November is Transgender Awareness Month, a time to honor, celebrate, and advocate for our transgender and gender diverse community. Transgender Awareness Month culminates with the annual Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR). Each year on November 20, LGBTQIA+ people everywhere pause to remember and mourn the lives we’ve lost to transphobic violence. This tradition began here in Boston in 1998 in response to the murder of beloved community member Rita Hester in Allston. Now, 23 years later, the TDOR is observed around the world.
While there has been incredible progress made in recent years in the fight for transgender rights, recorded instances of transphobic violence and discrimination are higher now than at the time of Hester’s tragic death. People of color and, particularly, transgender women of color face a disproportionate rate of hate violence.
This year, we have created a series of infographics featuring statistics about the experiences of transgender and gender diverse people. Here are a few of them:
All 16 infographics are available on our Facebook page here. True change starts with knowledge. We encourage you to help spread awareness on trans issues by sharing these infographics across your social media platforms. We will be doing the same throughout all of November.
Transgender Awareness Month is also a time to gather in community, whether in person following COVID safety guidelines or virtually. The Cape Cod TDOR will be held virtually on Saturday, November 20 at 6:30 PM. Guest speakers including River Pehrson, Naomi Wright, and Violeta K. Haralampieva, Staff Attorney at PAIR PROJECT. Special performances will include El, Charlie Clark, and O’The Fool. Please RSVP here.