It’s Trans* Day of Remembrance.
I know I’ve talked about designated ‘days’ for the past two posts (on International Men’s Day and World Toilet Day), and that’s not the theme of this blog, but this is an important one.
Every year, Trans Day of Remembrance (TDoR) remembers all trans* people who have died as a result of hate-crimes, and hate-based violence towards them. In case you need a lesson here, trans* individuals are all those who are not cis-gendered, that is, who do not identify with the ‘sex’ and the assumed gender they were assigned at birth. It’s Pronounced Metrosexual have produced a very helpful infographic to delineate most of the identities that are included in the umbrella term ‘trans*’:
If you haven’t heard the term ‘trans*’ before, you might want to ask yourself why. If you haven’t heard of TDoR before, you might want to ask why. Transphobic hate crimes have been on the rise in recent years, a pattern seen not only in the UK but across the pond too. 1700 trans* people have been known to have been killed since 2008. This does not consider the additional number in which the person’s trans* identity may have been unknown by those investigating the death, or by the dead person’s relatives. This does not include the number of trans* individuals who have committed suicide. Suicide rates in trans* people are much higher than in the general population. Well over half of all young trans* people have considered suicide, and approximately half have attempted it. Overall suicide rates are estimated to be anywhere from 30% to 50%.
This is devastating. Please communicate with others. Please be welcoming. Please be accepting. Please do some research. Raise awareness, share this most. More importantly, read posts and writing by trans* people, as whilst I am an ally, the thought that I might be overwriting someone else’s voice who has a more authentic experience than me is unacceptable.
A couple of years ago, transstudent produced this infographic, with some more horrifying figures for you. Please share it.
thoughtsandmisthoughts 
November 27, 2015 at 3:29 pm
I found it shocking that Trans Panic (and gay panic) is still a legal defence in the States. I believe only one state has banned it, I am not sure if it has ever worked, but the fact you can use it is disgraceful
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November 27, 2015 at 4:11 pm
Wow, thank you for your comment, I did not know that. It truly is disgraceful.
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November 27, 2015 at 4:14 pm
I cant remember where I found it out, but I know its when I was researching someone using being racist as a mental disease as a way to get away with murder (it failed) I think the last time Trans Panic was used in the States was 2010
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November 27, 2015 at 5:19 pm
Thank you for telling me. I will look into it. Whilst a lot has changed even in five years in terms of LGBTQ rights, this is still too recent not to be shocking.
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November 27, 2015 at 6:46 pm
most welcome, like I say it can still be used as a defence
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