Article published on November 20, 2013.
Every November 20th, the trans community comes together to honor the memory of deceased trans people.
Since 1998 this date has been called Trans Remembrance Day, in English Transgender Day of Remembrance or TDoR, since it is It is in the United States that this day of homage was born.
In France, several associations organize marches and demonstrations.
“It’s time to pay homage to forgotten trans people”Jill-Maud Royer, of the transfeminist collective Tous des femmes, explains to Madmoizelle.
“These are deaths that society cares little about, deaths that are almost accepted by society as a matter of course. »
The origin of TDoR
It is the assassination ofa trans woman who is at the origin of this commemoration : Rita Hester, black woman and figure in the trans community of Boston, 34 years old, killed in her home with multiple stab wounds on November 28, 1998.
To this day, the investigation into his murder has never been solved and the killer has never been found.
Although it dates back several decades, the case is revealing the media’s contempt for trans people, egeneral indifference towards transphobic violence. The name Rita Hester remains little known, even within the trans community.
That’s why every year, around the world, trans people and those who support them, I would like to pay tribute to the victims of transphobia.
A tribute to the victims of transphobic murders, but also to the victims of transphobia in our societyas Jill-Maud Royer explains:
“There is an excessive prevalence of suicides among trans people – as in the rest of the LGBTI community – which is due to transphobia, and which translates into the breakdown of family ties, which leads to insecurity, which also results from discrimination on the employment, discrimination in housing. There’s also isolation, because trans people are very isolated.
Not all trans people who die are killed, but the violence is regular and leaves trauma. »
Transphobia on a global scale
Again, it is a mortal year that ends.
Every year, before the TDoR, the Trans Murder Monitoring project led by the organization Transgender Europe, publishes its report on transphobic hate crimes around the world: In 2021, 375 trans people were killedwith an overwhelming majority of trans women among the victims, 96%.
Among trans communities, some groups are particularly vulnerable to violence; the report proves it 58% of those killed were engaged in sex work AND 43% of trans people killed in Europe were migrants.
In France, three trans women have been killed this year : Paula, Ambra and Ivanna. Since 2008, twelve trans people have been killed in France, according to the TMM project report.
One country holds the sad record of the highest number of transphobic murders: Brazil, which is the only one to concentrate them a third of the murders of trans people recorded in the world.
Terrible numbers but which show only part of reality : “Most of the data is collected in countries that have an established network of trans and LGBTQI organizations conducting this monitoring”TMM specification.
“In most countries, data is not collected systematically. Most cases continue to go unreported, and when they are, they receive very little attention. »
During this TDoR 2021, trans people will gather across France. “Death is very present in transactivism”regrets Jill-Maud Royer. “Given the nature of this mobilization, we can hope that actions will be taken so that this day will one day disappear”
In Paris, a commemorative and protest march led by the Act Up-Paris association will begin at 2.30pm at Gare du Nord. A meeting organized by the Acceptess T association will be held at the Town Hall, Place Saint Gervais, at 6pm.
Demonstrations by the feminist organization Nous Tous against sexist and sexual violence will be held on the same datesomething that has not failed to worry the trans community.
Together with Madmoizelle, Nous Tous affirmed its commitment not to tolerate transphobic comments or slogans in the procession and will invite at the end of the demonstration to join the demonstration organized by the Acceptess T association.
Photo credit: Petar Milošević, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
