Center for Transgender Equality (NCTE) and the National LGBTQ Task Force document report that transgender and gender non-conforming individuals face greater systemic discrimination and harassment in education, employment, housing and public accommodations.



Transgender Day of Remembrance is a time to raise public awareness, combat stigma, and highlight the countless contributions of our transgender and gender non-conforming community.