Words Explained: Transphobia (Transgender Day of Remembrance)

Disclaimer: This article contains mentions of multiple forms of murder. These are not described but only mentioned. However, further descriptions, which are much more graphic can be found in more detail in the PDF document listed below. If you have questions in regards to this, please email me at sophiadomingo.inkmagazine@gmail.com. See the formatted article HERE for the citations in footnotes.

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Transphobia

[trænzˈfəʊbɪə] {trans-foh-bee-uh}

(Noun) the/an aversion and/or any form of discrimination towards transgender people.

Today, as of writing, is 20 November 2020 — this year’s Transgender Day of Remembrance. On this day, we honour the people who have died due to transphobic attacks on transgender people, including non-binary people (people who are outside of the gender binary and do not identify as male or female.)

This year has been the deadliest year for transgender people yet, with at least 350 people dead across just 75 countries. This is a 6% increase from last year’s count of roughly 310 killed.

Brazil ranked with the highest number of murders with 152 transgender people killed, 43% of the world’s deaths. Mexico ranked second with 57 deaths and the United States ranked third with 37.

Murders among trans people are increasing every single year.

98% of the people murdered were transgender women or transfeminine people.

People of colour made up 79% of transgender people murdered in the United States.

38% of the murders occurred on the streets and 22% of the incidents took place in the victim’s home.

The average age of those who were killed was 31 years old.

The youngest victims were only 15.

These people, the 350 people documented, were, unfortunately, the lucky ones. So many more hate crimes go unsolved and covered up for years on end; hence, why it is at least 350 and not just 350.

The people who were found can be seen on this 90-page PDF listing some of their personal information such as name, age and occupation in addition to their cause of death.

For example, Victim #162 Lexi was a 33-year-old trans-woman and killed on 28 March 2020 in New York City, USA. (GRAPHIC WARNING for those who are disturbed) She was stabbed to death sitting on a bench at the Harlem River Park in Manhattan when someone approached her, allegedly over a wig.

May I note that that was, unfortunately, one of the much less gruesome deaths. (TRIGGER WARNING for those who are disturbed) Other examples of death include: torture, decapitation, dismembering, asphyxiation, strangulation, burning, beating, stoning, more stabbing, a whole lot of shooting and mostly unknown causes.

This is the fear that transgender people face on a day-to-day basis; that this will happen to them too.

Transphobia is serious and although people still say it is ‘solved’, this is still happening globally. Every day, prejudice against transgender people occurs in completely unacceptable manners in all forms of hatred.

This transphobia is not a fear of transgender people, as some people say it is, but the absolute hatred of them because of who they are as people.

I strongly encourage you to look through the PDF above and/or HERE and remember those who have died for simply being themselves.

As transgender advocate and founder of the Transgender Day of Remembrance Gwendolyn Ann Smith once said:

“I am no stranger to the need to fight for our rights, and the right to simply exist is first and foremost. With so many seeking to erase transgender people — sometimes in the most brutal ways possible — it is vitally important that those we lose are remembered, and that we continue to fight for justice.”

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Thank you for reading this article. I hope you look through the PDF document and come to awareness, if you haven’t already, of these people who have died.

If you have questions in regards to this article, please email me at sophiadomingo.inkmagazine@gmail.com. See the formatted article HERE for the citations in footnotes.