Today is Transgender Day of Remembrance, one of the few events to shine a spotlight on the most marginalized segment of the LGBT community.
The day is a somber one, meant to commemorate the people who have been killed in anti-transgender violence over the past year. It was created in memory of a transgender woman named Rita Hester, who was discovered dead in her San Francisco apartment in November 1998, stabbed in the chest 20 times. The murder is still unsolved.
In the past year, there have been 13 reported murders of gender non-conforming people in the U.S. and 117 around the world, according to Cyndi Richards, chair of Illinois Gender Advocates. A candlelight vigil last Saturday to commemorate the dead, held at New Spirit Community Church in Oak Park, drew about 120 people, Richards said.
(A list of other Remembrance Day events happening this weekend is at the bottom of this post.)
In a particularly horrific incident recently, the body of 19-year-old Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado was found decapitated, dismembered and partially burned in Puerto Rico last week. The suspect charged in the murder told authorities that he picked up Mercado, who was openly gay but not transgender, on the street because he thought he was a woman, according to Telemundo and other new reports.
Vigils honoring Mercado are happening around the country this weekend, including in Chicago, where people are expected to gather from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday at Division and California streets in Humboldt Park for a candlelight vigil and march.
Transgender individuals, whose mainstream acceptance lags far behind that of gays and lesbians, face great hardship. They're at high risk of poverty, homelessness, unemployment, hate violence, harassment and discrimination. Depression and suicide attempts are common. Some live double lives.
Richards, who was born male but identifies as a woman, said that while she wishes to live her life as a woman, she has to present as a man for job interviews to be taken seriously.
"I can do gallons of estrogen, but my voice will never get higher, my hands will never get smaller, and I will never get shorter," said the 6' 3" Richards. She said the transgender women who "look like Nick Nolte in a dress... are the bravest of all."
Amid the challenges, there have been some victories.
The Illinois Department of Vital Records has adjusted the requirements a person must meet to change the gender on his or her birth certificate, according to a press release this week from the American Civil Liberties Union, which sued the department on behalf of three people who wanted their birth certificates changed and were denied.
Vital Records for years required that an individual undergo sex reassignment surgery in order to change the gender on the original birth certificate, but the surgery had to be performed in the U.S. by a U.S.-licensed physician. Since the lawsuit, the agency has issued new birth certificates to two plaintiffs who had their surgeries done overseas. (Lots of trans people go to Thailand for their surgeries, Richards said, because the quality is good and price is lower).
The agency also issued a new birth certificate to a transgender man who did not undergo genital surgery (many transgender men decide not to because it's so complicated and costly, or they feel it's unncessary, Richards said). The department announced it would formulate new standards for determining how much surgery is required to document a gender change, the ACLU said.
"Hooray for our side!" said Richards, who said she had referred the two transgender women to the ACLU when they went to Illinois Gender Advocates for help.
If you want to take part in any of the events happening this weekend to mark Transgender Day of Remembrance, here are details of a few:
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What: Transgender Day of Remembrance at University of Illinois at Chicago
When: Friday, 12:30-2 p.m. for a vigil; 3-4 p.m., for a discussion
Where: Vigil: East Campus Quad, 750 S. Halsted St.; Discussion: Behavioral Science Building, 1007 W. Harrison St., Room 183
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What: Interfaith Commemoration Service in Honor of International Transgender Day of Remembrance
When: Friday, 10:30 a.m.
Where: Meadville Lombard Theological School's Curtis Room, 5701 S. Woodlawn Ave.
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What: University of Chicago vigil
When: Friday, 5:30 p.m.
Where: Bartlett Quad, 5600 S. University Ave.
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What: Night of Fallen Stars, a commemoration/celebration with transgender performers
When: Saturday, 5:30-7 p.m. (reception) and 7-9 p.m. (performances).
Where: Center on Halsted, 3656 N. Halsted St.
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