What to know about Transgender Day of Remembrance and violence against trans people

Andrew DeMillo
| Associated Press

Wednesday is Transgender Day of Remembrance, focusing on transgender people who have lost their lives to violence. Here’s what you need to know.

What is Transgender Day of Remembrance?

Transgender Day of Remembrance is celebrated every November 20 and begins to commemorate Rita Hester, a transgender woman who was murdered in Massachusetts in 1999.

The day marks the end of Transgender Awareness Week, which is used to inform the public about the transgender community and the issues they face.

The Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law estimates that 1.6 million people age 13 and older in the United States identify as transgender. It is also stated that transgender people are four times more likely to be victims of violence, including rape and assault, than cisgender people.

Candlelight vigils, memorial services and other events are held to mark the day. The Human Rights Campaign also released its annual report on the deaths of transgender people in conjunction with the day.

International Transgender Day of Visibility, designed to draw attention to transgender individuals, is celebrated in March.

How many trans people lost their lives due to violence?

At least 36 transgender people have died from violence in the 12 months since the last Remembrance Day, the Human Rights Campaign said in its annual report. Since 2013, the organization noted that 372 transgender and gender-inclusive victims have died due to violence; This refers to people with a more flexible range of gender identity or expression than those typically associated with the binary gender system.

The number of victims is likely higher because many deaths are often unreported or misreported, or because victims are misgendered, leading to delays in identification.

The Human Rights Campaign said it was a slight increase from the previous year, when at least 33 transgender victims of violence were identified.

The majority of victims pursued last year were young or of different ethnic backgrounds; Half of the 36 identified were Black trans women. The youngest victim identified was 14-year-old Pauly Likens of Pennsylvania.

The organization said two-thirds of the deaths were caused by firearms. Almost a third of known victims were killed by an intimate partner, friend or family member.

What’s at stake politically?

This year’s commemoration follows an election in which advocates say victories by President-elect Donald Trump and other Republican candidates focused on issues like transgender athletes have dealt a blow to the rights of transgender people.

It also follows a series of measures in Republican states this year restricting the rights of transgender people, especially young people.

Half of the states have banned gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth. The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear arguments next month in a case challenging Tennessee’s ban.

Advocates say the legislation and rhetoric creates fewer safe spaces for transgender people, and they worry it could further encourage violence against transgender people.

Associated Press writer Jeff McMillan in northeastern Pennsylvania contributed to this report.