Table of Diversity Weekly: Trans Day of Visibility

Do this activity with me. Think of the #BlackLivesMatter movement. Without using the internet, name 5 Black men who have died and been highlighted by the Black Lives Matter movement. You can probably think of 5 easily...#TrayvonMartin, #GeorgeFloyd, #EricGarner, #PhilandoCastile, #MichaelBrown. Keep going!

Without using the internet, name 5 Black women who have died and been highlighted by the Black Lives Matter movement. How many could you recall?

Without using the internet, name 5 Black transwomen who have died and been highlighted by the Black Lives Matter movement. How did you do?

This is an activity I facilitate during my Intersectionality training to illustrate how people at the intersection of multiple marginalized identities are, often, even further marginalized. I normally see people name more than 5 Black men, around 3-4 Black women, and zero Black transwomen.

It's not that Black transwomen aren't dying at disproportionate numbers, Black transwomen are being targeted and killed at an astonishing rate. It could be that the Black Lives Matter movement hasn't highlighted them or maybe you're not connected to the networks that would highlight Black transwomen. Perhaps, there's an opportunity to learn more about the trans community.

That's what this week's issue of A Healthy Dose of DEI is all about- Trans Day of Visibility- an opportunity to highlight and elevate trans voices and experiences. In addition to raising awareness of the violence against the trans community, Trans Day of Visibility celebrates the presence and contributions of the trans community in the world.

Check out this week's activity to move one step further in your journey!

Read. Watch. Listen

Resources to learn more!

Trans Day of Visibility- GLAAD

"Each year on March 31, the world observes Transgender Day of Visibility (TDOV) to raise awareness about transgender people. It is a day to celebrate the lives and contributions of trans people, while also drawing attention to the poverty, discrimination, and violence the community faces.

International TDOV was created in 2010 by trans advocate Rachel Crandall. Crandall, the head of Transgender Michigan, created TDOV in response to the overwhelming majority of media stories about transgender people being focused on violence. She hoped to create a day where people could re-focus on celebrating the lives of transgender people, empowering them to live authentically, while still acknowledging that due to discrimination, not every trans person can or wants to be visible."

Read More

For trans people, medical visits can be more traumatizing than healing

"One trans woman recalled a doctor calling her "it." A nonbinary person was grilled about their use of "they/them" pronouns during an ultrasound. A trans-masculine person moved out of Tennessee, fearing they would lose access to hormone therapy as legislators passed bills restricting gender-affirming care.

Transgender Americans often face subtle discrimination, outright hostility and ill-informed medical professionals in their interactions with the health-care system, according to a poll by The Washington Post and KFF, a nonprofit focused on national health issues.

Challenges arise during routine medical visits as well as when transgender people seek hormone therapy and other forms of gender-affirming care."

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She lost her trans son to suicide. Can a Kentucky lawmaker make her colleagues care?

"I keep searching for his smell, but I can't find it," she said, rooting through his old shirts. She found herself returning to his childhood bedroom. "God, I could use his advice right now," she said quietly, as she leafed through his high school yearbooks. It was in ninth grade- when Henry came out as transgender to his classmates- that the cruelty and isolation peaked. Parents Karen had known for more than a decade called to say they didn't want Henry talking to their kids anymore. Bullies hacked his Tumblr blog and repeatedly sent him messages telling him to kill himself. The first of several suicide attempts followed soon after.

From one crate, she pulled a thick stack of binders from Henry's time at George Washington University in D.C. 'These must've been from his classes when he came home during covid,' she said. As she flipped through them, the neatly penciled handwriting on one college-ruled page jumped out at her. 'Oh, my God,' she whispered as she made out the first words on the page.

'What am I living for?' it read. 'Why? What is keeping me?'

Underneath, her son had written out in tidy columns across two pages the apparent pros and cons of killing himself.

'I can't,' Karen said, struggling to breathe. 'I didn't expect this. I'm not ready.'

Read More

This Week's Activities

Most people report not knowing any transgender people, let's change that! This week's activity is to do the following:

• Donate your resources (money, time, voice) in support of a pro trans organization.

• If you are on social media, follow and amplify a trans advocate.

• Educate yourself on local legislation and contact your legislature on anything that might be harmful to the trans community.

• Share your thoughts in the comments!