This coming Thursday is Trans Day of Remembrance, with events and vigils in each city. Here are some of the Toronto events happening this month.
Trans Day of Remembrance @ the 519
Friday, November 28th
7:00pm to 9:00pmBuddies in Bad Times Theatre
12 Alexander Street.We take this opportunity to join together as trans people and allies to celebrate our communities’ ability to thrive even as we experience some tremendous wounds.
Please come and join us as we reflect on the tragic deaths of absent friends, and pay tribute to those people in our community who live every day with pride in a dangerous world.
For More Information: Yasmeen, 416·392·6878 x4004, transoutreach@the519.org
Trans Day of Remembrance @ U of T
Thursday, November 20, 2008
12 PM – 4 PM at Sidney Smith, 100 St. George St. (on the steps)
4 PM – 6 PM at The Centre for Women & Trans People, 563 Spadina Ave. Room 100Come out on Tuesday, November 20, 2008 outside Sidney Smith (St. George side) at noon for a remembrance service for trans people and those who have lost their lives in the face of discrimination from our society that rigidly defines sex and gender. Come listen to their stories of challenges and continuing struggles.
The Transgender Day of Remembrance was set aside to memorialize those who were killed due to anti-transgender hatred or prejudice. The event is held in November to honor Rita Hester, trans woman of color who was also a sex trade worker, whose murder in Boston on November 28th, 1998, kicked off the Remembering Our Dead web project and a San Francisco candlelight vigil in 1999. Rita Hester’s murder – like most anti-transgender murder cases – has yet to be solved.
The Transgender Day of Remembrance serves several purposes. It raises public awareness of hate crimes against transgender people, an action that current media doesn’t perform. Day of Remembrance publicly mourns and honors the lives of transgender people who might otherwise be forgotten. Through the vigil, we express love and respect in the face of national indifference and hatred. Day of Remembrance gives transgender people and their allies a chance to step forward and stand in vigil, memorializing those who have died by anti-transgender violence. Putting on the Day of Remembrance in schools can also be used as a way to educate students, teachers, and administrators about transgender issues, so we can try to prevent anti-transgender hatred and violence from continuing.
Trans Day of Remembrance @ Ryerson University
Venue: Room D, 3rd Floor of Oakham House, 63 Gould Street
City: Toronto
Starting: Thursday, November 20, 2008 (12:00 pm)
Ending: Thursday, November 20, 2008 (2:00 pm)
Cost: FreeRyerson Students’ Union, Women’s Centre, and RyePRIDE presents: Trans Day of Remembrance
Trans Day of Remembrance commemorates those who have died as a result of violent attacks caused by fear and hatred of transgendered and transsexual persons (“transphobia”).
Keynote speaker, Susan Gapka, Chair of Egale’s Trans Issues Committee, Join us in commemorating the many lost lives that transphobia has caused throughout history and let’s create steps for the future together.
When: November 20th, 2008 from 12-2pm
Where: Room D, 3rd Floor of Oakham House, 63 Gould StreetFor more information, please email womenscentre@rsuonline.ca or ryepride@rsuonline.ca
