Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR)
Annually on November 20 we mark Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR), which honors the memory of transgender people whose lives were lost and cut short due to transphobia and in acts of anti-transgender violence.
TDOR was founded in 1999 by trans activist Gwendolyn Ann Smith to honor the memory of Rita Hester, a Black transgender woman who was murdered in Boston, in 1998. More than two decades later, her case remains unsolved.
Discussing the roots of TDOR, founder Gwendolyn Ann Smith said: “Transgender Day of Remembrance seeks to highlight the losses we face due to anti-transgender bigotry and violence. I am no stranger to the need to fight for our rights, and the right to simply exist is first and foremost.”
“With so many seeking to erase transgender people — sometimes in the most brutal ways possible — it is vitally important that those we lose are remembered, and that we continue to fight for justice.”
In 2022, at least 32 transgender and gender-nonconforming people have been killed in the U.S. since the start of the year, according to the latest report from Human Rights Campaign (HRC).
The LGBTQ advocacy group tracks deadly violence targeting transgender and gender non-conforming people in the U.S. and shares its figures annually.
The latest figured, issued Wednesday (November 16), during Trans Awareness Week, once again stresses the importance of “at least” ahead of any numbers – because often these stories go unreported, or misreported. Families of the deceased may register their death under the name and gender assigned at birth, being one example.
In 2022, trans people of color comprised 81% of the victims killed, and 59% were Black, according to the report.
Their names are: Tiffany Banks, Semaj Billingslea, Acey Morrison, Mya Allen, Dede Ricks, Maddie Hofmann, Aaron Lynch, Kandii Reed, Hayden Davis, Marisela Castro Cherry Bush, Keshia Chanel Geter, Martasia Richmond, Kitty Monroe, Shawmaynè Giselle Marie, Brazil Johnson, Chanelika Y’Ella Dior Hemingway, Nedra Sequence Morris, Ray Muscat, Fern Feather, Ariyanna Mitchell, Miia Love Parker, Kenyatta “Kesha” Webster, Kathryn “Katie” Newhouse, Tatiana Labelle, Paloma Vazquez, Matthew Angelo Spampinato, Naomie Skinner, Cypress Ramos, Duval Princess and Amariey Lej.
Those are the U.S. names we know, but TDOR is marked around the world.
Today on #TDoR, we say the names of the 14 trans people whose lives were violently cut short in the last 12 months in Europe. Worldwide 327 trans people were murdered last year. We remember these precious lives who loved and were loved, and had hopes & dreams, just like all of us pic.twitter.com/LiPCZVKZNf
— ILGA-Europe (@ILGAEurope) November 20, 2022
