On November 28, 1998 an African American trans woman named Rita Hester was killed in Allston, Massachusetts. No arrests were made in her murder. Trans activists and community members in Boston had enough of these stories, and started the annual Transgender Day of Remembrance on November 20th, 1999. Every November 20th since then has been a somber day of reading the names of transgender people around the world who have lost their lives in the past year.
A quick google search can find more about TDOR, and where to find local commemorative events.
“Grieve. So that you can be free to feel something else.” Nayyirah Waheed
How do you grieve? Do you have any cultural, familiar, spiritual, or religious practices that allow you to grieve fully and safely? Many cultures and religions have codified rituals for grief, such as sitting shiva for the Jewish people, or Jazz Funerals in New Orleans. Have TDOR events been a part of your grieving in the past? What are you grieving this November, and how can you honor that grief, so that you “can be free to feel something else”?
